nobody said it was easy.

It’s true... as Colplay puts it, “nobody said it was easy”. I can’t explain how hard those words are hitting me right now. I know nothing in life is easy, but I can honestly say this is the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. Three weeks here, and three weeks to go and I have already learned so much. I know I grew up with a pretty privileged life and it was not until now that I fully appreciate everything I have in my life. I think about things I used to complain about or things that I thought were hard and I just laugh at myself. I have the best parents in the world who would do anything for me, and being here just makes me appreciate how grateful I am for family. Material things are great but not as great as things that truly last. I have learned that there are things in life that we can hold onto and those are the things that matter. Not to get too religious, but I also don’t know if I could make it here without the gospel. I have always loved it and had a strong testimony, but I believe that without the Lord I wouldn’t have the strength to be here right now. I believe that everyone has trials in life and everyone has to experience something out of their comfort zone, but I also believe that we aren’t given any trials we can’t handle. And that is why I know that I am supposed to be here right now. There are always going to be times in our lives where we struggle, but that makes us stronger. I know that I will come home from Uganda and stronger and humbler person. These people in Africa are teaching me a whole lot about the kind of person I am and the person I want to be. I hope everyone reading this really thinks about their lives right now and gives it a second look. I’m not trying to make you feel bad or anything, I’m just stating what I have learned and what I am feeling. 

This weekend was pretty rough too... I got super sick in the hostel we stayed at in Kampala on Saturday night and I was throwing up all night. I also was THAT girl throwing up in a taxi FILLED with Africans. At that point I can honestly say I thought I was going to die right then and there. I was balling and as pale as a ghost and I felt so helpless. I am doing better today, I just feel so weak. I have to lay in bed because if I stand up I feel like I am going to pass out. Let me tell you guys, being sick in a third world country just isn’t the best. About 10 other people in the house are sick too and one girl had to go to the hospital in Kampala last night and she has a parasite. They said it could be from the water in the Nile River and that we should get checked if we aren’t feeling better soon. So I guess I’ll keep everyone updated on that! 

A few weeks before I left someone told my mom that this trip would be good for me and when I heard that I just thought “umm what is that supposed to mean?” But I get it now. I get that this really is good for me and I get that this experience is something I needed. I needed my eyes to be opened and I needed this at this specific time in my life. These college years are all about learning and growing, and that is just what I am doing. I am learning and growing and it IS good for me. I know I will come home a different and hopefully better person. I just have to remember that struggles are temporary and we can always make it through. This is the hardest and best 6 weeks of my life. But then again, nobody said it was easy, right? 

I still love Africa and the people and life here, don’t get me wrong. I am loving helping these people and enriching their lives here. I just have to focus and remember what is important in life. All I want right now is Jamba Juice. So do me a favor... everyone have one in honor of me and enjoy what I can’t. This was deep, sorry guys... but I LOVE YOU ALL! 

testing people for HIV. amazing experience. 

we love our driver Fred. 

working with what we have here... mango salsa.

love this little cutie, Deborah. so smart and going places.

HELP volunteers at the Health Camp.

found my African cowboy

sick badges... check us out

loved working at this

I'm Learning.

I find myself constantly learning new things about Africa, cultures, families, life, people, myself, seriously EVERYTHING since I’ve been here. Being away from everything I consider familiar has taught me so much and I am loving it.

1. I’m learning that the people in Uganda are so SMART. For real, there are so many people here that blow my mind with the things they know and say. Some volunteers are teaching business classes to people here and it is crazy how knowledgeable these people already are. We met this man that started with 50000 shillings, which is like $25 and now owns 3 businesses and employs over 120 people. He pretty much started with nothing and now has been to California with TED Talks and is honestly a genius. He is working on different projects here to turn trash into fuel, which would be AMAZING! I think people classify people in Africa as not being smart, or successful and I’m starting to see how untrue this is. It’s crazy because I see how people here get stuck in a cycle or with a small dent in their lives and can easily give up. I am starting to see how people here just need a little push and motivation to encourage them because they really are so ready to succeed.
2. I’m learning to shower with buckets. It’s actually kinda fun. We usually just put our suits on and go outside... the water is always freezing but it is so hot here that it doesn’t even matter. It feels good! I will admit though, I can’t wait for the day I get home and take the longest shower of my life with HOT WATER! 
3. I’m learning to live in a house with 24 other people, and a room with 10 other people. I have only shared a room with someone else ONCE in my entire life, and that was a huge dorm. Soooo, this is new to me. It’s crowded but I am getting used to it.
4. I’m learning that here in Uganda, if you plan a meeting at 9am, it really means 9:45 or even later, or even not at all. The other day we had a meeting with 9 people and only 3 showed up. This is normal for them. I really struggle with being patient, so this is good for me. I usually get really frustrated if someone isn’t on time or doesn’t follow through with a plan, but I am being better at going with the flow.
5. I’m learning how grateful I am for my family. I always miss them when I am at school, but for some reason being across the world makes me miss them so much! I know I keep saying this, but we are sooooo lucky to live in the United States of America. There are so many cultural differences here between parents and children and I couldn’t be luckier to have the parents I have. Love you mom and dad! And Grantie too!
6. I’m learning to fall asleep smelling like bug spray, really hot, wearing close to no clothes, in a bunk bed and under a mosquito net. And also to prepare myself for the crazy dreams I will experience each night. For real, one of the side effects of the malaria pills we are all on is “vivid dreams”. Some people have had really graphic, violent dreams but I haven’t experienced that yet. Mine are just WEIRD. 

I’m learning a whole lot, but that is all for now. I’m so happy I am here... Time really is        flying and the locals here consider us Ugandan now. Well kind of. The people here still crack me up, the men here HAVE to make a comment to us and it is usually something like “take me to America” or a command like that. Today someone said “hello mzungo, buy me a soda”. It’s funny though and pretty much all you can do is laugh... I never feel unsafe because I am always with someone else. 

This weekend we are going to Kampala which is the capital of Uganda, so we are pumped! We somehow seem to find the best restaurants wherever we are... typical. But I mean you would too if you were having the same thing for dinner every night! Me, Elise, Taylor, Olivia and Karli have bonded so much and I love those girls! I love everyone here! We talk about reunions in Provo all the time and I can’t wait for those! I got here 2 weeks ago, today and I just crack up thinking about how out of it I was that day. Traveling for 3 days and all of a sudden in the craziest place, running on like 5 hours of sleep... I was such a mess! Culture shock at its finest. I wish I was a fly on the wall that day observing all of us! 

Oh this was pretty funny... I was on a boda the other day and my driver started talking about Obama and the election. He said “I think you will vote for Obama because of his foreign policy”... I was just cracking up. It’s funny listening to them talk about stuff like that and hearing what they have to say. 

LAND OF THE FREE! that's right. 

Well I guess these signs are motivational... 

Brian. the CUTEST little boy ever!

just dinner one night. fish... YUM. 

all of our shoes at the front door

my adventurous weekend!

I guess I’ll start with this... this weekend was SUCH a good weekend! I’m telling you guys, it was just what I needed. This week has been crazy and we have been working so hard on projects and getting things started and Friday rolled around we were all feeling a little homesick and just a little out of it. Someone had told us about the Nile Resort in Jinja where they let people go swim in their pool for 6000 shillings, which is like $3.... such a great deal. So we got some stuff done in the morning and then headed to Jinja for some swimming and laying out. It was sooo nice to relax and just chill and this super nice resort! After that we went to our favorite restaurant... Source Cafe! We walked in and there were tons of guys sitting there from Claremont McKenna and USC! Once again, it was like a taste of home. They are here building soccer fields for a few weeks. We saw them again today in Lugazi... too funny! 

So then Saturday we woke up early ready for a day of Bungee Jumping and rafting the Nile River! We got to this camp that is right on the Nile River and had the one of the prettiest views I’ve ever seen! Only a few of us bungee jumped, and I was seriously freaking out. I just couldn’t think about it and then I was fine. I was talking to my mom and dad about it and they thought I was crazy! But I mean come on, how many times will I have the opportunity to bungee jump over the NILE RIVER?!?! I had to do it. And I am so glad I did!!! They strap you in pretty tight so I felt secure, the only part I was freaking out about was the initial jump. I like to have something to hold onto when I am up really high so the fact that you just have to jump from 125 feet in the air was giving me slight anxiety. I got to the edge of the platform and the guide who was from South Africa was like “okay I’ll give you 5 seconds and if you don’t jump I’m going to push you” all I remember thinking was “holy crap I do NOT want this huge guy pushing me off of this” so I just jumped! I don’t even remember what was going through my head, but I was screaming the whole time. Half of my body went into the river and that was a little bit of a shock but it was still so cool! If you ever have the chance to bungee jump, I’m telling you... DO IT!!!! It is so fun! 

So I couldn’t stop there... rafting class 5 rapids on the Nile was next! There were six of us on a raft and our guide was really experienced and pretty funny. The first rapid we went through was called “Chop Seuy” and we actually went through it on accident, none of the other rafts went through it. We went through all the safety procedures before and our guide would tell us to paddle and then “GET DOWN AND HOLD ON!!!”... thats really how he said it, and let me tell you, we have never obeyed commands so quickly. We started going into it and all of a sudden I heard our guide say "oh no"...  So we went through the rapid and before I knew it he told us to get down and hold on and then all of a sudden we were flipped in the water! I was coughing up so much water but when we all came out of the water we were all just dying laughing! I was glad we flipped on the first one because from then on we were prepared for anything. We would only go through a rapid in between the calm water. It was sooo fun and I had such a blast! My first time rafting, and now I feel like nothing will ever compare If I go again! I got so sunburned and I was putting 85 spf on like every 30 minutes! The sun is STRONG here close to the equator. After rafting, we got to stay at the camp and it reminded me so much of all our safari camps we stayed at in Kenya! The common area with couches and a bar reminded me of our nights chillen in Kenya after the game drives. So fun! It was so nice to sleep in a nice bed and get HOT SHOWERS! We were all loving life so much, and I slept so well! It was just a nice getaway. 

So basically my weekend was so great, and just what I needed! I love that we get weekends off and that the girls I am with here are willing to do fun things like this too. I’ve been here for 10 days and only only have one month left! I knew time would start to fly once things got moving. It’s so fun meeting other people from America or Europe and talking to them about what they are doing here. There are so many different organizations that come to Africa and so many amazing people that want to help and it is so interesting learning about what other people are doing. We met a ton of medical students from South Carolina, some people that work with “operation christmas child”, and tons of other people doing so much GOOD in the world.  This is definitely the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but also the best experience. I know it will be one of those things I look back on a realize how much I learned and how glad I am that I had to opportunity to do this. 

fresh fruit! 

6am and ready for our wild day!

passion fruit... MY FAVE.

our boda gang one day... so funny 

our new friends! 

i could eat here every day. 

beautiful Nile River! so pretty. 

the camp we stayed at.

I am loving mangos, pineapples, and passion fruit. There is a fresh fruit market right up the road and I think we go way to often but it is so delicious and fresh! Everything here is soooo cheap... how could we not get one of each a day?!

projects projects projects!!

So we have some AMAZING projects starting! Sometimes I get frustrated because I feel like we haven’t really done anything yet that is impacting anyone or anything but I’ve heard that the first week is always a little slow starting out. So far we have just been meeting with a bunch of partners trying to get everything figured out. Today we had a meeting with Moses and also the chairman of the village we did the needs assessment on Sunday in Lower Nabuti. Six of us went to the meeting and met at the Muzza Hotel in Mukono... hotels here are not so much like hotels in America. They are kinda like those ghetto sketchy hotels that you see and think “I would never stay there” but these are considered nice hotels here! SO the meeting with Moses and the chairman went great! We just wanted to ask them what they though would be the most important things that they would need done based on what their community members said was most important... the education system. The top things the chairman said they needed were:

1. to teach the mothers that education is important and to encourage their kids to attend... and also some parents use a very strong authoritarian parenting style which isn’t really going to motivate the kids
2. nutrition/ hygiene
3. literacy classes and business classes (one on one)
4. sports after/during school
5. thinking games
6. domestic violence issues (maybe have classes with just the women)

There were a few more, but tomorrow we are having another meeting with the chairman and a few executives in the community to talk about what the MOST important things to work on would be and what is needed most. See what I mean... meetings meetings meetings!! It’s okay though because this is the first stage of the process. After this I think it will be easier to get moving and working on specific things. I’m excited to work with this village because these people really want our help and are willing to help us with whatever we need and we really do want to involve them so they can keep improving even when we leave. 

It cracks me up because the Ugandans say the funniest things to us! Today I was sitting by the window on a taxi and this guy walks up to the window and says “hello I love you”. I think at first I would’ve been a little freaked out, but I am getting so used to everything here! They also always say “hi I want to be your best friend”. It’s funny too because you can tell they have a set thing they know how to say, like we will say “hi how are you??” and they ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS say “fine thanks”... its like they were trained! Sometimes we will say “HI” and they will respond with “fine!” its so great. 

Guys my favorite project we are working on is called “Proud To Be A Girl”. This is a project that was started last year. I didn’t really FULLY understand what all was involved in this project, but today I got it. ONE HUNDRED PERCENT. Today was the most amazing day ever. A few of us went to a school right here in Lugazi and gave a presentation to all the girls in this high school about self worth, motivation, personal hygiene and some sex education. In Africa, a lot of these girls don’t quite understand what is normal and what isn’t. They don’t really know how boys are supposed to treat them and how much potential they really do have. So we gave this presentation to all the girls and then we split up and told them if they had questions they could come and ask us individually. I got TONS of questions. Questions about boys, questions about families, questions about cramps and periods. Everything! They all asked for our email addresses so I am just waiting to get 40 emails tonight, I just know it is going to happen!  These girls seriously have so much potential and they are so smart, I think they are just not educated on a lot of these things. They were all sooooo nice and complimented me on EVERYTHING! “you are so beautiful” “i love your skirt” “i love your hair” “i love your shoes”.... i wanted to say “TRUST ME, YOU DO NOT LOVE MY SHOES... they are not very attractive” but they were just so cute... I loved these girls! I feel like all they need was someone to talk to them and encourage them. I was talking to one girl and she just lingered a little after we were done talking and finally said “one more thing, can I have a hug?” gosh it was the cutest thing ever.... I think I gave her a bigger hug than she wanted but I don’t even care! Honestly, if I leave in 6 weeks not having done anything else, I will be fine just because I felt so good when we left the school. I’m not even kidding... it was so inspiring for me too. Education is so important and I am so lucky to be able to being going to such a great university and be learning so much. It is weird but I am excited to be in school again. I’ll probably regret saying that when Fall starts but for now I’ll stick with that! 

Uganda is a beautiful country and even though I feel like I’ve been here for at least 3 weeks I know I need to cherish my time here because it will fly by and be over before I know it.  

Things that are getting me through life during my time here:

1. COKE ZERO. Diet Coke does not exist here and Coke Light is a hard to come by, so for now coke zero will have to do.
2. The suitcase we all packed of JUST food. The food here just gets a little old.
3. The people on our team. Seriously... the people I cam with are amazing! Such a great and unique group of people!
4. This computer. 

Missing my fam and everyone, but not to worry, I am safe and having a great time! Until next time! 

Francis our neighbor! we put on MJ for him and he danced like a freaking stud! we love him! 

the first day we got here after 3 days of traveling, looking REAL GOOD! 

our guard, Sam. he is the best!! he is starting to know all of our names... i think he finally got mine right yesterday! whenever this one girl Elaine asks him her name, he says "Susan!" we don't correct him because it is just too funny!

a bunch  of the girls at the school today! 

two of the girls i talked to for a while

SUSAN! she gave me this picture of her... i will keep it forever! 

the chipatte stand we always go to... yum yum

just walking on the streets in Uganda!

the PACK people into taxis here. and it starts to smell real bad.

part of our village

far away, but us teaching!

FIRST WEEK

GUYS I'M IN AFRICA!! wooooooo i left last tuesday and flew from LAX to London and then had a 5 hour layover where we met up with a bunch more volunteers. then we flew to Kenya and then onto our final flight to UGANDA. longest 3 days of my life. i was seriously so tired and out of it, i honestly had no idea what was going on. we had to drive for like 2 hours and finally got to the house we are staying out. i am sleeping in a room with 10 other girls. triple bunks. its actually kinda fun but also soooo hot at night. the first night i woke up sweating and wide awake and i didnt even have a sheet over me. everything here is extreme poverty. the biggest city we drove through is Kampala which is the capital but it isnt like a big city in America. we ride around on these moped things called boda bodas and the drivers seriously drive so fast and crazy. the first time i rode one i seriously thought "im going to die. this is it!". but for the most part they are pretty fun and get you where you need to go. all the little kids wait outside our gate and yell "BYE MZUNGO!!!" which means white person. they run up to you and attack you basically and the first time that happened i was like ohhhhh no. but they also like to pound firsts together and then we just say "bonga!" and they go with it. the kids in our little village are starting to get used to us but they still love us and wave and call us mzungos! its hilarious. 

so saturday me, elise, taylor, olivia and karli took a taxi to this town called Jinga... yup, pronounced ginga! hehe. but some people had told us it was a really cool place to go to and since we have the weekends off we decided to venture to the land of gingas. just kidding... jinga! so we got there and we were a little sketched out at the place the taxi dropped us so we hopped on bodas and said "take us where mzungos go!" and the driver said "okay, yes i take you!" and that he did! he dropped us right in front of this restaurant and we walked in and there were tons of americans! and this places looked clean and delicious! i honestly dont think i have ever been that excited. kinda sad, we come to africa and get excited to see white people. but it was just like a taste of home a little bit and GOOD food and the meat was safe! ugandan food is basically all beans and potatoes.... this thing called mutoke which is like mashed up cooked bananas. its kinda good but not every night good. i am already sick of it. at that restaurant we met this girl names Caroline and she is from San Francisco but working for a non profit in uganda for 7 months. we started talking to her and she told us allllll the good places to go and helped us out so much! i swear that was a blessing from above at the perfect time. we also talked to these guys from new york that are in the army here training the uganda army. we were all wearing our skirts because that is what we were told we are supposed to wear while we are here and they were making fun of us. they said "what are those? tribal dresses???" we were like oohhhh okay yup they are. so we walked around jinga a little more and saw the nile! we are going to raft the nile one of these weekends though so we didnt really explore it too much. 

yesterday we went to church!!! it is amazing how church is the same no matter where you are. the missionaries there were so cute and there was one who had only been out for 5 days! he had only been here for as long as we had! last night we went to a community meeting in a town called lower muboti which is close to mukono where we had church. we went with Moses, who is this guy that has been a partner with Help for a few years and he is AMAZING. like seriously so smart and passionate about everything he does. he had a scholarship and a family in st george was going to pay for him to come and attend Dixie and stay with them, but the ugandan government wouldnt let him. they said they wanted him to study in uganda, but moses wants to come to america, get a good education and then come back to uganda and do something in the government. he is GOING PLACES and could make a serious difference. so anyway, this meeting we went to was basically all the members of this one community and what we wanted to do was to ask them what they thought the biggest issues in their community are so that we can try to help them with their problems. basically what they came up with were that the main issues are 1. education system 2. the children with disabilities and 3. malaria. It was crazy to be sitting there and actually here first hand from these people what they need and what needs to be fixed. one little boy was sitting in the front row and kept raising his hand with such great ideas. he was so smart. one thing he said was that there are problems in the community with orphans and not enough water. i dont think he was an orphan but it broke my heart to hear this little kids say they arent getting enough food and water. we dont realize how lucky we are in the us. when people say "you better eat that, there are starving kids in africa" ITS TRUE. leettttttttt me tell ya! count your blessings people. 

sorry that was so long and probably really scattered i am rushing!! but i just wanted to give you all a little update!! we are roughin it here, but its worth it! sometimes we are in our little house compound behind a gate and i forget where i am and then walk outside and im like woah! but i love it here and i am learning so much. i forgot what its like to have a real toilet or real shower or real food, or a washer/dryer or makeup or to not have to use hand sanitizer ever 10 seconds. the ugandan people are amazing and this country is beautiful. a lot greener than i expected... sometimes i get a little bit of a tropical feel! i miss everyone back home but it is great here! oh i forgot... i threw up the first morning here. yup. sorry.... gross i know. welcome to africa!!!!! thats all for now! love ya!

                                                 our house in Nakazedde Village, Lugazi:

our little neighbor kids hanging on our fence:

chillen at THE SOURCE CAFE in Jinga:

                                                           such cute little missionaries:

                                                      after the community meeting in mukono: