african ambiance.

4.26.08

With so many different scenes and situations I experience everyday in Uganda, I find it appropriate to attempt to create a brief list to more deeply capture life in Africa to my friends and family at home. The small details of living here are often the most impressive contrasts to my home life in America’s western culture. As these events, sights, and routines weave themselves into my current lifestyle, I wish to fully embrace it all…

-I have finally gotten into the necessary habit of handing over my grocery receipt to a security guard at the exit door to confirm my purchase, even as minuscule as a candy bar.

-Regularly, I am tossed about like a rag doll, occasionally be walloped against the vehicle window, as our van drives over the rough terrain of deep potholes and rocks in the African dirt streets.

- Small neighborhood Ugandan children dash toward me to grab my hand or give me a hug, while screaming “Mzungu!”

-Traffic is intense and chaotic, as hundreds of matatus [taxi vans] dart through vehicles and pull over to load people beyond the 14 persons capacity. Generally, it is crowded to the point where passengers must sit upon the laps of a stranger.

-I enjoy the luxury of having a french pedicure for less than the value of one US dollar from the comfort of our driveway curb. Men walk by on the streets with caddies full of nail polish and other pampering tools, ready to stop when we call one over to beautify our feet or hands.

- Power outages are frequent, lasting for hours or days at a time, due to the lack of electrical resources to go around the entire city of Kampala.

-My favorite snacks to purchase from street vendors are roasted plantains and the masterpiece of a rolex [egg and vegetables grilled as an omlet, rolled up within a chipati]

-Men walk up steep hills, pushing their bikes loaded with dozens of plastic yellow jerry cans of water.

- To light our house gas oven, I timidly assume a defensive position, awaiting the fire explosion to signify it is ready to bake. My right arm has little arm hair remaining, after most has been singed off!

-In bed, I fall asleep to the eclectic soundtrack of urban nighttime: shattering glass, thumping music, aggressive cats hissing, and stray dogs howling or violently challenging one another.

-I have given up on trying to predict the weather here. The rainy season consisting of gloomy, sopping wet mornings to contrast with bright, sunny afternoons, or vise versa.

-It is routine to boil tap water every day, cool it off, and pour it into large jugs for our source of drinking water.

- I miss washing machines, as hand washing and rinsing with basins of water really tries my patience.

-Our water source occasionally shuts off, blessing me with the opportunity to bathe using a cup and basin of water.

-I enjoy the busyness and overwhelming amount of vegetables, fruits, and meats when I shop with Sarah at the street markets.

-Women working or walking in town tie traditionally patterned fabric around their waist to secure their babies, who are tightly folded and piggy-backing on their mothers.

- If the van we travel in stops for a moment in a small town, street vendors rush to our vehicle, open the windows, and shove sticks of meat, bottles of water, and other snacks directly into our face. Sometimes I find it convenient; other times, a burden.

- There is a light covering of red dirt on everything I own by the end of the day.
- I thought the post office lines in America were frustrating to stand in- until I have spent 2-3 hours of my day waiting to claim my packages, and moving from one station to another to have various information about each one hand-recorded.

- The sunlight shines fiercely on the hills of Kampala, and the colors of the nature and homes atop each stand out against a brilliant blue sky.

- Geckos and small lizards dash across the walls of our compound, as well as within my bedroom.

- The loud racket of the Reverend Crows perched on top of our roof often act as my morning alarm clock.

-It is convenient to sit down at an outdoor restaurant serving traditional Ugandan food, as there is no need for a menu. The items to chose from are absolutely predictable, and the meal is at a cheap and flat rate, no matter the amount of food I order.

-School children are identifiable by their tall grey socks with red and yellow stripes around the top. Additionally, they wear uniforms color-coded to their particular school.

My time in Uganda continues to bring about new scenes and customs, which differ so much from what I have become accustomed to at my home in America. However, every day I feel a growing appreciation for the African culture and my experience here.