Old post--in which I arrive in Uganda and get my sleep back on schedule.

**Disclaimer:  I wrote this two nights ago while sitting in bed, so it is NOT the most up-to-date.  Also, I was a bit delirious.**

May 23, 2011

It is 6:19 a.m. and I am currently sitting in my bedroom in a state of unrest, having slept for 19 hours straight yesterday.  (Went to bed at 11 p.m.; woke up at 6 p.m….)  My jetlag was never this bad when I went to Ireland!  So, I woke up this morning at 3:30 and, unable to fall back asleep, lay bored off my gourd (thanks, Mom, for that euphemism) for an hour whilst constantly tangling myself in the damn mosquito net that is draped, like a tent without poles, over my bed.

I finally got up and made some tea, and thankfully I’ve discovered that there is a substantial quantity of DVD’s in the lodge’s living room.  So, I’ve spent the past hour and a half watching The King’s Speech—quite a good movie!  I suppose you all want to hear about Africa, though, and not my sleeping problems…

I arrived at the Entebbe Airport on Saturday afternoon after 14 long hours of flying.  Oh, and for the curious—Ethiopian Airlines food is nothing outrageous—just a lot of chicken and rice.  Not too bad, actually.  When we landed in Addis Ababa for our layover, I was starving and so went to the small cafeteria and ordered a cheeseburger and fries.  How American, right?  It took forever, as is supposedly the general custom in most African countries, and the hamburger—well, the picture is below.  I’m not quite sure what they put on it, although I did discover green peppers, which I absolutely detest.  I was only able to get a few bites in, however, before the plane began boarding, so perhaps it was for the best…

Anyway.  Journey to Fort Portal.  I was delayed for an hour by customs, as I had to pay a tax on the scanner that I had brought with me.  I didn’t know the exact amount that the scanner was worth, so customs staff took their jolly time in looking it up…I finally got out of the airport with my driver, Moses, after exchanging money/buying a sim card for my phone/etc.  Oddly enough, Ugandans will not accept pre-2003 U.S. bills; apparently there was some counterfeit something-or-other that happened in 2003…thus, two of my $20 bills (both from 1999) must remain in my wallet until I return to the U.S.

It took about six hours to drive from Fort Portal to Entebbe, and it was quite the ride—upon leaving the airport we passed pockets of heavily-armed soldiers patrolling the streets, there to quash any of the Walk-to-Work protestors who apparently pose much “danger” to the populace.  A bunch of BS, but I kept my mouth shut…there were soldiers patrolling the airport, as well, and it was very strange to be around big guns.  I’m a hippie, remember?  Peace, not war?  Rather unsettling.

We made a stop after a few hours at a road-side market place, where Moses proceeded to find the best bunch of bananas that he could find by thumping each one (they’re big, probably the size of half my body), cocking his ear carefully.  I got my first taste of being the minority, as I got out of the car half asleep, wallet in hand, with a tanktop on and my tattoo out for the world to see.  Needless to say, I had lots of stares, children following me, people hectoring me to buy bananas, etc.  I’m quickly learning to a) not flash my wallet and b) COVER UP!

I finally arrived in Fort Portal after dark, and a blonde-haired, blue-eyed German girl named Regina came to my rescue once Moses and I discovered that we had no idea where the hell we were supposed to go.  She met us at the local roundabout, thankfully, and directed us back to the lodge.

I’m staying at a Mountains of the Moon University lodge (MMU) with Regina, a German man named Felix, and a Northern Irishman named Ciaran.  (I know, I know, I’m going to make him crazy jabbering on about NI politics and history, but I forewarned him, at least!)  Regina is lovely; she’s working here teaching law and doing some other lawyer-ly things.  Ciaran heads a land development project, and I’m not quite sure what Felix does—he headed off to a conference in Entebbe this morning and was occupied with an English girl last night, so I haven’t had the chance to chat much with him.

The lodge is lovely, with lots and lots of space and sun.  I’ve got a large room to myself (two beds…the luxury!!), as well as my own bathroom, so I’m pretty well set up.  I share my room with apricot-colored geckos, which I don’t mind, as they eat the mosquitoes and they’re rather funny-looking, besides.  There’s a beautiful little garden in the back that Ciaran and Felix have cultivated, along with two chickens (apparently Felix is trying to start his own little farm).  Our neighbors are Doreen (who, incidentally, works at the archives) and her two children, Mary and Nino.  Nino is the CUTEST little boy ever—if you know me, you know I love babies—he’s about two years old and just runs around laughing and laughing.  Maybe I’ll get to babysit?  Regardless, I plan on playing with him as much as I can in my time here!

Phew.  Sorry this has been so long, folks, but I wanted to fill you in on all the gory details of my arrival in and first impressions of Africa.  I’m sure I’ll go on in later posts about Ugandan politics, but as you’re probably tired of reading my rambling at this point, I’ll stop.  Plus, the chickens are waking up and chattering.

Miss and love you all!!

P.S.  My hair is in a ponytail right now, WITH NO BOBBY PINS!!!  So exciting.