Back in The Chaos of Kampala (June 29th)

Karibuni (welcome to) Kampala - the city of dust, traffic jams and guns.

Well, my return to Gulu has been delayed a bit due to my hosts attending funeral services and the burial of a close friend. Their live-in nanny/maid also lost an aunt two days ago so the place is a bit chaotic. Not in the sense that I am witnessing outward grieving like I would expect (and participate in) back home, but chaotic in the sense of coordinating attending burials "up country" and who will pick up the children and look after them, etc.

The time in Kampala has given me the opportunity to catch up with a lot of my friends here which has been great, plus the opportunity to stroll the streets and reminisce. It's difficult to describe how I've been feeling. I've been a bit jet lagged plus have an annoying cold, so my energy levels haven't been high - and emotionally I feel a little out of sorts. I'm not sure - maybe it's reverse reverse culture shock I'm experiencing??

I have learnt a lot of lugambo (gossip) in the last couple of days - both good and bad. Some has been quite sad - for example I learnt that one of our drivers and the lady who used to clean our house had been fired and arrested after one (or both) of them stole money from the office. Even sadder was the fact that our security guard at home had lost his job as they have now employed a security company.

I have also been reminded that the problems of Africa can sometimes be too much for me. Even in the relative prosperity in the capital of Kampala, my friends' lugambo over the last couple of years is more often bad than good. I felt like I was going to snap two of my close female friends when I hugged them as they had lost so much weight, mainly through stress they experienced in two very different situations. Their stories are too personal to write on here but were things I had no idea about, even though I am in fairly regular contact with them from home. One story I will relay to you is that of Peter, a driver from the north who I used to use quite a bit and now has been employed by the organisation I used to work for. He is supporting his Mum, wife and daughter, who was born just before I left Uganda and they all lived in a very small room in Kampala that was their bedroom, living room, kitchen all in one. When I was in Uganda before, he used to share his stories with me of his past and how he was driving taxis to save for his university fees. He rang me in Australia when he found out he had been accepted into university and was so proud of his achievement. Unfortunately, when I bumped into him the other day he told me, with a shrug and the smile still not leaving his face, that he was no longer studying as he had a "few problems". It was not until I enquired further that I learned that these "problems" involved his whole place burning down as his neighbour had come home drunk, knocked a candle and set both rooms on fire. He lost absolutely everything but was just thankful that his fmaily members had been spared.

I must admit it was with very mixed emotions that I went to the office of the organisation I used to work for. There have been a lot of changes since I was there - starting with the fact they actually have an office (we used to work from home), plus two cars, a country director, regional coordinator, etc etc. Some of these things I had advocated for while I was working with them, but unfortunately the focus of most of my efforts while I was here - to obtain more community ownership throught the employment of Ugandans into decision making positions has not occurred. I know I have to let it go and move on but it's hard when you witness a lot of your hard work go to waste.

Anyhows, to finish with a couple of my observations over the last couple of days...

You know you're back in Kampala when...
- People greet you with, "Amy - it seems as if you've put on some weight?"
- Diesel fumes and dust constrict your throat
- You get stuck in traffic jams all of the time
- There are guns and security guards everywhere
- You go to basketball training with your old team and you train for two hours without a drink break, there is no drinking water on site, your knees hurt from twisting them when you land in pot holes (on the court) and almost collapse from all the running while breathing in the dust and the smoke - and then at the end of training you all talk about how useless you all are and how next time you need to train harder.
- The potholes on the roads are everwhere, even outside really nice houses in posh areas.
- "Amy, I'm on my way coming - I'll be there in about five minutes" means you will be stuck waiting on the side of the road for about an hour
- Your Ugandan accent reemerges along with your favourite Ugandanisms - eg "for me", "somehow", "sorry sorry" and my personal favourite, "Ee banange! That is a Mzungu price!"
-People are so generous and feed you and pay for your transport because you have come to see them - and any protest you make offends them.

You know you've been gone a while when...
- You go to your local stage to catch up with your old "boda boda" and "special" drivers, but most of them are no longer there
- A lot of your friends have started wearing glassess! Before, it was only my Kenyan friends who wore them, but now I am seeing Ugandans everywhere with them. A sign of increased development in Uganda???...
- A lot more buildings have sprung up and the men working manually in the trenches are now accompanied by machines that help them to dig.
- Your local supermarket that used to be one storey and have everything you ever needed and was for special occasions when you didn't want to buy from the market - is now three storeys high and even sells clothes!
- A lot of your friends are proving hard to trace as there phones are no longer in service and they no longer work in the place they used to.

You know you haven't been gone so long when...
- The building being constructed opposite the YMCA basketball court where you train is still not finished!
- You can sit at the post office in town and bump into people you know
- You don't really notice the guns, unlike the first time when you were here and it took ages to get accustomed to.
- The languages start coming back to you slowly slowly (pole pole)
- Your stomach seems to be handling the local food ok so far (touch wood).

Ok, time to hit the road.
Hope all is well,
Amy

You Know You're Back in Uganda When... (June 27th)

After a journey that has taken you over 3 days (albeit with a 24 hour stopover in beautiful Mauritius - can't complain about that), you arrive at Entebbe airport after rushing through immigration and to pick up your luggage, in excited anticipation to see your Ugandan family who are meeting you at the airport, you rush through the doors... and there is nobody there to meet you!!

So, you don't panic and realise that the soccer (or what I must now refer to as football) is on,s o you join the crowd and watch the last (heartbreaking) minutes - and cluck your tongue and grunt along with the Ugandans who have surrounded and are consoling you, all the while looking back over your shoulder to see if your family has arrived.

After politely declining the throng of taxi drivers who approach you, assuring them that you have someone who is coming to pick you, you settle in to watch the next game - and finally you spot your family who rush at you with hugs and "Amy, I'm so sorry" - but you have already forgotten their lateness - and their reason of having come from a funeral is a good excuse - but you are just so happy to see them and to once again be back in Uganda...

GREAT EXPECTATIONS, June 24th

It has been almost 2 years since I left Uganda. 2 years that have been surprisingly harder adjustment wise than the 12 months I spent in the ‘Pearl of Africa’. Those 12 months significantly changed the direction of my life and my perspective of this world by adding another lens onto the way I view things. The two years back home have been spent worrying how I can possibly integrate this new perspective into my ‘old’ way of life and suffering from what can only be described as a very bad dose of reverse culture shock – not feeling like I belonged, struggling to find things to connect with, hating listening to people complain about money, not knowing how to use the angst I felt to change the things around me… the list goes on.

I promised myself I would not return to Uganda until I knew I was and could be happy back home in Oz. That time has come. For four precious weeks I am returning to the place where I have sobbed and sobbed like I never have before. Where I have felt so completely helpless and witnessed the effects of such atrocities that still cause me to have nightmares. But it is also the place where I have laughed so hard my face has ached. And where I have learnt that the pure sources of joy can be found in small things that tend not to be prioritised at home. There are some things money can’t buy…

I do have somewhat great expectations for my four weeks in Uganda. My main goals are to primarily work in the war affected north by assisting the staff at HEALS, the organisation started by my dear friend Jolly, which works with children in Gulu affected by the war – displaced children, night commuters, former child combatants… and to catch up with all of my Ugandan friends and my Ugandan family. I have missed them all terribly. A lot can happen in two years – some friends have got married, some have had babies but I think the hardest thing for me will be the realisation that one of my Ugandan sisters, Christine has passed away. Somehow it doesn’t seem so real from the other side of the world.

I also crave to once again feel the depth of emotions and senses that make me feel so alive. I can’t wait to once again dance in the village with the local dancing group and laugh with the audience that are laughing at me. And to sit on the back of a boda boda and take in the sensory overload of the sights, smells and sounds of Uganda as the wind rushes against my face. These are some of the things I have missed.

This blog is my attempt to capture my journey and experiences during this holiday in Uganda. In particular, I aim to highlight the situation in northern Uganda from first hand experiences plus provide updates to those who were previous subscribers to “Aussie Amy’s All African Adventures”. I am not sure what my internet access will be like (and my access to electricity) so I will most likely be placing a number of postings up at once. I will date them all though, and keep them in chronological order. Hopefully I’ll also be able to post some photos as I go.

So, sit back, relax and enjoy the latest instalment of my adventures in the Pearl of Africa.