Picture Me Walkin'

Well be back. Well be back. We've had a busy last week picking up our newest MAPLE field team members from the airport, whisking through Kampala and heading back to Mbale. We arrived safely Thusday afternoon, only to turn around and head up to Sipi Falls for the weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July and Luke's Birthday. Sipi Falls, some of you more dedicated readers may remember, is the site of our previous misadventures with the rastas. So naturally, we couldn't resist the temptation to go back. This time around, though, what with it being a big celebration, we opted to grill some meat. Beef and swine, typically the first choice for such occasions, were out due to various dietary restrictions and a general fear of flies-covered meat. Delicious chicken, while easy and satisfying, is just not special enough. That really only leaves one option: Tin Can Tony I. The first in (hopefully) a long line of Tonys that will be eaten by the MAPLE Uganda field team. I wish I could say...

You don't want to play the weird foods game with me. Not now. You don't stand a chance. I traveled in Africa, I've seen some things. Plates are always covered here, I guess it's probably either for suspense or to keep the bugs out. Opening your plate is a major event, because you never know what will be in there that you never thought to eat. Not because Ugandans eat weird food, but because they eat different food. As much as I think things I'm served are strange, the same goes the other way. Nutella is seen as bizarre and spicy food borderline dangerous. Our friend saw a package of pasta, and demanded an in-depth explanation of how, and why, we eat that bag of pointy ends. I'm now at the point, by the way, where I speak for my entire race as if its no big deal. I'll say "pasta is like matooke for white people." Meaning a major starch staple of our diet that's welcome anytime. We went over to the house of the woman who's SACCO we are workin...

[Luke, Thursday afternoon] Last night I had the single most terrifying food experience of my life. It took a little bit, but I have now been bested by the local food. I saw that my opponent was more powerful than I, and I laid my sword down and supplicated in defeat. Our friend from the business school, Mr. Rodney, said he wanted to take us out to dinner for a special Ugandan treat, that probably should have been a red flag. So far all the Ugandan food has been pretty good, so I was ready for whatever he had to throw at me. He said it was called molokoni** and the women in the room looked up at us and tittered, that probably should have been a red flag. He then described it in English, which included extensive pointing at our feet. Ro-digga speaks better English than I do, so that definitely should have been a red flag. Whatever though- we're brave, we're open minded. He picks us up around 8 or something and takes us to Wandegare Wondegeya (think Spanish, juan-de-guerr), whi...

First day in Kampala is done. It was a little intense. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I don’t think it was this. It’s not so much that I wasn’t ready for it, in a lot of ways I was surprised by how normal it seemed. From a safe distance that is. Out a car window, the stretch of villages really looked strikingly similar to the Domincan Republic. I was all ready to be Mr. Anthropologist and declare that we’re all just the same, really. But then we got into Kampala. Kampala was not just like the Dominican. It was soooo busy; just people people everywhere. That plus the omnipresent boda-bodas (motorcycle taxis) (Note the proper use of the vocab) and the fact that they drive on the wrong side of the damn street, makes everything a bit more challenging. We were met at the airport by our lovely tour guide. She is from Kampala and shows white folk like us how to survive in this country without paying $100 for an unmatched pair of socks. Plus she’s going to show us the “real” Kampala, s...

We have been in Italy for about a week now maybe, I'm not really sure. Not having a watch, calendar or job is making it hard to remember where and when I am, all the timezone changes don't help either. Think about that while you watch the clock at your desk waiting for your lunch break. We have gotten set up in Tortona as our homebase. It's a great little town where everyone knows everyone else and their business. Our new friend Nathaniel is hosting us and being our tour guide introducing us to all his friends, which is just great. Incomparable as a way to learn the real culture. We've been eating great food and drinking great wine of course. All in all things are great. We went down to Genova on the riviera on Saturday for dinner, about an hour drive south. We had dinner and drinks in a bar on the water, then walked around on the seashore for a good long while. It took me a long time to remember the last time I saw the ocean (thanksgiving in Santa Booboo) -does this no...