Due
to a broken camera and an ancient data card (I don’t feel like elaboration),
I’ll have to wait to share pictures and the story of the day at the Entebbe
zoo, but there has been plenty of excitement to share in the meantime. There have been some boda firsts: riding
side-saddle (just don’t look down), taking Tasha on the boda, wrapped up tight
against my chest (took her to get her hair shaved off in town; the ladies at the
salon were hilarious) and finally, squeezing three of us girls on the back of a
boda coming home late from dinner at a Chinese restaurant called Ling Lings
…just for fun; this made all the more ridiculous given the fact that DeAnna had
a boda to herself.
Another
quick anecdote: We’ve been having issues with the back door of the RAV 4 not
latching properly and swinging open randomly if it’s not locked. The other
night, Emily H and I stopped off at a gas station to pick up some TP. As Emily
pulled out onto the road (a very busy road full of large trucks and taxis just
before the bridge to Kampala), the door swung open and a very large bag of
toilet paper tumbled down the street, stopping traffic and causing a rather
significant disturbance. Emily pulled over and I hopped out and ran across the
road towards a policeman in blue fatigues (they always hang around that strip
of road) who had picked it up off the road for us. He was quite amused and
tried to make light, flirty conversation, but I just took the bag, thanked him
and ran back across the road; still laughing about that one.
American
thanksgiving dinner on Thursday night: On Wednesday we bought a 10lb turkey and
first thing on Thursday morning, Emily W cut its head off the same way we
killed the chickens…it was nasty.
Aaron plucked it and pulled the guts out and Emily and I rubbed it down with
butter and spices before, literally, stuffing into the oven (last year at
Christmas, when they still had the crappy little oven, Emily cooked it at a
friend’s house and took it home on a boda).
The afternoon was a frenzy of kitchen activity and the final product
included mashed potatoes, bean casserole, homemade stuffing, dinner rolls from
Ozzies, gravy, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, apple crisp and sangria. We put
the two long benches from the kitchen table together in the living room,
covered them with a sheet and candles and put down cushions on the floor
Asian-style and enjoyed the most amazing late night candle-lit thanksgiving
dinner together. Due to the fact that we had to wait til the kids were in bed,
it was about 9pm when we finally ate and it was so great to just chill out
after on the floor, too full to move, talking and getting to know each other
better. And if you weren’t already impressed, we lost power at about 3pm and
didn’t get it back until yesterday at about noon so all of our prep was done by
candle light too; such a great night.
At
9am Friday morning, Job (one of our drivers for hire) picked 5 out of the 6 of
us volunteers to take us to Kampala for the day (Bridget got in a boda accident
on Thursday and was too sore to endure the 2 ½ hour treacherous trip each way).
Our first stop was a mall called Garden City. It was the strangest thing…it
looked and smelled like a North American mall. We wondered around for an hour
or so, checking out some clothes stores, some souvenir shops and a bookstore
before heading to our next stop, the Friday craft market. From there, we headed
for lunch at the deli/bakery that I talked about in my last post about Kampala.
Erika and I, instead of getting one of their sandwiches on a long French
baguette, we got a handful of sliced ham and salami (the real stuff, not the
processed deli meat) and a bunch of slices of cheddar cheese. We then headed to
the bakery and bought a loaf of amazing doughy bread and had it sliced so we
could put together our own sandwich. I realize I have probably already spent
too much time describing it, but I cannot even tell you how good this tasted.
Real cheddar cheese, are you kidding me?? I almost cried it was so good.
Our
last stop before heading home was this magical place that I had heard much
about…a walmart-type store called Game. As if the mall wasn’t shocking enough,
here I was faced with bright lights, numerous aisles and choices. It was great,
as I needed a birthday gift for Erika and found the perfect item, but I admit
to feeling a bit of culture shock last night. I was not prepared for that and
hadn’t considered that I might feel that way. It scares me a bit, to be honest,
because I feel like it’s just a mild preview of how it will feel to be back in
Canada…but I can’t think of that now.
Driving
was especially nuts; traffic was bad and hectic and included a number of
funnels where cars squeeze in just inches from each other. It’s almost unreal sometimes;
just sitting back listening to music, relaxed and peaceful while Job’s going
0-50 and back every 30 seconds and there’s total chaos happening around us. I
kind of love it.
We
pulled in at about 9:30pm, exhausted from a long day and so glad to be home.
Oh,
and finally, Saturday morning provided a unique experience: roasted
grasshoppers. Bridget and I put two of the critters together in a toast and
tossed ‘em back. Salty and not half bad at first, but after a little chewing,
the fishy flavor came through and I wasn’t so keen any longer…
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