still raining IN AFRICA

i'm pretty sure the rainy season was supposed to be over as of 6 days ago, but it doesn't seem to be letting up. today trent, corbin, and i were going to visit some primary schools in lugazi to scope out some new locations for stoves. we try to target schools because they benefit the most people. anyway, right before we were about to leave it starting pouring rain. corbin refused to go out in the rain, but i didn't really want to be in the house, so trent and i braved the storm. we must have looked like completely clueless mzungus. everyone was staring at us as they stood under shelter and remained dry. many of them were laughing. kind of embarassing. okay, really embarassing. i hate to stay in the house though. and we located a school that is an ideal place to build a stove. we probably could have just waited for an hour and then walked there, but i saw it as an opportunity to don my extremely fashionable REI rain jacket.

anyway, the past week and a half has been really busy and really fun. we started and finished a stove for this adorable, hard-working woman in namengo. that was a highlight. also, we (me, heid, ashley, and natalie) taught our first english class to a women's group. we used this storytelling method. we may have looked ridiculous, but i think it went over pretty well. the women were really smart and catching on very quickly. also, last week was my birthday so trent bought a cake from the broadway bakery that he and i volunteer at once a week. lydia, the girl that we are helping with the accounting there, calls me amby, because amber is really difficult for people here to see. i usually get amba, and there's an occasional ambo, but amby has been the greatest rendition of my name that i've heard thus far. anyway, she took one of the cakes that had happy birthday written in frosting and wrote amby underneath. it was hilarious.

on saturday we went to the uganda vs. niger world cup qualifier match in nampoole which is near the capital, kampala. it was really fun. quite honestly, neither team seemed to be extremely talented, but it was still really fun to watch. and before the game started these guys that had almost their entire bodies painted were painting peoples faces. most of us got a red, yellow, and black stripe on our cheek, but this guy also wrote juba on my forehead in bright blue. i thought juba was one of the star players for the cranes, but later i found out that its a city in southern sudan. supposedly you can get good opium there and there's a song about it. so yeah, i guess i walking supporter of a major drug city. great.

this tuesday was martyr's day so we traveled to namengogo (sp?) for the festival. i didn't really understand anything that was going on, but there were hundreds and hundreds of people, and we saw a really cool catholic church. but the best part of the day was this guy who was selling small pineapples on the side of the road for 300 shillings (18 cents). he cut off the outside and then sliced an x through the middle, if that makes sense. then we were able to eat it like corn on the cob. greatest idea anyone has had here yet. plus, not one canker sore. it was most definitely a success. after the festival we went into kampala. that was the first time i have been to the capital. it seemed pretty clean, but there was still no clean toilet anywhere in sight. i'll keep searching,
amber

I can't believe it's been another week in Uganda. Time flies here. Everything is going really well. Projects proposals are near completion and a regular schedule is forming...kind of. Ugandans don't really have a concept of time, and not very many people have cell phones, so appointments and meetings are sometimes impossible to set. However, this past week I had great success in setting up appointments to begin some adobe stoves. This week we are building one at a school in a village called Namengo. It's going to be a pretty big one, because the cook uses three large pots to prepare food for all of the students, so I hope it goes well. We are setting the form on Monday and we are filling in the stove on Thursday. We are also starting a stove at school called True Light in the village where we live, Nakkazade. The weather is so humid here, so it takes about three weeks for the stoves to dry, but once they do, they rock. They use way less firewood and they have a chimney that diverts the smoke out of the house or away from the cooking area, which will seriously improve respiratory health of women who are cooking all day and the children who are strapped to their backs. These stoves are great. I'll be sure to upload some pictures of some of the completed ones.

Yesterday, our group hiked through the Mabira Forest in Jinja. It was actually more of a walk through the forest, then on a paved road (some of us got a little off track), but it was really beautiful. We saw some sweet bugs, like this caterpillar that had a perfectly round bright red head, and then log white furry stuff on it's body. We also got to see some cool birds and really pretty butterflies. There were also some monkeys at the end. We went to Jinja afterward and ate at this American Restaurant. It was heavenly. I swear that almost everything they eat here is mashed, so I was grateful for some solid food.

Also, this week I have been jump roping with Heidi and some other volunteers. I think I'm much less likely to sprain my ankles while jump roping than running, so my new hobby proceeds and we can all breathe a little easier. But who knows, even I could turn something as harmless as hopping over a plastic rope into something extremely dangerous and detrimental to my health.
Hoping that I won't,
Amber

Hobbling Along

After thirty hours of travel, I'm here! Africa is amazing! But, the roads are not paved and yesterday while I was running I sprained my ankle. How convenient. Today everyone is rafting the nile, but sadly, I am not.

The projects are not wuite yet underway, so I'll fill you in on the living conditions and a little bit about what we have been doing.
THE HOUSE: The other fifteen volunteers and I live a house in Lugazi. The house has two showers (one actually gets warm water occasionally), one toilet, the tiniest kitchen you could imagine, is gated and guarded at night, and welcomes insects of various sorts. I thought the cold showers and bugs would get to me, but I'm already used to it.
THE FOOD: We have two great cooks who prepare a delicious dinner every weeknight. The meal usually consists of a few of the following: matoke (boiled plantains), cooked cabbage, rice, beans, eggplant, pumpkin squash, chipote (tortillas) and my personal favorite, freshly-squeezed passion fruit juice.
THE DAY: We are all in the process of writing our project proposals. I will be over women's groups. We have attended a town council meeting regarding children's rights. It was almost four hours long. We have also been working at an orphanage called Hope, doing construction and playing with the children. Yesterday I traveled to Mukono to the Broadway Bakery to see what I can do to help with some accounting catch-up. We don't really have a set schedule yet, so each day is different. I'm hoping the projects will be underway soon. I can't wait to help. Africa is great. more to come...

Two Weeks til Take-off

Yes, it's true. Just two weeks until my departure. How am I feeling? A little bit nervous, but mostly excited. I feel like I'm pretty well prepared, but I still have so much to do before I go.

What I've done so far:
I have attended five trainings, each 4 hours long. These trainings have included topics such as safety and security, development, intercultural communication, project planning and implementation, orphanage activities and recreational therapy, and adobe stove building. I've also attended a few team meetings with my fellow Uganda-bound teammates and I'm so excited about the people I'm working with.

For precautionary measures, I've had just about as many vaccinations as my deltoids can handle, including typhoid fever, tetanus, meningitis, hepatitis, polio, and yellow fever.

I've also gathered a bunch of cool stuff for a "Masquerade" orphanage project we're planning. Sequins, feathers, paint, and white paper masks are just the beginning. I'll have updates on how it turns out.

In anticipation of becoming "one with the earth," I purchased a pair of Chaco sandals online today. Actually, I made my dad do it. No offense to all of you "Z" tan-line-sporting, Chaco-lovers out there, but I just don't think they're the greatest looking shoes on the market. But I'll admit, I've tried them on and they're pretty comfortable, and they seem practical. So I'm giving them a shot. I may just love them one day. Today isn't it.

Most importantly, I've raised the funds necessary for my summer of service in Uganda. Endless thanks to everyone who contributed! I love you all!

What I still have to do:
Tomorrow I have my final checkout at the HELP International office. They'll load up one of my suitcases with supplies to take and make sure everything is set to go.

I also have a few more things to gather for projects, such as medical gloves, scrubs (thank you, Richard Bott and Jenny Crouch), and nutrition education material.

Just two weeks 'til take-off...I better get to work.
Thanks for enduring through this lengthy post!