In other news

In other news...

I found out my site! I will be working with a Health Center 3 in the far south west (near Mbarara). I am extra excited because my counterpart (the Ugandan that I will be working most with) is a woman and a nurse.

Also, I am just getting over my first kidney infection of my life and, I have to say, some of the worst pain of my life. The silver lining was that I got to stay in a hotel room one night (the nurses wanted me close by in case things got worse--don't worry, they didn't) which meant I got to take my first warm stand up shower since coming here. Heaven. This experience also taught me a cultural lesson because my host mother told me that when women complain of lower back pain it means that "they haven't been with their husband in a long time" and so when they go to the doctor, sometimes the doctor will just send them right back home and tell them "go be with your husband" :) Thought you would all get a kick out of that.

Also, I know some of you have read my mom's note about the accident.. everyone really truly was fine and we are all recovered. (it was mostly just scary than anything else). I cracked up when I read my mom's post because I told her to make sure she didn't make it sound too bad and she did an excellent job...but her love for adjectives took over with "extricated" and "bloodied"...:) It really just made me miss her...

Love to you all!!

Bicycle! Bicycle! Bicycle! I want to ride my Bicycle!

now, I know I have very briefly mentioned my bike riding in a previous blog but biking is such an integral part of my daily Ugandan experience it would not be fair for me to not give it the proper spotlight and attention it deserves.

My first personal experience with bike riding in Uganda occurred my first week of training. Since I live furthest from our raining site (an estimated 2 miles), myself and one other girls were the first to be "presented" (after a thorough lesson of bike safety and security of course) with our dear and darling Hero bikes. (the brand name of the bike is a Hero--don't be deceived by this, you will soon come to find that they are anything but...) At this same time, we were also given our classic white helmets, a pump, a bright orange bike lock, and tool kit that consists of 2 flat metal tools with a bunch of weird shaped holes in them that somewhat resemble wrenches.

The Hero is not just any bike however. It has a frame that can be described as a cross between a road bike and beach cruiser with similar style tires. It has a single gear and comes complete with hand breaks that don't work, a rear view mirror that is loose and flops around, a seat that will be the death of me because it is also loose and so every time I go over a bump (and there are many) it flips up and I have to do a VERY awkward move to get it back to normal (this "move" involves me sliding my butt forward while also applying pressure to the front part of the seat with my inner thigh while also trying to continue pedaling) Real lovely. And, believe you me, I have definitely busted our my flat wrench like tools to try and remedy the situation but, the seats are just not to be reckoned with.

There are a few redeeming factors to my Hero. The Hero has an amazingly sturdy back rack which can be used for most anything. Although I have not personally attempted any of the following I have seen all done on several occasions... chickens tied to the back, people hitching rides (I have actually, with my own two eyes, several bikes with 5 people on them), other bikes tied sideways onto the rack (talk about a wide load), as well as 30-35 pineapples,huge bundles of sticks, jerrycans full of water, and every other imaginable thing that would need to move from one place to another but is too heavy for one person to carry. But, the thing that is most redeeming about my Hero bike, is its bell.

Now, I have to admit that at first I felt apprehensive about ringing my bell. I have never been one for horns in general. I don't honk them in cars, I don't ring them at counters, I feel like on bikes they are for little girls with pig tails and streamers. I'm just not that into them. I guess mainly I just felt weird about belling people to get out of my way. I was very quick to learn however, that the bell of a Hero is not a child's toy in any way shape or form. It is a tool, sometimes a weapon, but always a necessity. When people hear the bell they know you mean business and to move out of the way. I would always do my very best to not hit someone but the roads are rough our there and when you hear bells behind you and turn around to see a bike gaining on you with 5 people in tote you move, and fast, because they are not stopping.

So many of both my best and worst moments have happened while ringing (or attempting to ride) my Hero. As you can imagine, it is sometimes difficult to get going when riding in a skirt. There has been more than one occasion where I have been taking off and my skirt has gotten tangled and I have gotten flustered and basically just tipped over and fallen off. My bike has also been a course of integrating with the community however. Just last week, my chain fell off (for the millionth time) and for some reason this time it got stuck in the guard thing so I was having more trouble than usual in getting it back on. A really nice national stopped though and sat there with me for a good 7 or 8 minutes trying to help me fix the problem. He spoke no english and I basically can only do greetings and thanks in the local language but we got along just fine and before I knew it, the job was done, and I was back on my way.

--Those are the moments when I really appreciate my Hero. Sometimes, after a long day I just ride along, maneuvering around vegetable markets, chapati stands, boda-boda drivers, and the occasional gawker until I get out of town and begin heading into the country and home. Here, my obstacle become chickens, cattle ( I don't know what breed they are but they have really long pointy horns that really freak me out), and the terrain of a BMX track. But throughout the entire ride I don't have to listen to sirens or loud annoying traffic, or see huge skyscrapers in every direction... i am completely surrounded by green plants and blue sky and things are just great. :)

PS

I forgot to say... thanks everyone for you're great commetns, even though I amnot able to respond to all of them I really so read and appreciate all of them!

Say no to sugardaddy's

Since coming to Uganda I have to say I have seen some of the most hilarious public notices and road signs of my life. Everytime I see them I just die laughing and wish I could share them with you all... I know some of you in particular would just love them. Just today our group was traveling back from visiting an "epicenter" of change for the organization Hunger Project (where we spent the day having a demo on local basket weaving, mat making and "tie and dyeing"-which I have to say was the day I felt most touristy since coming here...but it was really neat) We also got an amazing tour of the community garden they have started (by the way mom--this part made me think of you because they had some really good compost ideas that I'll have to pass on to you)... Anyways, on the drive home I noticed this road sign that simply stated "speed kills" which, would not be so funny except that this particular road has so many pot holes that half the drive is spent at a crawl maneuvering around them.

I have tried to write down as many of the other ones as I could because they are just too great... here are a few...

learn self defense in order to protect yourself from rapists who can infect you with HIV --a poster in a local councelman's office

stay out of dark corners
sex is not the answer
teachers are always loyal
delay sex
avoid sharing sharp objects
premarital sex is risky
be a role model

all of these came from various school sites. Uganda has a policy? rule? guideline? stating that all gov. schools must be "talking schools" and so they literally have little signs with these kinds of statements all over the campus.... a great idea, but very funny for an outsider.

Besides scouraging the country for new signs to add to my list, I have also been doing some productive things as well. I have started studying the language Runyonkore- a bantu language used in the southwest part of the coutry where I will be staying for my 2 years...I am also starting to feel a lot more at home here. I feel comfortable walking around the community by myslef and some of the kids have even started yelling "bye Sarah" instead of "bye Muzungu" when I walk past ( I know this doesn't seem like a big deal but trust me...it is an accomplishment of a lifetime:) )

I also have to just take a moment to describe how beautiful the countryside of uganda is!! There is papyrus growing everywhere and this past weekend I got to travel (via public transportation--which will DEFINITELY take up an entire blog of its own in the future sometime--quit the experience) to this little town in the east part of the coutry. For being such a small country, Uganda has such a versatile landscape. the east looks completely different than the central...there are a bunch of really neat rock formations but there are also fewer trees. I visited some current PCV's while there and we climbed up onto of this one rock and I kid you not, as far as my eye could see there was undisturbed countryside with just a few little mud hut communities sprinkled here and there...each with their own little garden and field... i really love those moments because I sometimes find myself forgetting that I am actually in Africa. At night, when I am resting in bed listening to my ipod (i know...I'm spoiled--but it really only works about once a week when I have been able to charge it) I totally feel like I'm back at home (minus the mosquito net and lack of electricity of course) just doing the same old thing. It takes those moments like on the top of the rcok...or when I ride my bike (yes, with my helmet and yes, in a skirt, and yes, frequently in the rain) through town and I pass a cow that has stopped traffic to groom itself, or see a pile of pineapple on the side of the road that is taller than I am, or half naked children with protruding stomachs running out to greet me, or a huge billboard sign that says... "you may WANT these material things (picture of car, phone, perfume) but do you NEED HIV? Say no to sugardaddy's"... and I think... only in Africa:)