Wild Waters and Goodbyes

We spent a day at Wild Waters, a resort situated on an island within the Nile. To get there, we had to take a boat to the island, then walk the raised boardwalk past cute little forest cabins. We were able to step inside one to check it out. I love the outdoor soaking tub with a view of the rapids. Finally we arrived at the lounge overlooking a pool separated from the rapids by a short rock wall.

After settling in, we went for a walk.

An employee took us in search of snakes. We did manage to find one cobra, and while my husband saw it, I didn't. I did however see some cool spiders and Red-Tailed Monkeys with the cutest white heart-shaped noses.

As we were walking to the main road to catch our ride home, we came upon a troupe of Vervet Monkeys along the road.

We attended church at Arise Africa and really enjoyed the worship service and message. I am going to teach my children the songs they sang. They meet outside, under a tent.

As I now write this, I think back to the image my mind had constructed of where our friends live and it was so far from reality. Five years ago they were called to help children whom the culture marginalized. Not only have they made a big impact on the children and those within the nearby communities, they have created such a beautiful life for their family. While they don't have the many conveniences of the US, they do live in a town that offers more Westernized options than most. Their house is a beautiful, peaceful retreat that's more than a home. It's a gathering place for friends and loved ones. Some days a group of friends would show up with their lunch bags to have lunch together along the river. Another day they hosted a baby shower where so many people pitched in to make it a super special day for the expectant couple. This. This is the life. 

We love you Stef and Jared. Thank you for sharing a week of your beautiful life with us!

What I learned from the Maasi

I know some of you have questions about our time in Africa. I figured I'd tell you a bit of the cultural differences we noticed before I get to our conversations with the Maasi.

One of the first things we noticed in Kenya were the men with rifles. At first it's intimidating, but then you come to understand it's mainly a preventative measure. From what I could tell, every business, hotel, restaurant, etc was protected by not only a barbed wire enclosure with metal gate, but also armed security. Speaking of armed security, taking photos of any government buildings (and I'm guessing, persons) is prohibited. Even looking towards non-government buildings with binoculars can throw security into a tizzy. Ask me how I know. It was a tense few minutes spent explaining what binoculars are and reassure them about what they don't do.

This is a residential gate.

There are a wide variety of languages spoken across Africa. The people of Kenya speak English for business and schooling and Kiswahili (also known as Swahili) for everyday situations and then their own tribal language at home and within their community. Uganda is different. They speak English, Luganda and their tribe's language, but historically choose not to speak Swahili, even though there is a push to make it an official language thru more of Africa. Their resistance has much to do with how Swahili was used by soldiers in the past.

The Maasi are a pastoral, nomadic people. They treasure their livestock (mainly cattle) as currency. They are loose, so someone must keep watch over them at all times and keep them safe from not only vehicles, but lions and hyenas. They move quite often to graze them on new land, avoid bad weather or if someone dies. In that case, they bury them the same day and move along. In the past, they'd been able to move freely about, so they didn't really understand land ownership and its value. In the early 1900s treaties began pushing them out of the areas as they became designated national parks. In more recent years, other people knowing the value of the land asked if they could build on their property. When they said yes, they lost their ownership rights. The new people built a fence so the Maasi's cattle can no longer graze on it. Kenya experiences some very difficult droughts. During a recent and particularly horrible drought, in an act of desperation as cattle were dying in huge numbers, some Maasi let their cattle graze on someone elses' property and every single one was shot per the new land owner. What a tragedy for people whose only means of income and survival is based on livestock!

When it's time to move, each family member gathers belongings, which for some is merely a cup, plate, blanket and bedding before moving on to the next place. When they decide to settle down again, the women build a small, circular hut out of sticks with grass roofs and held together with hot, fresh cow dung. The house has just enough room for two beds (cow skins) and one small hole for a window which is necessary since they burn fires inside.

It's common for men to have multiple wives. One of our new friends told us her father had five wives and 29 children. A normal routine for her as a child was to wake at 4am in order to walk 4km to school and arrive by 8am. When school was finished at 4pm, she began her journey home, often barefoot, keeping watch for lions and hyenas along the way. Wow, and in most of the United States it's illegal to merely leave a child under 12 alone safe at home for any amount of time! People walk everywhere here. Alongside paved roads are worn, dirt roads nearly just as wide for pedestrians. Other modes of transportation are boda bodas (motorcycles where you sit behind the driver), tuk tuks (three-wheeled motorized rickshaws) or of course, the automobile.

If someone kills a lion, it's a sign that they are very brave and they wear the skin of it. They will then become an elder of the tribe.

They sometimes drink a fermented concoction of cow blood mixed with milk.

A young Maasi will greet an elder by walking up to them and bending at the waist. The elder will then touch the head of the person with his or her palm.

As I was swatting flies from myself, I was told having flies on you is a sign of wealth as "flies don't come to nothing". Our new friend from South Sudan told us in his country there are tiny flies that go right for the eyes resulting in many people going blind because of this belief that you shouldn't swat them.

While there is a push to educate people in Kenya and Uganda to stop harmful traditional practices, they still occur. Female genital mutilation, using bone setters and the practice of using cow dung to seal a newborn baby's umbilical cord, commonly lead to infections, hydrocephalus and death. It's sad to see a few simple changes could stop so much hurting for those who refuse to let go of those long-held traditions. One thing is certain- change is difficult no matter where you live.

Jinja {Uganda}

Stef and Jared's beautiful home was originally built by a Westerner who wanted to be comfortable during his five year commitment. Stefani's own creative touches make if feel warm and inviting. And then you have the lush backyard, which ends at the Nile River! After our busy week in Kenya, I was very happy to relax in their backyard, and watch birds from their deck. Did I mention this trip was the first time we've ever been away from our children? As a result, we spent quite a bit of time just looking out over the Nile while enjoying the silence! Over the course of the week, I identified over 60 species in their yard, plus we had sitings of Nile Monitors, River Otters and beautiful lizards.

I'm familiar with Belted Kingfishers in the US, which are predominately solitary birds. Here we were in Pied Kingfisher territory, and they live in small family groups. It wasn't unusual for me to spot 4 or 5 of these black and white birds perched on a single branch together. I could easily spot 20 at any given moment while looking out over the water! 

One evening as the light grew dark, I stood in the yard watching as hundreds of bats emerged from their daytime roost and went out in search of food. Suddenly I heard a light thud and at my feet was this little guy. I believe he hit the electrical wire above me and it knocked him right out of the sky. He was stunned but a short time later he had recovered and moved on. 

The Source of the Nile Bridge was under the final stages of construction 

while we were there, and is now open. It's a structure that begs you to look at it.

One morning we stopped at the Kombi Koffee VW bus on our way to pick up milk.

...and then we were off to buy milk from these gals! 

We watched as they separated the cream from the milk. (on table to left)

They also have these giant jackfruits growing in the yard! I found out jackfruit is the largest tree-growing fruit in the world. The fruit averages 25lbs, but can grow as large as 100lbs! 

This is the main street where the grocery and other stores are located. Picking up groceries isn't as easy as we're used to. Here, it's necessary to stop at two, sometimes three different stores to find what you need.

We took the scenic route to a farmer's market geared towards Westerners. We enjoyed burgers while the kids played in a bounce house. I was so impressed by all of the items they carved from cow horns, I ended up bringing home a pair of Africa-shaped earrings.

Walking thru the three-story Jinja Central Market is a sensory overloading experience! 7000 vendors compete for your business with tons of fresh food, clothing, really, just about anything you could need.  on the second floor are rows and rows of women sitting at antique sewing machines, some making new items from fabric, others are taking apart old clothing to create something new. It felt a bit like what I assume a "sweat shop" would look like. But when talking to Stefani about it, she was quick to tell me, those women are the success stories. It takes training to become a seamstress. These women have completed training and are now able to make money to support themselves and their family.

On Sunday we attended service at Arise Africa. As we stood outside, a tent shielding us from the sun, we worshipped God together. Then we listened as the pastor recounted an event in his life where we felt the most vulnerable to his circumstances. Throughout that desperate situation he still chose to fully depend on the One who made us and cares more than we can fathom.  

This was taken before the service, all seats were filled by starting time.

Jared gave us a tour of Ekisa Ministries, an organization that exists to improve the quality of life for children living with special needs in Uganda. Here, children with disabilities tend to be isolated and marginalized. Some even believe their disability to be a curse. Ekisa strives to help families and communities see the value of every person. They mainly serve children living with Hydrocephalus, Cerebral Palsy and brain damage resulting from malaria or meningitis. While Ekisa does care for 22 children in their residential care program, they have nearly 100 in their community care program. This provides services and training for the families so their child can remain at home with them. Those in the residential program are either working toward being reunited with a family member or adopted into a new family. Ekisa runs a school for children from both the residential and the community care group. Ekisa's empowerment programs provide business and financial training courses plus start-up loans for families who want to open a business to be able to afford medical care for their child. Jared has already begun to see a shift in the acceptance of these children in the community. They're now gearing up to participate in their 4th Night to Shine, a prom experience for people with special needs, created by the Tim Tebow Foundation.

<--------- click NEXT to see more of our time in Uganda.