Life in Uganda

As I have adjusted to living in Uganda, I have learned a few key things to survive here:

 1. The mornings are foggy and cold so be sure to have a jacket but when the sun comes out you feel the need to shed every layer of clothing.  the climate in Uganda is one of the mildest in all of Africa.  Eastern Africa includes Rwanda, Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, and Tanzania.  These countries being situated close to the equator has provided an abundance of opportunities for evolutionary change in the plants, animals, and climate systems.  I feel very lucky to have chosen to spend two weeks in one of the greatest countries in Africa to visit.  The higher altitudes in Uganda, as well as the cold climate, makes it inherently different than in other African countries.  Some even call it the “Switzerland of Africa” because of the colder weather.  Contrary to stereotypical assumptions about Africa countries, Eastern Africa contains very green landscapes and many of the smaller community economies rely on their agricultural profits.  Northern Uganda is known for their cassava cultivation and Southern Uganda is known for their matooke, or banana, with roughly 90% of Uganda’s economy is dependent on agriculture

 2.  Everywhere you go, you should be prepared to greet people.  It is traditional in the Kabale community to ask, “how are you” during every passing.  Often when foreign travelers come to Uganda, they don’t greet people on the street and don’t know to ask people how they are.  Many people in Uganda learn English in school, and with English being the formal language of Uganda, it has been nice to talk to people in my native language rather than my broken Spanish.

 3.  Watch out when you walk into the street.  The motorcycle taxi’s, known as boda-bodas, are prone to not caring how fast they drive and have now sense of who they are about to hit.  The drivers of large cars or trucks happen to be cautious, but you should always look out for bikers when you cross the street because they will take you out on a heartbeat.

 4.  Be prepared for AMAZING food.  While I don’t know what typical Ugandan food consists of, I’ve come to love the way that the food here is cooked.  The cooks at the apartment have nearly perfected beef stew, curried fish, and integrate avocados (my favorite) into the meals at least once a day.  One thing that I worried about when leaving south America was missing out on delicious, fresh fruit, but even Africa has impressed me with the abundance of sweet pineapple, bananas, watermelon, and mango.  The physician that hosts our educational group emphasized the fact that everything that we eat, and almost all the food in Uganda is locally grown and organic, as Ugandans don’t use any fertilizers or spray on their crops.

 5.  Bring earplugs.  The youth of Uganda really like to party.  I mean REALLY like to party, so much so that they stay up until the sun rises playing loud music that carries throughout the entire Kabale valley.  Often times, if I get up to use the restroom in the middle of the night I have a hard time falling back asleep because of the music pounding at 4:44 AM.

My last few days in Uganda have been amazing and I am excited for what’s in store for the next week and a half, especially with the upcoming Christmas season.  I am currently visiting Kabale, Uganda with the worldwide program, Child Family Health Organization (CFHI).  CFHI has built amazing relations with the Ugandan health clinic called KIHEFO here in Kabale and this partnership has provided hundreds of students from around the globe to travel to Uganda.  KIHEFO has introduced four major clinics to the Kigezi/Kabali region: general medical (including dental), maternal, nutritional, and HIV/AIDs. Each clinic serves a specific purpose for helping the Ugandan community and the KIHEFO organization has introduced multiple different projects in the region to boost the health and small local economy.

Every day, I learn something new about the organization and I am introduced to concerning topics related to Ugandan healthcare.  I learn more about and explore new topics related to rural medicine every time I visit the clinics, and for this reason I have decided to wait until the end of my time here in Uganda to discuss the clinic on my blog.  I will post updates about interesting events that happen, but as for discussing KIHEFO, I will be waiting until my journey here has ended so that I can compile fully detailed and thorough posts about each clinical aspect of KIHEFO.  I have very spotty service here as well, so please feel free to message me but remember that I may not respond for a day or two.  I hope everyone has a great Christmas!

- Nicole