First week of school/Party time!

Monday February 3^rd was the first day of the term for the primary schools. In case you didn’t know, I am working as a Literacy Specialist for Peace Corps to promote/help improve their pupil’s reading and writing skills. Since I studied biology, they are having me teach science in the P4 (like 4^th grade) class. I have a counterpart who is one of the P4 teachers who I work with the most. He is awesome and has been very nice and super helpful in so many ways.

Anyway, Monday came but let me first explain a bit of how school works here in Uganda: Just because it’s the first day of the term doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the first day of classes. Sometimes the exam results from the previous year that determine what pupils can be promoted into the next highest grade haven’t been recorded. Sometimes the pupils just haven’t registered to attend that school. Otherwise, the pupils and teachers don’t really show up the first day. A few more trickle in each day until finally you have a full class/staff and you can actually start teaching lessons. But even then, things are still not anywhere near perfect. There is a time table that depicts the schedule for each day Monday-Friday; what class will be taught at what time and when the breaks, assembly, game time, etc. are. But because so much pressure is put on the end of term/year exams for students to ‘pass’ them in order to move onto the next grade, only the four core subjects are really taught (Science, English, Math, and Social Studies) and the other subjects (Library, Creative Arts, Religious Edu, and Local Language) get snubbed. There’s a lot of information that is needed to go over, the classes are very large, and the lack of resources make it impossible to have each subject only take 40 minutes to teach. It takes almost that long to have them all copy down the notes let alone explain what it all means and then have them answer assessment questions. It’s a very difficult situation.

Here’s how my first week went: I showed up at 10am on Monday. The day usually starts at 8 and ends at 5, but when I arrived, there were only a few students who were cleaning up the compound/school. There was a very brief staff meeting just to do some introductions of who I am and to assign which teachers to teach which class/subject. Primary schools are classes P1-P7 and teach the subjects I mentioned above. They learn in their local language until P4 which is when they switch to learning in English. That’s why I’m working with the P4 class. But yeah, that was essentially the first day. They second day, there were 10 pupils who showed up for P4 so the other two P4 teachers did some review lessons with them after they finished cleaning in the morning. Wednesday was almost the same: assembly, cleaning, then review sessions. The students attend morning assembly and clean the compound every morning. (This is also another reason classes get snubbed) But I ended up teaching my first lesson this day when the teachers were late coming back from break! I taught on Thursday and Friday as well. It went ok I think for not being very well prepared. I had to speak super slow so they could understand, but hopefully we’ll get used to each other very soon. I really like the ones who have showed up so far (32 as of Friday). I also get along with most of my other teachers very well! Along with teaching, I am gathering information about the school to submit to Peace Corps to have a better understanding of what the school really needs and doing a reading assessment of 100 pupils to see who really needs help with one-on-one reading interventions and track their improvement throughout the year.

My school!

It was a good week overall, but I was happy to have a break from all the excitement/stress when it came time to leave on Friday. I went to meet up with a bunch of other PCVs who live in my area. We went to a friend’s site to spend the weekend. We had a lot of fun hanging out. On Saturday, our friend had a Chinese New Year’s party and made a TON of super good Chinese food (dumplings, lion head meatballs, bok choy). Oh how I had missed that! Mmmmmm! It was also my birthday so I ate a lot of sweet things they gave me :P haha! I woke up that day to them bringing me zucchini bread on a plate with a candle and getting sung to :) Some other PCVs, my host family, and the nuns I live with called to wish me a happy birthday too! It was seriously a great day spent with some awesome people :D I'm so thankful to have them 'close' by :)

I came back to my site Sunday evening and today (Monday) when I came home for my lunch break at school, the sisters had prepared a VERY nice feast of fish, chips (fries), rice, salad, matooke (can't have a meal in Uganda without it), and wine to drink. They had invited some friends over to join us and after eating, they brought out a big cake and bowl of fruit and sang to me! I love them!

Birthday lunch celebration!

It's official! :D

It feels like SO much has happened since my last blog post!

As I mentioned last time, after Christmas I was living with a host family. I stayed with them until Jan 19th. I really enjoyed my time there! They are very nice people who cook super good food! My daily routine basically went like this the last month: Wake up at 7, have breakfast (milk tea, fruit, bread, eggs), go to school for language training, hang around with the other eight in my language group, head home around 5 or 6, sit in the outside cooking area with my family, fetched water/helped out if they let me, took a bucket bath when it got dark around 7, ate dinner around 8-8:30, then went to my room, maybe talked to some friends on the phone, and usually asleep by 10. A few times we hiked up the hill behind my house. So pretty! My mom took my to her garden and showed me different food growing, I went to the neighbor kids house a couple of times and took pictures of them, and sometimes we watched Game of Thrones or played a game. One of my last days there, I cooked for my family. I made chapati (which is this really yummy flat bread kind of thing that they eat all the time here) but I put Nutella on it so it was kind of like a crepe! I also buttered some bread and fried it in a pan. Then I scrambled eggs and mixed in some caramelized onions. All of this I cooked outside over a charcoal stove.  I also gave them some soy sauce to put on their rice. They loved it all! Our last day with them, we had a "thank you/farewell" party for all the families. There were speeches, performances, and food! My family gave me a Runyankore name: Kobusingye which means Peace. They said so many very nice things about me and how they were sad to see me go. I miss them!

With my family at the farewell party!
They gave me a hat, photo album, and sign :D

 We also had our language proficiency test. I scored Intermediate Mid!! We needed to get Intermediate Low. (It goes Novice, Intermediate, Advance) YAY! After we left home stay, we all met in a conference center near Kampala for Supervisors workshop. It was SOOOOO good to see everyone again! After everyone arrived and tons of hugs, we all hung our and caught up. There was a bar near by so we went there and danced/watched a football game. We went shopping for things we might need for our sites the next two days and our supervisors showed up. The workshop consisted on everyone getting on the same page as to what our jobs will be here. Very informative! 

But then the day came... SWEARING IN!!!!! On the 22nd, we all got dressed up and went to the US Ambassador's house where we were sworn in as OFFICIAL Peace Corps Volunteers!!!! I can't believe it! Training is over!

The SouthWest group in our snazzy custom made katengye
outfits with the Ambassador and Country Director. 

Yesterday we sad goodbye to each other once more and left for our sites. It'll be three months this time until we're all together again. It was very sad to separate, but I was happy to arrive in Ibanda once more. The sisters at the convent I'm living at came out to welcome me back. They had made a cake and lots of good food for my return! We had a very fun dinner full of laughter then I went to my room and kind of looked through all my luggage. Today I came to town to use the internet and pick up a few more things. 

Next week, I will be getting settled in to my place. Figuring everything out and organizing my room. I'll also be going to a Ugandan reading working shop with other teachers at my school. The week after is when the school term is supposed to start! Whoa. 

It feels like forever ago that I was boarding a plane out of Springfield, but it was only a little over two months ago! Crazy to think about where I'll be 25 months from now. Just know that I miss all of you everyday! I wish you could be here with me :) Wish me luck with the beginning of school! I'm so nervous! O_O haha!

<3 Hannah

PS. I got a guitar! :D I plan to learn it during the next two years. We'll see how it goes ;) hahaha!

FSV, Christmas, & Homestay

So much has happened since my last blog, but again, I don't have much time to write so sorry if this is chalk full or errors/typos :P

We left the place we were staying at for Teacher Boot Camp on Dec. 17th to head off to FSV (Future Site Visit). It was really sad to say goodbye to everyone, but we were all very excited to see our site. The place we will be living at for the next two years after swear in at the end of Jan. I was in a car with four other volunteers who live kind of the same area as me in the Southwest part of the Country. We stopped at the equator and got a nice pic. So cool to be living below it :D I was the first stop along the way. I am living in the Ibanda district.

My site: Very not what I would ever have expected for Peace Corps! I have a room located in the Daughters of Mary and Joseph nun convent, which sounds kind of crazy, but it's actually really legit! They are very chill and funny and the compound is super nice! Everything is already provided for me. A bed, mosquito net set up, desk, chair, wardrobe, and nightstand is all in my room. They also have a full kitchen with stove and dishes etc. There are even flushable toilets and showers which sometimes have hot water :O not pit latrine or bucket bath?? WHAT WHAT!

I met my supervisors (Head Teacher and Dept. Head Teacher of the Primary school I'll be working at) as well as my counter part (the P4 teacher I'll be working with). They are all very nice! The school itself needs a lot of work. The buildings/classrooms are in very poor condition, but it's located very close to my place.

My village is pretty nice. There are two trading centers where I can do some shopping. The hospital is located next door to the compound. Also, there are BEAUTIFUL hills all around! Soooo pretty there! The village is located only 5km away from Ibanda Town which is a pretty decent size so I can buy things that I can't find in my village. It doesn't take very long to get to Mbarara town either (about an hour drive) which is even bigger. 

We stayed at our site until Dec. 20th, then we headed to a village very close to Mbarara town for language training/homestay. There are nine of us who will be living in the Southwest region of Uganda and we are all here together learning to speak Runyankore/Rukiga. We each have been assigned to a family to stay with. We will stay here until swearing in at the end of Jan. 

My family is super great! There is the dad, mom, daughter in law, her baby, a niece, and a grandson. They are very nice and not too overbearing. They make GREAT Uganda food, but they feed me WAY too much. They told me they want me to get so fat that no one recognizes me when I go back home :S I'm afraid this is going to happen! 

We got a holiday for Christmas so we all went to stay at two other volunteer's site. IT WAS SUCH A GREAT TIME! We made lots of great food, decorated sugar cookies, climbed a hill, star gazed, and had lots and lots of laughs :D I also got to talk to some people back home so that was nice to hear their voices :)

Right now, we have all made a trip to Mbarara Town to get some fabric to make dresses/shirts for swearing in so I had better get going! 

Merry Christmas from the SW! :D

Teacher Boot Camp

The last two weeks, use trainees have been practice teaching. Some of us have been assigned to work as teacher trainers at PTCs (Primary Teacher Colleges) which is where older ‘kids’ are studying to become teachers. The rest of us have been assigned to work as literary specialists at Primary schools (like elementary). That’s me! :D

The first week I was teaching in a P2 class (like 2^nd grade) and the second week I was teaching P6 (6^th grade). The P2s were super cute and tiny and lots of fun! They had a lot of energy though. The P6s were really fun too though. And pretty well behaved!

My first lesson I taught didn’t go too well. You could really tell I had no idea what I was doing. But as the week progressed and I got feedback from other trainees as well as trainers, I improved quite a bit! So much that the trainers honored me with the title of “Trainee of the Day”! I got to wear a crown and everything ;)

We left for school at 7:30 every morning and were done at 1:00pm when we came back for lunch. Then we had a session going over some more Peace Corps information (medical, home stay stuff, etc). Then we had the rest of the day to ourselves. There was usually a game of sorts being played (ultimate, volleyball), people on the computer or lesson planning, or just hanging out. We played guitar, did some swing dancing, or just laid on the ground and had Ugandans look at us funny :) I had lots of fun talking and joking with friends during these times.

At the schools, we had a system put into place to reward students who were showing good qualities. The last day (Friday the 13^th), we had a big celebration where the kids got to play games and listen to the students from the PTC read books to them. Last night, we trainees had a C.H.A.K.P.E. celebration complete with white elephant gifts and performances done by none other than us. I got a bundle of Smarties out of it! ;D

This morning was the first day of language training. Since I'll be living in the southwest region, I'll be learning to speak Runyankore! New language tutors showed up and our trainers who have been with us from the beginning said goodbye. It was very sad :( We will stay here until Tuesday. Then we will go visit our site we will be living at after swear in at the end of January and hang out there for a few days. Then we go to home stay where we will each live with a Uganda family while doing language training. I’m excited to see my place!

Teaching was fun, but a lot of work! Props to every teacher ever! I’m very thankful for you!

Playing Hangman with the P6 class
on the last day

Oh, I almost forgot! We went to the zoo in Entebbe last Saturday! That was a lot of fun. Saw cool animals and ate some good food! :D

Also also, there's a very bright lunar halo around the moon right now! Just got done laying in the road looking at it. So pretty here all the time <3

Training

Hello and greetings from Uganda!! :D

I have SO much to say I don't even know where to begin! First I suppose I would like to say that I am missing you all tons and I apologize for my lack of communication. The power/internet is very spacey here and I just haven't had the opportunity to get on it very much. It's not that I don't want to talk to you, because I really would love to!

TRAINING
Ok so let's see here. Three weeks ago we left the states, had a layover in Brussels and arrived in Uganda late Wednesday (Nov 13th) night. The place we were staying at was kind of like a summer camp feeling. We went to sessions every day to learn about what life would be like for us for the next 27 months and training for our job assignments. The staff as well as other current PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers) were there to teach us everything. They have been absolutely great and super super helpful with everything! We left that place that we were at two days ago and are now in a new location at a PTC (Primary Teacher's College) for Teacher Bootcamp (practice teaching). We will be here for two weeks and then go to our home stay until swearing in at the end of January.

SITE/JOB
We got our site placements! This is where we will be working and living for the next two years after training is done at the end of January. I will be working at a Primary School as a Literacy Specialist in the Ibanda district which is right on the equator! I am super excited! I will be working with younger children to improve their reading abilities :D The area I will be in is also cooler and more mountainous than the rest of the country and has a lot of parks nearby!

LIVING CONDITIONS
So far they haven't been that bad. The first place we were at had running water, electricity about half the time, and we were kind of secluded from everyone else so we didn't get stared at very much because the people working there are used to seeing Mzungus (foreigners/white people). But here at this new place, the water runs out. They fetch water and bring it in Jerry cans. We use it to take bucket baths. They have Turkish toilets, but if there's no water then that means pit latrine time! We do our wash (laundry) by hand in buckets and then hang them on the line to dry as well. I'm not able to blow dry to straighten my hair which is something that I will really have to get used to. Embrace the waves! :O 

WEATHER
The days do get very hot. The sun is directly over head and very very hot coming down on you. I put on sunscreen, but I still burn :P The evenings and nights get cool though and they are very nice feeling... until the mosquitoes and other bugs come out that want to kill you. The sun rises around 6:30am and it sets around 6:30pm. It definitely does NOT feel like it's December! I'm sweating all the time ;P

FOOD
Everyone complains about it and I guess it's understandable. We have rice, noodles, matooke (plantains), beans, a fruit/veggie, and a meat type thing every meal. But I like it. For now :P hahhahaa! Oh, and hard boiled eggs for breakfast with bread ;)

PEOPLE
Super friendly! Super dark. I DEFINITELY stick out haha! They have a much simpler life than we do back in the states. They are very hard working and appreciative of things. The kids have fun so easily! We haven't gotten to be *really* out there yet, but I have made some friends with a few of them. 

TRANSPORTATION
The roads here are TERRIBLE. The country is only the size of Oregon, but it takes FOREVER to travel the shortest distance. There are no highways. Lots of dirt, bumpy roads. With buses and cars and motorcycles weaving in and out all over the road. It's very dangerous. You need two days to get from one end of the country to the other. Insane.

EDUCATION SYSTEM
Very bad. Disorganized and so far behind. So many people are illiterate here and the subject material they learn is not taught very well or on time. Students often  miss class and are passed even though they fail their exams. I taught my first lesson to a Primary 2 class (like 2nd grade) and it could've gone better. Could've gone worse too I suppose. Their English was very impressive for how young they were.

SICKNESS
I somehow have no been sick yet, but it seems like everyone else has. You really have to be cautious here. Everything can make you sick it seems. We have had lots of medical sessions to tell us all of this :P We have medical kits provided to us and have been getting all of our shots up to date. We also have to take our malaria pills! I hope my lucky-ness stays and I don't get sick for a long time. We'll see about that :P

OTHER VOLUNTEERS
Oh Em Gee I love these guys! There are about 45 of us in my group and then the other PCVs who are here to help train us and they are all so great! I feel like I've known them for a long time! I have lots of laughs with them and we have a lot of really fun times together :) I'm lucky to have such a wonderful group of people. They are making this transition very easy! It's going to be VERY sad when we have to split up to go to our own sites :/ 

There is SOOOOO much more I would like to say! But the electric just went out and my laptop battery doesn't last very long. Also it's dinner time ;) I wish I could upload pix, but that would take FOREVER so sorry 'bout that. Maybe one day :)

I LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL SOOOOOO MUCH! Thank you so very very much for being so supportive!!! Wouldn't be here without you :) 

<3

Staging Fun

I arrived in Philadelphia on Sunday evening. There was another Peace Corps Volunteer (PCV) on the plane with me so we took the shuttle to the hotel together. Monday consisted of all the volunteers meeting and having an orientation type thing. And now the day has finally come.. for me to get on that plane! :D We'll arrive in Uganda on Wednesday! AAHHHH!!!!

The orientation was pretty awesome. I met quite a few of the other volunteers and they all seem like a great bunch of people! There's about 45 of us and we're a pretty diverse group, but I think we're all going to get along just fine :) We got final things taken care of (papers sent off for student loans, etc) and talked a lot about what we will be going through. I'm still nervous (well obviously) but meeting everyone has calmed my nerves a bit. It has made it that much more real that this is actually happening! :D Afterwards, a bunch of us went out for dinner. We split so there wouldn't be too many of us and my group went to an Irish Pub. My last meal was a cheese steak (cuz I'm in Philly and just had to). Then some of us walked to where the Liberty Bell is and sang patriotic songs on the way back. 'Murica! This morning I took my last hot shower and will go eat a nice huge breakfast that the hotel provides and then we will all get on the bus to go to the airport. Then we're off! :D

"Oh say can you see..."

My new get up.
I miss you already, jeans!

This past month has been very draining on me from having to say goodbye so many times to so many wonderful people. I am truly blessed with the best friends and family anyone could ever ask for! I don't know what I did to deserve the amount of love and support I get from them, but I am very, VERY thankful for it! It was so sad to leave everyone, but two years isn't really *that* long compared to the rest of life. It's going to fly by I'm sure!
Anyway, goodbyes suck and I'm super over them and ready to shift into saying "Hello!" instead :) 

<3

Thoughts

Everyone keeps asking me how I'm feeling about leaving so soon, so I thought I would make a post of it:

I move to a a whole new world (<-great song by the way) in two weeks where I'll spend the next two years of my life. I have no idea what to expect and in all honesty, I'm terrified. 

I find myself sitting here in Helsinki airport in the same spot I sat in 5 weeks ago when I first began my daunting Eurotrip expedition  When I think back to all I've seen and done in such a short time, I'm in awe and don't believe it to be true. Then I think back to the first time I sat here last fall during my exchange period in Oulu and how much has happened since then. My thoughts keep going further and further back...

...then they go forward.

Life is all about taking chances and doing things that scare you. How else are we supposed to get anything out of it? By putting myself out there I have learned so much. Not only about the world around me, but about myself too. Before Oulu, I didn't know if I had what it took to live in another country. Before this trip, I didn't know if I could manage to travel throughout a continent. And now, I don't know if I can survive Uganda. But ya know what? With the help and support of my friends and family, I think I did pretty well at those first two things and look at all the wonderful things that came of it? Even things in life that don't go according to plan or are seen as 'negative' at the time can still be learned from and turned into a positive thing. 

I know that it won't be easy and it'll be unlike anything I know now, but I'm confident that my decision to go into the Peace Corps was the right one and that I will come out of it thinking the same way :)

Living in Africa has always been a dream of mine and I am very excited to have it being made into a reality so soon. I'm very interested to see what kind of experiences I will have and what lessons I'll have learned by the end of my service. They're going to be irreplaceable :)

Thanks for reading my ramblings. I mean it when I say I can only do these kinds of crazy things with your support. I really appreciate it <3