Free Travel

SIDE NOTE: We have just posted pictures to our earlier blog posts, so scroll down and check out what we have been up to!

We are now half way through and started off our free travel Uganda going on a canoe trek for 2 days in Lake Bunyoni. We set off mid morning and canoed over to one of the many islands in the lake to begin our trek. A few minutes in, we learned about different plants that are around the area. Owen, our guide told us about the story behind the shy flower. If you like someone but are too shy to tell them, you can just give them that flower to show them how you feel. After that endearing story we went to the local church and listened to the amazing songs of praise from the congregation. When we finished clapping along to the song we headed out to the local bar to get undercover from the rain. Miha (the founder of Edirisa) joined us on our trek and told us how they make local beer in the area. They allow the fruit to ferment, and then later on mash it to a pulp using their feet, which they don't clean prior to stomping.

We then continued on our way up the island receiving an occasional chuckle from the local children whom found it amusing to see nine mzungus (white people) decked out in ponchos and rain gear when they themselves were wearing their everyday attire. . Due to the rainy conditions the ground was still very muddy, so slipping and sliding was a common occurrence. In the end we arrived at our destination safe and sound. 

We arrived at a beautiful community center /developing backpacker’s hostel, complete with a killer view of the surrounding lake. This sanctuary was called African Explorers and the man who ran it (Yonic) was truly a gift from the heavens. We got settled and took shelter from the rain under a banana thatched hut. Our spirits were lifted even more when we were given a bottle of soda and settled down to hear Yonic's story of how African Explorers was founded. His speech and his story were from the heart, filled with truth and incredibly thought provoking. We all walked away from that place changed in some way. By this time it was around 4 in the afternoon, so we dropped by a local home where our rumbling tummies were fed a hardy African lunch. Lunch consisted of cooked plantains, sweet potatoes, goat meat and a delicious soup. After the tasty food had been consumed, we were taught to make crafts by the mother of the house. We attempted and tried to keep out patience with the complicated art of bracelet weaving, and had a go at it for a good 45 minutes until the mother assisted and ended out struggle by giving us all bracelets that she had pre-made. Our trekking group thanked the mother for the delicious meal and for the craft class then we preceded back down the island, slipping and sliding the whole way. Once we got down safely, we paddled our canoes to Tom’s Island. Tom is an amazing man with a trademark voice deep enough to do voice over’s for TV commercials back in the U.S.We had now been with Tom for awhile since he was our night guard man at one of the Edirisa locations. When we arrived we got settled into our tents and had a nice meal around the campfire. The rest of night was spent listening to traditional songs, being taught traditional dances, which in turn we had to teach a dance from the U.S. Adam H and Emily taught them, along with some of the group members the electric slide while Allison supplied us with the instrumentals. The rest of the night was spent being told local stories that our guide attempted to translate for us. 

The next morning we were awaken by the crested cranes, which Jill says "sounds like child dying in pain", needless to say we were all very pleasant in the morning.  After breakfast Tom briefly showed us around his island and then we soon continued on our way for a day of island hopping. We visited four different islands that day, two of which had involvement with the people who were affected by leprosy. We had a quick snack at the island where the doctor who treated them lived, and then before heading over to the island where the lepers lived we stopped for a quick swim. Of course right when we jumped into the refreshing water, the sun decided to go away, so we left for the leper island. It was very interesting to hear the stories of the lepers whom just a few years earlier lived there. The buildings that once housed them have now been turned into a boarding school for children. It was quite an educational experience.

on our way back in the canoes it began to rain once again and the wind started to blow (keep in mine that we still had our wet bathing suits on). So on order to warm ourselves up we engaged ourselves in a canoe race. After ferociously paddling team Emily, Jill, Miha, and his fiver year old daughter ended up wining the race. We were all rewarded for a hard day of work with the most delicious dinner we have had yet in Africa. When we finished, we contently returned to the home. 

At six o'clock the next morning we headed off for a day of travel to reachdidn't have our reservations. We were all ok with that though since it turned out the Exotic hotel was a "flop house" or otherwise known as a place for people who would like to be with their mistresses would go. We ended up in a nice hotel and spent our first day in the town tying up loose ends, such as doing our laundry which all of us desperately needed to do. The next day we went to Semuliki National Park. The long, cramped, bumpy ride was well worth it. The park borders Uganda and Republic of Congo and can only be described as beautiful and breathtaking. We walked around for about three hours listening to the sounds of the rainforest. We also visited two different hot springs, one that was 106 degrees Celsius and the other 103. At the female hot springs our guide Elly, boiled some eggs for us in the water. The eggs proved to be piping hot, yet very tasty. It was a wonderful hike and great way to spend out last day of free travel.

love,
Emily and Jill

Edirisa: Week 2

Hello Again! We just finished up our second week working with Edirisa in another village. Our group, (Adam, Bridget, Jill, & Saxon) stayed at the Teach Inn where we worked around the school on local projects. Jill & Bridget assisted in classrooms like mathematics, geometry, and general sciences. Adam and Saxon finished hoeing a garden that will soon be planted with vegetables to feed the volunteers, and together we all finished a compost bin that the whole school will be using by the end of the month.We went into a nearby village for our last two days and helped them repair a classroom with plaster and cement. During the break time we played sports with the children and even captured and released a family of mice that we found living in a classroom. For our last night at the Teach Inn, we celebrated with members of the local community and school board with a pig roast and a delicious feast full of music and laughter. Today we begin our free travel, beginning with a canoe treck along the beautiful Lake Bunyonyi. We will update you soon upon furthering our free travel adventures!

Untill then-Bridget & Adam

Team Gorilla Part II

Team Gorilla went on a lovely bumpy ride to Lake Bunyoni. We got settled in and as a group sat down and planned what we would be doing during our stay. Sarah and Emily taught math, body parts, and songs in the nursery. Lilianna taught an art class, and Adam taught an amazing environmental studies class. We had plans to teach a swimming class, however, during our stay it rained most of the time so we ended up talking, laughing, reading and playing games inside. We also found time to build another successful compost pile with the help of the other volunteers.


During our time at Edirisa, we undertook a beard challenge to be able to shave Adam's beard however we so desired. After completing, four different tasks, for example: showering him with compliment for a day, we ended up shaving half his beard off, a style which he sported for 24 hours.

Lilianna, Emily, Sarah, Adam

Quick Update

Heyo from the other half of the group. We spent the week on the beautiful Lake Bunyoni, where we dug a garden, dug out a space for a compost bin, and assisted in after school activities. Jill and Adam ran a P.E. course, Bridget oversaw an art class, Saxon did dance and became godfather to a chicken.

In our free time we swam, went canoeing,  took a hike, and watched football at a neighboring resort. So, yeah.  Until next time.

Jill, Saxon

Team Gorilla

We have now left Rwanda and have started our adventure in Uganda.  Before we left though we were able to visit the Kigali Memorial Center where we learned about the genocide that occurred in Rwanda.  The tour began by going through multiple gardens which very artistically helped convey the different emotions, actions and people affected by the genocide.  Once we finished our time pondering through the gardens we entered the museum.  The museum is split into three parts;  the first part is about colonization of Rwanda, second about the actual genocide and third, genocides that have occurred in other countries along with how the genocide affected children. By the end of our time at the memorial we felt an array of emotions as we reflected upon what we had just learned.

Later that night we were in higher spirits as we got dressed up (well, as much as we could) and had a delectable meal at Hotel de Mille Collines. That hotel is where the story for the movie Hotel Rwanda is based off of. Having dinner there was a great way to spend our last night in the city while celebrating our month-aversary.

The next day we headed out for Uganda. We are now in the middle of our time volunteering with Edirisa. The group has split into two groups. We spent our first week fixing a path and making a compost bin for the community at The Teach Inn. There we enjoyed making friends with the locals, giving ourselves facials with the clay from the clay pits, having intense twister games, going on excursions to the market to buy our food for the week (yes, we cooked ourselves) and enjoyed delicious rolexes. For those who have not been introduced to this type of Rolex it contains a chapati (something in between a crepe and a pancake) an omelet, and another chapati rolled together.  They are a great on the go type of food. Now we are having a day off and tomorrow we will be heading off to Edirisa's other location Lake Bunyoni which we here is gorgeous!

Sincerely,

Team Gorilla (Sarah, Emily, Lil, and Adam H.)

Hi from Rwanda

Jambo from the beautiful Kigali, Rwanda.  We arrived here Saturday evening after a much longer than anticipated plane ride from the Kilimanjaro International airport.  We spent the previous week at the United African Alliance community center.  Upon arriving we were greeted warmly by Pete (The Panther) O'Neil, and his twenty-one adopted children.  We then settled into our comfortable sleeping quarters.  It is safe to say that everyone was enthused to have warm running water, clean clothes and electricity once again. 

We started our first full day with a one hour yoga class at seven-thirty in the morning.  After a delicious breakfast we split up into groups of two and sat in on English classes.  All of the teachers at the UAACC were volunteers, and the ages of students ranged from fourteen to forty.  Many of the student traveled long distances to attended free schooling at the community center.  The advanced English class students were virtually fluent in English and were very easy to converse with.  On the contrary, students in the beginners class needed a lot of assistance from there teacher to translate.  All students were eager to hear about American culture, politics and language.  Later in the afternoons Carpe Diem students attended computer classes to teach students of all ages the basics of computers.  Everyone seemed interested in making facebook and e-mail accounts.  The concepts were difficult at times to explain unless the students were English speaking. 

Following our first day of teaching we attended a dance class in the early morning.  A group of ten locals met us out on the basketball court to teach us a dance from a local tribe.  Though learning the dance was difficult enough, we also had to sing at the same time.  This proved to be quite a challenge but, after a couple hours of practice we were feeling confident in our ability to perform the dance during the UAACC talent show that afternoon.  Our performance of the dance went well, as did our rendition of the Cha Cha Slide; the American dance we all decided would be the easiest to perform without any practice.  The talent show went on for several hours and included dances and skits performed by locals, a fashion show and musical performances both by UAACC and Carpe Diem Students.

The rest of the week was spent in relaxation; learning how to make batik paintings in the art room, collaborating with local artists in the music studio, and interacting with students at the community center.  During some evenings we were able to casually chat with Pete about the life he was forced to leave behind in America and his new life in Tanzania.  Many evenings we would watch both educational and slightly more irrelevant DVDs from Pete's extensive collection. 

Thanks to Emily who verified both flights to Rwanda as well transportation from the airport to our hotel we arrived safely in Kigali on Friday Evening. Though finding a hotel was a bit of a struggle we were able to fit everyone in to two generously sized rooms at the Kigali Hotel, with help from Lilianna.  We spent our weekend exploring the city and attempting to emerge ourselves in the culture.  After almost a month in Tanzania we found our Swahili to be no use here as the predominant languages are French and Rwanda.  There appears to be a strong french and English Influence and the city is much more developed than the previous towns we visited.  We are all very much looking forward to our visit to the Rwanda Genocide Museum on Sunday before we travel to Uganda the following day. 

   

We will keep you updated on more events soon!

Love,

Adam & Sarah