Update # 3 - 2 weeks in Uganda

8/18/2007 Hello Everyone! This e-mail is kind of long. At the end is a summary of what I have written. There are also pictures at the bottom of the post. I hope this e-mail finds everyone well. Greg and I have been in Uganda now for two weeks. I just wanted to e-mail and let everyone know what’s going on. First of all, let me tell you a little bit about life in Uganda: 1 Greg and I have been happy to find the weather here very mild, and it never really getting as hot as it is in Houston. I am even pretty cold sometimes in the morning and nights. We were also happy to find that the mosquitoes are not anywhere close to as bad as we thought. I don’t think either of us have been bitten by one yet (although we certainly have been bitten by some sort of bugs…), and we find there is no need to sleep under a mosquito net. It is very beautiful here, with rolling hills as far as they eye can see. If you walk a little uphill from where we live you can see Lake Victoria. There are several neighborhoods in Kampala, and we live in the Kansanga district in the southeast part of the city. It’s sort of the suburbs. There are children and goats and chickens and very surly looking dogs all throughout. The people here are very friendly. Lots of people will say hi to you, and everyone is always willing to help you out and answer questions. Getting around and getting what we need is much easier than what I expected it would be. There are 3 small grocery stores within a kilometer from our apartment, and one of the main roads, Ggaba road, is also within a kilometer. There are also lot of stands on the side of the road selling various items, such as fruits and vegetables, eggs, and bread. If we need to go somewhere else, it is very easy to catch a matatu (public transportation) to pretty much anywhere around town from Ggaba road. On a side note, the public transportation here is great. All matatus charge the same price for different areas of town, so you never have to worry about being overcharged, and you rarely have to wait to get on one. On top of that, it only costs 500 schillings to ride one into downtown, which is about 29 cents. They are actually 12 passenger vans, so if someone in the back wants to get out, everyone has to get out and then get back on. Greg and I have only experienced one power outage the whole time we have been here, and it only lasted 10 hours. This is apparently amazing, and we are thankful for that. I’m afraid we will get spoiled, though. We’ve heard that a hotel on the same line as us has some diplomats staying with them, and that is why we have had power for so long. That’s how it goes, here. 2 Its amazing how God has taken care of us since we have been here. The first week, I was sick with a fever, but it passed in only a couple of days. I have been working at Heritage International School for two weeks now, and I love it. I only have seven kids, which feels amazing to me. I have 2 students from America, 1 from Canada, 1 from Italy, 1 from Rwanda, 1 from Uganda, and 1 from S. Korea. Most of them are missionary kids. Teaching at Heritage is really a blessing. 3 Greg has hit the ground running as well, and has already been on a trip out to Eastern Uganda to an area called Kapchorwa. He was able to go and do some preliminary work for a water well project for that area. Greg is really excited about this, because it will be something that affects a whole community of people, which is really what he wanted to be able to do. He also had a blast getting to play with the kids who followed them around while they surveyed. Greg will tell more about this project later on. 4 Thank you all so much for your prayers and support. We could not do this without you. God has provided for us so much in that we got here safely, none of our luggage was lost (which I hear is rare), and were able to get settled and get to work without much to stand in our way. There were a lot of things that could go wrong, but God makes sure that they don’t. We have been able to meet some wonderful people here, both western and Ugandan who have made our transition easier because of their caring spirits. Please pray that Greg and I would find a home church to be a part of while we are here. We have visited two, and will be going back to one tomorrow. There are international churches here with more western style services and local churches as well. We will be going back to a local church tomorrow. The long services take a little bit of getting used to. Please pray also that we would adjust to the culture here and be able to learn the language well enough to communicate with people. A lot of people do speak English here, but a lot don’t, too. We have to adjust to sticking out like sore thumbs and people (especially children) yelling “muzungu” at us all the time. Muzungu means foreigner or rich person. They are not being rude, but it can be difficult to get used to. Pray for us that we would seek after God, and he would provide opportunities for us to serve outside of Heritage and eMi. Thank you again for your prayer and support! We would love to hear back from you, so e-mail back and let us know what’s going on! God bless, -Stephanie Summary: 1 Life in Uganda 2 Heritage International School 3 Greg in Kapchorwa 4 Praises and prayer requests. PICTURES - You can clikc on the picture to see a bigger version of it. What we think is the Sahara desert, or close to it from our plane window. Sipi falls in Eastern Uganda. Greg saw these on his way back to Kampala from Kapchorwa. Greg at a well site in Kapchorwa with another eMi Staffer, Janet. A view of Lake Victoria we are able to see if we walk uphill a bit from our apartment. Ggaba Road. The vans with blue checkers on them are the matatus (taxis). Greg surrounded by kids in Kapchorwa.