Uganda: settling in

My home for the next three months is Bukaya, a small village on the outskirts of Jinja, Uganda. I’d requested a few amenities before I left – a hot shower (I don’t mind slumming it occasionally but 3 months is a long time with just a bowl of cold water to wash in), wi-fi (for the job-hunting) and easy access to town. What I’ve ended up with is so much more than I expected! I am sitting writing this from the veranda of my bungalow in palatial gardens on the banks of Lake Victoria. The family live in the main house, giving me the benefit of my own space whilst getting to know a local family and their customs. I have landed on my feet!

Or so I thought. It hasn’t quite worked out as expected. On my first day here Ritah, my main contact in the family, was arrested for murder! One of those controversial right-to-defend-your-property cases. Although I find it hard to imagine her beating anyone up she has spent the week in police custody. Patrick, her father, and Rebecca, her sister, keep themselves to themselves. So that’s left me alone with the domestic staff. Jonathan the night-watchman checks in on me each evening and Otim the compound manager has tried to be helpful. Gladys has served me meals on my veranda each evening (a temporary measure until Ritah is home) but now she has gone off sick. So this weekend I have survived on peanuts for breakfast and a large lunch by the pool at the nearby hotel! Hopefully things will resolve themselves soon and I can enjoy these beautiful surroundings and get to know the family properly…..

Jinja seems a very laid back town. Situated at the source of the Nile (well the White Nile) and on the banks of Lake Victoria it is known as the adrenaline capital of Uganda. The white water rafting is treacherous enough but the body boarding just looks suicidal. Lots of crumbling buildings from the 1930s to 1950s line the main street, built by the Indians before they were expelled under Amin. There are plans to demolish these and build high-rise buildings in their place. I wonder whether Jinja will be such a tourist hot-spot once the character of these buildings is gone….

But I’m not here to be a tourist. My commute to the office is a 10 minute boda-boda ride. I am slowly learning not to cling on for dear life but am still a few weeks away from looking cool! With all the potholes it’s impossible to get up much speed anyway. I have mainly been training and getting up to speed this week as well as visiting some of the villages where Sustain Micro Enterprise (more on them another time) do their work. It is definitely a slower pace of life here! But they make a real difference to women’s lives and I can’t wait to get started on business training and hopefully make a small contribution to changing lives..