Day 8: Learning Luganda

25 June, 2010

The morning began with a pretty violent thunderstorm, or so everyone says. I didn't hear much of it. I only woke up because I had to go the the bathroom. Of course this is the second day in a row without water so I had to wander to the pit latrine by the side of the house in the rain. Once I figured out where the key was and opened the lock, the rain had slowed down a bit.

We did the usual morning routine, without bread and jam because ants burrowed themselves in our bread yesterday :(

Hollie, Teresa, and Mijeung left work at 10 to go to Murchison Falls. I talked with the teachers during lunch and snack time and they need sponsors for their children. I told them that people are generally skeptical if they are not sponsoring through an organization so if their children are in an organization that lets the sponsor pick the child I could advertise, but not promise anything. Later, on the way home, a guy asked me to help his sick daughter with my medical connections. Muzungu does not equal doctor! When I said I can't help him out monetarily and I don't have any medical connections he very politely thanked me and walked away. Yesterday Hollie got offered a baby to take back to Canada because the mom said she would have a better life there. It is interesting because here there is no shame in asking for help when you need it. At home, it is an embarressment to have to ask for help. It is the result of a different society mentality. Americans don't have the communal teaching, for the most part. Here, even those with very little will offer you something. The little kids offer me their food. Even today, the teachers bought me casava and maize even though they have very little. Mind you, I didn't ask for this. I asked how much casava is because I wanted to buy some on Monday and they insisted on buying me some.

I ate lunch with Teacher Betty. Rice, beans, and passion fruit juice. We had a good talk. We always talk about the differences of food, weather, and life in general between Uganda and the U.S. (and Canada if Hollie and Teresa are there). Teacher Betty asked me if the U.S. had a cure for AIDS. Apparently that is a widely spread myth here.

I taught all day today, P2 in th morning, P1 after morning break. I reviewed with P2 because I didn't have a text book. In P1 I taught them about extended family. We drew pictures and this weekend I am going to buy scissors and use string to hang them on one of the beams from the ceiling. I hope the kids will enjoy having their art work displayed. It is very plain in the classroom.

I broke out my camera today and the kids went crazy! They also started trying to teach me the names of objects in Luganda. I don't remember any of them :/ I will ask them at the end of the day on Monday and write them down. They also sang a song for me at the end of the day. Something about fingers..I think. It was funny because the song is suppose to go up to the number of fingers they have on their hands and they got all the way to twenty. When they finished I asked how many fingers they have and they said, "10!" I just wanted to make sure. I think I will teach them the monkeys jumping on the bed song next week...or at least part of it ("no more monkeys jumping on the bed"). Of course, being me, I will have to teach them a Michael Jackson song before I leave. Or at least the moonwalk (my version anyway) :)