I think to start of this blog I have to do a bit of background information. Awhile back right about after I had purchased my plane ticket I had taken the time to write down why it was that I felt called to go to Africa and some of the personal reason as to the purpose of my going. Along with helping the children, volunteering my time, and traveling to a new place I had also written down to be challenge. Well this past week has probably been one of the more challenging weeks in my life and I'm sure it won't be the last.

The first few days are pretty much a blur. As I look back now I can definitely see how the culture shock was affecting me and the way I was feeling. It's hard being thrown into a new culture and experiencing nothing like the way it was where you came from 24 hours before. After taking some time to rest in Kampala, we made our first trip to Katebo on Tuesday afternoon. I didn't have any expectations as to what the village would look like so it was a new experience to say the least. It's hard to explain and I'm hoping to take some better pictures of it soon. There is a main dirt road that runs through the village and scattered every so often are the people's hut's that live in the village. They are probably the size of what we would consider a small shed. The school has two buildings that are basically walls with hole's in them for windows and doors. They are expecting to get doors and windows to put in but they are not sure how long that will take. The team from Canada that was here before me was building a library and that is also about half way finished.

The first few days of teaching have been pretty challenging. There is a definite language barrier and it seems only the older children understand what I am teaching as opposed to just copying what I am saying. The school system here is a primary and secondary system, with P1-P7 and then S1-S6. P1 would be like our kindergarten and S6 would be related to our 12th grade. The school I am at is a primary school and I have taught P4 math and English, P5 English, and P6 math and English. I don't do all of those classes everyday, usually its about two or three classes a day. The teaching aspect has not been what I expected it to be and that's a part of what's been so challenging to me. It's been fun getting to know the children, as little as I have, and being able to play with them as we get more comfortable with each other. On Friday the older children had a debate after lunch and it is probably the most interesting thing I have witnessed so far. Since polygamy is not illegal in Uganda, the debate was Polygamy is better than Monogamy. When I walked in and saw that on the chalkboard I had to laugh. One of the other teachers was telling me that they use the debate to improve the students English, to teach them about how political systems work, and to also educate them on important social issues. I think what the teachers wanted to get across was the Monogamy is the best choice for social, financial, and economic reasons. The children seemed to enjoy it and it was fun to see them interact in such a cool way.

Right now I am the only volunteer on site which has been another challenge but there are two more girls coming from the states on Wednesday and Friday of next week and then a team coming from Australia the following Monday. My body has finally adjusted to the time change and thankfully I am not sleeping straight through the night without waking up at 2:30am wondering why I am wide awake when four hours ago I was passing out from being so tired. So that is good. I am also getting more used to the food. Breakfast consists of tea and bread with butter which isn't very different. Lunch and dinner are pretty similar and it can include anything from rice, beans, noodles, cabbage, avocado, cassava (which is the root from a tree), sweet potato's, and a few other native foods. Most of it is tasting pretty good to me now, though they tell me that I do not eat enough and don't believe when I tell them I am full. Personally I think they all eat too much :)

I hope this post has been a good update and I hope it finds you doing well and enjoying your summers. Most likely I will be able to update in about a week or so depending on the plans for next weekend so until then I hope you have a great week! Feel free to email me with anything you would like to share. Some specific prayer requests would be for patience as I learn how to deal with the people here, safety for the other volunteers as they travel to Uganda, God's guidance as he instructs each day, and a peace of mind knowing this is where I am suppose to be. Thanks so much for your prayers and I hope to hear from you soon!

Love always,

Lea