MariKelleysCows.org and India

Dear Everyone,                                                          

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with alot of family and friends!

Well I left for India on the 18th of November.  Got to Mumbia and they would not let me into the country.  I did not have a Visa and they were not let me buy one there.  I was told that you could buy one in country, just like Tanzania, Zanzibar, South Africa, and Uganda.  So I did not think that was unusual.  Thailand does not even require one!  Plus, when I check in at the airport they let me go right on though, so I really thought that you could buy one in India.  Boy, was I wrong!  After a 9 hour flight, they sent me back to Bangkok!  When you are deported they send you to the airport that you just left, plus you pay for your flight.  Not only that but you have to use the same airline because the other airlines will not take you....they do not know why you are being deported!  So that was an experience!

I arrived back in Bangkok and applied for an India Visa, and waited for 7days.  They said it would be 6 to 8 days.  Well, my reservation at the Retreat center in India said they were going to cancel my reservation on the 28th if I was not there.  So it looked like I was not going to be able to go on my long awaited retreat!  But while I was waiting in Bangkok, I did a 4 day, 3 night meditation retreat at the International Meditation Center (IMC).  It was really intense,  there was no talking, no phones, no computers, you wore all white all the time, you also did not eat anything after lunch and you were up at 5 am and in bed by 10 pm.  I realized that I needed more that just meditation.  Like other diversions, i.e. yoga, walks, lectures etc.  The IMC did not have any of that. But that was good to just focus on what you were there for!  Anyway,  I was not sure what I was going to do if my VISA did not come before the 28th.  I was thinking about other types of retreats are in Chiang Mai, which I checked out.  But lo in below!  I checked the web and my VISA was ready on the 27th, so I booked a flight out that night at 9 pm.  I flew all night and after 3 connections (Bangkok to Mumbai, Mumbai to Chennai, Chennai to Coimbatore) I got to India at 7:30 am and at the retreat center at 10 am on November 28th!  Just in time so my reservation was not cancelled!

The Ayurveda Yoga Retreat Center is more like a glorifed hospital with your own accommodations.  After your consultation with the Ayurveda MD, he puts you on a program for you, you get on this program with herbs, diet, herbal meds, oils etc.  So I started soon after I saw him on the 28th.  I had a oil massage, pounding with herbs, meditation, dinner and then went to bed.  The program is about like this; Starts at 6:30 am with Yoga, nature walk, breakfast, massage, lunch, power yoga, massage, meditation, dinner, bed.  You have free time when your masage is not scheduled and they have outings for you if you want to go.  Some of the activities include market, temple, cooking Ayurveda classes, Spiritual classes, etc.  But the diet is not so bad and it is not spicy!  However, the meds I am on taste terrible!  Anyway,  I am so glad that I am finally here.  So I should be really balanced, aligned and ready to get back into the swing of things when I get back to the states.

Also, while I was in Thailand I realized that I had Jiggers (also known as Chiggers) in my foot.  They are not the same as Chiggers in the states, plus I got one in my foot when I first got to Uganda.  So I knew what they were (it is a parasite in your foot that when it grows looks like a worm).  I must have picked them up before I left Uganda and now they are just larger, so my foot is swollen and itching.  I got some of them out while I was in Thailand, but still have not gotten them all.  The Ayurveda MD said that they handle the treatment differently and when he described it, I agree with him that I do not want him to do anything.  I will try to work on it myself, but if not when I get back to the states, they may need to be cut out.

Enough about that, I really need your help.....I hope that you have seen the facebook page for MariKelleyCows.org.  Cheryl Birch, my friend has put up the facebook page and arranged a video to help me raise money for cow’s for Iceme Farmers in Northern Uganda.  I was working on this project for a year with the farmers and Heifer organization.  However, Heifer will now only work with you if you if you have a large project and I am looking to only buy 10 to 20 cows.  Cheryl worked with LA International Association of Near Death Studies to sponsor the project for us and set it up with razoo.com.  The razoo.com site is a guaranteed secure and is fully PCI compliant. But if you don’t want to go online to give, you can always write a check to LA IANDS and mail it to Cheryl Birch at Cheryl Birch, USC/ICT, 12015 Waterfront Drive, Playa Vista, CA 90094.

Please pass on the facebook page to everyone that you know.  If you can not donate, then maybe someone that you know will be able to!  We will take any amount $1 to $1500 or more.  I am trying to raise enough money to buy 10 to 20 cows!

We less than one month before Christmas and I would love to inform the Farmers that a certain amount of cows will be purchased.  It will provide for them nutrition, income generating activities, jobs that HIV/AIDS people can handle, and milk....plus, they pass the offspring to another family.  So the your gift continues to grow to other families and live on and on!   So please, let it be a great Christmas gift to the farmers in Iceme this year.

I would like to Thank you in advance for all the support you have given to me.  What is more happier than a Giving Thanksgiving and Christmas!  Remember http://marikelleyscows.org/

I will keep you posted on my happenings! 

Until then, stay safe!

Love & Light, 

Mari

Close of Service

Dear Everyone,

I can not believe how time has flown by, it has been 3 months since I posted!   I can not believe that I have been out of the US for 27 months!  I hope everyone had a great summer now that fall in upon us!

Since I wrote last, Peace Camp had just ended and I was finalizing all the book work.  It really was a big success and I was able to see the impact on some of the youth when they returned to their village.  In Iceme, Oyam District we have combined everyone from the Peace Camp 2011 & Peace Camp; 2012, Camp BUILD National and Regional, Camp GLOW National and Regional and formed a club.  They all got together and built some of the Recreation Project games, they built the walking slats, the spider and the 5 person team walking wood.  It took them 2 days initially and then another 2 days when the walking slats broke.  You can see a picture of it on this blog, but also on facebook.  You see how they had to balance themselves, like balancing in life (when you fall, you get up and keep going).  They had a great time and felt like they really accomplished something.  

I had to write a book for the County Director on Peace Camp 2012.  So that kept me busy and I did not really complete it until my COS date.  I finished it when I went to Kampala...but now it is done.   The money finally came right after camp ended, so we were able to pay everyone back...that was good.  But they really need to change that policy about opening a joint bank account with your partners.

Early September we had All Volunteer Conference.  This conference is put on by the PCV’s and sponsored by PC Uganda.  Well, normally it is a great conference where PCV’s share projects and ideas and really get motivated to go back into their communities and work and maybe implement some of the projects!  However, this year it really was not very good and the PCV’s were not showing up for the workshops...it was a waste of time and effort and the tax payers money.  I was really disappointed at the young PCV’s, they really did not make good use of their time.  Plus, it was a 8 hour bus ride for me to get to Masaka. 

Also in September when I got back from Masaka, I had a workshop for Iceme Community on how to cook and the importance of the Moringa Tree.   Moringa Trees grow in Subtropical areas and they are all over Uganda.  Moringa leaves prevent 300 diseases.  It’s like growing a multivitamin at your doorstep.  They are able to eat every bit of the tree; the leaves, pods, flowers, and bark.  The Moringa tree can prevent malnutrition and it builds up the immune system.  It is really too bad that we do not have them in the US.  I have told the Ugandan’s that they are so lucky, that we have to buy a Moringa supplement in a Vitamin shop in the States.  So hopefully they will start using it because they really need to boost up there immune system.

I then traveled to Gulu.  The new US Ambassador for Uganda went to the North to meet people that work up there for the Embassy and he wanted to meet the Peace Corps Volunteers in the North.  I really liked him, I think he will be good for Uganda. He stated that if Uganda does not get the population under control it will be the death of the county.  He said that right now Uganda’s population is 36 million and at the rate of births in the county, by 2019 there will be 92 million.  I think that if this happens the people will starve and will not get healthcare.   The next day, I was able to get a ride in an Embassy car to go to Kampala for my COS medical....Boy was that a treat!  NO BUS!

When I got back to Iceme, the camp groups built the mini recreation project.  It was alot of fun, but I was very tired.  Tien and Jackie, both PCV’s were also there to help the youth.  Tien traveled from Kampala with me and stayed at Iceme about 4 nights to help me buy the supplies in Lira and get them back to Iceme.  Getting the supplies was alot of work and an all day affair.  But we got what we needed and got the job finished.  The youth were so happy.

I then got together with the Head Master at the Iceme Primary School and the Awio Primary School to set up Outreach Healthcare lectures for the youth on HIV/AIDS, STD’s and Behavior Change.  Boy, there were over 800 children in each school, this was only in Primary 4, 5, 6 and 7 that I taught.  It was also interesting to see the difference in disciple and language in the schools.  One school the youth were more educated with English and spoke English and were very disciplined.  The other school spoke the native language and did not understand English too well and they were unruly.  They were both government schools.   But, all the youth loved hearing the information.  Not surprising, some of them it was the first time that they ever saw a condom and did not know about masturbation.  The ABC’s that they learned and went so well in the late 80’s and early 90’s at decreasing the rate of HIV has lost their gain.  The condoms are not distributed to the districts, so the youth can not get them, they are just not readily available.  Yes, if you go 48 kms to Lira or Gulu you can get them for a price at the Pharmacy.  So the condoms are too much trouble to get and it is expensive to get them.  It really is sad.  Also, they tell them to Abstain as the “A” but do not tell them an alternative i.e. masturbating.  So the youth really were happy for the information as well as debunking some of the myths that they had been told.  I really enjoyed teaching them!  They get so excited and are so happy to get the information, it really makes you feel good.

I then went to Gulu to meet one of the Peace Camp participants that wanted me to read his war story and put it into english format.  You see they talk very different when speaking english.  They never have learned proper english.  So that still is an ongoing project of mine.

I tried to get ahold of the Heifer Organization to see what was going on with the Heifer Project to bring more livestock into Iceme.  I did not get anything accomplished with them, but the Veterinarian in Iceme Subcounty is willing to work with the community and buy the pregnant cows, as well as teach the community how to care for them.  So when I got back to the US, a close friend of mine, Cheryl is setting up a webb page to raise funds for the project.  She arranged for a friend of hers to video me to put on the webb page.  I really felt that I did not do a good job (I think I was still jet lagged and really could not concentrate), but hopefully it can be edited so it is okay.   So I might have to go back to Iceme and check on the progress of the project in a year or two if we get funding!  I will let you know the webb page she sets up!

My PC Country Director traveled up North to visit some of the volunteers and see their sites.  If she had come 1 week later, she would have seen my site a wreck.  I would have been packing to leave.  She was able to visit me and do an exit interview and meet my supervisor.  After that visit, I only had about 4 days to finish up, pack and say my goodbyes to the community.  I left my community of Iceme on October 17th and went to Kampala to finish my close of service.   It was sad, but happy and I was excited to make it back to the States.  But, I feel that I am not finished with International Development!  I know that I will be traveling again.

I had planned to go to Egypt on the 22nd, however due to the bombings and the death of the US Ambassador in Lybia PCV’s were not allowed to go to Egypt.  But, since I was not a PCV any more, I was a RPCV so I could go on my own if I wanted.  I elected to go to LA to see how Angel was doing for about 6 days and then pick my trip back up in Thailand.  I had a great time with Angel and Nathan in LA and it was so good to see Angel again.  I can not wait to see the rest of my family in Virginia in December.

So then I left the US on the 30th of October and landed in Bangkok, Thailand on November 1st.  You can see some of the pictures of Bangkok on facebook.  While in Bangkok I got to see Lisa Moses Art Exhibit.  Then I went flew to Chiang Rai on the 6th to stay with Lisa and Danny.  There home is beautiful and we did alot of tourist things.  It was alot of fun. we went to the White Temple, the Black Temple the Hill Tribe Village and many other excursions!    While in Thailand I wanted to experience a mindfulness meditation, so I spent 3 nights at one of the local meditation centers.  It was very interesting, but I think that I like the meditation I am use to better.  But I met alot of great people here at the Foundation.  We had people from all over the world, Germany, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Belguim, US and France.  I am sure that there are more, but this is all I can remember right now.  They have alot of volunteers here, I met one couple that had just finished there PC service from Ethiopia and they were staying here as a 2 week volunteer.  Also, I found out about alot of other places in the world that you can volunteer.  They give food and accommodations, but most of them you have to get there and pay for anything else.  I really enjoyed the different cultures of everyone.

I will go back to Danny and Lisa’s home for tonight and leave for India in the morning.  I plan to do a 26 day yoga/meditation retreat, it is a cleansing/relaxing time for me before I get back to the states.

So that brings you up to date.  I am not sure if I will have internet in India, but if so I will try to update you before I leave for the states in December.

Have a Great Happy Thanksgiving if I don’t blog you before then!  We have so much to be Thankful for!

Stay safe and Happy!

Love &  Light,
Mari 

Outreach, Vacation and Peace Camp

Dear Everyone,

Hope all the Father’s had a great Father’s Day!  Mother’s you too!  I did!  Shelley, Linda and I went to the Nile Porch for Mother’s day and spend 4 nights.  It was beautiful and relaxing.  Hope you saw the pictures on facebook!  

Well, only 2 1/2 months left in Uganda before my close of service (COS).  I will be glad to get home and see everyone.  I feel like I have missed so much with Ryan’s, and Catie’s wedding, Austin’s graduation and all the holidays, birthdays and events.  So it will be good to get back into the swing of things in the US.  My COS date is still October 19th.  I will leave Uganda and go to Egypt, then to Thailand, and finish in India with a 24 day meditation retreat before returning to the US.  I will fly back to VA before getting back home to CA.  Future plans are to look into applying for a Respond Peace Corps position that is only 6 to 1 year commitment.  Or work with Healing Touch International teaching HTI courses overseas.   I really enjoy International Development!

After Mother’s Day weekend in Jinja I traveled to Kampala for TOT.  Then off to Gulu (6 hour trip on public bus) for the Peace Camp meeting before returning to Iceme (only 52 kms, but takes 2 hours on public transport).  I actually traveled to Gulu twice in May for the Peace Camp meetings.  The Rainbow Peace Ambassador’s did another drama for the community in May.  

We had alittle excitement in Iceme with one of the community males who came off his mental health medications.  He was disturbing the health center patients, hanging out at the H/C and knocking on my door at 12:30 at night...wanting sex!   Boy, he must need glasses...to not notice that I am old ):.  Anyway, the Peace Corps Security had to intervene with the local Police.  Hopefully, he got the help he needed.

In June, I traveled alot, but I was able to make outreach visits to end stage AIDS patients.  We really are so blessed in the US with Hospice, these people die with such extreme discomfort.  It really breaks my heart, you just do what you can.  

I visited a HIV Support group to do a presentation and will go back next month to teach them how to cook Moringa seeds and leaves.  It grows all over in Uganda and it is so nutritious and builds the immune system and they have it Free!  I also did an outreach for Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA).

On June 23rd I flew out of Entebbe airport to Cape Town, South Africa for vacation.  I had a fantastic time!  One day though, PC sent me to Pretoria, SA (2 hour flight from CT) to see a plastic surgeon.  I had a basal cell carcinoma behind my ear.  It was great, I flew up that morning, had it removed and flew back that night!   The plane going back to CT from Pretoria had us all board and then said that a passenger had put his luggage on, but did not get on the plane.  So we all had to get off the plane and identify our luggage!  They said it was a security risk and that never happened before.  So they found the luggage and we were off.   I got back to CT around 1 am.  But that did not stop me!  I was lucky because I went during there off season (rainy) so it was real cheap!  I really got some great deals!  They said that the worst time to go is Oct to Dec.  Prices are real high, it is there prime time and hot.  The accommodations that I got would have been 4 x’s what I paid for them and you would not get to do a whole lot because the lines would be long.  They also said that the real best time to go is February because it is not rainy and it is after prime season, warm and still really nice...no lines and kids are back in school.  I was able to go to City Central, the Winery’s (great wine by the way), Robben’s Island, drove down the Chapman’s parkway along the west coast (just gorgeous), horseback riding on the white sandy deserted beaches, then drove down to the east coast and saw the African Penquins, went down to Cape of Good Hope and the Cape Point, Camp’s Bay, Hout’s Marina, the famous gardens, Table Mountain and I got to Abesail 112 meters down the 3rd wonder of the world...Table Mountain!  So all in all I did alot!  I also looked into volunteer work in CT at an orphanage, which I may come back some day and volunteer at.   One thing that everyone will get a good laugh at was that I went to the Nelson Mandela Hotel and got an exclusive massage.  Well, part of the massage is that they do a Body Stat on your skin with a machine.  Now, with my age, weight and height I am 6.1% TOO FAT!  I lost alot of weight here in Uganda, approximately 19 lbs..which I was happy about!  So I was 57 Kgs and normal weight for me to them was between 50-55 kgs, so I was already 2 kgs over (5 lbs over, but really should be 15 lbs less).  So my body fat should be 22-30% and I am 36%...over from 14 to 6%!  So I guess I have alot of work to do...but the worst part was that I gained all my weight back that I had lost in Uganda in SA!!!!  How about that!  Now more weight to lose :).  Anyway, CT was great and I will be back, hopefully with family that can come in the future!

Once I got back to Uganda I went directly to Pre Service Training (PST) and did two inservices to the the new group that is coming in.  My presentations were on HIV/AIDS Community Outreach and Behavior Prevention Support (Village Health Teams).  Washington has now standardized all the presentation for pre service training for new volunteers coming into country.  So we must follow there competencies that have been distributed.  So it was not too bad!  

I then left and went to Close of Service (COS) training in Munyonyo.  It was held at the 5 star Speke Resort Hotel and Conference Center for Uganda July 10th to the 13th.  COS is designed to assist us in reflecting on our service-to-date, to look toward the final few months of our service, what we still want to accomplish as well as help us plan for the future after Peace Corps.  I got my COS date....OCTOBER 19th I will be officially no longer a Peace Corps Volunteer!

I then traveled back to Gulu for a Peace Camp meeting.  I am Director of the Peace Camp Greater North 2012!  So I have been planning this now for about 4 months and the time is getting closer.  I have to stay in Gulu for about 2 to 4 nights to get things done, everytime I come in for a meeting.  It is so different from the States here in Uganda when you are putting on an event.  It takes so much more time, energy and money to get things accomplished.  For example: to arrange for a meeting people have to travel up to 100 kms on public transport.  Everytime you call someone to arrange something...it cost you airtime, so you have to talk fast and repeat yourself many times.  Just to get applications in (no internet or computer access for the majority of people) you need to go into the villages and have them fill in the application with you.  You need to go first about 48 kms in order to print out the applications just so you have them, which takes almost a day on public transport.  So things are not easily done here.  You need to constantly call the Ugandan staff to make sure they are coming and have completed everything that they are suppose to do.  It really is a monumental effort!  

I then traveled back to Iceme for 2 weeks before going back to Gulu for another Peace Camp meeting.  In Iceme, I was able to do some Outreach and work with the youth groups.

I was happy to find out that I won 3rd place in the Alicia Keys Peace Corps AIDS-Free Generation Photo Contest.   Alicia Keys chose the photo entitled “Outreach HIV Testing” as the third place winner of Category Two: Treatment, Care, and Support.   They announced the winners of the Peace Corps AIDS-Free Generation Photo Contest on Thursday, July 19!   Singer/songwriter Alicia Keys, co-founder and global ambassador of Keep a Child Alive, selected the winning photos and she broke the news via Twitter.   Photo’s were chosen due to there creativity, photographic quality, and effectiveness in representing Peace Corps work in the field of HIV/AIDS, concentrating in treatment, care, and support.  They also  announced to your local media. The winning photos were on display at the Convention Center in Washington, D.C. during the 2012 International AIDS Conference, July 22-27, and exhibited across the street at the Carnegie Library from July 23-26.   Shawn and Kenny went to the conference and were able to see the display and took pictures.  They had blown the photo up to half the size of Kenny!  All in all I was pretty happy about that.

I am sure you heard about our Ebola outbreak here in Uganda.  It was mainly in the West and in Central Uganda.  On August 13, 2012 it was reported to us that there have been six (6) confirmed SEBOV cases (3 of which have died), 4 convalescent cases, 16 total deaths (3 confirmed SEBOV), 1 patient currently in the convalescent ward and 7 in the isolation facility at Kagadi Hospital (2 of which are confirmed SEBOV), 408 (165 under follow up and 243 that have completed the 21 day follow up) cases from Kibaale District that are currently healthy, but potentially had contact with an infected case, are being monitored, and 13 cases from Kampala’s Mulago Hospital that are currently healthy but had contact with a probable case, are under home quarantine and are being monitored.  They were telling people not to shake hands and get in close contact with body fluids!  Well that is close to impossible here in Uganda, because in public transport you are just about on top of each other...so alot of sweaty people are brushing up aside of you!  

In August, I traveled back up to Gulu for another Peace Camp meeting.  The first week of August was very stressful, I did not know if I was going to have to cancel the Peace Camp or not, because a new Policy was implemented at PC Uganda after my VAST grant was approved.  It was that PCV’s would need to open a join account with there partners for any grants.  Well, opening an account is a very difficult job here in Uganda.  It is not like going to the bank in America and opening an account!  Well, anyway the bank account, we thought was opened...however the account was placed on hold because they wanted an Introduction Letter.  The Introduction letter has to come from the partners and they submitted a letter 4 times and it was never satisfactory to the bank.  So the bank placed the account on hold and never told us.  When the money came in from the US, the Ugandan bank sent it back to the US!  So hence, no money for camp!  In order to send it back to Uganda the money would not arrive until after the Peace Camp.  So we got a small advance from Peace Corps and other PCV’s and myself put there money together in order to start the camp.   Also, some of the vendors told me I could pay them later when the money arrived, which was great!

Still stressed and worried that we would not have enough money, I started preparing to receive all the PCV’s and Ugandan Counselors for orientation of the Peace Camp on August 10th.  The campers were scheduled to arrive on August 12th!     So we were preparing Ocer Champion Jesuit College for the youth.  

Peace Camp is about the residents in the northern and northeastern regions of Uganda that were unwilling victims of a 20+ year conflict. The proposed Peace Camp was an attempt to address some of the issues facing mid-to late adolescent young people who reside in areas impacted by the trauma and violence of this war.  Peace Camp provided them an opportunity for Ugandan youth affected by the conflict with the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) to begin developing the peace-building skills necessary to establish and maintain violence-free homes and communities. The vision of Peace Camp Uganda was to engender in the participants respect, compassion, the ability and willingness to listen, openness to learning, and the skills needed to resolve differences through peaceful means.  As well as to develop the basic peace-building skills necessary to establish and maintain violence-free homes and communities. We strived to push participants out of their comfort zones, help them reflect on their experiences, and to find ways to use their unique perspectives to bring about peace building in their country, their communities, their schools, their families and their hearts.   Peace Camp brought together 80 youths from four tribes—Eteso, Acholi, Lango and Alur—in the Greater North between the ages of 17 and 25 for a 6-day residential experience in Gulu District at Ocer Champion College, August 12 - 18, 2012.  The four tribes were evenly distributed.  The Peace Camp focused on moving forward and building on the strength of all those who have survived the tragedies of the past.  The program was very interactive in order to channel the energy of this age group.   An important aspect of the Camp was the daily Reflection/Counselor groups and the Forgiveness and reconciliation ceremony.  All in all it was a very successful camp!  

I started writing this blog August 1st, now it is the 19th, after camp.   So I am so proud of all my CoDirectors, Staff and Counselors!  The Peace Camp 2012 was a hugh success!

So now I will finalize reports and get back to Iceme for outreach.  It has been a great and challenging three months!  I am so looking forward to travel after COS and getting home in December!  

I will try to get a blog out close to my COS, but in the meantime.....Stay safe and Happy!

Love & Light,
Mari 

Happy Mother's and Father's Day!!!

Dear Everyone,

I want to wish all the Mother’s out there a wonderful Mother’s Day!  I really hope your Easter was great.  Also,  I know that Father’s Day will be in June and I am not sure that I will get another blog out before then...So Happy Father’s Day to all the Dad’s out there early!

I can not believe that I only have 6 months left, they will fly by!  Before you know it, I will be going to COS (Close of Service) Conference, which is in July.  My COS date is October 19th.  I am planning to travel after COS to Thailand, and India.  I also plan to travel to Egypt if I don‘t get there before my 90 days prior to COS.  We are not allowed to go out of country 90 days before COS.

I really will miss the work I am doing here because it is so diverse.  But it will be good to get back to the US.  Many PCV’s have gone home once or twice...but I have remained in country and it really feels like a long time.

I am also going to miss the phases that the Ugandan’s said, like “it is over,” “somehow,” “you are lost,” “it is raining, too much,” "you first come," "extend."   “How is home.” "Greet everyone for me," "Send my greetings," Every conversation starts with Thank you, how was the night or day depending. On the other hand, I will not miss "You give me money." "I am suffering, you give me money."  "Life is hard, You just help me, you just help me with money."  "Now, Now!"  I will not miss the way they are not polite.  I don't think that they were ever taught, Please, patience or "God Bless you" when you sneeze.

Anyway, I had a great February,  I went to Zanzibar for 7 days and just really Loved the beach.  I don’t know wheather you have been following my facebook pictures or not, but I tried to put the pictures up there.  The white sand and turquoise water of the Indian Ocean are fabulous.  Everyday I went walking on the beach and found many beautiful shells that you don’t usually get in the US.  We got fresh seafood daily.  Saw one of the fisherman with a large red snapper, half my size!  Saw them bring in calamari and octopus to cook fresh.  The environment is so peaceful, I really would like to go back there and live for 4 to 6 months sometime.  It is still a 3rd world country, so you don’t have alot to do.  But I was able to go scuba diving and snorkeling.  The fishing boat that we went snorkeling on had a sail made out of rice sacks that were sown together!  The boat itself is made out of trees.  It was really great to see how inventive they are.  

Out in the Ocean they had seaweed farms that were being harvested, they sell the seaweed to China and Japan for food, creams and soaps.  I really did not want to leave.  When Angel left in January it was hard to get back to work, so I was ready to go to Zanzibar the end of February!  

January I spent alot of time getting everything hooked up for the network and the 3 laptop computers up and running for Iceme Health Center.  Now we have internet access on 3 laptop computers and they can print from anyone of the H/C buildings.  It is really something, the staff was so happy.  They were saying that now they are in the 21st century.  Most of the staff has never used a computer.  The Health Center did not have any, so I spent alot of time the last few months teaching the Iceme Health Center staff basic computer skills.   However, I am in Uganda, so you have to remember that staff only come for their lessons 1/2 of the time, or they come 1 hour late!  I will be teaching computer skills until I leave!

My Peace Camp group in Iceme, “The Rainbow Peace Ambassadors,” I am so proud of the work they are doing.  In the community they have done alot a drama’s on domestic violence, conflict resolution, alcohol and drugs.  They have slashed the grass at the Health Center as community work.  Now they want to start doing their drama to earn money and go to other parishes and do the dramas.  The teens are really alot of fun and have so much energy.  When they do a drama, they put together the entire play from nothing.  They ab lib and do all the scene’s.  It is really remarkable to see the talent and passion that they have and the plays are really good!

February, I started planning Peace Camp 2012.  I wanted to increase the age groups because the adolescents that were abducted in the LRA war are now in the early 20‘s.  So the age group I am targeting is going to be 17-25 years old.  Both male and female of 4 tribes: Lango, Acholi, Teso, and Alur.  So I also started writing my grant.  We are going to partner with Comboni Good Samaritan Organization this year.  However, $10,000 will come from the Peace Corps.  I was not sure if I wanted to do Peace Camp this year since I was COSing in October...but decided to go ahead with it.  It will be held August 12-18, 2012.

Unfortunately, I got food poisoning twice since January.  Once on February 14th (my fault) and once in April.  No fun, especially when you are using a latrine!

I am still doing Lifeskills at the Secondary School and this semester was really fun with the girls. 

On March 8th, Women’s Day, all the men on staff at the Health Center made all of the women dinner.  It was suppose to be ready at 2, but it was 5:30 pm when we ate.  However, I was really impressed!  They killed the chicken, cooked it, rice (which the stones had to be picked out of the rice) and other stuff in 3 different kitchens.  Now kitchens here are different than your kitchens in the states.  Here you have to build the fire, cut the wood, do everything from start to finish!  It took them all day to cook everything for us.  And of course in Uganda, everything has an agenda for the program.  I was asked to talk about Women’s Day about 1 hour before I was to speak.  But it was really alot of fun.  After we ate they put on  a CD of religious music and everyone watched the TV.  The only TV at the health center.  

I am also working with the Heifer Organization and a Veterinary MD to get more cattle up here in the North.  But before you get accepted with the Heifer Organization and fund raise in the states, you have to have a committee that has met, minutes, a constitution and everything has to be stamped by the District.  We have written a concept paper, proposal and submitted a budget...so now I think everything is done so we are just waiting for the okay to start raising funds.  My friend Cheryl in the US is going to help with the fundraising.  So I hope that I can see the first of “pass on the gift” before I leave.  It really will benefit the villages and the community at large if the project takes off.  It has been done already here in Uganda with much success.  It is a gender balanced, project with HIV patient’s, Orphans and widows, as well as other poor community members.  I really like the Veterinarian I am working with, he is sharp and active.  Once the farmer gets the cattle, they are already 4 months pregnant, then when the calf is born after they can leave the mother, the calf is given to another community farmer and then the gift is passed on!  A great Concept!

In March I went into the Kampala slums and taught Lifeskills with another PCV.  It was challenging and the kids (8-11 years old) were really interested.  We talked about Decision Making.  It  was hard to see how and in what conditions these people live.  The paper the other day said that 39 people in the slums died from contaminated water after the rains in Kampala.  They get their water from the ditch, that is also contaminated.  It is sad to see.  I had to wondered if any of the kids I was with were part of the 39.  I felt like I really did not do anything, when you look at the big picture.

Here in Uganda the Ministry of Health has as a guideline to prevent spreading of HIV, Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision VMMC.  The reason is because it decreases the risk of HIV infection 60%.  So I am working with the district to come do an Outreach here at Iceme.  It was scheduled for April 18 & 19, however it rained those days.  No one travels on rainy days because the roads are so bad.  So I am hoping to reschedule that sometime in June.  

The end of April I was staff for Northern Camp Build.  It was a leadership camp for the boys in the North that were 15-18 years old.  It was also a week long.  At camp I met one of the boys, Simon Peter, that had been abducted by the LRA and was with them for 2 years.  He said that he wanted to write a book about his experiences and he had already started.  After camp we got together and I typed his story....Wow, how do people endure such tragedies and come out so loving is beyond me.  Simon had also written some songs and he wants to put them to music on a CD and sell them.  So we are working on that...I think it will be a good IGA for him.  My brother, Dennis the musician said that he will put some of Simon’s songs to music.  So I can not wait to here how it goes.  Simon will also produce some.  

Anyway,  Camp Build was alot of fun and exhausting.  I also taught Lifeskills on HIV, Condom demonstration and Reproductive Health with another PCV.  

Recently, I just got back from Kampala after working with Peace Corps office on the new PST (Pre Service Training) Focus In initiative.  PST is the training for the new volunteers that are coming in May and we were setting up the training schedule for them.  I will go back down to Kampala to also do the Train the Trainer (TOT) for all the PCV’s that are going to train for PST.  Before that though, I plan to meet  up with Shelley and Linda and go to Nile Porch for Mother’s Day weekend.  It should be relaxing.

I do want to try to make it to Egypt in June...but not sure if that will happen or not.

Well, I think that is all I have for now.   

Take care of yourselves, and stay safe.

Love & Light, 

Mari

Christmas 2011 and New Year's 2012, Angel's trip to Uganda

Dear Everyone,

HAPPY NEW YEAR and May You be Blessed with all the Love, Compassion and Prosperity that you deserve!

I hope everyone had a Great Christmas and a Delightful New Year! I certainly did! I was really busy November and December. Angel came to visit me in Uganda for Christmas and New Years...and we had a great time! So alittle run down on what has happened since before Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving, I met up with about 40 other PCV’s in Gulu for Dinner. We cooked Thanksgiving dinner at the Ethiopian Restaurant where the manager let us use his kitchen! It was alot of fun, you can see pictures on facebook! About 10 of us went to Murchison Falls National Park the day after for a safari. It was good to be able to see the Park before Angel’s trip, so now I knew what we had to look forward to in December.

After Thanksgiving I traveled to Kampala for my yearly medical, only this time Waca Martin traveled with me. We were both summons to the President’s State House. One of my real Joy’s and Excitements in November was Waca Martin. Don’t know if you remember him from previous blogs or facebook pictures...but. To my surprise, Waca Martin who built the airplane model that was HUGH for President Museveni was called to the State House to be presented with a letter from Museveni. Because I typed the letter and mailed it, I was also summons to President Museveni’s. The President thanked Martin for his talent and told him that he was going to be calling him and wanted to know what he could do to help him pursue his talents. Waca Martin was so happy, it really gave me alot of joy just watching him! He had only been in Kampala a couple of times from the village, so it was great taking him around and being able to be with him during the presentation in Parliament.

Then my travels took me down to Entebbe for camp BUILD. Camp BUILD (Boy’s of Uganda in Leadership Development) was December 4th to the 10th and had 150 boys, ages 12-15 years old. I was a counselor for 10 of the boys and taught Lifeskills on HIV/AIDS and Malaria. It was alot of fun and a very successful camp! The focus was on developing leadership.

From Entebbe I traveled to West Uganda. I was asked by Peace Corps to go to West Uganda for training to Train-the-Trainer (TOT) in the Village Health Teams (VHT). They are planning to train the VHT’s in Northern Uganda. So right after Camp BUILD from December 11th to the 17th I went to Bushenyi. The training took place in Nyakasiro Sub-County in Mitoma District and was facilitated by Peace Corps in partnership with a USAID implementing partner Uganda Health Co-operative. There was about 29 VHT members that were taken though various sessions. So the VHT Coordinator for Oyam District and I went to Bushenyi together to learn. The idea was to come back up North and train the VHT’s in the North. Our plan will be to start with the VHT’s in Oyam District. There are about 3,000, so I think that we will set up a TOT and train about 250 if we can get sponsors.

After TOT I traveled back up to Northern Uganda to my site in Iceme. By this time I only had about 3 days to clean the bugs, dust and dirt, wash everything and spray before traveling back down to Entebbe to pick Angel up. When I am gone from site for more than 3 days the place needs a real good cleaning. I found my office had been taken over by termites! They had built there mounds high up the walls and they had eaten a leg off the bench, as well as my straw mats! They really enjoyed themselves....so we had to buy poison and I had alot of cleaning to do.

Needless to say, by the time I got to Entebbe, those 3 days exhausted me! But I was excited that Angel was on her way to Uganda!

The Rainbow Peace Ambassadors have really been working hard and doing it without me! So that means they are sustainable! The have put on 2 Drama's and did sports and activities, and also spoke to the community on Alcohol and Drugs and Conflict Resolution. I am so proud of them.

I have posted pictures and will post more when I have good internet access from our trip. But, all in all I think that we had a great time!

Angel flew in December 24th and, Shelley, I and Angel stayed at the Entebbe Zoo over night. Now, where in the US could you ever sleep with the animals in the zoo? It was a different experience to be able to walk the zoo when no one else was around and watch the animals get feed. Some of the monkey’s wanted to feed on Angel’s feet! Aside from the kids that were running the halls until 3 am....it was great. Christmas day Angel and I went to the Gately Hotel....really nice. Shelley and I went for a pedicure, while Angel rested. Christmas dinner was really nice at the Gately and Shelley joined us. Good Food, just a really nice Christmas dinner!

The next morning Whitecrest Tour Guide picked Angel and I up for our vacation trip. They were great...they made all the reservations for all the hotels, parks, cruises, safari’s, food, accommodations, fuel and driver from December 26th to January 3rd. I did not have to worry about anything...they took care of everything, all I had to do is show up, relax and have fun!!! Wish I did!

On the 26th of December we headed out driving the south western direction to Queen Elizabeth National Park which is Uganda’s second largest park and covers nearly 2,000 square kilometers via Fort portal. Queen Elizabeth National Park is a stunning location on the rift valley floor between Lakes Edward and George where a mosaic of habitats supports 95 mammal species and a remarkable 612 species of birds, 57 vegetation types including forest, grasslands, Acacia woodlands, lakeshore and swamp vegetation. We enjoyed an evening game drive as we proceeded to Mweya Peninsula where we stayed for two nights at the Mweya Safari Lodge. It was fabulous and we were able to have some relaxing pool time in between safari’s and a cruise along the Kazinga Channel! Also, I had an aromatherapy massage and Angel had a swedish massage and pedicure! Nothing like pampering yourself! During the safari and cruise we got to see huge herds of elephant, buffalo, kob, bushbucks, waterbucks, warthogs and antelope. I have a video of the elephant herd that is really neat! The elephants felt threatened at one time, so they made a circle with all the babies on the inside. Then when they realized no one was going to hurt them, they just walked off. Hopefully, I can get that posted someday. On the waterway we saw hippos galore, elephants, crocodile and thousands of shorebirds – pelicans, cormorants, stilts, storks, jacanas, gulls, and sandpipers, and african fish eagles. Pictures are on facebook. The food at Mweya Safari Lodge was fantastic and the hotel was gorgeous!

On the 28th we headed out for Bwindi Impenetrable Forrest where we stayed at Travellers Rest Inn in Kisoro. The Travellers Rest was really cozy with a fireplace and we stayed there 2 nights! Yes, it was cold for Uganda and we had a fire in the fireplace....I loved it! We were up in the mountains. We had planned to go Gorilla trekking in Rwanda, but our tickets fell though, so we went in Uganda. Gorilla trekking was a REAL Challenge! We hiked up and down the mountain for 4 1/2 hours to see the gorilla’s and then finally got 1 hour with them before we had to hike back for another 4 1/2 hours. I want to tell you that was a very strenuous hike! I would call that hike a hike for very advanced hikers! You did not even have a foot length sideways before you would slide down the cliff! It rained and there were alot of muddy slippery spots. It is not a hike for everyone! But the Gorilla’s were great when we reach our destination! I saw 2 Silverbacks and a large family. They say that Uganda is home to seven (one group is only 4 months old being trekked in Uganda) habituated gorilla groups. The Rushegura, Habinyabnja and Mubare gorilla groups roam the forrest around the primary tourism site at Buhoma.

Then we headed back up North East to Lake Mburo National Park. It is a real gem; it receives far fewer visitors than Uganda’s big parks, but boasts wildlife found nowhere else in the country such as impala, Cape buffalo, Burchell’s zebra and eland. No lions though. We saw acacia trees. But the highlight was horseback riding for the safari and being able to be with all the animals! It was alot of fun! We stayed at the Kimbla Montana Tent lodge, which was a really big, beautiful tent. I posted pictures on facebook. Also, the lodge itself was all opened and overlooking the safari grounds. We were only there one night.

On New Year’s Eve we drove up to Kampala and stopped at the Equator. Did you know that here you can walk from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere and revel in the fact that you weigh 2% less. You’re also rotating faster than anyplace on earth and the water right on the Equator line does not drain clockwise or counter clockwise, but straight down. On the Northern hemisphere water flows clockwise and on the Southern hemisphere it flows counterclockwise. Amazing! New Year’s Eve we stayed at the Whitecrest Guest House in Kampala and watched the Fireworks!

In the morning on January 1st, 2012 we headed up North to the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary and then to Murchison Falls National Park. The Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary was neat! We only had to walk about 10 minutes and then we were right there with a Rhino Mom and her baby. What powerful creatures! We then had lunch in Masindi where Angel and Abbey (our driver) played a few games of pool. We drove from South Murchison Falls National Park to the ferry over the Nile River and took a ferry to North Murchison where we stayed at Paraa Safari Lodge for two nights. But before the ferry ride on the south side we stopped and got out of the truck to look at the most incredible falls with rainbow’s flowing down over rocks and ledges! A huge natural flow of water plunging from a lofty precipice through a narrow gorge. The entire Nile River cascades 43 meters in a savage fury to the waters below. The waters are so rich and so violent are the hydraulics of the falls that foam floats like snow and ice for a mile or so down the river. It was beautiful!

Paraa Safari Lodge was also just as gorgeous as the Mweya Lodge. They have this pool overlooking the Safari plains, service is excellent and I did not want to leave. The next day was a game drive in our vehicle that allows you to stand up through openings in the roof. The park has 72 mammal species including the elegant Rothchild’s giraffe and large herds of hartebeest. We saw elephants, waterbucks, bushbucks, lions (we only saw 2 up in a tree trying to cool off, if you look hard you will see them on facebook), rock pythons and a wealth of antelope species. Near the Nile River delta hippos and many water birds were seen along the shores of Lake Albert. We also had some pool time before our cruise trip up the Nile River to the base of Murchison Falls. This had to be rated as one of the best ever! There are literally thousands of hippos in these rich waters and Nile crocodiles in profusion – the largest reptiles on earth. Elephants and countless grazers congregate along the riverbank to bathe and drink while bird life is prolific. Over 450 species of birds are found here with some spectacular displays, like an entire colony of brilliant colored bee-eaters nesting in carved out hollows of an eroded river bank, you can see those hollows on facebook. Angel was sorry she did not bring her bird book...so she took lots of pictures to look them up later. The food at Paraa Lodge was great!

January 3rd we left Murchison and headed to my site in Iceme. We were there for 3 nights and I think that Angel was ready to go! It is hard for someone when you are not use to no electricity, sinks, running water and have to go in a Latrine! Not to mention all the bugs! But she was able to attend one of my War Victims Support Groups, and see my village and meet some of the community. She also got to meet Waca Martin and see his latest model plane! We went to Lira one day and Gulu for 1 night before we headed back down to Entebbe where we stayed 2 nights at the Victoria Hotel...it was like a 5 star hotel in the US....It was great and a really nice ending to our vacation! It was hard to see Angel leave.

I was not back at site long when I had to get things ready for Northern All Vol in Kitgum. I was preparing a presentation on Grant writing. When I went though Kampala with Whitecrest I picked up Iceme’s Computers that I bought with the grant money...so I had to work on getting them hooked up to the Printer network and made sure everything was running okay. I will start to teach staff basic computer skills and copier/printer function when I return from Kitgum.

So on January 22nd I traveled to Kitgum for Northern All Vol, which is a training session for all the PC volunteers in the North and all the presenters are PC volunteers. There was about 25 of us and it was alot of fun, there were alot of volunteers that made some really good food. One morning one of the volunteers made cinnamon rolls with icing! It was great! Now I am back at site cleaning again!!!!

Well, that brings you up to date. Hopefully, I can get these blogs out sooner. At least this time it was only 2 months and not 3!

Take care of yourselves, and stay safe.

Love & Light,
Mari