Back in the UK

And so our African adventure ends...

Thank you so much to all of the students who participated, and all the parents who supported us, as well as to all our hosts and friends in Uganda. Don't forget to keep taking those malaria pills with breakfast for the next week.

But, not quite over yet. Remember that this was about a cultural exchange and that by being selected you take responsibility for disseminating to the wider Weald community so that we can continue to develop and extend our connection and collaboration with both Namilyango College and Hands for Hope. We shall be looking to collect together the artefacts that you have been working on over the next fortnight. The idea is to capture something of the essence of the trip. This could be photographic, video, writing, audio, anything at all. (It would be nice to have at least a couple of 'letters to self' that we worked in our writing sessions.) We only asked that is is edited and ready to share.

I have included the poem that I wrote for the final Morning Parade below, and Mr Sladden and I are working on a photo book, a copy of which will be sent to Namilyango College.

So, before the memories have a change to fade, have a go!

Ugandan Magic

Before we left for Uganda I went to an exhibition at the British Library where one of the artefacts on display was a thirteenth century manuscript that was the first known text to include the word 'abracadabra'. It caught my eye because it was actually a charm to ward off malaria. The user had to write the word out on successive lines losing a single letter each time, and wear it in an amulet round your neck:

ABRACADABRA 

 BRABADABRA

  RACADABRA

   ACADABRA

    CADABRA

     ADABRA

      DABRA

       ABRA

        BRA

         RA

          A

I feel a little safer taking the pills, myself, but nevertheless it inspired my verse:

                   Abracadabra:

Airborne we soar above snowy Alpen peaks,

cross time zones consuming American films

and plunge into red African earth beneath.

           Bracadabra:

Bold sun rises on Nalubaale

Giant and heavy on lapping waters.

Mists clear revealing a bountiful new day.

           Racadabra:

Raw time itself splits its haemic husk.

Three hours different from home but what's an hour?

Here they bend to whim from dawn till dusk.

            Acadbra:

Avocado grows to size of melon,

air raid siren signals morning prep,

goats graze on Wembley Stadium.

            Cadabra:

Colour dances every blink;

green hilltops, red roads, blue skies,

Black cormorants rainbow-inked.

          Adabra:

A small pill to prevent 

Malaria's advent;

no spell-scrolled amulet.

          Dabra:

Dancing new tempos,

silent applause: ssssss,

Weebale nnyo.

     Abra:

Acrid tasting

Ajon, malwa,

Daylight wasting.

     Bra:

Heat within,

sun darkens

paler skin.

  Ra:

Hear it.

Loud now:

Drum beat.

  A

spell

  is

cast.

Theresa Gooda 

February 2018

Back in a WiFi Zone

Final Day

Last night we met with Senior 2 boys:

Had a writing/reflection session:

Pictures thin on the ground today with misbehaving iPad, but we said our goodbyes at morning parade, met with Senior 1 boys to talk about the Weald and Namilyango collaboration, visited two primary schools for sports: Namilyango Junior Boys and St Peter Claver, and finished up at the African village for a swim and last supper.

A recovering patient also made it to the pool.

And Mr Sladden and I were presented with African outfits!

Now going to rest for a few hours before our long journey home. Goodbye Uganda!

Namuwongo and Swimming

Definitely a day of two halves.  This morning we returned to Namuwongo and Hands for Hope and took a walk through the community. This was, for many of us, overwhelming - and really put into perspective the difficulties of the lives of the children that we worked with yesterday. 

We shared the dresses that Year 10 girls had made back at the Weald, and also the gifts that students had brought with them.

In the afternoon we had, ahem, pizza for lunch; this was followed by a swim at the Colline Hotel.

And it meant that we were home in time to play sports with our Namilyango colleagues. 

Hands for Hope

We had a slow start to the day as the bus driver had a puncture to deal with, but we eventually made it to Hands for Hope. We met Pauline, the child who is sponsored by the Weald, looking very smart in her new uniform:

We spent some time playing with the nursery children, who were very affectionate!

And then did some more sport leadership in the afternoon. This was much tougher than at St Thereza's and the students had to work really hard.

A variation on the 4-4-2 formation.

Home via an African Craft Market. (One or two souvenirs may have been purchased there!) A huge Kampala traffic jam on the way home, so no time for photographs and interaction in the evening, but we are back to Hands for Hope this morning for a tour of the community now we have met the children.

Jinja Bingers

Day 4 was our trip to Jinja, considered to be the source of the Nile by locals. I think students appreciated the opportunity to order fish and chips for lunch, (local telapia) and who couldn't enjoy this view across the Nile?

Afterwards we enjoyed a boat trip out to the source; nice to be back at Lake Victoria once more. There was an abundance of tropical birds and monkeys, and even a monitor lizard came out to play.

Day 3: International Inspiration at St Thereza's

After a morning of hard study(!) we headed off to tour a couple of local farms along with Namilyango students, discovering much more about local agriculture. It was quite a walk in searing temperatures along red dusty roads through local communities, but a good opportunity to immerse ourselves in the surrounding environment and culture as we met several Ugandan families.

The day's new flavour was jackfruit. "It's like banana, pineapple and mango all rolled into one."

In the afternoon we were on duty once more as sports leaders. Visiting St Thereza's Girls' School has been one of the highlights of our trip so far; Weald students led a variety of sports and games activities for the primary girls. Some future coaches in our midst, I think!

In the evening students talked with Senior 2 students, and today we are heading off to Jinja and the source of the Nile.

Day 3: Morning Parade and Lessons

I shall preface this next activity by saying IT WAS ONLY A SIP. We took students to see how the local brew, Ajon, also known as malwa, fermented from millet, is made. Some students were more keen to try than others.

 'It tastes like beer but with bits in.' (Apparently!)

Last night we enjoyed some cultural entertainment at Ndere in the form of dance and song inspired by the different regions of Uganda and Rwanda.

We also tried sugar cane freshly cut at the market in Seeta.

This morning students were up at 5am for morning prep. Yes, that wasn't a typing error. They were in classrooms by 5.30am, then on parade in morning assembly where we made a presentation of the sports equipment and the students introduced themselves to the whole population of Namilyango. They are already becoming quite adept at speech making.

Then to class for their first Ugandan lessons!

Day 2: Don't Mention the Sport

So it turns out that the Namilyango boys are indeed quite good at sport. I won't mention any score lines, but I believe the verb 'destroyed' was used by one of our students upon describing the result.

The markets were an eye-opener. We watched Madam Chirabo haggle for the biggest avocado any of us have ever seen...

And worked our way through the crowds and traffic.

On our return we spent some time meeting the senior sixth form students and sharing photographs and stories from home.

It was an early night after our strenuous travel yesterday. I suspect the girls won't thank me for this photo, but we all slept well.

This morning we were guests of honour at the first Sunday mass of the term, then took a tour around the school grounds. Namilyango has its own farm where alongside livestock, produce such as cassava, sweet potato, mango, avocado, coffee, maize, jackfruit and banana grow in abundance.

The watermelon went down well...

This afternoon we hope to make our first primary school visit so Weald students have been busy planning their activities for the session, as well as writing speeches for their presentation at Morning Parade tomorrow.

Weald Cranes Have Alighted

And in time for a beautiful sunrise across Lake Victoria!

It was a long trip, but we made it eventually - and after being greeted by a pair of Maribou storks at Lake Victoria, we arrived to a very warm welcome at Namilyango College. 

The headmaster and his team met with us and all the formal introductions have been made. This afternoon we are hoping to visit local markets at Mukono, before beating our hosts at a football match. (Though the next post may report a different result! 😬)

Uganda 2018 Here We Come

The visas are in. Arms have been jabbed. The flights are booked. And, this Friday, the 2018 team from the Weald will depart for Entebbe, and destination Namilyango.

We are so proud of our connection with the prestigious Namilyango College, its impressive alumni and current teachers and students.  We are also proud of our link with Hands for Hope. And we head off to meet old friends, make new ones and consolidate the great bonds which already exist between our communities.

We also leave bearing gifts. Rumour has it that our Ugandan counterparts are quite fond of sport, so by way of a thank you for hosting us we are bringing an enormous amount of kit.

So pack light, people, and don't forget to pick up your share on Wednesday afternoon after school:

Don't worry. We're not taking the chairs and tables...