So this week we were scheduled to go to a youth camp about an hour away from Kampala from the 28th til the 2nd. We packed, got ready and headed out to the middle of no where. The camp was being held at a college. I'm not sure if it is a running college or a run down college. If it was still running I would be surprised because it was in horrible shape and if there was one that looked like this in America, it would be shut down immediately. They lied and told us they had toilets there, so we would actually go. But of course we get there and there is no running water at all. So no toilets and no showers. Squattys are the worst invention ever and so uncivilized. There is only so many days that you can hold it until you just can't and are forced to use it. You can smell the stentch as you are walking up to it. And if you are in there more than 30 seconds, you are about to die. I had a jacket sprayed with perfume zipped up to my forehead and it still killed me every time. Us girls decided to use the bathroom early in the mornings and at night when no one was around and pee in the school courtyard. Yes. I have peed in a college courtyard. REBEL. Showers were bucket showers and their stalls had no doors, so that was a definite no. So for 2 and a half days we stuck it out. Complained little...ok maybe alot, but only to ourselves not to any of the management. We joked and said it was like a concentration camp or prison. We were confused on what we were doing there since we weren't technically leaders and we weren't campers. There were only 5 of us white girls there so we stood out like marshmallows in hot chocolate. It was definitely uncomfortable for us, especially sleeping on the floor with inch thick foam mattresses and ants crawling all over you.
Ugandan's also go to bed really late and wake up very early. The first night, they didn't have dinner until 11pm. Of course we had already went to bed because we couldn't wait any longer. The food was also a little redundant. We got tired of rice and beans the first day, so when they kept serving it for lunch and dinners, we refused to eat it and ate the little food we brought. So the mzungus went to bed early, woke up late, didn't eat or shower or use the bathroom,and stayed in our room all day, so the management realized that we were extremely uncomfortable and asked if we wanted to go home. We stalled to say yes but inside we screamed YES! NOW! So finally after careful consideration, we decided to go. We felt so shameful for leaving. We were supposed to be helping in this camp but we had no idea what to do and were extremely uncomfortable. It's not the Ugandan's faults at all, this is their culture, we just aren't used to it. We felt like wimps, but we never asked to go home, that should count right? Once we got back home we reunited with the toilet and hot shower and it was AMAZING! Never take it for granted!! The sunsets were amazing though and on the last night we were there we went to the roof of the dorms and watched it set.
Last week a few of us girls also decided to go on an adventure to the equator. It was definitely an adventure getting there and took about an hour and a half of driving but we made it and it was so cool to be standing in both hemispheres at the same time!
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