[email written to my family upon arrival on October 18th -- sorry for the repeat, guys]
I am so glad I decided to bring my laptop.... our internet is slower than dirt, but I'm typing this sitting on my bed in Kampala, which is so much better than sitting in some hot dirty internet cafe, getting charged by the minute for the slowest connection imaginable. Instead, I'm listening to the radio, eating pineapple, and taking mini-naps whenever I try to send/receive something. It's lovely. And crazy to think back to just ten years ago, when I was in Ecuador and had to send snail mail or tolerate hideous phone delays to communicate with you guys. It's a brave new world.
Today was a good day. I woke from the deepest sleep of my life, only to be informed by Dana that my alarm had been going off for two hours. Hmmm. Hopefully that doesn't happen tomorrow morning when I have to go work. Anyway, we made ourselves a delicious fruit salad from the pineapple, papaya, passion fruit, and bananas that we bought in the outdoor market last night, and watched some Aljazeera. Then Dana took me out to teach me how to use the matatus, which are the East African version of a taxi -- I'll be taking these pretty much everywhere to get around, and you have to be pretty savvy to figure out how to flag one down, get where you want to go, figure out how much to pay, etc. I survived our first trip, and am gearing up for our second adventure this evening, when we're heading downtown to get some Indian food to celebrate my arrival.
I love it here, and feel completely at home now only 24 hours into my stay. You know me -- I had my room set up and pretty within hours of arriving. The apartment is shockingly comfortable, as you can probably tell from the photos. This is definitely a new kind of developing-world-travel for me -- paying the extra cash for a comfortable place, cooking for myself, wireless internet -- and I like it. Even though the laptop occasionally sends tiny electrical shocks up my arms..... a small price to pay.
And Uganda is just breathtaking. I love all of the colors -- the hills are deep deep green dotted by violet jacarandas and red-roofed huts, the sky is crystal clear blue with huge billowing white clouds that periodically turn deep black, dump rain onto the red dirt for an hour, and then disappear. The people are beautiful, wearing bright colors and carrying their infants wrapped around their waists with long cloth, with quick smiles and gentle mannerisms. And you should smell the air.... oh it's so wonderful. Who would think that the smell of burning banana leaves would forever catch my heart.... it whisks me back 11 years, and I'm fifteen again, standing on our front stoop in Ecuador, inhaling the thick evening air laced with coffee and jasmine and sweat and bananas. Our dry California air is a blessing, but we miss out on the smells.
Ok, time for dinner, but one more thing: I got a cell phone today! I know, this seems nuts, but everyone has one here and they're dirt cheap (we're talking $10 for the whole shabang). To call me in Uganda, dial 256 (Ugandan country code) and then 77960244226. This is cheapest to do if you guys buy one of those uber-cheap Costco international phone cards -- it's insanely expensive for me to call you, but I may call from time to time and ask you to call me right back, once you guys find a card. I think evenings will probably be best for me (first thing in the morning for you guys -- we're 10 hours ahead of Pacific Time). Let me know how finding a card goes.
First day of work tomorrow -- can't wait! I'll write again soon, and tell all.
Love you so much -- give kisses to my Boo,
Kali
I am so glad I decided to bring my laptop.... our internet is slower than dirt, but I'm typing this sitting on my bed in Kampala, which is so much better than sitting in some hot dirty internet cafe, getting charged by the minute for the slowest connection imaginable. Instead, I'm listening to the radio, eating pineapple, and taking mini-naps whenever I try to send/receive something. It's lovely. And crazy to think back to just ten years ago, when I was in Ecuador and had to send snail mail or tolerate hideous phone delays to communicate with you guys. It's a brave new world.
Today was a good day. I woke from the deepest sleep of my life, only to be informed by Dana that my alarm had been going off for two hours. Hmmm. Hopefully that doesn't happen tomorrow morning when I have to go work. Anyway, we made ourselves a delicious fruit salad from the pineapple, papaya, passion fruit, and bananas that we bought in the outdoor market last night, and watched some Aljazeera. Then Dana took me out to teach me how to use the matatus, which are the East African version of a taxi -- I'll be taking these pretty much everywhere to get around, and you have to be pretty savvy to figure out how to flag one down, get where you want to go, figure out how much to pay, etc. I survived our first trip, and am gearing up for our second adventure this evening, when we're heading downtown to get some Indian food to celebrate my arrival.
I love it here, and feel completely at home now only 24 hours into my stay. You know me -- I had my room set up and pretty within hours of arriving. The apartment is shockingly comfortable, as you can probably tell from the photos. This is definitely a new kind of developing-world-travel for me -- paying the extra cash for a comfortable place, cooking for myself, wireless internet -- and I like it. Even though the laptop occasionally sends tiny electrical shocks up my arms..... a small price to pay.
And Uganda is just breathtaking. I love all of the colors -- the hills are deep deep green dotted by violet jacarandas and red-roofed huts, the sky is crystal clear blue with huge billowing white clouds that periodically turn deep black, dump rain onto the red dirt for an hour, and then disappear. The people are beautiful, wearing bright colors and carrying their infants wrapped around their waists with long cloth, with quick smiles and gentle mannerisms. And you should smell the air.... oh it's so wonderful. Who would think that the smell of burning banana leaves would forever catch my heart.... it whisks me back 11 years, and I'm fifteen again, standing on our front stoop in Ecuador, inhaling the thick evening air laced with coffee and jasmine and sweat and bananas. Our dry California air is a blessing, but we miss out on the smells.
Ok, time for dinner, but one more thing: I got a cell phone today! I know, this seems nuts, but everyone has one here and they're dirt cheap (we're talking $10 for the whole shabang). To call me in Uganda, dial 256 (Ugandan country code) and then 77960244226. This is cheapest to do if you guys buy one of those uber-cheap Costco international phone cards -- it's insanely expensive for me to call you, but I may call from time to time and ask you to call me right back, once you guys find a card. I think evenings will probably be best for me (first thing in the morning for you guys -- we're 10 hours ahead of Pacific Time). Let me know how finding a card goes.
First day of work tomorrow -- can't wait! I'll write again soon, and tell all.
Love you so much -- give kisses to my Boo,
Kali
1 comment:
I just have to say... You're such a great blogger!! It's nice to hear from you. It's like you're just in the next room :)
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