What Uganda Do?: June 2012

I had to go to my blog to see where I left off. I see that I left you with my adventures, in pictures, of mid-service. It’s now been about four weeks, so let me catch up.

   Teaching resumed at the college. Things were supposed to start on May 21st, but AGAIN the ministry failed to release money to the PTCs, and thus, the Jinja PTC remained closed (along with all of the other PTCs in Uganda) until a week later. Have you been following this blog all through? Does this situation sound familiar? Check out this blog where I mention the same thing happening. What’s the answer? Why does it always have to come down to punishing the students, essentially, for something that was promised by the government? In other news, primary school teachers haven’t been paid in two months.
   In the world of the college library, which feels very much like my secondary project as it’s a beast of a thing to manage, we received some 500 new books (YAY!) Unfortunately, from a previous donation of books, we ended up with many of the same series of textbooks we had before. Many of them from Texas. It seems Texas dumped all of their old textbooks at once. All for good though, thank you Texas!   After checking them all in, numbering and stamping them, they were ready to be loaded onto library shelves. To do that, I had to organize a regular library-task-force for the job (or do all of the physical labor myself. Which I wasn’t about to do). So, this term, I’m happy to announce that we have a regular cleaning crew-eh ehm-library committee, consisting of eight ladies and two gents, all supervised by the lovely Babirye Efulansi, the Student Library Minister and my sidekick to the library madness. She’s a total sweetheart, a fantastic worker and a great communicator. Now all we need is for the electricity to be re-connected (the power company seems to disconnect us every time we run out of money...like we just did when we closed the college...Ugandans may not be on time for everything, but when it comes to your power bill, they are SERIOUS), and the library may be open in the evenings again!
   SPEAKING of libraries, as many of you readers may know, Maggie Lannoye and I are working on a small library project, appropriately entitled “Little Libraries.” Recently, my dear friend back home, Ashley Ludowissi organized a book drive at her school and collected 534 books for our project! THANK YOU! :D With scheduling, shipping time and whatnot, this project won’t be up and running until third term, but we’re off to a strong start!
   Aside from work and projects, I did manage to venture out beyond the confines of Wanyange--Jinja town even. I went all the way to Sipi Falls! The pictures below show the three gorgeous falls. This area is to the East of me, in the district of Kapchorwa. I actually have a neighbor, Hilda (Mama Mercy), who is from this area, and was so excited that I was visiting her home.
   Lastly, time is flying. I always feel like I got here yesterday, but then I realize that everyone knows my name, I’ve been here long enough to see prices near double on some things, I recognize more Luganda songs than I do new American music, I’ve seen fleets of short term volunteers come and go and my co-workers are already talking about how awful it will be when I myself leave. Looking at the glass half full, I have AT LEAST ten more months of ever-greeting children, fresh fruits and vegetables, teaching enthusiastic future teachers, functions, watching baby Shamila grow up, Luganda music late into the night, being a novelty, exploring, learning and living in Africa.