Today marks exactly three weeks since I've been in Mbarara and one of the most fascinating aspects of daily life has been language. When I initially asked people about what language would be most useful to learn in Uganda the answer was always, "It depends." This is because Ugandan citizens speak over forty different tribal languages. On my initial drive from Kampala to Mbarara, I asked Silver, the driver, how many languages he spoke. "I don't know," he said. "I've never really taken the time to count  . . .  but I think maybe ten to fifteen."

Officially, Uganda's languages are English and Swahili but other common languages spoken are Luganda, Runyoro, Runyankole, Rukiga and Luo. In the southwest of the country where Mbarara is located, mostly Bantu languages are spoken which includes Runyankole, the most common language in my area. Since we are close to the border of Rwanda, many people are also able to speak Kinyarawanda.

I had the first meeting with my language tutor, Justus, last week to start practicing Runyankole. The language is spelled exactly how it sounds, which makes things a bit easier. Interestingly, R's and L's can be used interchangeably in spelling and in pronunciation as there is barely any difference. Here's a taste of what I learned in the first lesson - a basic self-introduction:

Agandi? Ndyaho. Nibanyeta Sarah. Kandi iwe? Na she mererwa kukureeba. Ninduga omuri Michigan. Hati nintura Boma. Webare mononga! 

Even a one hour lesson is extremely helpful in starting to listen to the pattern of the language and I've been able to hear and understand common words repeated over and over like "Ok" (Kale), greetings and thanks.

Another interesting aspect of the language hodgepodge here is the presence of Swahili, but only for some words. I hear the word "Muzungu" (Swahili for "foreigner") over and over again along with "Buzungu" (Swahili for "many foreigners"). This is interesting because although most people choose to speak Runyankole 100% of the time, they always turn to Swahili when referring to foreigners.

The last curious part of language that I've been enjoying is the different type of English spoken here. One assumes that if you can speak English you will automatically be able to understand everyone else who speaks it anywhere in the world, but this is not the case at all. Ugandan English has a different rhythm, pronunciation and most importantly, vocabulary. In almost every conversation that I've had with a Ugandan, one of us has to ask the other to repeat herself. In the first conversation with my driver, Silver, I remember asking him, "This car seems pretty sturdy, is it four wheel drive?" and he replied, "No, it takes more than four hours and probably about 5-6 hours to reach Mbarara."

I've been trying to keep track of the interesting things I've heard people say, none of which has been incorrect at all, it's just completely different than how we would say things in the States. Here are a few examples:

"I will get you the internet passcode so you can avail yourself of the network."

"Can you wait right here while I get the stapling machine?" (stapler)

"I didn't know what to do and my eyes darted many different ways."

"Thank you for your invigilation this morning in my classroom." (written in an email)  I actually had to look this one up: "invigilation - keeping watch over examination candidates to prevent cheating; supervision; oversight."

"All of the students in your class will be freshers." (freshmen)

"Freshers welcome party"

It's been so interesting to learn more about how people communicate here, both in English and in Runyankole - I can't wait to learn more!

This past weekend was my first excursion out of the city of Mbarara and I was more than ready to escape the constant stream of motorcycles that involves exploring any urban center here. Along with three other girls, we arranged for a private driver and car to take us the three hour drive south to explore Lake Bunyoni.  There are many other expats in Mbarara, most of whom are in the field of medicine and public health. In our group, Kayla is a current Fulbrighter from the U.S. doing research on women's health, Adriana is from Canada and here on a Queen Elizabeth fellowship doing research on community health and Shyrose is also from Canada on the same fellowship doing research on children's health.

The four of us left early on Saturday morning and headed southwest to the lake. Driving anywhere in Uganda is time-consuming and tiring because of chaotic traffic, police stops, constant speed bumps, unexpected traffic hazards like cows, goats and accidents, poor road conditions and unpredictable weather. When we reached the edge of the lake, we boarded a motorized canoe to take us to the island where we were staying. Lake Bunyoni lies near the border of Rwanda and is one of Uganda's deepest lakes. It has several islands, many of which are developed for tourism and we stayed at Entusi Resort on one of the larger of the islands.



We were the only group at the resort that weekend so it was quiet and we had a lot of help and attention. After some fresh passion fruit juice, we had a quick lunch and then went on a boat tour of the lake which included history of some of the more interesting islands. Punishment Island was where young girls who were pregnant and unmarried were left to die as a warning to others. Another island called Sharps Island was once a leprosy colony and eventually a treatment center. We stopped at an island that's now a wildlife refuge and was able to spot a few zebras and impalas. While exploring the refuge, we got caught in the afternoon deluge and had some beers at the lodge while we waited for the rain to pass.



We spent the late afternoon and evening curled up by the fireplace with tea and books, which was a welcome change from the heat, noise and mosquitoes of the city. At sunset, we took a quick hike, wine glasses and bottle in hand, to see Mother Nature's nightly show from the top of hill nearest our resort and the view did not disappoint. After a late dinner, we headed to bed in our communal tent and were awakened by a cacophony of birds at 6:00 a.m. the following morning.



On Sunday, we went hiking and then swimming (Lake Bunyoni is the only freshwater lake in which it's safe to swim as there is no "Swimmer's Itch" bacteria present) before starting the long drive back home. I'm grateful for the time spent outside in nature and for the chance to get to know some new friends and colleagues. Hopefully, this is just one of many weekend trips to come in the next ten months.

I spent the first day in Mbarara figuring out my communication situation. My neighbor, a new Fulbright Scholar researching a project on public health who works in the same department that I do, gave me some advice about how to proceed. She also lives in the same apartment complex and has been a helpful resource on everything from directions to the university and phone numbers for safe drivers to call.

Buying groceries at the market

Using one of her extra phones and contact list, I was picked up by one of her go-to drivers who spent the day with me running errands. First, Peter took me to one of the telecommunications companies called "Africell" where I purchased a SIM card, airtime and data for my cell phone and also a dongle for my computer that would allow me to access the internet in my apartment or at school when the network was down. Wifi and routers are not very common here, unfortunately, and internet and calling minutes are not only slow and inefficient but also extremely expensive. Other errands included stopping by the ATM, getting groceries and buying a hot pot to boil water.

The front of the campus apartments

So far I've been a mixture of feeling overwhelmed, tired, excited and anxious - there's so much to understand and learn but it takes a lot of time, energy and patience and it's hard to hold myself back from asking every question possible. The few days spent settling in has allowed me to observe initial pros and cons of living and working in Uganda. Some positives about this location are the incredible weather (sunny, warm and in the 70s-80s every day), the cheap and fresh produce (the opposite of Japan), the very relaxed style and pace of life (also the opposite of Japan) and the extremely friendly, chatty and outgoing people. The negative aspects include the high population of mosquitos, the danger and difficulty of transportation, the lack of infrastructure (read unreliable water, electricity, internet and phone service) and the evidence of extreme poverty everywhere.

During training and from a recent phone call with my RELO (Regional English Language Officer) in Tanzania, I was reminded to use the first month of this job to "take the pulse" of the location and position by assessing needs, doing lots of observing and listening and not rushing into things. We were also encouraged to meet as many people as we could during the first couple of weeks, which has been great advice as well. I'm looking forward to my first weekend spent out of the city and am counting down the days until Sean can "take the pulse" of the location along with me.

Banana trees

After staying the night in Kampala, I was supposed to be picked up at 10:00 a.m. at the hotel by a university driver to take me to Mbarara, my host city. The driver ended up coming at 12:30, which, I'm told is normal here. Like Brazil, time is fluid here and I've already heard that it's not so important when someone arrives but that the/she safely arrived at all. That being said, I now make sure I have a book with me at all times and have already powered through quite a few.

Mr. Silver was my very chatty and helpful driver who shared a lot of information about Uganda with me during our six hour trek south. Although the distance to Mbarara from Kampala is only about 150 miles, regional challenges and complications like bad roads, continuous police checks, heavy traffic, animal/herd crossings, limited passing lanes and construction significantly slows everybody down and makes driving fairly unsafe. "You will see lots of interesting surprises on our journey today," Silver said to me as we started out.  And I did.

Amidst heavy traffic while leaving the city, I saw flocks of goats being expertly maneuvered through traffic. When minibuses would stop to allow passengers to get on and off, mobs of street vendors hawking all kinds of food, drinks and reading material would pounce on new potential clients. Along the way we saw herds of cows and goats and I'm told that zebras are common. Silver stopped several times to buy sweet potatoes, beans, rice and fish from the many roadside vendors. Halfway through the journey, as I was trying desperately to stay awake, we stopped for "lunch" at 4:00 p.m. and enjoyed a buffet which contained foods mostly unidentifiable to me but I ate them all as I was more than a little hungry by late afternoon.



Finally, we arrived in Mbarara and after a quick stop at an ATM and a supermarket for some water, Silver dropped me off at the campus apartments where I'd be staying. Once again, the jet lag reared its ugly head and instead of sleeping I became intimately acquainted with the night sounds of the city such as howling dogs, cat fights, overactive roosters and club music pumping into the early morning. A day full of interesting surprises, indeed.

After one last hectic week of packing, purchasing a final few things and attending Andrew and Jodi's wedding in Traverse City, I began the long journey to Uganda. I flew from Grand Rapids to Washington D.C. then from there to Brussels and finally landed in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. Amazingly, everything went smoothly and all of my baggage made it without incident which was a big relief.

Walking out of the small terminal with my luggage, I was spotted and picked up by embassy drivers who took me to my hotel to stay for the night. First impressions of the country were the heat, the intense human smells and the relaxed chaos of the crowds. While I was waiting for another embassy employee to emerge, I waited with my luggage and was approached by many taxi drivers who called me "Sister" and "Friend" and wondered if I needed a ride. When I said that I didn't they left me alone but not before saying something along the lines of, "Welcome to Uganda!"

The two drivers were wearing white shirts with white ties and led me to a shining white SUV. Although the airport isn't too far from the city, because of traffic the drive took about two hours during which they wanted to talk about the recent Las Vegas shooting in the U.S and gun control in general.

The hotel where I stayed was right next to the U.S. Embassy and was beautiful. It was great to take a hot shower and Skype with Sean and my family to let them know that I had made it safely. I had no problem falling asleep after about a day and a half in transit and with the promise of another day of driving ahead of me tomorrow. And just like that, a new journey begins.

I've taken more than a brief hiatus from writing and have enjoyed the lack of screen time in exchange for time with family and friends during beautiful summertime in Michigan. As a new academic year ramps up filled with a new job and a different place to live, I'm ready and anxious to start blogging again. Thanks for your support and for following along!


After finishing up Geneva Summer School in Switzerland, I returned to Tokyo for a few days to finish up some paperwork at the university, move out of my apartment, cancel my Japanese residency and fly back home to the United States. I took a week off before starting work part-time at the Hope Geneva Bookstore on the campus of Hope College right in town. Most of my summer was spent at family reunions, time at the beach and on the lake, enjoying food I'd craved for two years, spending time with people I'd missed and relishing in the absence of due dates, papers and presentations. I also spent a week in D.C. for training for my new job and as an added bonus, my family was able to tag along too!


Sean finished up his time as a guide for Adventure Treks in Alaska and had a great summer despite some challenges with the local wildlife and the occasional surly teenager. We met up in San Francisco for a friend's wedding and enjoyed a much-needed weekend together exploring a new city. After returning from California, Sean enjoyed catching up with friends and family, playing ultimate frisbee, going on his annual men's camping retreat up north and getting organized for our next adventure.


I have about two more weeks until I leave (pending the acceptance of my visa application) for Mbarara, Uganda to start my English Language Fellowship with the U.S. Department of State. Sean will follow along a few weeks later after working for ten days in Japan as an assistant guide for a group summit of Mount Fuji, which is something he's been wanting to do for years. As we prepare for a life in a new place and a job with different responsibilities, we're so grateful to have such a supportive community of friends and family and a home base in such a beautiful city.  It's always exciting to travel and live in someplace new, but it's an even better feeling to return home. These past three months have been just what we needed and I can't think of any place I would have rather been. The adage home sweet home couldn't possibly ring any truer.

Since I don't really have any plans until late fall and Sean is away working in Alaska for the summer, I was interested in doing something different before flying home. I applied to several summer opportunities but was only admitted into one that provided some scholarship funding, which made decision-making easy. That opportunity was attending a two-week class called Higher Education in Emergencies through Geneva Summer School at the University of Geneva in Switzerland. For me, the course was particularly interesting because it gave a thorough and intensive introduction to the growing field of university education for refugees so it combined a field which I have a lot of experience in (working and studying in higher education) with one that I'm very interested in (development and humanitarian aid).


As I write this post today, I just finished the class yesterday and am waiting for my flight back to Tokyo later on tonight. I'll be in Japan for a few days packing up, moving out and finishing some final paperwork before flying back home to Michigan during the first week of July. It was my first time in Geneva and it was fun to live in such an international and diverse city for two weeks. Since I was a student, I felt like I was a part of something and here with a purpose instead of just a tourist as I joined the morning and evening commuters walking and cycling to work. We had to find our own housing for the program, which was an expensive challenge, and I ended up in an Air BnB near the train station which was a great location. It was nice to be able to walk to and from school every day (about 30 minutes) while watching the daily life of the city wake up and wind down.



The course was interesting but I quickly realized that I'm pretty "schooled" out. It was hard to sit and listen to lectures and do intensive group work from 8-6 every day after just finishing up at ICU. The content was useful and meeting different experts and practitioners from all of the world was great. But the most enjoyable part of the class, as usual, was meeting and getting to know all of the other students. Half of the class was student leaders from refugee camps and the other half was graduate students like me or employees from UNHCR or NGOs that work in the refugee and education sector. There were 30 of us from Kenya, DRC, France, Switzerland, Jordan, Georgia, Egypt, Somalia, Ethiopia, Finland, USA, Nepal, Italy, Israel, Mexico and a few more that I can't remember. Because we did so much group work before, during and after class, we all got to know each other really well which was a lot of fun.

My name tag - we passed them around to get different translations of our names

The highlight of the course, however, was being able to be a tourist in such a beautiful city for an extended period of time during some of the best weather of the year! More to come on the delights of Geneva later. The other bonus was meeting one of the students who looks exactly like the character, Thor - incredible!

One of the guys in the class from Finland looked exactly like Thor! (see picture below)