Meet my family!

A little over a week ago we started our first homestay for the program, so I have been staying with a Ugandan family in Mukono and will be there until this Friday. I am sorry to say that going into this I was somewhat apprehensive - especially because I was just starting to like living in the dorm and I felt like I was connecting with people here and I was sad to have to "leave" in a way. I wasn't sure what my family would be like and I didn't really know what to expect...

I got dropped off at my home on Sunday - and honestly that wasn't even necessary because it turned out that my home is right outside the university gate! I'm actually the closest home to campus. After taking a general look around I could see why the director of my program had said it was "probably the most rustic placement they had." I don't want to give you the impression that my family is "poor" because I feel like that in a way is me trying to get you to feel pity for them and that is not what I want. Our house does not have electricity or running water. We use a pit latrine outside, but it is hard to get to because it is muddy to walk there and it is not very close to the house. There are three small rooms in the house - one is a sitting room, one where my four siblings sleep and then a room that I share with my host mom. They cook outside over a fire and usually we eat on the floor or sitting on a bed in the second room.

Here's a rundown of my family:
This is my host sister Patience - the most brilliant girl I have ever met. She LOVES speaking English and speaks very very well for a ten year old who's primary language is Luganda and not English. She was so friendly immediately and just wanted to do everything with me and talk to me. She is almost always very happy - only a few times have I seen her get upset. I have had so many conversations with her that you would never be able to have with a normal ten year old...very insightful :)

Then comes Andrew. He is the youngest in the family at eight. He doesn't speak much English but his smile could light up a whole room. He absolutely adores playing futbol (soccer) and he plays all day every day. My favorite anecdote from Andrew: I made them french toast for dinner one night (one of the only things you could possibly make over a wood fire...) and he ate so much he looked ready to throw up. He just kept saying over and over in his broken English "the boy...is going...to burst..."
This is Vivian - yes she is EXTREMELY tall, even taller than this picture makes it seem. She is my host mom Vennah's younger sister (much younger...) and she is in high school. At first she is quiet and shy but opened up to me so much during the time that I was there. Up until a few days ago she had not been able to pay her school fees and so had stayed home from school reading many many novels which she absolutely loves.

Irene is the oldest sibling in the family, but I actually do not have any pictures of her...She is in her first year at Uganda Christian University where I am studying and she is a pretty fantastic girl. Even though she is only 18 I think that her maturity level is off the charts. She is very busy and usually would get home after I had already gone to bed, but then she would just come and plop down on my bed and start talking to me. Half of the time I don't really remember what about because I was half asleep...but I gained so many insights about African culture from talking to her...


Finally here is me and Mama Vennah. She is definitely the matriarch of the family...and works extremely hard. She has a full time job and is going to school to get her degree in Counseling (like me!) Unfortunately she wasn't able to be at home a lot of the time and she would get home late so we did not get a chance to talk a whole lot, but I enjoyed being a part of her family immensely.

Although being a part of a Ugandan family was an awesome experience, there are always cultural barriers to overcome. I have to say that even after being here for a month, I am still in culture shock in some ways. Ugandan culture is extremely hierarchical and it is hard to get used to being treated better simply by virtue of being white. On the flip side, because I am white I get the "mzungu price" at markets (meaning they overcharge because they think I have money) and I get more attention than I really desire from boda boda drivers (motorcycle taxis) and practically anyone that I meet...Thankfully my host family was very relaxed and helped me feel comfortable in their home right away. I am sad to leave them.



Aaaaaand of course anywhere I go there is also a following of children small and large who want to wave at me and touch my hand...the little girl in the pink shirt in the bottom left's name is Lillit and she follows me around sometimes. She has the cutest smile in the world...Here she is again :) Cutie...

Ok well that's all I have for now. I am leaving in two hours to spend the weekend in Jinja which is an hour or so away from Mukono...thanks for reading my blog!!