Last Days in Uganda

Tomorrow it's strange to think that my Ugandan adventures will be ending already. The last 8 weeks have quite literally flown by - but that I am thankful for - I have really tried to appreciate everyday here, not wishing any away. Well maybe the 2 weekends I got food poisoning could have been better, but you just can't come to Africa and be scared all the time. Note to self: don't eat somosas from roadside stand that are no longer hot. Should have been a no-brainer, but people do eat them here all the time (including foreigners), and you don't usually get sick, but I guess there is always a chance that that one thing you eat will. At least I can say I really enjoyed my time here and did not spend my time being paralyzed by thoughts of getting food poisoning or malaria. The nurse who gave me my travel shots back in Arizona warned me not to eat any food off the street, and to avoid fruits and vegetables. Well sure, you might not get sick as often if you ate nothing, but it wouldn't be very fun, and you sure would be missing out on the best pineapple, mangoes, tomatoes, and chapati ever.

I will traveling with an American friend to Tanzania tomorrow.  We will be flying into Dar Es Salaam - the largest city in the country - and staying with some AIESEC people there for 2 nights. Dar is supposed to be a bit crazier than Kampala, and while I am definitely excited to see what another part of Africa looks like, I know it's going to bring with it a whole new set of challenges and stresses. After we see Dar, we are hopping on a two hour ferry that will take us to the Tanzanian island Zanzibar. The island is pretty touristy, but after googling the place I think you can see why. I will definitely post pictures as soon as I get home. We will sight see and hang out in Stone Town, and then eventually go sit out on the white sand beaches for a few days and do absolutely nothing. After that, we head back to the city, and I will start the long trip back: Dar es Salaam - Nairobi - Zurich - Frankfurt - Denver. 

I haven't blogged much the last two weeks just because I've been so busy. Since I last wrote, we have a new neighbor up north - South Sudan - and protests have begun again in Kampala over high fuel and food prices. The protests have mostly been peaceful, but Ugandans are really feeling the pinch of rising prices. 

I've been meaning to mention that the mini-buses that we all use for public transportation have these hilarious and random sayings written on the top of their windshields. I have been keeping a list of ones that I see on the way to and from Iganga. Here is a picture I found on the web of an example of what the back looks like of the matatu with a phrase: Photo Usually I forget to write them down though, so this is my short, yet nevertheless quite strange, list of matatu phrase. Many times the sayings are religious, which I can sort of understand, but more than half of them tend to be seemingly random words linked together to make a partial phrase.  The religious ones tend to be things like "Heaven Above" or "Praise the Lord," but the weirdest ones are ones like these: "Texas Salon" - I asked a friend about this one, and he said they meant to put up "Texas Saloon", which makes only slightly more sense? "Missed Calls" and "Man of All Seasons" just seem mysterious?  Another one was just the typo that made me laugh: "Gods Plan" - strange statement to make for a Christian. Copy editing people, please. Other really random ones include:  "Two in One," "Big is Big," and "Easy to Say." I have tried to get a straight answer from many people on where the drivers get these premade stickers and who decides what they say, but no one seems to know. 

Saying goodbye to everyone here, the city, and work has been tough. My friends at work threw me a surprise going away party on Friday afternoon, and came in singing and dancing, and even brought me a beautiful cake, chocolate, and soda! I had the opportunity to work with almost all of the employees at the office, and by the end it was so hard to say goodbye. I look forward to visiting sometime in the future, so I know that goodbye is not forever. 

Anyways, I will update again once I am back from Tanzania and in the U.S. Thanks for following so far, and I am sure there will be some interesting stories to tell.