We just made it back to Awassa after a looong time away from home (at least it felt like a long time). We’re in the midst of unpacking our Uganda bags and packing up again to head up to Addis tomorrow to pick up the Taylors! We’re so excited for them to get here for their very first taste of Africa!
Our time in Uganda came to a good close. Can’t say we weren’t ready to hop on that plane and make the quick 2 hour flight back home. The conference ended well in Entebbe and we celebrated by going on a fishing excursion in Lake Victoria. Word has it that there have been some BIG nile perch caught in those waters (200+ lbs!). Needless to say we had some pretty high hopes.
Our fishing boat. Just kidding. Fellow fishermen on the water.
First catch of the day! Almost a 200 pounder;)
Ben hard at work
Our group of expert fishermen (LWI+Water is Life)
Stopped at a little island in the lake for a picnic lunch
My dream vacation bungalow
After a wonderful day at sea (felt like sea at least- that is one big lake!) we headed into Kampala for a few days with some of David’s friends. We were able to hear a little bit about the work they are doing there with refugees and child soldiers there- incredible stuff.
We were also able to squeeze in some more shopping. During the conference we took a day trip into town to do a little shopping with some LWI peeps, but we got hung up in the grocery store (they have Uchumi!:) So when everyone got back to the bus with their beautiful souvenirs and trinkets all we had was a bag of apples (miss those!), Dr. Pepper, and chocolate. Can you tell where our priorities lie? Anyways, on Friday we were able to go the market and the do some Christmas shopping before catching our flight back to Addis.
I had visited Uganda once before, but it was fun to go with Ben and introduce him to his first African country outside of Ethiopia. It really is a whole different ballgame. I don’t want to go as far as to say that I wish Ethiopia had been colonized (i don’t!), but I sure do appreciate some of the infrastructure left behind by the Brits. In general there is such a different feel to the place. Over dinner one night we were talking about how Ugandans will refer to themselves as “Africans”. They talk about their African culture or their African brothers and sisters or their African cuisine. Growing up in Ethiopia “African” was almost a dirty word. Never in my whole 17+ years in Ethiopia have I heard an Ethiopian refer to themselves as an African in casual dialog. It’s different here. We’re our own little universe. I don’t live in Africa, I live in Ethiopia. Strange, eh? And really when you hop between the two, you realize just how different they really are. I mean, I had a Dr. Pepper and legit sushi over there. Now that was just plain crazy.
When we arrived back in Ethiopia we were greeted at the airport by my mom and dad. We were able to overlap for a few precious hours before they flew out to NC last night. Of course we were welcomed back with a dead car as well. Arg. So we spent the day at the shop and running a few errands. My mom and I also managed to fit in a pedicure while the men went off to their meetings. Rough life.
Man, I miss them already! Last night after they left I was lying in bed feeling restlessly homesick. Home was 5 hours south in Awassa, home was somewhere in a plane over the ocean, home was several thousand miles away in North Carolina, and home was lying right next to me.
And all this restlessness makes me crave heaven just a little bit more.
Life in the Horn of Africa 