Bobby's journal May 17

            Today was our relaxing day; I slept in until 10 which felt so good.  We didn’t really do anything.  I played 5 games of chess with Andrew and didn’t loose, but let him win.  After chess, we fertilized the cabbage and tomatoes with Dan.  After this I tried teaching Dan how to play chess.  He was quick at learning how to play (he probably had a good teacher or something) it was a long game and ended in a stalemate.  I think it was a pretty equal game since we both didn’t really have a strategy but just moved the pieces that we thought we should move.  After this I copied some pages of a book for Robinah.  She can’t afford to buy a textbook so she is being smart and making a photocopy of a friend’s book.  

Bobby's journal May 16

 

            Today was a some-what early morning.  We woke up at 7 because today is our last Saturday with the Children of Peace.  I wanted to go down to the school early and videotape the kids arriving by truck.  At first there were students who walked and arrived before the truck.  I felt like Mr. Plummer because when the kids walked in through the gates, I greeted them with a good morning and a handshake.  So, when the truck came, the kids jumped off the back and ran into the school.  Once everyone was off of the truck, it was time for their morning assembly.  The head of school spoke and then they sang their national anthem and their school anthem (it’s very catchy).  After they sang, Andrew and I sang our national anthem.  About halfway through it, something happened to me that made me laugh.  I managed to hold it together until we finished.  Next, Mrs. Wybar and I sang the Canadian national anthem.  About halfway through this Mrs. Wybar says “ok that’s enough” and we stop and then I laugh again.  I don’t know what it was. Maybe it was the fact that there was a goat tied to a tree, or there were all these kids looking at us giggling.  Who knows? We finished and they appreciated it.  After this I went to the music class.  In the music class I watched them practice and helped them with the recorder parts of their performance.  Geno was also sitting in the class.  He wrote a song and wrote me a part so we sang a little bit of that and it was fun.  All of a sudden, there were other white people in the music class.  They came from the Arlington clinic down the road and up the mountain.  They left the class a little later and went to look at some of the beaded necklaces the students make.  When the students were done practicing, Geno and I sang his hit song entitled: Kobola.  It actually is played on the radio in Bududa so that was really cool.  I busted out a few notes and the kids seemed to like it so I gave them what they wanted.  Within a second, the whole music class was singing and clapping their hands dancing.  Today was my favorite day by far.  I stopped for a moment and thought, the amount of malaria pills are winding down and so is my time here.  After this we had lunch.  Everyday we sit and eat lunch, there is a little kid across the street who puts his hands on his stomach and then out, basically saying he is hungry and wants food.  I called him over.  He sat down next to me and I gave him half of my lunch.  After lunch I went to play volleyball with some of the kids and the sports head, Max.  A little later, Mrs. Wybar comes to me asking for food for one of the kids, Ivan.  Ivan lives with his brothers and sisters and his step-mom and her biological kids.  She starves him and doesn’t treat him well.  I ran up to the house, grabbed 20 nature valley bars and gave them to him.  We’re going to give him 3 or 4 every Wednesday and Saturday to take home because if we gave him the whole bag his step-mom would take it.  Unlike us back home, the kids here have nowhere that is “theirs”.  They don’t have a dresser to hide stuff in, let alone their own bed to sleep in.  His stepmother would take the food because he wouldn’t have anywhere to hide it from her.  When school was over and all of the kids left Allan his brothers, and other local boys were moving stones from across the street over to the school’s shed.  These stones are going to be used to make gravel and cement.  Two of the little boys were pulling jerry-cans filled with rocks and couldn’t pull it up the hill from the road into the school’s property so I grabbed the rope and pulled it over to the big pile.  I walked back with them and started helping them move the big rocks and stones.  After one or two trips, an African woman said “he’s a white visitor?!?” maybe suggesting that they wouldn’t expect a visitor to be doing this kids of work.  I felt good helping them move the rocks.  I feel like I showed all of the locals who just stood and watched me doing work that I can work.  All of the little kids who live around the school saw me working and ran over.  They would “help” by pushing the back of the jerry-can and throwing rocks into it that had fallen out.  Once I unloaded the rocks, a little boy named Andrew jumped into the back and sat where the rocks were.  I pulled him down the little hill and ran through the grass.  When he got out he had the biggest smile and couldn’t’ stop giggling.  I continued to move the stones with them and give the little kids rides until all the rocks were gone.  Once we finished, I invited them up to the guest house for some water.  It eventually started getting dark and they left.  We had dinner and than went to bed. 

 

Bobby's journal May 15

Today I woke up on my own (not that I can’t).  Normally Mrs. Wybar knocks on my door and says “get up sleepy head,” but not today.  When I woke up I jumped out of bed because I thought I slept through the knocking.  I didn’t.  When I got up I had a bowl of cereal and then we went down to the computer class.  In the class I helped teach them how to take pictures, upload them to the computer, edit them, put them in Microsoft word and create a document.  These three girls took a picture of us, when we weren’t looking, and edited it on Microsoft word.  In it they wrote “Bob and Andrew are just like kids, look at Bob, he has his finger in his mouth.” It was very clever.  Later on, we were playing some music for them and they took another picture and edited it.  This time the picture read “Bob ands Andrew like to listen to music.  We have a question for you. What inspired you to this?” After this we had break time for some nice hot tea on a nice hot day.  The people here drink a lot of tea.  It could be the hottest day of the year and they would still be drinking boiling hot tea.  After break I ran up to the guest house and grabbed two pairs of my socks for Mark.  Mark is a kid who makes bead necklaces and bracelets and sells them to pay for his education.  He needed some socks for school so I gave him some of mine.  It started to rain and the inside of my boots got soaking wet.  I stayed in and helped George Katosi type up documents on loan issues and what will happen when Mrs. Wybar leaves in May.  After finishing this we went up to the house and hung out.  Dan came up to the house and we started talking.  We talked about the big dinner last night and the card games.  He then tells me how he can’t believe that he ate with us.  He would start talking and stop and just look up.  He said he can’t believe that God has blessed him and given him the opportunity to become friends with me and eat at the same table as us.  “You are a very good man, God will bless you,” he kept saying.  After this, we ate dinner and then started Casablanca.  I’m not a big fan of black and white movies so I headed into my room, listened to some music and went to bed. 

Bobby's joural May 14

Today when I woke up I was feeling a little cold so I threw on a sweatshirt, had breakfast, and went down to the computer class.  To my surprise, I ended up keeping the sweatshirt on for mostly all of the day.  In the computer class Mrs. Wybar gave us a list of things to do for the school.  After typing up various documents and estimates we went on a house visit.  We rode on piki-piki’s and met up with Jane.  Jane works at the school and took us to Rebecca’s house.  Rebecca lives with her father and 5 other brothers and sisters.  When we went to her house her father gave us a bag of avocados.  Her father can’t provide for his family, doesn’t have enough money for food, and he is giving us a bag of avocados.  It amazes me. The people here have nothing and give everything they can.  So, Rebecca lives with her 5 brothers and sisters and father in a small house.  Her house is made out of cow dung and mud, and has a metal roof.  After seeing her living situation, we walked up the street to their local market.  In the market we bought 10 000 shillings worth of food for Rebecca and her family.  As we were walking back, we started walking up a steep hill so, the sweatshirt finally came off.  We took piki-piki’s back to Bududa.  When we got home we didn’t really do much because there wasn’t much to be done.  I hung out with Dan at the house and learned some more phrases.  We ate dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed. 

Bobby's journal May 13

Today we woke up, had breakfast, and went down to Children of Peace.  On Saturday’s the children come by truck.  However, today, Wednesday, the children have to walk to school.  Unlike most students that attend CHA, the students at BVI come from all different areas.  The cook, Robinah, travels down and up a mountain everyday to work at BVI.  At Children of Peace, I worked with the music class.  This time is was the secondary school.  They practiced their speeches and presentations for their final performance before Andrew and I leave.  After Children of peace, I hung out down around the school and played with some kids.  A game they play is kind of like our hackey-sack.  They use weeds tied up into a ball and count how many times they can bounce it off of their leg.  I thought I would give it a go so I tried it out.  I couldn’t bounce it off of my leg more then twice without it flying in some direction completely away from my knee.  After this, we went up to the house and started making dinner.  Andrew wanted to make dinner tonight so for dinner we had chicken, salad, and pasta.  In order to have chicken, he needed to kill it that day.  Robert, a digger, went out and bought a fat chicken.  When he brought it back I got out my video camera and started filming.  Andrew cut of its head as Robert held it down.  Robert let the headless chicken go.  YES, the saying is true.  The chicken was jumping and running around with out a head. It was crazy.  This was our dinner running around headless.  We put the chicken in hot water, and plucked the feathers off.  For dinner, we had a big feast and invited Allan, Gerald, Dan, and Robert.  The salad was delicious, and the pasta was good also.  In order to eat the chicken, you had to have strong, razor sharp teeth because it was so tough.  When I bit the chicken and ripped it off of the bone, I thought I was going to get whiplash from my neck snapping.  Once I actually got it off the bone it tasted good but was still very tough.  After dinner we all played a couple card games.  First we played spoons.  This was so much fun.  When someone got 4 of the same cards then they grab a spoon and the person who doesn’t grab a spoon is kicked out.  There were 8 of us so we started with 7 spoons.  After this we played Bull.  They also loved this game.  At first they didn’t really get the concept and when it was their turn to put down a card they would put down a different card and say the wrong number.  After a few turns they started getting the hang of it and really enjoyed it.  After cards, we went to bed.  

Bobby's journal May 12

Today we woke up, ate breakfast at the hotel, and went to catch the Elgon flyer.  This is a bus that takes people from Kampala to Mbale.  On the way to the bus, everyone we passed stared at us because we are three white people walking along the back streets of Kampala.  We asked a man for directions, and he told us to follow him.  He took us right to the Elgon Flyer.  When we got there, we got onto the bus, sat down, and waited to leave.  As we were sitting on the bus people would walk on holding buckets filled with drinks like water and soda.  Another person would be holding a container filled with gum or some type of snack.  On the bus they played African music videos and a Dolly Parton music video which was interesting because it was a big change from the African music.  On the bus ride, we picked up a drug rep.  Mrs. Wybar calls them a “snake oil vender” because they get on the bus and shout trying to sell their drugs and everything.  At first he gave out free painkillers (which were probably expired), then sold tooth whitening cream, tooth brushes and toothpaste, and some type of aloe gel.  I didn’t want to fall asleep on the bus because I wanted to look out the window and not miss anything.  Nothing exciting was happening and the view was the same as it was when we drove into Kampala so, I decided to take a nap.  As I was sleeping we drove by an accident where a bus was flipped upside down and a matattoo was in a million pieces.  Apparently the Matattoo was driving on the wrong side of the road and collided with the bus.  The Elgon Flyer took us to Mbale.  When we got to Mbale we stopped for lunch.  After lunch Andrew and I went to the bank to withdraw some money for BVI and Mrs. Wybar.  The ATM machine was in a little room, and there were guards with guns outside.  We went in and couldn’t figure out how to work it.  When we finally figured out how to withdraw the cash there were no receipts, so we waited for it to print.  When we left the guards went in because we were in there for so long.  After the bank, we went to the Post Office and picked up the school’s mail.  Before we left, we went to a corner supermarket and bought 2 liter bottles of Coke and Fanta.  We took a private hire back to Bududa.  When we got to BVI and got out of the car, all of the kids ran to greet us, and help us carry our bags up to the house.  I was so excited to see them again and they were so excited to see us also.  For the rest of the day we didn’t do much.  We got back late afternoon so we just ate dinner and went to bed.  

Bobby's Journal May 11,2009

Today we woke up took showers and went to breakfast.  Mrs. Wybar had already ordered breakfast for us, so when we went outside, we grabbed our food from the bar and brought it to the table where she was sitting.  After breakfast we grabbed our things and left.  When we walked out of the building piki-piki’s (motorcycle taxi’s) were lined up against the fence trying to get the next customer.  After arguing about the correct price and the muzungu price, we each hoped on a piki-piki and went to the bank, and then to the gathering spot for all of the matattoo’s.  If we didn’t already exceed the weight limit, my duffel bag didn’t help.  Sitting on the back of the piki-piki, I had my duffel bag slung over my shoulder.  Every time somebody passed us or we passed somebody, I was worried my bag would either hit them, or throw off our balance.  I remember we went over a bump and I literally came off of the back of the piki-piki for what felt like 10 seconds but in reality was less than a second.  When we got off the piki-piki’s, we began looking for a matattoo to take us to Kampala.  All of the matattoo’s were parked in a parking lot in sections: Kampala, Mbale, and other places they were traveling.  The sections weren’t clearly marked, so we walked around until we found one that was going to Kampala.  We were the first people to get to the matattoo, so I got a seat in the front.  I wasn’t sure if this was a good or a bad thing so I made a list in my head.  GOOD: amazing leg room, big seat, roll down window, and visibility.  BAD: what happens if there is an accident? I’m first.  I picked the leg room over the risk and had a nice comfortable breezy ride to Kampala.  We were close to Kampala, and the man sitting between me and the driver got off.  Now I was in heaven.  This was the best matattoo ride by far.  When we got to Kampala, we got off of the matattoo and walked to our hotel.  I didn’t realize how much I missed being in a city with actual streets, skyscrapers, electricity, and loads of people.  On the way to the hotel we passed a store with guitars in the window, so I knew I would be able to finally get my guitar strings.  When we checked into the hotel we went to our rooms, dropped our bags off, and went out to lunch.  We went to a place called Café Pap.  We ate American food and then went to the national theater to see if anything was playing at night.  Nothing was playing.  We then walked around the corner to the craft market.  Here all of the shops were right next to each other, and they sold the exact same things.  I got some gifts for my family, and we bought finger piano’s for BVI’s music class.  I went into one shop, not looking to buy anything but to listen to their music.  They were playing Akon (some American music).  After the craft market I bought guitar string, and then went back to the hotel to drop of our things.  We met up with Moses, the man who drove us from Entebbe to Bududa the first day, and went to Patrick Matsanga’s house.  Mr. Matsanga is the owner of the land that BVI is located on.  BVI and Mr. Matsanga are working on an agreement which is what we delivered to him.  From his house, you can see all 7 hills that Kampala is built on.  When we left, we went to a supermarket, and then out to dinner with one of Mrs. Wybar’s friends.  When we got back to the hotel, we took showers and went to bed.  The mosquito nets were all tangled up, so we tucked them into the foot of our beds, and then sprayed every inch of our room with bug spray. 

 

Andrew's Journal Day 20

Today I woke up at 3:55 AM and cooked eggs for me and Barbara, as well as packed my bag and got some Gatorade mixed up for the trip.  When we hit the road it was still pitch black out and we needed flashlights at some points to see.  We began walking with one of the local boys (Dan) who we agreed to let come and told him we would pay his fees in Mbale and on the matattoo back.  When we told him this, he was absolutely ecstatic.  Despite Mbale being the only major city around, Dan has never been and would never be able to afford this small trip himself.  It would be like some one living in New Jersey and never having gone to the beach.  Then we met Abraham (an older student at the program) because we agreed to take him as well.  Then we met Moses, our guide for the day and set off.  The views were unbelievable as we went through the road that had about a million hills.  We walked for what seemed like forever (actually 3 and a half hours) until we reached Pasano.  We had tea and biscuits there and then set back off.  After passing by about a million kids on the back roads (all of which yelled Mzunga at me), and adults who all called me Rooney because apparently I look like the English soccer player because we are both white with buzz cuts.  After 2 and a half more hours we finally reached Mbale.  My legs were throbbing but I was happy I did it.  Then we went to lunch, ran a couple errands, and Abraham, Dan, and myself took a matattoo home.  Dan had never been on a matattoo either and although I think they’re terrible, he had a blast.  When we got back Dan sang I went to Mbaleeee for about an hour and then I ate dinner and went to bed.  It was a tiring but rewarding day.

Andrew's Journal Day 19

       Today was Sunday and pretty relaxed for the most part.  When we woke up we ate breakfast and I played Bobby in chess for most of the morning (I went 5-0 against him.)  After chess we put fertilizer in the fields to help our struggling tomatoes and cabbage.  Then Elena came over and we worked on the math problems together for about an hour and a half.  Then we ate dinner and I decided I wanted to go to bed early because I am walking to Mbale with Barbara.   

Andrew's Journal Day 18

Today was Saturday so the Children of Peace come on the truck, loaded full of kids.  We woke up early to eat breakfast and make it down there before they arrived so we could take pictures of all of them coming in.  Once everyone was in they had their assembly where they sing the Uganda and school anthem and Bobby and I sang our anthem.  I went and taught soccer with Max and we organized a game against the local kids.  We were up 2-0 but ended in a 2-2 tie.  I was able to get a lot of good pictures and all the kids loved to just look at the pictures on my screen.  It’s unbelievable to see how easily excited they are.  One little boy came up to me when I was taking pictures and tried to talk to me but didn’t speak any English.  After he realized I didn’t know what he was saying he still just stared.  I don’t think he’d ever seen a white person before because after staring for a good 10 minutes he touched my arm then his then my leg then his and then he rubbed my boots.  I was just laughing the whole time as he stared in awe at my white skin.  When Children of Peace was ending Mrs. Wybar told me that one of the orphans that she sponsors (Elena) was doing very poorly in her math.  In fact she had gotten a 3/100 on her national exam.  Mrs. Wybar knew that I was pretty good with math and asked if I wouldn’t mind tutoring her.  I know and like Elena a lot so of course I said yes.  I left on the truck, squeezed in with about 100 other kids and got off near Elena’s house with her.  I went to her house and had her give me all of her math tests and her math notes from this year.  After she gave me all of the materials I took a piki piki back to the house and began making practice problems for tomorrow.  Then we ate dinner, watched a movie, and went to bed.

Andrew's Journal Day 17

Today I woke up early and helped plant cabbage in the garden then had breakfast before heading down to the computer class.  We worked more with the cameras and helped all of the kids upload their pictures onto the computers.  They all thought it was funny to take pictures of us and upload those onto the computer.  Then we typed up two estimates for both a new cookhouse and classroom addition to the school.  It was interesting to see all of the things that go into the building.  Especially over here because everything is hand made and all of the construction and moving is manual.  After that I decided I wanted to do another house visit even though Barbara and Bobby would not be joining.  I walked about a half hour with the computer teacher (Richard) to Helen’s house to meet with her so she could lead me to the house we would be visiting.  After I met up with her we went to Titus’ house.  Titus is an older boy who goes to the school and both his mother and father have died so he is left with his stepmother.  In Bududa if you are left with a stepparent it is very tough and they very rarely treat their stepchildren with any respect.  Helen informed me that before they last visited and made the family change the situation if they wanted the school to support them at all, that Titus lived in a shed with the goats.  He developed a terrible rash from the conditions but thankfully Mrs. Wybar was able to make them remove the goats.  Helen told me that Titus couldn’t stand living there anymore though and is now living with his uncle, which isn’t a great deal better.  We talked with him for a little and it is clear that he is completely defeated.  He is not one of those children, like Rebecca, who always has a smile instead he looks and acts as if he’s given up on living.  He has no emotion and I have yet to see him smile.  He is a truly heartbreaking case and I could not feel worse for him.  The school could not afford to buy more food for this visit so I told Helen I would like to buy it myself.  She said that was wonderful but rather than go with Titus we should go with his brother who has left the uncle and moved into his own tiny shed right next to it.   We did this because if we gave it to Titus the uncle would make him give it up and Titus wouldn’t see the food.  This way the food went directly to Titus and his brother.  The brother was extremely grateful and so happy to have some one invested in his little brother.  When I got back I was very tired from the eventful day and after telling Mrs. Wybar about Titus I had dinner and went to bed.

Andrew's Journal Day 16

              Today we woke up and headed down to the computer class.  After teaching as well as typing up various things for the school we went to do a house visit.  We visited a very cute little girl named Rebecca.  She always has a smile on her face and was very happy to see us.  After talking with her for a little we went to go get her some food because her father is unable to provide for her very large family.  Before we even told her that we were going to buy her food though, she had given us a bag full of avocados.  It is amazing how generous these people are, despite having so little.  Once we bought her some food we headed back to the house on piki pikis (motorcycles) because we were so tired from the long walk there.  When we got home, Mary made dinner and we watched a movie before bed.

Andrew's Journal Day 15

Today we woke up, ate breakfast, and headed down to the school.  All of the Children of Peace were already down there and I was so tired from our long trip.  I decided I just wanted to teach and play with the little kids so they came up to the house.  We played with balloons that I blew up for literally an hour then sat on the porch as I read them a children’s story.  I gave them some snacks after and we worked on puzzles together.  The little kids loved it and I had so much fun with them.  After Children of Peace was done I went up to start getting dinner prepared.  First I wanted a chicken though and we had a local man (Robert) walk to the nearest town to buy us one.  When I get to the house I chopped lettuce out of the garden for a salad (no one in Africa ever eats salad.)  Then I chopped up carrots, onions, peppers, and roasted pine nuts for the salad.  I had purchased Thousand Island dressing in Kampala and was able to make an actual American salad.  Then Robert came back with the live chicken.  I had no idea how to kill and prepare the chicken but I had invited Robert for dinner and he offered to show me how.  I wanted to be the one who killed the chicken for my dinner and Robert showed me how to hold his neck as I cut its throat with our kitchen knife.  After I had completely cut its head off Robert held down the body and we were asking if it would still flop around (I had always heard it happens but was unsure if it was true.)  He explained that it would indeed and we told him to let it go to prove it.  The second he let it go it began fluttering all over the place and was going crazy for what seemed like a minute until it finally stopped.  It was amazing how calm Robert was about the whole situation and it shows how casual people in Bududa and other parts of Africa are with these things.  This is how they grew up and it’s all they know, so it makes sense that he would be so nonchalant about it.  Then we boiled water and plucked the feathers.  After the bird was plucked, I let Robert take over the preparing, seeing as every chicken I’ve ever cooked has been sliced and ready to go.  It was amazing how much of the chicken he put into boil.  They use every edible part and let nothing go to waste.  Then I boiled water for some pasta and made garlic bread.  After I finished making both of those, my dinner was complete and we sat down to eat.  I had invited three local boys who always come to hangout with us to join us for dinner.  I was very happy with how it turned out and I really liked the chicken, despite how tough it was.  Chicken over here is nothing like in America and has a very rough texture.  After dinner we all played card games and everyone had a great time before it was time for bed.

Andrew's Journal Day 14

       Today we woke up early and had breakfast at the hotel so we could get back to Bududa before it was dark.  In Kampala we got an Elgon Flyer to Mbale, which is a much nicer bus than going on a matattoo.  After sleeping most of the 4 hours we arrived to Mbale and realized we were carrying way too much stuff to hop in an already overcrowded matattoo so we hired a taxi to drive us home.  As soon as we stepped foot outside the taxi, there was 10 kids waiting to grab our bags.  They were so excited that we were back and everyone just wanted to come hangout with us.  Allan, a local boy about my age, explained how boring it was without us and was so happy to see us back.  These kids have so little to look forward to, so when they see us it is the best part of their day.  We had been traveling almost nonstop though, so I had to tell them I would play tomorrow and I went to bed.

Bobby's journal 5/10/09

            Today I woke up and had a warm shower.  It was the first since April and if felt SO good.  After showering, we went to breakfast and met Alexis and Brian (the two other people who were in our raft).  They both go to American University and are seniors studying abroad.  After breakfast we met Zoe, our rafting instructor.  She told us about safety and all that good ish.  She also told us how it was her last time rafting the Nile because in two days she is moving to Canada to work with rafting there.  So, we knew we were going to have an “epic” day.  We hopped on a buss and drove to the Nile.  When we got there, they unloaded the rafts, put them in the water, and we hoped in.  As we were sitting in the water she gave us the real introduction.  She taught us how to paddle, get down, and hold on.  She had us jump out of the raft and then pull ourselves in.  This was difficult for me because I can barley lift 10lbs with my left arm from my skiing accident.  She taught us how to pull others in.  In order to pull them in, you have to push them down and then pull them up with their life jackets.  So we go through tiny rapids to get a feel for what we are doing.

            “Okay guys, your training is now over!” she shouted in her Australian accent. 

The first rapid we went down was a class 3.  The highest class we did was 5, but the highest class is a 6.  We made it through the first rapid alright.  “Wow, if this is a class three what is a class 5 like?” I thought.  The next rapid was a little more difficult. 

“HOLD ON!” Zoe shouted. 

This time I got thrown out of the boat.  I went under and was being tossed all over.  I thought that I was going to drown.  I didn’t have any breath left.  Then all of a sudden I felt my self near the top of the water.  I threw my arm up in the air so they could see me.  My head popped out and I went to take a breath. I think I breathed in 1% of air and 99% of the Nile River.  When I finally got out of the rapids, I looked back to see everyone in the raft half a mile up from me.  For safety, there is a safety boat and 2 extremely good kayakers going down with you.  I got pulled up onto the safety boat, and waited for everyone to come down so I could get back in the raft.  This whole experience was so fun.  The next rapid came up, and all the guys got thrown out but the girls stayed in.  I held onto a piece of the raft for a little bit but then got pushed away.  The next rapid we went down I got thrown out AGAIN but this time was holding onto the raft.  As I opened my mouth to say something to Zoe, I got another nice mouthful of the Nile.  This whole experience was crazy and so much fun.  My arms are really sore now from all of the paddling, but it was worth it.  Along the river, there were stretches where we just drifted down, we all jumped in and swam around.  We had pineapple and biscuits for lunch and over all had a great day.  When we got back, there was a barbeque for us which tasted very good.  After the barbeque, we went back to the other campus of The Nile River Explores.  When we got back, I laid down and slept until 10.  When I woke up, I took a shower and then went back to bed.  

Bobby's journal 5/9/09

            Today I woke up, had breakfast and went down to help in the music class.  Today I helped the class write a script for a play they are going to present.  I told that I would video tape them and put it onto the blog for the world to see and they loved the idea.  After music class, we charged all of our electronics and left for Jinja.  Tomorrow we are going white water rafting in the Nile! On the way there, Andrew had a little friend under the seat that kept playing with his leg. It was a chicken! It is normal to bring live stock onto the Matattoo’s and keep it under the seats until you arrive.  When we got to Jinja, the Matattoo driver dropped everyone off, and drove us separately to our destination, which was just outside of Jinja.  We were the only people staying over night at the Nile River Explorers. Andrew and I shared a room, and Mrs. Wybar had her own room.  In our room there were 4 bunk beds.  There was no key to the door so we bought a padlock and locked all of our valuables in a drawer.  We went out to 2 Friends for dinner, and I got a nice cheeseburger.  It was so nice having American food.  After dinner we went home and went to bed because we had to wake up early the next morning. 

Bobby's journal 5/8/09

5/8/09

            Today I woke up, had breakfast and went down to the school.  Today I helped out in the computer class some more.  After computer class we interviewed Principal George Kutosi for the BVI blog (bviuganda.blogspot.com).  On the blog, we write about out days here at BVI and upload some pictures when the internet is cooperating.  After the interview, we walked down to a shop and bought the three families we visited yesterday 10 000 shillings worth of food to help them out.  After buying them food, the rest of the day was really relaxed.  We hung out with some kids and listened to my iPod (if they don’t have Buffalo Soldier memorized by the end of the trip it will be unreal).  At night we finished watching “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and went to bed.  

Bobby's journal 5/7/09

5/7/09

             Today I woke up, had breakfast and went down to help out in the computer class.  They needed to give a presentation to the class about how to use Microsoft Word on the computer.  They were having trouble with basic things like indenting and how to get a new line to write on.  I taught Max how to get the words from one side of the screen to the other.  He couldn’t figure out how to underline, and why certain words were bold and others italicized.  After computer class, I played monkey in the middle with Dan and Allan with a soccer ball.  Henry and his family were going home so we said our goodbye’s and then went on three house visits.  We hitched a ride on a Pepsi truck that was carrying empty glass bottles, and cases of unopened soda.  We sat in the back of the truck on top of the empty bottles and waved to everyone as we drove by.  When we got off, we went up to Helen’s house.  After picking up Helen, we walked to three different houses.  The first house we went to was a 1 room building with a tiny kitchen in the back.  There was one bed, and the child had a sick grandmother who struggled just getting out of bed and outside.  The second family we visited was a girl named Cassava.  Her house was a little better.  She lived with 5 or 6 other people and had a slightly bigger house.  The third kid we visited was Charles.  Charles was wearing a Mt. Airy baseball shirt! He lived with many other kids and his mother.  After doing the house visits we rode motorcycles home.  Geno was at the house when we came home.  He wrote out a song and wrote a verse for me to sing. It didn’t really make any sense but it was fun nonetheless.  After dinner we watched “Their Eyes Were Watching God.”  We started dosing off so we stopped watching half way through the movie.  

Bobby's Journal 5/6/09

5/6/09

            This morning I woke up, ate breakfast and went down to help teach the music class.  We wrote out the lyrics to Amazing Grace on a big sheet of paper.  We taught Johnson, the music teacher, the tune so he could help us teach the children.  After music class a kid hurt his collarbone so we gave him medicine and a cold pack.  When I got the instant cold pack and gave it to him he was shocked because it was so cold.  The people here don’t have refrigerators or ice, so it was really unusual to have something cold. 

            After school, I played Frisbee with some of the local kids.  When it went into the maze, all of the kids would run to be the first to get it.  I didn’t realize it but we were actually playing in a garden.  When the kids left a man named Geno Kopelu came up to the house and started singing and dancing.  This guy is a real character.  He’s the George Hicks of Uganda.  He has produced a couple of songs, but only in Bududa.  In Africa, you can travel 5 minutes down the road and be in a different town that speaks a completely different language.  He taught me his song; I still don’t know what it means though.  After singing, we ate dinner and then watched “Charlie and The Chocolate Factory.” Moses loved it, he would laugh at everything.  He was so amazed with the laptop that he would touch the screen.  After the movie, we all went to bed.  

Bobby's Journal 5/5/09

5/5/09

            Today we woke up at the ass-crack of dawn (6:30) to go to Mbale.  It was the coldest I’ve been since I was in America.  We ran down from the guest house to the school to catch the Matatoo that would take us to Mbale.  A Matatoo is a small buss designed to hold 14 people plus the driver at most.  On the hour long ride to Mbale, I was crammed with eight other people in my row. Eight. In the whole thing there was close to thirty people.  It was nice and hot also!  It was an experience though.  It gave a little taste of what some people here have to go through everyday.  When we got to Mbale, Andrew and I rented DVD’s we thought some of the kids would like to watch with us while Mrs. Wybar made a little trip to the bank and post office.  When we met up with Mrs. Wybar we then walked around the town and tried to find guitar strings.  The one place that sold them was trying to rip me off and sell them for 60 000 so, I didn’t get them.  We then got back on another Matatoo, this time only 22 people, and headed back to Bududa.  This ride was great also.  The man sitting next to the window didn’t like fresh air, and wanted to be hot I guess. 

            When we got home we went up to the guest house.  A little later, a bunch of kids came up.  We gave out some balloons and started playing with the kids and the balloons.  They would hit it up onto the porch and I would try to smack it off right back at them before it hit the ground.  The happiness little things like balloons bring the kids over here is crazy (in a good way). 

            At night, Henry his wife, and son, Moses, came over to stay with us.  They will be staying with us for two nights.  They brought a backpack full of mangos as a gift, and they were good.  I gave Moses a glow stick, and he was amazed with it.  Andrew gave him one of the balloons that you can punch and he also played with that for a long time.  For dinner we had some kind of meat.  Moses ate with his hands.  It was interesting watching him eat because he ate as if he was at home.  He didn’t know what a napkin was until I showed him how to get the food off of his shirt.  While we were eating, he would spit the bones from the meat onto the floor.  It really showed the difference between our cultures.  After dinner, we taught them “Amazing Grace” and “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” and Moses taught us his favorite song “Xi Xi Chu, This Is How To Make A Shoe.”  After he would sing that he would start cracking up.  After this we all went to bed.