The blog has taken a backseat to life as an English Language Fellow (ELF) for several reasons. First, the internet connection in rural Uganda is weak and expensive. When I am lucky enough to have a decent signal, I prioritize work-related activities and communication over anything else. Even purchasing internet data in bulk is pricey - last week I reloaded with 10G for about $60 (a fortune here), which I'll hopefully try to make last for at least a couple of weeks. Secondly, even if there is a decent internet signal there is often no electricity. Much of the time I'm not able to charge my phone or computer to access internet in the first place. Sean and I have adjusted to these challenges by limiting our time online, charging everything whenever there is electricity available and keeping a headlamp and a backup battery for emergencies with us at all times.

Other than getting used to a life offline and in the dark, life as an English Language Fellow in Uganda has been fantastic and the past few months have been very fun and busy. In November, Sean and I traveled to Malindi, Kenya so I could participate and present at an English Access Microscholarship Training for a few days. In January, we spent a week in Kigali, Rwanda helping out with an English Teacher Association Networking conference put on by the U.S. Embassy and the British Council. The next month we headed to Zanzibar in Tanzania for the ELF midyear seminar which was a fantastic opportunity to meet and get to know the other ELFs in Africa. This month, we recently returned from a friend's destination wedding in Mexico and we enjoyed celebrating with family and friends in Puerto Vallarta. Next month, we travel to Ethiopia to present at a TESOL conference in Addis Ababa and in May we return home for a week to attend two weddings in Michigan. It's hard to believe that at the end of July I'll be flying home at the completion of my fellowship and we're eager to see what's next.

In the meantime, I'll be updating the blog as best as I can with the available internet and electricity. As always, thanks for following along!

Nothing like a power outage to remind us that even forced candlelight dinners can be romantic.

Blog posts have been a little delayed because of the loss of my laptop. Unfortunately, while we were away on a weekend trip a few weeks ago, someone broke into our apartment and took my computer and hard drive. I'm still grieving a bit but also trying to move forward, stay positive and not let the frustration and fear of the theft drag me down.

This past weekend was one of the highlights of the fellowship so far as my husband and I were invited to attend a traditional Ugandan wedding. Last semester, Sean and I co-taught a communications skills course with Cleophas, a very friendly and outgoing Ugandan professor. As soon as I met her, she immediately invited me to attend the wedding of her niece. In Uganda, it is quite common for large numbers of people to be invited to extended family weddings. Sean and I were excited about the opportunity and started planning where to stay and what to wear.

Ugandan weddings are long and complex affairs. They usually involve at least two ceremonies on separate days - one is the 'Giving Away' celebration during which the bride's family formally hands her over to the groom's family and the other is the actual wedding ceremony. Although Sean and I were invited to both events, we opted to attend just the Giving Away ceremony because of available time and expense.


Both ceremonies were held on the same weekend in Kampala which is unusual for two reasons. Usually, the two events are spread weeks or months apart and are held in the village, not in a big city like Kampala. Although our invitations said the event started at one in the afternoon, staff at our hostel advised us to arrive much later. When we got to the venue at 2:30 pm, hardly any of the other guests had arrived yet and we ended up waiting around until about 4:30 pm when the party really got started.

The location of the ceremony was beautiful and elaborate. There was an elevated center stage for the bride surrounded by chairs to be filled by her bridal party. Guests were seated under tents in a circular arrangement around the stage. The middle area was used by the MC and by the dance troupe who performed no less than eight entertaining numbers at various points in the service. The day began with drinks and lunch. Instead of being served at our tables, the ushers directed us to a separate area of the park where we stood in the buffet line and then took our heavy plates to dining tents. After everyone had eaten, the event began with processionals of the families, the bridal party and the groomsmen. Several people from each group gave speeches to the bride and to the families.

After everyone was in place, both families presented gifts to each other and gave more speeches. The service was tri-lingual and three MCs spoke in either English, Lugandan or Runyankole which made each part of the ceremony last for quite some time. After the presentation of gifts and lots of picture taking, there was cutting of the cake and final speeches and Bible verses by the bride's family. Throughout all of this, guests were supplied with drinks and later on with tea and cake. Toward the end of the evening, plates of grilled beef and goat meat were passed around along with chapati (thick tortillas) and the snacks disappeared quickly.

The official ceremony ended around 10 pm and we headed home at that point but were informed that the the informal party would continue much later into the night. My favorite part of the day was the fact that not a single person walked down the aisle - everyone danced. This seemed like a particularly appropriate model to live by, especially here in Uganda. Why walk when you can dance? It was a privilege and delight to be able to attend a traditional Ugandan wedding and I hope we're able to go to another one before my fellowship comes to an end.

Whenever I mentioned that I was going to be an English Language Fellow in Mbarara, Uganda, almost always somebody said something to the effect of, "You're so lucky because you'll be right near  the gorillas!" And they were totally right. Working in Mbarara means that I'm only a few hours away from the opportunity to track gorillas and it's an experience that I started planning as soon as I arrived in the country.


There aren't many places in the world where one can encounter gorillas and there are only about 900 mountain gorillas in the wild, currently only found in Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many people choose to see gorillas in Uganda because of increased prices in Rwanda and problems with safety and stability in the DRC. Opting to do a gorilla trek in Uganda is still quite an investment, however, with high season permits costing around $600 and low seasons ones around $450. In contrast, doing a gorilla trek in Rwanda can typically cost over $1000.  When Sean and I arrived in early October, we joined a group of expats planning a gorilla trek in late November. This made the experience more affordable because November is the rainy, off season and going in a group decreases costs of hiring a car and a driver. A gorilla trek has to be planned a bit in advance because official permits have to be acquired and paid for in Kampala through the Ugandan Wildlife Association and more often than not the demand for permits outnumbers the supply.

Last Friday afternoon after teaching communication class, the group of us set out for Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, which was about a five hour drive passing through Kabale. The last two hours of the journey involved rough mountain roads and we ended up getting a flat tire. Fortunately, everyone in the group was positive and outgoing and we enjoyed a few beers on the veranda of a roadside hotel while waiting for a new tire to be delivered. We reached Rushaga Gorilla Camp at about 7:30 p.m. and had a lovely set dinner together at 8 p.m. Everyone headed to bed early in anticipation of the hike to the gorillas the following day.


Saturday began very early with breakfast at 6:15 a.m. and a hike to the gorilla tracking headquarters for the briefing which began at 8:00 a.m. We joined about twenty-five other excited hikers from all over the world for an hour-long session explaining the history of the program, the habitat and ecology of the gorillas and the rules for the trek. We were warned that because of the enormity of the park, some groups might hike up to 5 hours before seeing the gorillas whereas other groups might only have to hike for 30 minutes. There are several different gorilla families located in Bwindi and we were divided up into groups of no more than eight people to visit one of them. Before we had arrived, experienced Ugandan gorilla trackers had set out to locate each of the families so that they could radio their location to our guide to cut down on hiking time. Our trekking group consisted of 8 tourists, one guide, one porter and two soldiers in the front and back for protection against poachers and aggressive mountain elephants.



After the briefing, we met our guide, learned which family we would track, picked out walking sticks and introduced ourselves to the rest of our group. We started the hike at nine and after about 30 minutes of hiking our guide received a radio call notifying us that the gorilla family had changed direction so we had to turn around and start off again on a new trail. After only hiking for a short while, it was easy to see why the forest had been named "Impenetrable" as the trekking was difficult due to dense trees and growth. Since it was the rainy season, trails were slick and everybody was slipping and falling when there were steep ascents and descents. Other challenges during the hike were mobs of biting safari ants, thick clouds of mosquitoes, lots of thorny undergrowth and wet stream crossings. After two hours of hiking, we stopped and waiting for the gorilla trackers to recommend a specific route to find our family. Once we received the information, we started hiking off trail into the thick, untamed bush of Bwindi National Park. Two guides went in front with machetes to help clear the way and our group slowly descended into the thick rainforest for one final hour. I have never hiked in such a challenging environment before and it made all of us imagine what it must have been like for early explorers navigating new landscapes with no ready-made trails.



Rounding the corner and seeing the group of mountain gorillas for the first time was a magical and surreal experience. Since the gorillas in Bwindi are habituated, we were able to get and stay very close for the full hour-long experience. Being 'habituated' means that the gorillas had been exposed to humans often and thus were quite accustomed to us being a certain distance away. We watched them play with each other, snack, nap and talk to each other using loud grunts and coughs. Our group consisted of nine gorillas: one silverback male, three babies and five other younger males and females. For most of the hour, they stayed in one area but when they started walking to a different place we were able to follow them at a safe distance. It was fascinating to see them interact with each other as they were eerily humanlike.



The hour passed much too quickly and all too soon it was time to hike back to the park headquarters. Everyone had a fantastic experience and there were no doubts as to whether it was worth the time, effort and money to commit to seeing such amazing animals in the wild. We made it back to camp at about 3:00 p.m. and enjoyed cold beers, warm showers and lots of photo and video sharing. Doing a gorilla trek exceeded my expectations and is something that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys hiking and who is interested in seeing wildlife in their natural habitat. I can now understand why so many people said it was a "must-do" experience for me and Sean during my time in Uganda as an ELF.

Posing with the marines and their birthday cake

One of the benefits of being an English Language Fellow is learning about how a U.S. Embassy functions as well as understanding more about the professional and social lives of the American diplomats who work there. In the social calendar of the embassy, the two most important events are the 4th of July celebration and the annual Marine Corps Ball, which is held every November. This year, Sean and I were invited to attend and we wouldn't wait to experience another fun and interesting tradition of working internationally with the State Department.


The Marine Corps Ball (MCB) celebrates the birthday of the Marine Corps - November 10, 1775. It's a very formal occasion which is usually well-attended by American and international diplomats and marines. This year, the U.S. Embassy, Kampala MCB was held at Speke Resort and Conference center, about 20 minutes outside the capital. Sean and I decided to make a weekend out of the event and reserved two nights at Speke which was a great opportunity to get out of Mbarara, enjoy Lake Victoria, play ultimate frisbee in Kampala and take advantage of the largest lap pool in East Africa.

Ambassador Malac entering with the marines

Each MCB follows a prescribed formal agenda which includes a lot of tradition. Before the actual ball, attendees gathered at an outdoor bar for drinks, appetizers and conversation. After that, we were invited into the large ballroom and found our tables. The ambience felt like a military-style wedding - everyone was dressed to the nines, the decorations were extravagant and there were about 300 guests in attendance.



Before dinner, there was an official ceremony which included the presentation of the marines and the colors, speeches by invited guests and the U.S. Ambassador to Uganda, and the national anthem. My favorite part of the agenda was the cutting of the marine's birthday cake, which was accomplished with an actual sword. The first pieces were given to the oldest and youngest marines in attendance as well as Ambassador Malac. After all formal ceremonies and traditions had finished, we were invited to the buffet, which was fantastic and had an impressive array of international and local dishes. For dessert, we had pieces of the birthday cake, which were delicious.

Our beautiful table

After dinner, the music was turned up and everybody started dancing - Ambassador Malac was the first one on the dance floor! We also had the chance to take pictures in front of the official flags. Sean and I were seated at the table which had several other fellows and their partners and we made a lot of new friends. It was also a lot of fun to drink and dance with diplomats who I had only previously seen in business attire in professional situations at the embassy.

The party lasted until midnight and we were very happy that we had only a short walk to our room instead of a long bus ride back to Mbarara. After experiencing our first Marine Corps Ball, it's easy to see why many expats consider it their favorite event of the year. I hope we get to go again sometime!

I've been looking forward to this particular week since I got here and I was so excited for it to begin that I could barely sleep last night. I'm spending this week in Uganda's capital city, Kampala, which is about a five hour drive north of Mbarara. During the first month of being in country, each ELF is supposed to have an orientation at the embassy which includes lots of meetings and a security briefing, among other activities. I asked if I could schedule my Kampala visit for when Sean was supposed to fly in so that we could travel back to Mbarara together. The more the orientation was planned, the more that was added to it and now it's a week chock full of fun events.

Outside area at Le Petit Village - an amazing hotel in Kampala next door to the embassy

This morning I got up really early, took a 6:30 a.m. cab ride to the "bus park" (there is no bus station in Mbarara - it's just a bus or two on the side of the road next to one of the gas stations in town), paid my $4.30 and packed on the bus with everyone else along with bags of corn, bananas and other huge sacks of who-knows-what. I squeezed in at a window seat and waited for the bus to leave - there are not set times as the bus departs whenever it fills up. At about 7 a.m. all the seats were occupied and before we left, one lady stood up, said a prayer in Runyankole, everyone clapped when she was finished and then we were off.

My room at Le Petit Village

The bus ride was definitely not a comfortable one, but it got the job done for the right price - a private car/driver is about $100 to Kampala. The bus was old, the seats were tiny, it was hot, smelled of sweaty humans and all traces of discomfort were magnified by every speed bump and police checkpoint, of which there were many. We pulled into the Kampala bus park around noon and I caught a cab to my hotel. It's been amazing to spend an afternoon working by the pool with uninterrupted wifi and the anticipation of a long, hot shower later. I'm soaking up and appreciating every bit of luxury.

Bathroom

Tomorrow, I'm spending the whole day at the embassy getting a security briefing, meeting with Public Affairs, meeting with Education USA, meeting with the Uganda Teachers Union and having a class with the new English Access Micro Scholarship program. At about one in the afternoon, Sean is scheduled to be picked up at the airport and brought back to the hotel and we'll get to hang out when I finish at about 8 p.m. I'm ecstatic about seeing him again and can't wait to hear about all of his adventures. I'm worried about his flights and am hoping that the crazy typhoon weather in Japan doesn't cancel or delay anything.





On Wednesday, we have the morning free to do some errands to get a few things that we need that we can't get in Mbarara (most importantly motorcycle helmets) and then in the afternoon I'm giving my first workshop on writing personal statements. The Education Adviser who helped me organize it said that there were over 200 people who tried to register but that they only have space for 80. I'm nervous but mostly excited - I'm really anxious to see how it goes.

On Thursday, we drive back to Mbarara and on Friday I teach my first class at the university. It's a busy week with lots going on but I feel happy as it feels like my job as an ELF is really getting started and I'm enjoying it more and more.

Originally, we had planned that Sean and I would travel together to Uganda, which was something I was looking forward to as long international hauls are much more fun with company. However, during the summer, Sean received an opportunity for a last-minute assistant guiding job working with high school students in a summer camp program to summit Mt. Fuji in the off season. The chance seemed too good to pass up which is why I've been in Mbarara on my own for three weeks and Sean has spent the last two weeks in Japan.
I've been able to Skype and message with Sean a bit while we've been apart and have loved hearing about his experiences - I wish I could have been able to join him on his adventures in Asia! As usual, I pestered him for pictures and they did not disappoint. He said that they were really lucky with weather on their ascent and all but one of the students were able to make it to the top. He has spent the rest of his time catching up with friends, filling up on good food and playing ultimate frisbee.

This morning he sent me an email with a few pictures showing that he was able to do an activity that's been on his to-do list for a long time - riding around the streets of Japan in a go-kart dressed as Mario. Yes, that's actually a thing. He said it was a blast and I'm happy he was able to squeeze it in as whizzing around in heavy traffic in a flimsy go-kart in costume was never high on my list.



Today, it's Saturday and I'm heading to Kampala, the capital city on Monday for the week to do some orientation at the embassy, give a workshop, have some meetings and also pick up Sean from the airport. Life in a rural city in Uganda is incredibly interesting but it's also really challenging. I'm counting down the hours until I can see Sean and also have a bit of a break to enjoy hot showers, air conditioning, more food variety and wireless internet. I plan to enjoy every minute of it!

As I've been learning about the job of an ELF while in Mbarara, I think the main reasons that I'm going to enjoy doing it is because of the variety and creativity involved. Most ELF positions are based out of a university near an embassy, but in Uganda I'm about five hours south of the capital city and am helping to run a rural outpost of Education U.S.A. from the embassy in the "American Center" at my university here.

My office in the copy too that I share with Kayla, the Fulbrighter here

My main duties are at the university where I'll be teaching one class each semester. This first semester I'm teaching "basic communication skills" for two hours to seventy students every Friday. When I met with the professor who taught the course before I arrived, I asked what she recommended teaching for the remainder of the semester and if there was any textbook, syllabus etc. I was informed that I could do whatever I wanted and thought useful for the students in terms of written and spoken academic communication in English. In the past, the total freedom and complete lack of structure might have been intimidating or frustrating, but now I love the fact that I have free rein to design whatever kind of class I want. During the second semester, I'm supposed to teach a class on women's reproductive health, which is a bit of a surprise and more than a bit of a challenge, so we'll see how that develops.
Other duties at the university include giving faculty professional development workshops on student-centered learning and how to include creative and engaging activities in the classroom. In addition, I'm working with the graduate students to give some seminars and writing workshops on getting published in academic journals and structuring a thesis and dissertation. I'm hoping to have enough time to offer some one-on-one writing sessions for students who would like individual help on their papers, just like the program that I was involved with at ICU in Japan. I'm also part of the department that focuses on community health and we are hoping to organize a conference in the spring with the theme of adolescent education. Finally, I'm continuing the book club that previous ELFs had started and we meet once a week in the library.

The sign for the university cafeteria - like many developing countries, Uganda struggles with garbage disposal

Outside of working at the university, I'm supposed to set up monthly workshops with local public and private school teachers in Mbarara as well as Kampala to promote alternative teaching methodologies than lecture and rote memorization. I'll also be involved with giving workshops at the embassy and participating in the embassy's new micro-scholarship teacher access program. My first workshop and micro-scholarship class at the embassy will be next week and I'm anxious to see how everything goes.

Helping one of the profs proctor an exam in one of the big lecture halls

The transition in becoming the new ELF has been relatively smooth since I'm the third ELF to be here. Because of this, everyone knows who I am, what my role is and what the expectations are, which makes everything a lot easier. It makes a big difference to arrive in a new place and have everyone say, "Oh, you're the new ELF - welcome!" and "We're so happy to have another ELF here!" So far, it's great to be here and there's much to be done. I'm grateful to the ELFs before me who laid the groundwork in the programs and relationships that I can hopefully continue. Thanks for following along!