Greetings,

Well, I did it.I woke up early and headed out a 5:45 am in the dark and waited for the matato (public transport) and sure enough it stopped. I was pleasantly surprised when there was only one other lady on board….until we headed back up the road in the opposite direction honking the horn like crazy all the way…people came out of nowhere and jumped on the road and piled in….by the time we got back past where they picked me up we had 10 and picked up 4 more in Kiwoko. We didnt even have room for a conductor so we stopped at 15 including the driver. I was not all that excited about being crammed into the back of the van so I kept jumping out and letting people in so I could be by the door. Assuring a window seat was my goal and it made the trip much more bearable. The Ugandans were all stirred up that a mzungu was on board, no less in the conductor seat! A conductor is like on a train…they open the door at the stops and collect the money for the driver…how do I get in these situations?? I arrived 5 hours later in Jinja after a successful transfer in Kampala, where I got on a matato with 13 people and 3 chickens. The plan was to rest for 2 days in Jinja then meet up with a family and stay in Kampala two nights, then get a ride back to NHU. I was so looking forward to this trip for a time of relaxation……

But the adventure began….it was 11 am Thursday when I arrived, so I checked in and was thrilled to find a bathtub!! I immediately ran hot water and jumped in, I have never been so excited to take a bath but I have only had access to cold showers since arrving in Africa, so it was soooo great to just soak in hot water. In fact over the next three days I had a total of 5 hot baths! Anyway, I first set out on foot and quickly found a great boda boda driver (Bosco), what a blessing he became. I got dropped off at the Source of the Nile….it was beautiful and very exciting.. I took a bunch of pictures and even had a marriage proposal..(LOL). I walked into this shop and the man announced “you are my wife!” and he thought we should meet for dinner to discuss things…I tried to explain that I didnt think we should get married but then I politely took his number and quickly walked away agreeing to “call him”. I then called Bosco got dropped off in town and did a little shopping for gifts. When I was finished he dropped me off behind my hotel at a little restaurant that served great brick pizza. I realized I should have dropped off my packages first so I decided to take a little walk up the alley and have a bath before dinner…..thats when 2 guys bumped me and I yelled HEY and they left me alone. I was kinda proud that they continued walking…I had tried to sound tough…..To make a long story even longer (as Daniel would say) I later discovered that I didnt have my phone, in fact I had been robbed by those guys! Over the course of the next two days it got really crazy with this guy calling all my friends back home telling stories, nobody was able to call me, I ended up going to the police station 3 times with updated reports. The police station was a crack up…I kept looking for the Candid Camera…this guy was taking a hand written statement and I had to work hard at not laughing, he finished things by punching a hole and tying it to something else with yarn…there were many characters coming and going…overall I spent about 6 hours in the police department. I cant even discribe it here but it was very comical and Barney Five. The following morning I was at breakfast when I noticed the newspaper guy with the daily headlines reading “3 dead in riots in Kampala” over the king not being able to visit his district. Heading home was now out of the question, they had securioty guards and army on the dam that leads to Jinja…everyone would be safe if we stayed in Jinja was the report.

On my second visit to the police I was directed to the cell phone office to have the line cut off so he could not use my phone. I kept my number so my friends could still call me but then the man started calling me from other phones. Thinking now that I may be in danger they upped the security at the hotel, my boda driver was bringing me food and water…friends were checking if I was alright…New Hope was worried. . I contacted New Hope and was restricted to pass through Kampala, due to the rioting on Saturday my friends had to cancel plans to pick me up, and the crazy guy is still calling my phone. The most sane thing I could think of was to call Bosco and go to Bujagoli Falls for the day and it was a great choice. We then hit a small village and had dinner, bought some casava chips and then he dropped me back off at the hotel. The next morning I cut off my phone and gave the sim card to the police, and I changed my number. As I was leaving the police station, I ran into the guy that wanted to marry me and had to apologize for not contacting him about our marriage…explaining that I had police problems and needed to go now….. I headed back to the hotel and received a message to stay put because they werent sure it was safe to ride public transport or to travel alone in Kampala, so I was to wait for a driver from New Hope to come and rescue me. This is when I crammed in my 5th bath…. They sent Setuba to come pick me up (which cost more than my three day holiday stay) but at least I was safe and in good hands! My 5 day holiday turned into a three day ADVENTURE….I arrived home to a fanfare of people telling me about all the calls from the crazy guy and everyone was thankful that I had made it home safely…..had dinner with my family….took a cold shower and was happy to be home back in the village.

I spent the evening thinking about the places we go and the crazy world we live in..in some aspects Africa is no different than America…there are crazy people everywhere. I think about how God provided my boda boda man Bosco to be so kind and caring….he helped me get food, went with me to the police, showed me around town and kept me safe. Bosco even called me today to see if I was alright and I promised to call him next time I came to Jinja….did I just say next time??..LOL

I know one thing for sure, I wont be traveling alone….I have a bunch of friends here that would not let me leave the front gates again if they had their way…but I assured them that God drew me close and has His hand on my life…we cant live in fear….but I think I will take my adventures closer to the village in the future. May God give you His peace in your life and knowledge that He never leaves us or forsakes us as we travel the places we go….He goes before us.

Blessings and hugs to everyone

Desiree’