my brother brian is currently in kampala, uganda, on a mission to build a teacher's house for watoto (www.watoto.com) - a non profit organization that cares for orphan children in uganda. he has been sharing his experience with us via email. his stories are so impelling and enlightening that i knew we had to post them on this blog and share them with as many people as possible. hope you enjoy the entries and pictures that i will be posting throughout the next couple of days.
wausuze otyano! (wa.soo.zay - ohtee.y) good morning!
ok so this is a long email, Uganda 101. what i've seen and my views based on the first few days here. it certainly has been eventful.
where to start...this place is truly amazing. its a lot safer than i expected. i almost feel safer here than in some parts of Toronto. seriously. the people are so friendly. when they see Mzungu (ma.zoon.goo - white people) in a group as large as ours then welcome us as they know we are most likely here to help. the kids in the city approach the bus when we stop and follow us when we continue driving through the city. its something you only see in National Geographic! the bugs are almost non-existent. only at night if any and they are a lot worse sitting out back at home than they are here. we walk at night after dinner to a gelato spot about 10 minutes from here. there is a local guy that comes with us, and usually about 10 or so others so we have a large group, but again there are no threats. a big cup of gelato is 1000 schillings or 50 cents. (1800 schillings = 1 US dollar) food is cheap here as well. we went to the mall and got some snacks for our lunches for when we start building. of course i did a store check and found Marmite and Colman's mustard but no Fisherman Friends. a lot of western brands here too. beer is here but as a Ugandian christian it is frowned upon. sigh. we have to respect them as it is their home and not ours and that's ok by me. the safari is ok as it is outside of the city. you really have to think twice and sometimes three times before you do things here. walking into the bush to relieve yourself at our build site seems innocent but in fact there are black mamba's and king cobra snakes that could potentially kill you in one bite if not treated right away. we have proper medical attention on site but still have to be very careful.
our house:
we have 19 people here, think of it as a huge bed and breakfast. the locals that host us are so nice and the food they prepare is amazing. all homemade dishes. lots of fresh fish from lake victoria. when we come back from walking around after dinner they are all sitting on the couch relaxing. when they see us walk in they jump up and ask if we need anything. we usually bring them back gelato and tell them to sit and relax!
our build team:
aussie's - jeff, stuart, mike & karen and their 3 children, rachel, james and kaitlyn.
canadians - eric, jilian, fred, troy, ben and myself
british - diana and pat
american - shelley
we also have 2 others that are on a medical team staying here from Portland but they are on a different mission than us.
religion:
christian is very big here. the locals are brought up on god and for a lot of them its all they have. "God will listen to us" is what they say. KPC is the central church we go to every sunday. its all worship and they acknowledged us as a team in front of 4000 people. we stood up and they all cheered as Watoto is a very big part of the church and everyone knows what it stands for and why we are there. they have a 200+ choir, lights and a full band that plays. its quite the experience although i felt VERY disrespected not being religious. "non religious people are dead to society" there are a few others like me and we will all pass next sunday. that may not go over well but it was personal to us so.
photographs:
driving and walking through the city was an experience in itself. you have to be very careful when taking pictures of the locals. they can get offended very easily. all you have to do is ask and they will say yes or no. the rule of thumb is: "if i was in their shoes, would i want my picture taken?" as much as i want to show you guys the poverty here through pictures, it may be tough to get. here's what i mean: we were walking by a house and on the porch there were about 10 kids sitting with their mother. a mix of boys and girls. they were very poor, barely had clothing on their back. i looked at one little girl and she was eating a handful of sand because they were hungry, or should i say starving. i
didn't even ask for that picture but you get the idea of what its like. don't worry, we spent 3 hours at the orphanage yesterday and the kids there LOVE getting their pictures take and man, they are the cutest little kids (more on that below). as well as in the villages when we build, its the same, pictures are more than welcome.
the orphanage:
like i said we spent 3 hours there yesterday. its called Baby Watoto - bulrushes and it was built to house orphan kids. some kids are actually left at the front gates. could you imagine. when parents have kids that have defects, they don't want them and usually dump them in bins, the side of the road or at the front gates of this place. sad. one little guy abdul but i called him Jordan (he was wearing a michael jordan jersey) has a deranged face. his parents fed him acid as a kid and it burnt his lips almost right off. there are currently 92 kids there ranging from 1 month to 3 years. after they turn 3ish they are sent to the villages where the houses and schools are that we build. from there they are given a nanny mother and they have access to school and a chance at a good life. as soon as you walk in, they see you and open their arms! we read books, feed and play with them. when we leave they have sad faces.
our agenda:
tonight is sunday, we are 8 hours ahead of CDN time. we start building tomorrow everyday until friday the 21st. days start early as we have to beat the city traffic to the village (45 minutes from here). from what i hear the kids at the Suubi village where we build are adorable. we break at lunch to play soccer with them. should be fun. next weekend is shopping for crafts and relax time. the safari starts monday the 25th and runs until wednesday morning. we changed the agenda on wednesday. there are 7 of us on the safari and we all agreed after we wanted to visit a village called Gulu. its northeast of the lodge so it made sense to go right from the safari. Gulu is a refugee camp. Watoto is just starting to build there, houses and medical facilities. LRA (Lords resistance Army) is a malitia that fights north of Gulu - a civil war that has been going on in Uganda for almost 20 years now. the LRA captures families, kids and parents, and turns them into war kids. they take the women (15+ years old) and they become sex slaves for the army. once the women are impregnated they dump them in the jungle as they are now "tainted" and no longer wanted. they can't go home because their families disown them now that they are carrying a 'war child' inside them. the kids, get turned into killers and often are ordered to murder their families. so, watoto is building there and they have missions to rescue and find the mothers and children that are dumped into the jungle. from there they are brought in, treated (mentally and physically) until they are ok to join another village closer to the city that is also part of Watoto. from what i hear its 'safe' there but i won't lie, i'm a bit nervous about that trip. its a day there and we are staying over to help out then return back here to the house on the 27th. were not rescuing, but nurturing kids and doing whatever else needs to be done. some people here that went last year said its very disturbing but worth the trip.
ok i'm done for now. next update will be a later in the week as we are building and unless something really neat happens i'll leave it until then.
Weelaba! (way.la.ba) good bye!
wausuze otyano! (wa.soo.zay - ohtee.y) good morning!
ok so this is a long email, Uganda 101. what i've seen and my views based on the first few days here. it certainly has been eventful.
where to start...this place is truly amazing. its a lot safer than i expected. i almost feel safer here than in some parts of Toronto. seriously. the people are so friendly. when they see Mzungu (ma.zoon.goo - white people) in a group as large as ours then welcome us as they know we are most likely here to help. the kids in the city approach the bus when we stop and follow us when we continue driving through the city. its something you only see in National Geographic! the bugs are almost non-existent. only at night if any and they are a lot worse sitting out back at home than they are here. we walk at night after dinner to a gelato spot about 10 minutes from here. there is a local guy that comes with us, and usually about 10 or so others so we have a large group, but again there are no threats. a big cup of gelato is 1000 schillings or 50 cents. (1800 schillings = 1 US dollar) food is cheap here as well. we went to the mall and got some snacks for our lunches for when we start building. of course i did a store check and found Marmite and Colman's mustard but no Fisherman Friends. a lot of western brands here too. beer is here but as a Ugandian christian it is frowned upon. sigh. we have to respect them as it is their home and not ours and that's ok by me. the safari is ok as it is outside of the city. you really have to think twice and sometimes three times before you do things here. walking into the bush to relieve yourself at our build site seems innocent but in fact there are black mamba's and king cobra snakes that could potentially kill you in one bite if not treated right away. we have proper medical attention on site but still have to be very careful.
our house:
we have 19 people here, think of it as a huge bed and breakfast. the locals that host us are so nice and the food they prepare is amazing. all homemade dishes. lots of fresh fish from lake victoria. when we come back from walking around after dinner they are all sitting on the couch relaxing. when they see us walk in they jump up and ask if we need anything. we usually bring them back gelato and tell them to sit and relax!
our build team:
aussie's - jeff, stuart, mike & karen and their 3 children, rachel, james and kaitlyn.
canadians - eric, jilian, fred, troy, ben and myself
british - diana and pat
american - shelley
we also have 2 others that are on a medical team staying here from Portland but they are on a different mission than us.
religion:
christian is very big here. the locals are brought up on god and for a lot of them its all they have. "God will listen to us" is what they say. KPC is the central church we go to every sunday. its all worship and they acknowledged us as a team in front of 4000 people. we stood up and they all cheered as Watoto is a very big part of the church and everyone knows what it stands for and why we are there. they have a 200+ choir, lights and a full band that plays. its quite the experience although i felt VERY disrespected not being religious. "non religious people are dead to society" there are a few others like me and we will all pass next sunday. that may not go over well but it was personal to us so.
photographs:
driving and walking through the city was an experience in itself. you have to be very careful when taking pictures of the locals. they can get offended very easily. all you have to do is ask and they will say yes or no. the rule of thumb is: "if i was in their shoes, would i want my picture taken?" as much as i want to show you guys the poverty here through pictures, it may be tough to get. here's what i mean: we were walking by a house and on the porch there were about 10 kids sitting with their mother. a mix of boys and girls. they were very poor, barely had clothing on their back. i looked at one little girl and she was eating a handful of sand because they were hungry, or should i say starving. i
didn't even ask for that picture but you get the idea of what its like. don't worry, we spent 3 hours at the orphanage yesterday and the kids there LOVE getting their pictures take and man, they are the cutest little kids (more on that below). as well as in the villages when we build, its the same, pictures are more than welcome.
the orphanage:
like i said we spent 3 hours there yesterday. its called Baby Watoto - bulrushes and it was built to house orphan kids. some kids are actually left at the front gates. could you imagine. when parents have kids that have defects, they don't want them and usually dump them in bins, the side of the road or at the front gates of this place. sad. one little guy abdul but i called him Jordan (he was wearing a michael jordan jersey) has a deranged face. his parents fed him acid as a kid and it burnt his lips almost right off. there are currently 92 kids there ranging from 1 month to 3 years. after they turn 3ish they are sent to the villages where the houses and schools are that we build. from there they are given a nanny mother and they have access to school and a chance at a good life. as soon as you walk in, they see you and open their arms! we read books, feed and play with them. when we leave they have sad faces.
our agenda:
tonight is sunday, we are 8 hours ahead of CDN time. we start building tomorrow everyday until friday the 21st. days start early as we have to beat the city traffic to the village (45 minutes from here). from what i hear the kids at the Suubi village where we build are adorable. we break at lunch to play soccer with them. should be fun. next weekend is shopping for crafts and relax time. the safari starts monday the 25th and runs until wednesday morning. we changed the agenda on wednesday. there are 7 of us on the safari and we all agreed after we wanted to visit a village called Gulu. its northeast of the lodge so it made sense to go right from the safari. Gulu is a refugee camp. Watoto is just starting to build there, houses and medical facilities. LRA (Lords resistance Army) is a malitia that fights north of Gulu - a civil war that has been going on in Uganda for almost 20 years now. the LRA captures families, kids and parents, and turns them into war kids. they take the women (15+ years old) and they become sex slaves for the army. once the women are impregnated they dump them in the jungle as they are now "tainted" and no longer wanted. they can't go home because their families disown them now that they are carrying a 'war child' inside them. the kids, get turned into killers and often are ordered to murder their families. so, watoto is building there and they have missions to rescue and find the mothers and children that are dumped into the jungle. from there they are brought in, treated (mentally and physically) until they are ok to join another village closer to the city that is also part of Watoto. from what i hear its 'safe' there but i won't lie, i'm a bit nervous about that trip. its a day there and we are staying over to help out then return back here to the house on the 27th. were not rescuing, but nurturing kids and doing whatever else needs to be done. some people here that went last year said its very disturbing but worth the trip.
ok i'm done for now. next update will be a later in the week as we are building and unless something really neat happens i'll leave it until then.
Weelaba! (way.la.ba) good bye!
1 comment:
thanks for posting these Kris!
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