what can i say? imma Jinja kinda gal

A lot has happened since the last blog, so I’m going to try to squeeze as much in as possible before boring you.

My project has had a bit of a rocky start, but after a difficult week of planning I think things are coming together. Communication between the group and I has proven to be very difficult. As I said only two of its 22 members speak some English and so last week was full of miscommunication and misunderstanding, not ideal when trying to get a project off the ground. But, things are working out none the less with help from my supervisor and the FSD Site Team. As a result of last week’s issues, my budget is late (along with some other activities in my work plan), so the project is getting moving later than I had originally anticipated. And since I’m behind on last week’s work, finishing my grant proposal by the end of this week is sounding like a daunting task, but one I am more than willing to take on. I hope to be able to get things back up to speed this week, and if not, we’ll keep on trucking. This soap making business is happening, whether the odds are with us or not.

Now, onto the weekend! I woke up feeling a bit ill on Friday, so I planned on just staying in Jinja instead of heading to Kampala. But, I miraculously got better on Friday evening and was able to leave with some of the other interns to Kampala (the capital) on Saturday morning. KAMPALA IS INSANE. Haha, no but really. We arrived in the afternoon and sat in traffic for about an hour. When we got off the coaster (a larger taxi bus), we had to find our hotel, so we weaved through hoards of people at the old taxi park trying to find it. I felt like I was going to be run over by a boda or a taxi every time I crossed a street. The sidewalks are crowded and there is tons of exhaust and dust in the air which gets into your eyes. I could not imagine taking a boda boda at that time, and I’m glad that we didn’t because we read later that there is an average of 5 boda deaths (not just accidents) a day in Kampala.

While I was busy asking a vendor where Williams Street was, a woman warned Jap that a man was behind her stealing stuff out of her backpack. Thanks to the woman, he ran off before he was able to get anything. It shook us all up a bit because we’ve heard plenty of horror stories about mzungus getting robbed in Kampala, but we definitely did not cause a scene when it happened because they practice mob justice here. Basically meaning that if Jap would have yelled and told people that the man was trying to steal from her, it’s very likely that he would have been caught by others on the street and killed on the spot (often by beating or burning). So, although we don’t want our stuff stolen, if it happens it happens, no material object is worth having someone killed.

We soon found our hotel with the help of the vendors and then headed to check out some of Kampala’s shopping malls. We went to Garden City and Oasis Mall. There were huge supermarkets, bookstores, clothing stores and upscale cafes. I definitely experienced some reverse culture shock, it was very intense to be in such a bustling city after the slow life in Jinja. It was mind blowing how different life was in Kampala in comparison to the people living in villages only kilometers away. Although the same disparities exist in the States, it was interesting to see how they exist in Uganda as well.

The next day we went to see the Palace of the Buganda Kingdom and the beautiful Gaddafi Mosque. The palace is on a huge plot of land on Mengo Hill (Kampala was originally built on 7 hills). On the same plot of land is a torture chamber that Idi Amin used to torture and kill Indians or others who opposed his rule. Under Amin the cells were bound by electric doors and outside of each door was water that was electrified as well. There was also a holding tank of water that was filled with crocodiles. His torture and murder tactics were incredibly harsh. Regardless of his ruthlessness, our guide Robinson explained that many Black Ugandans liked Idi Amin more than his predecessor and successor Milton Obote because Idi Amin acted out of his deep love for Uganda and its native people, whereas Obote is not believed to have had the same passion for the country. Under Obote much more people died, including a lot of Robinson’s family members.

The Mosque was absolutely amazing. It was the first time I had ever set foot in a mosque, and it was quite humbling. The elaborate paintings on the ceilings were some of the most beautiful I have seen.

The only thing that Kampala does better than Jinja is the food! We ate well in Kampala. Having some authentic Chinese food at Feng Fengs and some cold pasteurized milk in my coffee at Café Pap was really satisfying and a nice change.

After visiting the Mosque we walked back to our hotel (the first time we were able to find our way through the city without having to take a taxi) and then headed home to Jinja. I’m really glad we went to Kampala, but Jinja is definitely the place for me. Slower, quieter, calmer. I was more grateful when I was woken up by roosters this morning.