Sipi Falls

Last weekend we visited Sipi Falls. This 100 meter high water fall is located in south eastern Uganda and less than 25miles from the Kenyan border. Over lunch we had the opportunity to view the water fall from afar, appreciating its beauty and anticipating our jump off of it. Well, more like a controlled fall from its top (aka a type of repelling).

After lunch we drove over to its top. People looked pretty confident going up to the cliffs edge. By the time they were hooked up to the rope, though, everyone’s confidence seemed to waver.

Personally, I was doing okay until they told me to climb over the edge of the cliff. I could feel this nervous energy taking over my body. Surprisingly, only after I started walking down the cliff side did I begin to feel better. About a quarter of the way down, the cliff juts in. From then on, I was lowered down. Slowly, I spun around on my 1 inch wide rope. The lush green valley stretched before me, while mist from the falls drifted onto me.

As beautiful as it was, I have to admit, it felt pretty good to have my feet hit the ground afterwards. Heights are not my forte, but I wanted my classmates back home to get the full benefit of my Ugandan experience. The things I do for you people!

Here's a little video from my home stay.

Mission Moving Mountains:
Our first week in Uganda was spent at Mission Moving Mountains (MMM). This organization is community based, focusing on preventative health teaching. It preaches 14 points to a healthy home which includes simple things like having a latrine, growing your own food, and having a safe water source. After working within a community, they teach its member to go out into neighboring areas to spread their points. They’ve found this approach to be quite effective.

While at MMM’s site in Mbale, I had the opportunity to stay with a rural family for two nights. Our family’s home was pretty nice comparatively. Plus, it had electricity! They let me peel potatoes and shred up some cabbage, but I had to do a little begging before they’d let me help. Honestly, they were quite a bit faster, so I really wasn’t helping them out that much J.
Two other nursing students came with me on my home stay. Most of our time was spent playing games with the kids. We brought bubbles and playing cards to keep them entertained. We also played some clapping games with them.

During our stint at MMM, we also attended a community meeting. The community we went to was one that had successfully implemented MMM’s health teaching. Several community leaders attended, including some traditional midwives. MMM then gave us a taste of how they implement their holistic teaching in a community. Overall, it was a very interesting week!

A note on mosquito netting:
Although it looks incredibly majestic and exotic, in actuality it is a complete pain. Air turns stagnant underneath it. I get tangled in it. And, if done incorrectly (which is often the case with me) at least one mosquito seems to get inside it. So, now the mosquito can bite me to its heart’s content which completely defeats the purpose of the netting.

January 2-6th: Safari Time

So, a couple things…
First---No, that top picture is not of me
Second---No, I am not on vacation….looks can be deceiving ;)

Our first weekend in Uganda was spent touring the country. This of course is very important because as we all know, seeing the country with 32 other Americans in buses really allows you to directly interact with the culture. At the very least Ugandas will point, stare, and shout out “munzungo” (which means white person). You can imagine the important impact our presence has on a community.

Our tour began at “Monkey Island” which is one of the many small islands located in Lake Victoria. They rescue monkeys from other areas and bring them to the island for rehabilitation. In order to reach the island they take you on a "speed" boat. You have to wonder about the overall safety of the boat when they require you to wear bright yellow rain jackets and an orange lifepreserver with a whistle attached.

The Zoo was another pit-stop. Did you see my lion photo? Don’t worry, he’s not dead, just tired after I wrestled with him. From there we traveled up to Murchison Falls. Because this is Uganda, Dave, our leader, very seriously told us we would be on the bus anywhere from 6-12hours. Please envision our facial reaction.

Murchinson falls was beautiful! Most of the Nile flows through this small 100foot or so gap in the rocks. Then it tumbles down the crevice, before continuing on its journey north. We spent around an hour here, just relaxing by the rushing water.

The next day we went on safari, which sounded pretty cool, until our leader told us “safari” is simply a general term which means “journey”. A complete look of disappointment crossed all our faces. Only when a wild baboon popped out of the bush was this horrible information be wiped from our minds and our gleeful smiles returned.

Amsterdam: At the beginning

Friday, January 2nd

(sorry all this is a little bit of a retrospective posting)

Here I sit in the airport. I just snapped that picture of Amsterdam airport’s holiday decorations and I’m thinking a little shut eye sounds good right now. My computer, which is not on Amsterdonian time, tells me it’s 2 am. Unfortunately, the big clock in front of me, with the correct time, tells be brightly that it’s 9am. I hate that clock…

Despite my pessimistic perspective on the time change, I realize it is all worth it. Tonight I’ll be in Uganda. I’ll finally be warm, and I’ll actually be allowed to sleep in a bed ---Three beautiful thoughts.