Life...

So now that it has been 3 weeks and we are settling down I want to share some of my thoughts on things here in Uganda.

• People here are generally nice and welcoming.  The funny part is there are usually two types of people.  Those who smile and say Hi or some sort of greeting and then those who just stare at you like you are a ghost or something.  And that goes for adults and kids.  Most kids say “mzungu by-eeeee” as I walk by which is cute.  They all learn English in school.  The kids are taught to say simple things from very early on.  You can ask a 2 year old how they are and they will say “I am fine”.  Everyone is fine in Uganda no matter their circumstances.
• Prices go up as soon as they see my white self.  When we were searching for the LandCruiser we went to a car lot unannounced and I told Abdu “Did you just feel all the prices go up?”  And they did.  They told us the price for the LandCruiser and we ended up getting it for significantly lower once we were firm in our stance.
• Everything in Uganda is a negotiation.  Very few prices are actually the prices you end up paying.  From rent of an apartment to food to clothing to transportation.  Which is exhausting to me because I do not like negotiating.  Just tell me the price and let me go on.
• I don’t feel like a minority…it’s strange to say that because I hardly ever see another American or European around but when I’m walking or riding around I don’t feel like a minority even though I clearly am.  If it wasn't for the people who just stare at me I would feel like I’m a Ugandan and just going on with my day.
• Traffic in Kampala is serious.  Abdu keeps trying to tell me I have to learn how to drive here…I just don’t know about that…maybe in a year or something.  I don’t understand how they know where to go or what to do.  There’s no street signs, barely any stop lights or stop signs.  It just looks like mass chaos most of the time and you just put your nose in front of someone else’s car and go for it…
• Navigating where I am is still quite a struggle.  Half the time I don’t know where I live let alone where other things are.  I am getting better at recognizing things but then Abdu will take a different route and turns my world upside down.
• I hate wearing bug spray and sunscreen…well really even lotions.  I don’t like feeling slimy or greasy it just makes me feel dirty.  I wear long skirts/pants and a jacket every night to protect me from the mosquitoes.  I never thought I would wear a jacket in Uganda!  My arms are getting darker.  My left arm is darker than my right arm because the left one is in the window when we are driving.  It has burned once and peeled already.  I told Abdu I was going to have to either learn how to drive or sit in the backseat to even out the right arm.  Haha!
• It rains a lot in Kampala.  In all of my previous trips most of my time was spent in Karamoja where it is incredibly dry and doesn't rain often.  It has rained almost every day in Kampala and we have been without power for days at a time because of it.  I didn't realize it was like that.  Makes me nervous about an outdoor wedding reception….just saying.
• I never thought I would say “I’m cold” while in Uganda.  But the other day I was home by myself and it was cloudy and the wind was blowing and I was like whew it is cold.  I started laughing because I actually admitted out loud (even though it was to myself) that it was cold in Uganda!  I admitted it to Abdu when he got home…he laughed.
• Laundry is some kind of work that’s for sure.  I've had help with most of our clothes but there are some things that you don’t want others to do for you.  Never take your washing machine and dryer for granted!  I miss those two more than any other appliance.  We washed on Saturday and they weren't dry so we took them in at night.  It rained Sunday so the wet clothes sat with nowhere to hang them.  Monday we put them back out.  If they were in the sun they dried.  If they were in the shade they didn't.  Back in Monday night.  Then it rained Tuesday….you see where I’m going here.  It is such a process!
• Cooking….so anyone who knows me knows that I do not cook.  Not because I probably couldn't do it.  But that I was spoiled by my parents and didn't need to.  Without the luxury of having a refrigerator you essentially have to buy each day what you’re going to cook that day or the next day.  Abdu cooks some things but we have one little burner.  It’s an electric burner.  We have been without power for 6 days on and off.  It seems like when we need it, it goes off.  Like right now it has been off since during the night and I’m using my laptop battery until it dies…  But I hope to learn how to make some things that Abdu will like to eat too.
• Food is my biggest issue as I knew it would be.  I’m not a fan of the traditional Ugandan foods.  My choices are usually limited to chicken, fish, goat or beef for meat and I usually pick chicken.  I like the fish but they give you the entire fish on a platter and it stares as you while you eat it.  With any meat, I’m not good at cleaning all the meat off the bones.  Abdu tells me to finish it and I look at it and say “it is as good as I can get it.”  I might turn into a potato soon because that’s what I like the best.  Irish potatoes that is cooked in a sort of soup or irish potatoes that are cut up into French fries (or as they call them “chips”).  Rice is ok on occasion but I’m not a big fan after being scarred from our first trip with flies and ants in the rice in the village.  I like fruits but have never been a vegetable person but am trying what I can.  Going to the more expensive places that have pizza and other things like that are not really an option right now because we are watching our spending very closely.  But I’m surviving and not starving.
• I’m losing weight as I expected I would.  Things that didn't fit when I left US are fitting already.  I need to get a scale to make sure I don’t lose too much because my wedding dress needs to fit in about 2 months from now.
• Abdu is a wonderful partner in life.  He is always concerned about my happiness, physical and mental health, safety, comfort, and spiritual life.  I do not know what I would do without him.  He’s going to be a great husband and I am thankful for all God is doing in our lives.  I am constantly praying that I will be as good of a wife for him.

Overall, I’m not surprised by much of what has occurred over the last 3 weeks.  I had been here enough to know how most things are.  I’m okay without air conditioning.  I've gotten used to sleeping without a fan for the noise.  I am comfortable when walking around.  I've learned how to find my way from where we park to our church.  One day I need to get someone to video tape that trek so you can see what it’s like.  So, I’m settling in and we’re settling into life together.

Stay tuned…