Holidays - and finally some photos!

The school holidays have begun and that means that us teachers are getting a (hopefully) well earned rest from village life and a chance to explore some of Uganda. It began with a trip to my placement partner's Aunt's "Introduction". This is a traditional wedding which a couple have to take part in before they are able to have a church marriage in Uganda. It has its origins in tribal practices and is quite a spectacle. The ceremony is held at the bride's family's home and the grooms party sit separately for the entire day. Various female family members are paraded in front of the groom's party until finally the bride is "selected", after which the bride's friends pick out the groom by pinning a flower on his jacket. This was followed by a huge present giving session, food, cake and dancing, all of which was fantastic fun.

Women on parade at the introduction

Me in the middle of the dance floor

The next weekend, after tying up all the loose ends at placement, me and three friends (one of which works for a rather generous NGO and thus has access to a car) headed off to Sipi falls on the far Eastern side of Uganda. It was a great opportunity for a little r + r, though we did manage a three hour trek up to the falls and a swim in the freezing cold mountain waters.

Us at Sipi

Next I took a trip out to the Fort Portal area, about a five hour drive west towards the Rwandan boarder. The area is famous for it's crater lakes which pockmark the valley. They are free of hippos and bilharzia which meant I could finally go for a nice swim. As I was the only visitor at the camp site I spent the afternoon with the local kids who had come for a swim in the lake. They let me play on their self-made bamboo boat and were totally amazed that I was able to dive in from the rocks. Though it was lovely to spend some time on my own I did miss sharing the amazing scenery with someone. Occasionally you just want someone to take your picture!

A panorama of Lake Nkuruba

After spending a few days hanging around Jinja and Kampala my last adventure took me out to Lake Bunyonyi (scene of the events of the previous post!). Despite the worm action the area was beautiful. The lake is a result of a volcanic eruption about 8000 years ago which flooded a valley with redirected water from a river. It has over twenty beautiful islands which you can visit by motorboat or dug out canoe. The latter is much nicer and you pay about £1 per person for a 45 minute journey. We rented a motorbike to explore the beautiful views around the lake and headed out to one of the islands for dinner.

Me playing with some of the great kids we met on our walk.

In a dug-out canoe on the lake

Lansing paddling with Noah our "captain"

Having fun on the island

Uganda really is a stunningly beautiful country. Wherever you go lush vegetation and natural features crowd the landscape. The people too are so friendly and always willing to help you out. We got a flat tire on our motorbike about 2k from the hotel and a man from the red cross stopped to help us push the bike back, just because he was headed that way. I feel genuinely privileged that I have had a chance to live here and experience the country from a very different perspective. Those who just pass through rarely get to see events like the Introduction and often just skim the surface of life here. I know I write about disturbing events and the difficulties of everyday life but I honestly wouldn't trade this experience for the whole world.