And so the story of Lake Mburo goes…
You must hurry, the hippos are coming.
For Easter I headed to Bushenyi to attend a pig roast for Jesus (says the vegetarian), and along the way I stopped at Lake Mburo for the day to check out the sites. This is apparently the only place in Uganda where you can see impala in the wild. Also on the hit list are zebras, water buffalo, many different kinds of bucks, 315 types of birds, hippos, crocodiles, otters, and many other animals and wildlife. Spending some time there was amazing because I got to be within mere feet of impala, zebra, and even hippos! I got to do many things in the few hours I was there, including a boat tour where I saw multiple hippo pods, a game drive where I saw many families of zebras, and a nature hike where I nearly ran into a wandering hippo! The best part was during one of the hikes it started raining which apparently signaled for the mosquitoes around to attack, along with red ants, causing me and the guide to run out of the forest frantically. One thing I learned, if the guide is running frantically, you know you’re in trouble.
On the way to the Easter festivities, I took public transportation, per usual, giving me yet another ridiculous story to tell. I was sitting in the front seat with another passenger, yes, two people in the front seat, when the driver pushes my bag off my lap and tells me to “bend”. I turn and look at him wondering what he is talking about and he grabs my side and says “bend, bend”. I still have no idea what he’s talking about until he forces my upper body into his lap almost screaming “you bend here the police are coming”. While he was pulling me onto his lap I was saying, out loud, “you want me to do what!” while the rest of the passengers were all laughing. When I got up I thought it was funny too, until it happened again.
You’d think the drivers would learn not to overload the cars and just keep one person in the front seat, as per the recommendations of the vehicle, but no, that is too much to ask.
When I arrived in Bushenyi the pig roast was under way. I wanted to see the pig close up, but soon realized that it was still visibly a pig (not really sure what I thought it would look like) and it completely freaked me out. Especially by the end of the night when everyone was picking at it but it still had eyes and it was still staring at me, almost crying out for help. I am very happy I wasn’t around for the slaughter, not really sure if I would have been able to handle that. After the pig was finished and all the meat was eaten (or at least attempted to be eaten) people were playing around with the head of the pig and brains were exposed and all kinds of other games.
On a lighter note, during the Easter festivities we dyed eggs, which may be the second time I’ve ever done that in my life. I also ate a Peep, which may be only the second Peep I’ve ever eaten in my life. This Easter weekend was definitely full of firsts.
In other, more serious news, I had my visit from my Peace Corps program manager, to update her on work I’m doing at my site, conflicts I may have, and ways forward to make me more effective to the nursing school and surrounding community. After our In-Service Training (IST), I think my program manager wanted to meet with key staff members at RCSN to identify ways for me to be better utilized.
I am very happy with the outcome of the visit. While my supervisor wasn’t around, I was able to have my program manager meet the principal tutor and Moses (who teaches IT/computers). We discussed the positive contributions of my service so far and it seemed that the principal tutor and Moses had very good things to say about me (which surprised me because I didn’t think I was contributing all that much to the school). They mainly talked about how happy they were with my pleasant attitude, flexibility, and availability, specifically they mentioned how happy they were whenever I expressed desire to participate in any work being done in or around the school (my openness to attend outreach, go with students to their community placements, etc..). They seemed to also be very receptive to my program manager’s comments about utilizing my skills and knowledge as much as they can and allowing me to have a positive impact on the operations and effectiveness of the nursing school. During the discussion, I expressed my desire to participate in more outreach because it is really was most rewarding in the work I’ve done so far (which is completely true, on every outreach initiative I went on with the students, I truly felt alive).
We also discussed the challenges faced with having a PCV at the nursing school. This is where we mainly discussed my skill set (who knew I’d actually have a skill set to offer one day) and best ways to use them. We also discussed the mismatch between the requested work from a PCV and what work I was actually being asked to do.
Below you will find a list of the new projects and initiatives I hope to work on (okay, maybe not all of them, but I hope to get a few of them accomplished and start others for a future volunteer to take over). I’ve already got my foot in the door in terms of getting the word out for the clinic and hopefully after talking to some people in the Peace Corps office, I will be able to get that ball rolling soon.
New Semester initiatives:
1)Work with Emma (a tutor at RCSN) on socio-psychology course in Kalisizo (about 30 minutes north of Rakai Town)
-Observe/evaluate current lecture method utilized by Emma in Kalisizo
-Determine areas of improvement
-Develop/integrate best practices/currently utilized teaching techniques from U.S.
-Evaluate new teaching methods with students
2)Work with Nora (a staff member) and students in community placements (Kibaale, Kikuto, etc..) to help develop best practices for working within communities
-Observe/evaluate current interactions/practices of students working within communities
-Determine areas of improvement
-Integrate new ideas/current best practices into community placement interactions
-Evaluate new methods with Nora and community
3)Identify and train two students to assist in library operations (develop an application for those interested)
-Develop/disseminate position responsibilities/expectations and application to students
-Review returned application and determine two potential candidates
-Train candidates on library operation methods
-Schedule/observe students for two week period to determine actual capability
-Train students on key identifiers for replacement students
4)Work with Moses on IT/Computer course
-Observe/evaluate current lecture method utilized by Moses
-Determine areas of improvement
-Develop/integrate best practices/currently utilized teaching techniques from U.S.
-Evaluate new teaching methods with students
5)Evaluate current HIV/AIDS outreach practices and determine if improvement is possible
-Observe/evaluate current outreach method utilized by Youth Against AIDS Club (Y.A.A.C.) and Red Cross LINK Group
-Determine areas of improvement/discuss with students groups ideas for improvement
-Identify any outdates material/methods used which can be eliminated
-Integrate new practices/current research for HIV/AIDS outreach/education
-Evaluate new outreach methods/effectiveness
-Continue to update/evaluate outreach methods (annually)
6)Apply for SPA grant ($10,000) for building of clinic on RCSN grounds (communicate with Jenny in PC office)
-Identify future location/site for clinic
-Identify what school can contribute (medical supplies, dugs, etc.)
-Identify uses
--Relieve intake of patients at district hospital in Rakai
--Provide vaccinations, check-ups, drug distribution, education sessions on prevention, and any other primary health care needs
--Provide a training center for nursing students directly on campus
-Identify key staff members to work with (director, principal tutor, Moses, Cylus, etc)
7)Work with Red Cross, God Cares, and Rakai AIDS Counsellor’s Association (RACA) on projects/camps
-Communicate availability/desire to work with organizations
-Community skills/resources available from volunteer
-Build relationship between students at RCSN and local organizations
I really hope most of these projects come to fruition. My mood and expectations have risen greatly after the meeting and I expressed my desire NOT to be moved from my site. I hope that the work develops so that I won’t be moved. I think I can do a really good service for the nursing school and the community here, as long as I have the staff support I need to get things done.
No comments:
Post a Comment