I'm Here...

...well actually, I have been for about 20 hours now! I can't believe it still! I'm actually in Uganda, Africa!

All of the flights, from Des Moines to Detroit, Detroit to Amsterdam, Amsterdam to Kigali, and Kigali to Entebbe went really well. (Yes, we had a stop in Kigali, Rwanda that we were unaware of for an hour) They were long, and I really couldn't sleep on them, but it was all pretty smooth. We only had one delay of about 30 minutes in Amsterdam, so we arrived a little later than expected. My feet and ankles were swollen and are slowly going back to normal size after the 28 hours of traveling that I did (something I don't want to do again...or at least for awhile anyway ;)

We arrived at the Red Chili Hideaway, where we will be staying most of the trip, at around 12 am on Friday, May 20th, which is still taking some adjustment (because my Thursday was spent on a plane and was NOT 24 hours long). As we arrived in Kampala, we were greeted by the MUBS students and rain. Not just any kind of rain either, it was pouring! However, the MUBS students informed us that when guests and rain come at the same time it means the guest are blessings, according to their culture, so we felt extremely honored.

Our cabin has more room than we could ever need because it's actually a hostile. We have two bedrooms with a total of 5 beds, and I'm staying with 5 other girls. We have a room with just the toilet, a room with a shower and sink, a dining room, a kitchen (complete with stove, dishes and a mini fridge), and a front sitting room. The biggest shock, we sleep under mosquito netting! Talk about waking up feeling like a princess ;) It was weird having to surround myself with it before going to bed. We also have switches for everything! A switch to turn on the hot water, a switch to turn on/off the outlets, and of course for the lights (so maybe EVERYTHING was an exaggeration ;). Another huge adjustment, needing a water bottle for almost everything! Yes, I need a water bottle to brush my teeth, which is taking some adjustments.

(Mine is the bed in the corner. Please note the tied up mosquito net (to prevent bugs from getting in them during the day and the flat pillow)

We didn't get to bed until around 2 am, and we had to be ready to be on the bus at 8:30 this morning. It wouldn't have been so bad if there hadn't been dogs barking all night, and a bird similar to a crow to wake me up this morning. Plus, the pillows here are flat, making me realize I will NEVER travel without my own pillow EVER again!

Needless to say, the morning came way to early, and it is pretty humid here, which for those of you that know me, means my hair is just loving this climate and curling like crazy! We began our day at Makerere University Business School (MUBS) with breakfast with the MUBS students that are joining us around 9. Yes, I managed to find something to eat, a cereal similar to corn flakes and some toast. We went and met with the President of the school and the head of International Relations, where they gave a program about the University and a little more information on Uganda.

We then ate lunch around 12 pm, where I experienced Ugandan food for the first time. Yes, I actually tried some too! (Mom, I have pictures to prove it, so don't doubt ;) For lunch, I ate matokee, which is mashed bananas (and tasted similar to mashed potatoes, but not quite enough to make me eat it all :), rice with carrots and peas (no, I didn't eat the carrots or peas), potatoes (that I'm pretty sure were a mixture between a baked potato with no skin and a mashed potato, minus the mashing, and were delicious!), chicken (yep, but it didn't taste quite the same as home), and an orange pop (similar to Crush or Fanta)....so much for my no pop streak, but hey, I had to try it, right? :)

We then went and visited the Uganda Parliament, which was really interesting and absolutely beautiful. I learned about their Parliament chamber, the Uganda cross of arms, and just about their Parliament in general. It was fantastic. They actually just elected their first woman Speaker (similar to our Speaker of the House) yesterday!

(This is right outside their chambers. It shows their culture and numerous wildlife.)

After Parliament, we walked to go exchange money. They use the shilling here, and $1 is the equivalent of 2,780 shillings! I couldn't believe how much value the dollar had here, especially when it's losing it's value in so many other areas!

We were supposed to visit Owino Market today, but it was postponed for another day due to uncertainty with the weather. It ended up being beautiful the rest of the day, but we were all glad to come back and get a chance to rest (literally). I look forward to a good night of sleep tonight. It's pitch black already and has been since around 7, which comes as a huge surprise. Hopefully all of the wildlife works with me tonight to allow me to sleep better.

There is so much more I'd love to say and share, but then I'd be on here forever. And I should probably share the internet connection.

So I leave you with this....yep, be jealous :)

P.S. Mom and Dad, pharmacy school is only 4 years here, plus, it's about $500-600 per semester (at least at MUBS). I might be transferring ;)