Family Visit

My family finally made it out to visit me. We had to rearrange the visit a little, but we had a blast. They arrived late Thursday night and I let them sleep for about 5 hours before we were headed north to Jinja to go rafting. Luckily, despite some car troubles, we made it to the rafting site just in time. Rebecca, Zack, Jake, and I headed out to conquer the Nile. I tried not to spook them too much or ruin the excitement for them, but I certainly did throw in a couple stories that got them a little nervous. We also placed a friendly bet on who the first to be tossed out of the raft would be. We had a great time, despite the fact that both Zack and Jake are incompetent and unable to keep any sort of a tempo with their paddling. Zack lost the bet as he was tossed out on the 2nd major rapid, although naturally, he blames Jake.

Mom, Dad, and Leah took a less exciting, but still enjoyable boat ride to see the Source of the Nile River. They had a great time and were happy to see that we had survived.

The next morning was another early departure as we were driving the 8 hours down to Mbarara. Rather than put the family up at the one nice hotel in town, we stayed out in Nsiikye at the Montfort (where Connor, Brian, and Annie lived). That afternoon was filled with playing soccer with the local kids, meeting the families, and naturally being asked to help sponsor kids for school. While the rest of the family got to rest a bit, I had a bit of surprise planned for them that night and was scrambling to get things together. It had just been my Dad’s birthday, my mom had had her birthday about 3 weeks before, my sister graduated from Wake Forest, and Jake was about to graduate high school. I was throwing a surprise goat roast for them. I had arranged for goats, beer, music, and dancing. I invited all my co-workers and friends and we had a blast. The family was pretty tired so we didn’t make it out to the discotheque, but we did have a great time.

After sleeping in a bit Sunday morning, we were invited over to one of the villager’s home. We sat down in the living room of their comparatively large two-room mud-house. We were served plenty of delicious black Ugandan tea and G-nuts. Then came the main course of matoke, fried cassava and potatoes, beef stew, and rice. It was all topped off by some fresh paw-paw (papaya). We then gathered for some great family photos outside and played a little soccer. We then toured the small banana plantation behind their cluster of homes. We were given some freshly cut sugar cane.

The rest of the afternoon was more hanging out with the kids and another soccer match. It was fun playing soccer with the family, because Zack and Jake are just as cocky about their soccer skills as they are with their bball skills (which they actually have…). Watching them playing was funny, they held their own just fine considering we were playing with only 2 kids older than 12. It was a lot of fun for all of us and all the kids.

Monday morning we went over to join Miss K at Mburara International. We were warmly received and after a nice talk over tea with Miss K, the kids put on a bit of presentation for us that culminated in a large dance circle. Next thing I knew, Steve-o had on a grass skirt and was dancing around like a little kid. The rest of the family joined in no time and the students and teachers were all very pleased that we were participating. After the dancing, we moved down to the play area to partake in some competitive volleyball and soccer matches. The teachers (primarily male) can get pretty competitive when it comes to sports. We had a great time and the students who weren’t playing, we sitting around watching and enjoying watching the Mzungus play. We had a great time at the school and it definitely left a lasting impression on everyone. Mburara is a very nice school, but it is over-crowded and my family couldn’t believe that they had 3 different classes operating out of one living room with only 1 wood wall in between that only went ¾ of the way up to the ceiling.

I then took the family into the central market in Mbarara to have a walk around and to buy some fabric. My sisters are getting bags and dresses made. We also bought some delicious avocados for 100 schillings each (5 cents). That night we had a delicious feast at the Montfort with the seminary boys (Jailos, David, Dido, and Gideon) and Father Charlie. It was a good way to go out of Mbarara as the next morning it was off to Ndali Lodge in Fort Portal. The Montfort has been great to me and very welcoming over the past 6 months and I know the family felt very welcomed and comfortable there.

We left for Ndali early the next morning and got there early afternoon. It is a beautiful set of “bandas” situated right on the rim of a crater lake with a view of the Rwenzori Mountains and the rolling hills. We had some delicious steak and chips for lunch (quite a treat for me to say the least) and fresh fish for dinner. We had a nice relaxing afternoon and soaked up the scenery and enjoyed some sugar cane and Cuban cigars in the evening. The next morning we went off to Kibale National Park to go Chimpanzee Tracking. We had to tell a little white lie so Leah could join as you have to be 12 years old to go. No problem though and within 45 minutes we were watching a family of 4 chimps eating fruit and hanging out in the trees above us. We had a great time and I was very pleased we got to see the chimps as I had had 2 bad experiences before which you may remember (as I got attacked by some African Killer Bees… (killer is just for effect)).

That night we headed off to Amsterdam for the weekend. I had mixed feelings about leaving for 4-5 days because I am going home so soon, but it was a great time and it was nice to be with the family. We went to a bunch of museums, ate some GREAT food (at least compared to Uganda), biked through the park, walked through town, and other stuff…but I must keep this PG. I did crash pretty hard and did some catching up on sleep. I didn’t really realize how draining working and organizing the family trip was.

Anyway, I am back in Mbarara now after a joyful chicken-piss smelling and overcrowded bus ride back. Gotta love it. I have two weeks left and I am shocked. It has snuck up on me fast. I am working to transition my project to Dr. Kigozi Isaac. It should be a rather smooth transition, but things always pop up. I will be taking advantage of my remaining time here and spending a lot of time with my friends and people in the village.

I will try to make one more post before I get home, but I might not get around to it. If not, I will write a wrap up post when I get home reflecting on my time here. It has been a remarkable and rewarding experience. I have made some truly great friends and definitely have a different take on a lot of things now. I look forward to getting the chance to come back to visit as I know I won’t be able to stay away from this place. The people have welcomed me more than I could have imagined – not to mention they love my dance moves.

For those of you in the Boston area, I will see you soon. Now it is off to enjoy my last two weeks.