Canada Day in Uganda

CTPH has been a wonderful experience so far. Our days are spent in the Gorilla lab analyzing fecal samples for parasites. The work is very interesting! I even identified a new type of parasite egg (confirmed by my colleagues of course). Once the samples are prepared, there is lots of down time because we have only one microscope. Between my turn to scan the slides, I have been planning my trip to Germany and reading the most fascinating book: Tales of a Female Nomad. I’m starting to get excited and inspired.

Our evenings have been busy. Supper is usually street food. Typically, we order chips (French fries) then walk to the open market where we purchase banana cookies/cakes, a tomato, bananas, corn on the cob, or avacados. Then we cross and buy muchomo (meet on a stick). I’ve developed quite a liking for the goat meat cooked on coal cooking pots. We were half-joking, half-serious about finding a local butcher in Saskatoon and buying an Mbuzi at the auction mart. Once our meals are purchased, we go back and eat at the chip place where the children quiz us on the local language and laugh at our accents. I am thriving in the small-town attitude of the place where everyone is starting to recognize us and all seem willing to help us learn the language.

I made a friend with Immaculate, a local school teacher. I lent her my copy of Anne of Green Gables (a testament to how much I like her). One evening, we ‘picked’ Immaculate and bought ingredients at the market for dinner. She taught us how to cook cabbage and Irish (potatoes) in the local way. Her neighbour kindly shared his bean stew so we had a complete meal. Later in the evening, he was not-so-subtlety hitting on me: I forgot my ‘wedding’ ring. We danced the Eclipso, which is a local children dance involving shoulder shrugs and simple steps, for the first time in the shelter of the yard. It was so fun to delve into the local culture. I feel so fortunate to have met her and even luckier she is an English teacher. Yesterday, we went to her school and danced for her students. We first attempted the Eclipso. I’m the only one who seems to do it reasonably well, but we all enjoy laughing at the experience. The children were thrilled when we taught them the chicken dance. That’s right, the best we could do was the chicken dance. They did a local dance for us involving drums, stomping, jumping and beautiful lyrics in a language I don’t understand. I continue to be so fortunate to have these experiences.

We celebrated Canada day with our usual supper, some dancing in the streets for the Boda drivers (apparently everyone heard about our Eclipso performance). At our hotel, another Canadian, Der, Missy, the American we are working with, and 2 English Medical students all drank a beer with us and visited. There were no fireworks, but it was very fun.

My time here is almost finished, but I have been very content here and I will be sad to leave. I have not seen the gorillas, my sore throat made my decision for me (you shouldn’t treck if you are sick), but I will be doing a walk in the park this afternoon. I’m excited to experience my first rainforest in all its gory. I should be able to see the Congo and Rwanda from the trail, places I never imagined I would ever see first hand. For now, viewing the Congo from Uganda is close enough!