Do you remember Thaddaeus whose company put in the borehole at St James? Well, when I told him I was hoping to come to Uganda he said he would like to meet me and yesterday he did. He and his boss David (over 7 feet tall, no kidding!) took the afternoon off from their office in central Kampala and collected Lily and I, Faith had to go to work.

I had arranged to go for lunch at a little restaurant that Judith whose apartment I am staying in, had just opened. I had promised to visit her and this seemed an ideal opportunity to combine it with meeting Thaddaeus. They turned up in a very comfortable Prado Land Cruiser certainly a lot comfier than the vehicles I normally travel in, but straight away I felt comfortable with them.

I had had many email ‘discussions’ with Thaddaeus when he was working on the water project at St James and he had called me a couple of times so I felt I knew him already.They both looked very familiar to me because of the photos they had emailed me.

It took a while to find Judith’s place as it was in among many other little businesses all competing for customers. She was thrilled to see us and showed us to what was definitely the best table where she served us with chilled drinks, even though there was no electric, and then set to and cooked a delicious meal of Tilapia and vegetables.

As the food is cooked to order you always have to wait for your meal which gave us the opportunity to talk. It was all very interesting and both Thaddaeus and David told me that they are really interested in what has happened at St James and have offered to help wherever they can in the future. We have given the company a lot of work firstly with the lightening conductors at the beginning of the year and then of course the borehole, and they gave a very good professional service, but also went the extra mile spending time with James and the children, and taking photos and putting video footage on YouTube of the installation which I hope you have viewed.

I asked for the bill and while waiting looked in my bag for money. David asked what I was looking for and when I said my purse he shook his head and told me he was paying! This may not sound strange to you in the UK but here in Uganda rarely are people so generous when dealing with a Mzungu, however well off they are! Our meal had been delicious and I’m hoping that the men might spread the work and get Judith more customers from the ‘richer’ parts of Kampala.

Lily and I were dropped off at Faiths workplace. She is Receptionist at the Ches Johnson Hotel not far from her home. It was interesting seeing where she works and meeting one of her bosses but I do wish she could find a better job more suited to her talents. At least she is gaining experience though her pay is ridiculously low even for Uganda – 200,000 Ugx a month which is £50 for 26 days work of long hours – under £2 a day!

I’ve enjoyed my short stay in Kampala and head off to Jinja tomorrow. Thaddaeus and David are taking the afternoon off work to take me! Its going to be the most comfortable ride I have ever had to Jinja.

See you there! Love Gerry x

As expected I had a very comfortable journey to Jinja with my ‘new’ friends Thaddaeus and David. They arrived on time to pick me up but were more than a little amazed at the amount of luggage I had.

I had warned them when they first offered but it was still a shock to them especially as they probably felt obliged to help the three of us, Faith, Lily and I, when they saw us struggling to carry them down from the apartment. They had come dressed very smartly!!

We called in at a hospital where Miriam the wife of one of my friends Godfrey works as she had got some of my belongings left from my last stay including my motorbike helmet which I will need when I get to Nakakabala.

It was lovely to see Miriam as I had not done so for two years but will be spending a few days with her and her family around Christmas time. What I hadn’t realised was that the lady she was standing with was Marjorie, the sister of Godfrey who was hoping to get a lift to Jinja! Nothing was mentioned, (well not so I could understand anyway) she just greeted me and the next thing I knew she was sat in the front of the car and Thaddaeus got in the back with me.

This is how things happen here and you just ‘go with the flow’. I suppose if I understood the language it would help! Actually having Marjorie in the car made it quite a lively journey as the four of us ‘put the world to rights’ especially talking about Uganda issues.

It seems that everyone I talk to is fully aware of the corruption in their country and not just at the top. They are all fed-up with it and believe they will have to ‘take up arms’ if they are to change Uganda! It is so sad to think that they are right, that this is the only way.

As we approached Jinja we called Alex who I am staying with to give us directions and I got a bit worried when we turned off onto a very deeply rutted track, thinking of the beautifully clean vehicle we were travelling in. Thaddaeus reassure me that it was used to far worse when they were out and about working on projects.

At one point the angle we were travelling at was scary! But we made it. Alex invited us into his home and as we entered I noticed to me horror that Alex had got my portable commode out as extra seating! I could see the others eyes settle briefly on the commode then take another seat.

They obviously knew what is was and Alex had a glint in his eyes too so I just swallowed my pride and plonked myself down on it! Immediately there was laughter from everyone and I felt quite happy to explain why I need a commode in Uganda – dodgy knees etc!

Before they left for the drive back to Kampala Thaddaeus and David expressed again how willing they are to stand by James as they are so impressed by the school and especially James himself.

Once James and I have had a bit of time together we are going to arrange a meeting between us all as they have some really practical and useful ideas to share with us.

Jinja continued later! x

Dear Friends of St James,

I arrived in Uganda very late on Saturday night and it has taken me a while to get connected with mobile internet as being a Sunday the banks were closed so no UGX no Internet! But I am all sorted now so will keep in contact as long as there is electric power and mobile signal, and my energy keeps going!

Monday 8 December, 7.15 am

I’m writing this sitting under my mosquito net looking out over the rooftops of Kampala as the sun gradually burns off the early morning mist/smog! This morning I woke very early initially to the sound of the mosque calling Muslims to morning prayer then later to the rushing, beeping, screeching of traffic, radios turned up far too loud and the voices of families living around as they prepare for the day.

Yesterday morning was very different as I woke at Banana Village to the sound of gentle brushing outside my ‘posh’ mud house as the groundsmen cleared the debris of fallen leaves so there would be no hiding place for snakes, and the ‘chattering’ of monkeys swinging in the trees nearby.

I know which one I prefer, but I also enjoy being in the city as Faith (not her real name) one of our Ugandan ‘daughters’ lives here. My family ‘adopted’ Faith in 2007 and has since seen her gain a degree and a job. Faith was very young when she and her sister fled Rwanda after the devastation of the genocide.

They lost both parents and many other relatives and had an extremely difficult time surviving even when they reached Uganda. Their stories are too awful to write about here and thankfully they are both in a much better place now.

Last night Faith and I were, along with her 12 year old niece Lily (not her real name) who is living with her at present, were invited to meet up with some uni friends ‘down at the beach’ for a fish supper. I was rather tired after my long journey to Uganda and lack of sleep two nights in a row, but I don’t like to turn down an opportunity of another experience and Faith knows I love to join in with the local people as I am not one for ‘touristy’ places.

We travelled from Kampala to the shores of Lake Victoria on the local Taxi bus, not my favourite form of transport, but thankfully the city now has strict rules about overloading these buses and as we were in slow moving traffic there was no way it could speed anyway! Once off the taxi we walked down to the lakeside and were greeted by a mixture of stares and smiles as the local people usually don’t see white faces thereabouts. I was told later that some thought I was the Queen of England!

I was warmly welcomed by one of Faith’s best friends James Nono who informed me that he prefers to be called Nono. It’s a good thing he had a sense of humour as I kept calling him Gogo! He and the other young people were really good company telling me about the area we were in which is mainly a fishing village and one of the reasons they come as the Tilapia is the best you can find anywhere, delicious and so cheap compared to the city, and they sold ice cold Nile beer too!!

We watched the sun set over the lake and the full moon rise – I wish I had taken a photo as it seemed enormous, the biggest I have ever witnessed, like a giant red inflatable ball floating just above the water, its reflection making a wide road of light right up to the place we were sitting. We spent a happy few hours chatting about so many subjects including religion and politics.

I think they like the fact that my mind was completely open so they felt free to talk. The more young educated Ugandans I meet the more confident I am that Uganda has a good future. It will probably not be in my lifetime as we all know it takes many years for the new to take the place of the old, especially in politics!!

Nono had a vehicle that he was being paid by the owner to drive to Nairobi the next day as they were flying there for a holiday! Like Faith, Nono has gained a good degree but is prepared to work at anything while he looks for a job in his field. Not so different to our graduates in the UK really, only here there are no benefits, if you don’t earn money you don’t eat!

We all piled into ‘his’ vehicle, I had seven year old Authur sat on my knee in the front with the other six in the back. Thankfully Nono was a good driver and we got back home much quicker than we had come but it was still getting on to midnight!

After my ‘adventures’ of last night I slept like a log, with the cool breeze blowing across the rooftops through the window straight across my face – wonderful! I have a bed to sleep in while Faith and Lili happily share a matress on the floor where they are both still sound asleep.

Today I hope to get set up with mobile internet so that I can send this.

Love to you all x

There is a real ‘foggy-smog'(!) over Kampala this morning. I’m wondering if it is always like this as I have never actually stayed in Kampala itself before and certainly not in a ‘high-rise’ apartment! This building where I am staying is beside a petrol station, above a car yard and surrounded by a mixture of homes many very poor but it seems a happy place where children play and life goes on regardless of situation. Not far away are the modern buildings of the city centre. I have a video which I will attempt to put on Youtube of the view.

To get to the apartment you have to climb loads of steps that are of varying size. I’m not kidding they range from hardly any step at all to ones that are well over a foot in depth and even with my long legs have a struggle to climb! When I arrived on Sunday morning with four heavy cases I wondered how on earth we were going to get them up to the top floor.

I suggested we ask some of the car mechanics to help us but couldn’t believe what happened next – Lilli swung one case up on her head and started up the stairs followed by Faith. When Charles saw what had happened he chuckled to himself and followed suit! I do wish I had had my camera ready as it was amazing to see when you appreciate the weight of each case was over 23 kilo!

I followed with my 12 kilo rucksack and my smaller one containing my laptop and it was a struggle. All the time I could hear Faith calling from above “No Mum leave it we will come back.” I was determined to keep going though and made it, sweating buckets! Charles returned for the last and heaviest case. He well deserved the tip I gave him!!

I’ve really had a good nights sleep which will please my family and friends very much. I had had a busy day, mostly enjoyable and felt very relaxed even at the frustrating parts!

(Faith has just realised I am awake, disappeared into the kitchen and came out with a freshly made cup of Ugandan tea, no milk but very refreshing, and I am still enjoying it. She’s gone back to sleep again, Lili has not stirred!)

Yesterday morning Faith and I set off on foot to walk to the nearest MoneyGram bank to cash my MG as I had no Ugandan Shillings left after paying Banana Village and for my transport. We went into the bank, picked up a form, I filled it in then joined the MoneyGram queue , easypeasy I was thinking to myself. Huh, spoke too soon!

When I got to the Teller she looked at my form and said she could cash it but only had 2000 Ugx notes. I was just about to say it was OK when Faith fortunately interacted and said ‘No Mum, that is so many!’ I then realised what she meant. £500 at over 4000 Ugx would mean I would be carrying a bundle of 1,000 notes, yes one thousand!!!

So I declined the offer and we set off for another bank. Walking in Kampala is not easy as there are few footpaths and the traffic is crazy, you have to have eyes in the back of your head and a few extra! There are deep gullies all along the side of the road and with the cars and piki piki motorbikes coming past several abreast you have to watch you don’t get forced into the concrete depths!!

But we made it to the next bank where I had to fill up another form as it was a different bank though still MoneyGram! I joined the queue behind people waiting for the Teller that had a big sign above the counter which said MoneyGram. It was hot, my back ached from standing still, but I knew I had to persevere as it always takes ages to get money out of a bank in Uganda and if I didn’t get it today I would have to do it tomorrow! So I practised being patient and eventually got to the window.

I could not believe it when the teller said I was at the wrong counter and would have to move across to the other queue, the queue without the MoneyGram sign! It’s a good thing I don’t use bad language as I would really have expressed my frustration. I just politely pointed out how they could improve their ‘customer service’ then moved along and joined the other queue!

Eventually I got my money and we went to search out MTN for my mobile and Internet. In previous years one of my friends always got these for me for when I arrived but the Ugandan government has brought out new regulations and you have to purchase in person.

I had to go to another business to have a copy made of my passport, which I wasn’t happy with but had no choice. Then back to MTN, two different ones for mobile and then Internet, and with a great deal of help from my dear friend Faith, I got sorted and that is why you are receiving my newsletters.

More to come, my day did get better!

Love Gerry x