Lay of the Land

Everyone,

When I left you last, I had just been 2 days in Lira. In the meantime, it has been a time of learning about the refugees, the rebels, and doing some waiting.

On Saturday, we went to the site (near Boke Camp) where they are making the bricks for the stoves. Because this is the rainy season, they are running behind. So we have no finished bricks yet to make stoves with. Instead, we
helped turn the bricks laying on the ground to expose the bottom part to the sun and help them dry faster. We also got to see them make the mix of clay & rice hulls, throw the mix in the moulds, and then dump them in many rows for drying. Even making a level clear surface is a lot of work in the sun drenched dirt. We also helped remove the straw that they put on at first so the bricks don't dry too fast and crack.

Next we went to 2 more refugee camps to see their situation and decide which ones would receive the stoves. We went to Aloi & Abako Camps. As I stated before, these camps are all on school property. They all live in mud brick huts that are round and covered with a frame of wood. Over that is a straw thatch, unless they still have a tarp that has been provided by the Rotary Clubs, the UN, or other aid groups. I am amazed at the spirit to survive and the ability to live in such destitute conditions. The children are well behaved and the adults so appreciative of our presence. They greet us with smiles and laugh when we try to say words in their language. Hello in Lao is "Ariba Bel" (sp?) and Thank You is "Apoiyo" which can also be hello. They all understand "Bye Bye."

On Sunday I attended church at All Nations Christian Care. It was very much like an African-American Baptist service with half hour of praise music to start, announcements and visitor welcome, then a 45 minute sermon. Lots of clapping during the 2-hour service. Luckily the English service (English is the official language of Uganda) starts at 7:30am, so we had cool air coming in thru the windows. The building has no glass in the windows, but the floor is cement and the wood pews have a back, so it was comfortable. No ornamentation, but the spirit sured moved and the electronic piano sounded great. They've invited me to sing with the choir if I have time. :-)

We decided that since the bricks needed to dry and be fired in a kiln, our leader would stay to supervise and we would go on safari for a couple days. Can't make stoves without bricks. So we decided to take our safari at the beginning instead of the ending of our trip. On Monday we drove 5 hours to the Murchison Falls National Park. We stayed just south of the Nile and battle the bugs to beat them to our dinners outside on the veranda. The park is there because the TseTse Fly was eradicated a few decades ago with strong chemicals, so no one lived there. When the sleeping desease was gone, the park became a game preserve. Then, during & just after Idi Amin's reign, most of the wild animals were pouched. However, this allowed the land time to go back to its natural state and the animals have started to repopulate. We went on a Game Drive (Safari as far as I'm concerned) on Tuesday morning. We saw giraffes, buffaloes, kobs (antelope), waterbucks, egrets, ibises, baboons, mongooses, Guinea fowl, losts of warthogs, gray herons, vultures, and lots of beautiful butterflies. The highlight was an elephant feeding on the side of the road. He wouldn't move, so when we did, he shook his big ears to warn us. We revved our engine and he finally moved enough to get by. However, as we passed he shook his ears again to let us know he would charge if we came back! In the afternoon, we took the boat ride up the Nile river to the base of the Falls. We saw many hippos & crocodiles and learned that they cohabitate. Hippos need water, but are vegetarians, so no threat to the croc's food supply. The croc's only eat hippos after they have died. Murchison Falls was magnificient. It is where the mighty Nile River goes thru a very narrow (18 meters ?) passage, creating a powerful crashing thundering falls.

That night we ate a delicious buffet (finally something a little different than the menu at Lira Hotel) and enjoyed traditional music from a live band. They really made beautiful sounds with their stringed instruments of various sizes and a drum set made from metal cans nailed to wood frame. We even got to dance with them and a bunch of men from Israel staying at the Sambiya Resort.

On Wednesday, we drove to the lookout point for the falls and hiked down to a viewpoint right on the water. We were drenched with sweat, but cooled off under the spray of being right next to the crashing water of the falls. Then it was the 5 hour drive back to Lira. What a great time in the green lush northwest part of Uganda.

Today, we started our day with a trip to a Racheli Center where kids who have escaped from the rebels are taught how to go back to Ugandan society. The work is incredible as they tend to the kids and help them deal with Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome with story telling, drawing what they've experienced, etc. The kids sang for us and they asked me to sing a solo. So I sang "Amazing Grace." Wow, glad there are people working to make the kids able to go back to what family is left. Next was a visit to the UN Humanitarian Aid Headquarters and introductions. Then we went back to check on the brick making and helped take the mud off the kiln made of the very bricks that were being fired. We tested them to make sure they float in water and YES they did!!! They will cool tonight so we can collect them tomorrow. Ended the day playing catch with all the kids at Boke camp while Ken took another sick baby to the hospital. Hopefully, tomorrow we can start building some stoves.

That's it for now. Thanks for all your good wishes,

-Chuck-