sunny side up

I have not been able to use my kettle all week. The power has been so unreliable and only ever seems to be 'on' when I am out of the apartment. My inverter even ran out of power last night (which never happens), so no reserves. My phone battery died, no laptop power and my fridge has therefore been on and off constantly; probably the reason why my stomach is so dodgy! Only a little annoyance to remind us that we live in Africa. Not as annoying as spending everyday on the phone to a call-centre in Ireland trying to sort out my flight to Cape Town with expedia; that is so annoying!

I would say this week has not been the best for some friends and colleagues at the 'w' place:

• One house was broken into,really broken into; they got in by bashing a hole through the brick wall, then once inside, breaking the door to get everything out. The Ugandan rugby team is now checking-out every passer-byers shoes in the hope of catching the culprits!
• A leg was broken.
• One lucky escape; a teacher was knocked over by a lorry just near the school and came out bruised and battered.
• Money was stolen, meant for charity.
• A boda-boda accident; another colleague was involved in a motorcycle accident. A reminder that the convenient little scooters are very dangerous.
• And a heart was broken.

On a positive front; my first week on weight watchers was given a kick start, I had a great run on Thursday with my buddy and I've just read on the BBC that shopping 'may improve health'. Looking for that silver lining.

Acholi Quarters

Today my teaching partner and I took 39 eight year old students around a slum, the Acholi Quarters, in Kampala, as part of our Community Development Project. The school has an ongoing link with this community of displaced people from the North of Uganda, but it was my first visit to the area. The community is made up of over 10, 000 poor and vulnerable people (virtually every mother has a child with malaria)  .The community was friendly and welcoming and we got shown around the little maze of mud huts, latrines, animal pens and rubbish tips.

We went with the aim of making observations and sketches of their very basic community playground, making notes of unsafe materials (mmm...all of it!) so that we could design and build a new playground after raising funds for it. My teaching partner and I hardly took any photos, which is a shame, but with so many children and so many twists and turns and alleys, we didn't really get a chance.

For many pupils, if not all, it was the first time they had been so up-close and personal with these types of living conditions. Many were quite happy to be able to hide behind a clipboard and be very busy and important, rather than try to interact with other children we met, but I was still SO impressed with them. Visiting the area could be understandably intimidating for anybody, at any age.

The pupils helped each other jump over sewers and avoid muddy puddles and showed respect to the living conditions of the community. I heard no 'eeeuurrrrhhh's' or 'yuuuucck's', even when they noticed what was on the slide (!) and only one pupil got a bit upset when he got a bit of mud on his leg! (I think everyone will have extra long showers this evening!) Our pupils quietly observed, watched their step and then got excited about what the new playground, that they will create, will look like.

We all may live in Kampala, but the community we visited today is a million miles away from our lives. Every now and again, we need reminders of  how lucky we are.

Images from the weekend

A few images from my weekend.

1.  Evidence of the dusty trail run on Sunday - a 'fun' 10km run for charity.
2.  I feel like I have spent a lot of my weekend on the phone to call centres trying to sort out my flight to Cape Town. If expedia don't sort it out, then maybe I should just try out this Inn; I would save on flights as it is only round the corner!!
3. My first attempt at bread. Soda bread for our Irish cook club.
4. Being Irish for the night - potatoes, potatoes and more potatoes.

I wish I got a photo of...
The British doctor running straight past the man that had collapsed with heat exhaustion at the fun run.

All Quiet

It's the beginning of weekend and I don't have very much planned...for once. It will be a quiet one because; the African Adventurer is off being busy and important, I am at the height of my training (ha...big joke!) and... we haven't been paid yet.

So, I will embrace the little things.

I'm looking forward to doing some baking and cooking; it is cook club this weekend and I am going to make my first ever loaf of bread!Wish me luck. Plus I think I will find the first series of Mad Men, to see what everyone is talking about.

And with the weekend, comes my weekly visit to my florist. Sunflowers are one of my favourites.