Giving Thanks

The past week was a busy one.  A friend from Rotman, Jen White, arrived last Thursday but left for a village in Eastern Uganda the next day.  I had a quiet Kampala weekend and then headed to Soroti in Eastern Uganda last Sunday.  Funny enough, Jen was just around the corner and came by the hotel for a little visit.


Th purpose of the visit was for me to support Anthony with an Internal Audit and to see some more of the RTP projects.  The Audit went well and was a new experience for me.  I was also able to learn a lot about the issues that are faced by our staff in the field.  My project visit was a bit disappointing but only because there were not many children.  As exams have been completed many children are kept at home to work.  Soroti was hot and had giant beetles - never had a seen a bug like this.  I am not quite sure how they survive as they were constantly ending up on their backs unable to flip back over.

Giant Beetle between Anthony's & my feet

We left Soroti on Wednesday morning and stopped to visit Jen at the Orphanage where she was volunteering.  While there were definitely some issues at there, overall the standard and quality was better than I had anticipated.  We had an incredible lunch at the Gately Inn on the Nile.  If my dad come to visit I think it would be a good place for him to visit for a few days.

Amazing Cobb Salad

Upon my return to Kampala I set out to prepare for Thanksgiving.  I had committed to making pumpkin pie and stuffing....neither of which I have ever made before.  In fact i don't really cook much of anything so I was a bit stressed out about the whole thing.  Thanks to my dad for sending over some of the ingredients and responding to the many, many emails I was sending.  


On Wednesday night I successfully made the pie with only a few hurdles to overcome....not being able to turn on the oven being the biggest obstacle.  Apparently the lights need to be on for it to work.  I also made hummous!!  Thursday I made the stuffing which was much easier than I had thought it would be.

Pumpkin Pie

Stuffing

Around 530 Anthony, Jen, Thomas and I headed to John's for dinner.  He had a butterball turkey flown in from Germany!!  It was a great dinner and evening that was likely extended into the wee hours of the evening thanks to Friday being a National Holiday for Eid Muburak.  (For the full Facebook Album click on the title)

John, Anthony & Thomas

As Thanksgiving is in theory a time for giving thanks I thought I should mention some of the things that I am grateful for at this time.  First the past four months have been an incredible experience.  While the work is frustrating at times, as I am not always as busy as I am used to, I find that I am still learning new things every day.  I am very excited for my upcoming travels over the next 6 weeks, to the gorillas and then overland through Southern Africa.  I am also thankful that I am lucky.