Mzungu caught in the rain!

Another weekend is coming to a close. The work week finished with the first two days of a three day workshop to complete our NORAD proposal. It was great to meet the country managers from Mozambique and Tanzania, and to learn more about the differences in the RTP programs across countries.

Saturday the weather was amazing - yet I spent most of the day at the office. We reviewed three-year operational plans and were briefed on the recent strategic planning session that the Burundi Ministry of Sport had. After a big team dinner at the Kabira Club I was ready for a night out. All nights seem to end at the Iguana Club, and last night was as entertaining as ever. You really do need to have a sense of humour about things here.

I woke up this morning looking forward to a sunny day and time by the pool only to find a cloud covered sky. By 1130 the sun was peeking through so I grabbed my book and a towel and headed to the pool. It was a good mix of sun and cloud until about 345 when it got quite gloomy out. I decided to try and get home before the rain came. Well, I was not quite quick enough and found myself walking in pouring rain...in a white t-shirt! Luckily I had a solid tank on underneath:) I was the only one walking as everyone else had ducked under shelters - and most of them had a good laugh watching the mzungu caught in the rain, trying not to slip and fall.

so I am a crackberry addict....

Before coming to Uganda I did some research on the major telecoms to ensure that I would be able to get a local service provider for my blackberry. I then spoke to our IT guy to ensure that my BB was unlocked, got permission to take it with me and agreed to pay for my own data plan. Upon arrival I went to get service - and realized that it is not as easy to do as it is at home. There is no such thing as credit card billing and the companies require passport photos, a letter from your employer and a significant deposit if you want post-paid service. (Most people use a pre-paid service and buy scratch cards to add credit to their phone.) I then discovered that my BB was locked! I had a few weeks of panic...that I would have to spend a fortune on a new one...or have to survive without it.

I have since learned that it is quite easy to get it unlocked - you can purchase a code online! Today I went to get my service set up..... it took a visit to the store (a long wait for the driver to return) and then to the head office to get someone that could help me. As it was so late in the day at this point - they were unable to give me my new sim card, but with any luck by tomorrow at this time I will have a Uganda mobile number and data on my BB!!! I am looking forward to being able to text my new friends (everyone lives on sms here) on a full keyboard as opposed to a phone pad!

Some may laugh at my addiction - but as half of my immediate family and many of my friends are also crackberry addicts, it has been a great cheap way to stay in touch! It also provides me email access when the power goes out (which happens more frequently than one might think.)

4 weeks in!

It has been 4-weeks since I left Toronto and I am starting to settle into a routine - gym, work, movies on tv and the occasional night out with new friends. I still need to sort out how to get around when I am not walking or with an RTP driver. I find transport here a little trickier than in Nairobi but I am sure I will figure it out with time.

The first few weeks I was here the weather was perfect but it seems that we have now moved into rainy season which means that today has been spent in my apartment as opposed to being at the pool:( Luckily the rain seems to only last a couple of hours at a time and then the rest of the time the weather is back to being pretty perfect - not too hot but still warm enough to go out in the evening in a tank top and not worry about a sweater!

Work is good. I spent most of last week researching South Africa for background to put in a 3-year operational plan. It is a great learning to try to put it together! Things are about to get very busy with planning meetings and various training sessions over the next few weeks.

I am looking forward to switching apartments next week and getting fully unpacked, finally!

So far no more cockroach sightings....just ants but not too many.

Storm

I am sitting at the office, completely distracted, by the awesome storm outside. I have only seen storms like this a few times in my life and I think my office mates have been amused by my reaction! The trees look like they are blowing perpendicular! I will have to get my flashlight out when I get home so I am prepared for the inevitable power outage.

Good news from Em today - she received her MCAT scores and is very happy with them! All her hard work is paying off.

Birthday Celebrations

In an effort to avoid moping on my birthday I put together a series of events to keep busy.

Friday night I met some new friends for dinner and discovered the horror of Kampala traffic. I had experienced rush hour traffic my first week there, but at that time the bodas (motorbike taxis) were still getting through. Friday night I got stuck in gridlock, cars were turned off and no one was getting anywhere. I was incredibly frustrated and the thought of going home occurred more than one - I did however realize that might take even longer. Luckily I stuck it out and arrived only shortly after the group I meeting. I had an unbelievable steak, cooked just the way I like it, with a variety of sides. Not only was the meal great - but dinner, a bottle of water and 2 beers only cost $12!!!

Saturday kicked off with various birthday greetings - Thank you. Mid-morning I headed to the Kabira Club for a great work out. They have a lot of equipment circa 1995 from Italy, including a row machine that lets you race the computer....I anything involving competition keeps me excited about my workout. After a quick lunch I headed to the new spa that opened near me and had a pedicure. The spa meets all the standards of ones at home at a fraction of the cost. I will definitely be visiting it often. My fellow ex-pat co-workers Rudaba (from Bangladesh), Juliana (from Ghana) and Thomas (from Norway) took me out for a great dinner at a Turkish restaurant - that looks to be a great pub to visit too!

Overall it was a good celebration - while maybe not as memorable as my 30th on Kilimanjaro - it was another East African Celebration which in itself makes it special.

Malaria Free!!

After feeling a little un-well this week my very insistent boss had me go for a malaria test. I went to a lab in a little hospital, they ran some quick tests and for around $7 I was able to return to the office with evidence that I am Malaria free!!

The lesson of this is that when feeling un-well people assume the worst until proven otherwise and the proof is simple to get.

Nothing else too exciting to report. Most of the week has been spent reading 3-year operational plans for the countries in the region - an incredible amount of thought and work goes into the plans and so far they are proving to be a great way for me to learn.

good weekend, unpleasant Monday morning surprise

This morning I had my first Kampala cockroach encounter.... not a pleasant one. The roach came scurrying out of a cupboard in my room. (It was close to the size of my thumb.) I think we both froze when we saw each other. I screamed a little and then sat on my bed staring it down, trying to figure out what to do. I had naively thought that since my apartment is cleaned everyday that I would be spared these moments. When I eventually approached it, with a shoe in hand, it scurried towards my suitcases (that are not completely unpacked yet) so I had to cut it off by spraying it with cleaning spray. It then started up my fan (yes they can climb) and I was finally able to whack it with my shoe. When it hit the ground I sprayed it a little more for good measure and then left it there. I am hoping they will see it and then spray my apartment today! I have my fingers crossed that when I move to the fourth floor at the end of the month, I will have no more critters.

Other than that it was a good weekend. I went out with a friend of a friend on Friday night and then spent yesterday lounging by the pool at the country club.

Thanks to Jules and TJ for being so prompt in posting pictures from the weekend - Congratulations Tara and Ryan!

Cash is King...

...Credit Card users beware!!

Over the past few years I have become completely accustomed to using plastic for all of my purchases and have been known to have no cash at all. Well that is about to change!

I knew that I wouldn't be able to use debit for purchases but was hoping to use my credit card for major purchases, phone service etc. and then I would just pay it online. This way I would avoid the horrendous $5 fee every time I take out money. I have quickly discovered that only very few places accept credit cards, and those that do may charge a service fee or a horrendous exchange rate.

Take for example my new gym membership - I paid for a year up front - the price is advertised in USD and I had to pay a 5% surcharge. I didn't pay too much attention to the transaction, figuring they would use the standard exchange that I had heard elsewhere ($1USD=2000UGX). Needless to say I was a little surprised when I looked at the transaction record online. They use their own rate which made my membership cost around $140USD more!!! I will have to make good use of the Country Club now!!

So my lesson learned this week is that things just don't work the way I am used to and I am going to have to adjust to living in a cash-based society!

Joining the Country Club

Yesterday I joined the Kabira Country Club - never thought I would say I was joining a Country Club! I had my first work out in the open air gym and the power went out three times while I was on the eliptical! Makes it a little tricky to track the time. Overall the place is quite nice and has a great swimming pool.

This week will be about getting more familiar with the surroundings and trying to figure work out.

A good beginning

After the plane problems leaving Toronto, I arrived in Kampala on Tuesday evening, 24 hours late. Luckily all of my luggage arrived with me. I was picked up at the airport and then greeted at my apartment by my new boss. The place is ok, but I have not had a moment to settle in and really decide. I think I will try to move up from the ground floor.

Early Wednesday we started our 4-day field visit. The purpose of the visit was filming for a Frank Marshall documentary on Johann and RTP that is being created as part of ESPN's 30 for 30. We kicked the morning off with a press conference, followed by a visit to the UNHCR office. In the afternoon we visited two RTP projects in the Kampala area. What was most striking to me was the sound of song and joy from the children and then the leadership and ability of the junior leaders.

On Thursday morning we visited The Hope Clinic - a medical clinic for a community where RTP had programs - and some other children. Then we headed for a meeting with the Vice President of Kampala! We visited his summer home on Lake Victoria and were kept waiting for about 2 hours....I guess when you are a head of state you can keep people waiting? We had a good meeting with him, sitting outside and he seemed very committed to helping RTP and taking a lead in the Sport for Development & Peace movement:) From that excitement we headed on our long journey to Mbararra.

I am not quite sure how to accurately describe Friday. In the morning we headed to the Ourichinga Refugee Settlement. We received a wonderful welcome from the children. These refugees have been in Uganda for a long time, and some have recently been resettled in Rwanda. The majority of the children that were participating in our programs were born in Uganda. The very young children were very curious about us Mzungus (white people) but also went around their own business with the games. They were very strong at describing what they learned from each game.

We then met with the volunteer association that was formed in 2007 when RTP had to cut back some of the programming in the region. They wanted to ensure that they could still help the children. Some of the volunteers had been with RTP since 2001!!!!

The next stop was a temporary school set up by Save the Children in Nakivale Refugee Camp. Most of these children were recent arrivals and those not directly involved in the games followed the Mzungus around. They all wanted to touch us. I had one little girl poke at my finger tips and pinch me to see what would happen to my colour. The games here were great as they really provided the children an opportunity to relax, learn and communicate through song. In some game circles that I participated in there were at least 6 languages being spoken and the coach was able to communicate with them all. At this location, I felt that there was an almost desperate quality from the children and hopefully once RTP has been there a little longer this will be alleviated.

We visited one final school that was also running programs. What struck me here was seeing the Muslim girls running and skipping and smiling. They were very bubbly and once within about 10 minutes they felt very comfortable with us - even asking if they could be in a picture with me and asking my name and age. When I gave my name, one girl said she knew it from 'Prison Break"! I asked if she watched anything else but she didn't. I was a little surprised to say the least.

The final stop of the day was at the Refugee Reception Centre, where new refugees stay until they can be settled. This was the most difficult stop of the day. Many of the families that I spoke to, in broken french, had been staying at the centre for close to 3 months. While the conditions were hard to see and the people really crowded around us (to the point that I was verging on discomfort), it was an eye-opening experience that I was glad to have.

All in all, the visits to these camps really let me see the power of what we do, and helped me get over some of the anxiety I have about spending a year here.

Saturday we returned to Kampala, had a meeting with the regional staff and then a farewell dinner before Johann, Frank and Mike returned to their homes. I spent today with Joan, the ESPN VP in charge of 30 for 30, and we visited Ngamba Island to see the Chimpanzee Sanctuary.

Now it will be time to figure out what day to day life will be. I am expecting a lot of hard work and many long days. The staff here are incredibly passionate about what we do. I am sure that I will learn a lot from them.

Sorry for the length of the post - it was quite a week! I will do my best to keep them shorter from now on:)

The internet is quite slow and I am unable to post pictures here....but click here to see some that I have posted to facebook http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=291610&id=651065693&l=1d3100867e