Starting Week Four

Today we got another tour of Kampala and it is a Busy place. Lots of people, noise, traffic, etc. Its so different to be in an urban area, like my ears and eyes are being overstimulated. (i'm not complaining as i've been looking forward to internet for about two weeks now.)
I have stayed very busy, along with the other thirty-something trainees, learning language, getting job training, and having lots of hands-on teaching experiences. So far so good.

For my 25th birthday i was sung to by 1,060 primary school girl students. Alright, they were just singing their national anthems and they didn't know it was my birthday, but it was still a stunning present. A small group of the primary school teacher trainers (my job) were visiting an amazing primary school where they only take boarders and they have won numerous awards because of their great education standards and work in PICASY. All of the girls were so excited to see us and put on a number of plays/songs during their morning assembly specifically to welcome us!

I have enjoyed my homestay family and my Uganda sisters and brothers have taught me a lot about their country and language. I think i am learning 24 hrs a day, yes.. even in my sleep. We recently got electricity and now we watch television in the evening. The shows we watch range from novelas dubbed in english, english/luganda music videos, old nature specials (saw one about the reintroduction of CA condors!), and news. Its been fun and interesting. The best part about electricity is bathing with a light on.

I am still in love with Uganda food. My mom and sisters are great cooks and hopefully i will learn soon how to make matooke and posho and g nut sauce because they are scrumptious foods. I think most of my diet is starch based, but there are also tons of fruits so i have been eating bananas (!) , papaya, jackfruit, and pineapples. Mmmm.

Learning luganda is getting progressively harder, but it will be so beneficial to be able to communicate in the native language at our sites, so i'm trying my best! The teaching has been challenging but good. We have taught in primary classes and taught at coordinating centers (where current teachers receive in-service training.) The primary school classes are quite full with kids squeezing into their benches, but they are all excited and want to answer questions. I taught a P5 class and they all spoke english (they start english lessons in P4.) They loved going to the board and answering questions! The teachers were also interested and willing to participate in our workshop. So i think we have had some encouraging opportunities to teach.

New news:
-started riding a bike to school. Ouch, but fun.
-i think i see a new bird everyday. and in the brightest colors.
-bucket baths with electricity are a little more fun. ;)
-The weather has been nice and warm and a little more rainy recently.
-next week we head out to visit volunteers in the field and i get to go to the west!

Thank you for your wishes and prayers and letters! Sending mail is a little harder than i thought, but i will try to send letters out sooner than later.
I miss you all and give you big hugs throughout the day when i see something that reminds me of you. Like banana pancakes, CA condors, bluebonnet pillowcases, bright yellow birds, and blue skies.

All my love.