Recent Happenings

Some things that have taken place recently:

• Last week, Melinda, a missionary from Florida, took Laura, Tara, & I to meet some women who make paper beads.  They don't work with a women's group, so they don't have many opportunities to sell what they make.  They're about 15-20 minutes outside of town, and about 5km off of the main road.  

• Also last week, I went to a tailor to have a dress and a skirt made.  
• Friday night was our staff stress release party and the GBV staff goodbye party.  It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible.  There was a football match followed by dinner, drinks, speeches, and dancing from about 8-midnight.  
• Saturday to Sunday I went back to Kidepo with Laura, Tara, Heather, and some IRC staff.  We didn't see as many animals, and got stuck in some mud for a while.

• Sunday night we watched the world cup final at the FC's house using a projector and screen.  
• Tuesday night was our final feedback session for all of GBV.
• Wednesday was the last day that the GBV field staff were around because the NCE ended.  

• Thursday we were supposed to go back to Adyee to pick up the beads that we ordered, but we were instead invited to Walter's home, so we opted to go there instead, and will get the beads next week.  

• After dinner #1 at Walter's, we went Heather's tukul for dinner.  (She's a peace corps volunteer living at a school a few kms outside of town).

On another note, this has been a bit of an emotionally difficult week in Uganda.  Other things of importance, which I'm sure you've all heard about, include the bombings in Kampala during the world cup final last Sunday night.  Obviously it was a great shock to everyone here.  Our field coordinator in Moroto lost her sister, one of the drivers in Kitgum lost a cousin, and several staff members lost friends of friends or family members of friends.   The Rugby Club, in Lugogo, is very close to the IRC guesthouse, and one of our expat staff members who lives at the guesthouse said she heard the bombs there.

I was not in Kampala, and don't have plans to travel there until the end of the month when I'm leaving Uganda, which, coincidentally, is the weekend that falls at the end of the AU summit.  Fortunately, several of us will be in Kampala that weekend, including Laura, Tara, Kevin (my boss), and Travis (peace corps), so the chances of being able to hole up in the IRC guesthouse and not have to be in busy busy places has potential for not being as boring as it sounds.

I spoke with my friend Josephine, who is a Ugandan woman currently going to school in the center of Kampala, on Monday, and she said that things in Kampala are tense.  There have been reports of suspected bombs all over Kampala since the beginning of the week, though as far as I've heard, only one has been confirmed.