Saturday-Unfortunately Our Day Off

We went to the city to explore a little bit. Ate lunch at Cafe Pap. There were actually a bunch of white people there. It's common in the city to have a few Mzungu-s. After that we went to the market place. I was surprised to find that it wasn't very crowded. Every store also sold the same goods. When we were leaving we had a young man come up to us to try and sell us some post cards. After we repeatedly said no he kept trying and even almost got into our taxi. Something I heard about, that I was able to see first hand, young children begging for money. First the will put their hand out, then come up really close to the window and look all sad. If you don't give them any money they are trained to turn away and pretend to start crying. The young boy slowly turn his head to see if we had remorse. It turns out they work for someone who forces them to beg on the streets. It is very sad to see this happen in person.

Mayhem in the streets! While driving in our taxi, it began raining extremely hard. Suddenly out nowhere there was a huge traffic jam. It took us about an hour to get 1 mile. The taxi driver "Fred" said that the traffic police run to shelter when it starts raining. Very funny at the time. 

White manikins! They are everywhere. It is definitely weird to see. You would think they would have black ones (There are barely any white people here!) We need to start making some (black manikins) Come on people.

I am excited for tomorrow. We are going to the church. That is finally done! For the most part. We have to get there at 10am. -which is 2am Chicago time. (still not adjusted) We are bringing supplies and presents for all the children t

tomorrow as well. It is going to be so great! These kids have little to nothing. For a ball- they take leaves and "ball" them together. Very resourceful. The group has been talking about how these people have so little but so much. Their spirits carry them throughout the day. They are mostly always laughing or smiling- in a miserable situation. (I think). This adorable little girl that kept wanting to sit in every ones lap and was dancing to the boys playing the drums just got Malaria. Very sad as well. They may not be able to treat her. I don't know what will happen. I also met two girls that are HIV positive. Their parents had died of it as well. Someone took them in immediately. 

It's all about community here. They take care of each other. They only really have each other. Andy brought up a good point when he talked about people in America. They are mostly in tune with -"What's my career going to be?-How much money will I make?-What will I buy myself when I am rich?" Uganda is purely communal. It is a very beautiful thing to see happen. It has definitely changed my perspective on things. I'm glad this has happened to me. Lee is going to move here in a little while. Most of us say-"These people are richer out here." They live fulfilling lives consisting of family, religion, and community.

"Money is the root of all evil."

Wrong

"Humans are the root of all evil."

Here are some more pictures...