Proverbs 30:8-9
"Give me neither poverty nor riches but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the Lord?'"
-friday i went to namugongo. the site of the murder of 25 ugandan christians by king mwanga II on june 3rd, 1887. intense.
-that night mary, debbie, sammi, kelsey and i met tony and dennis in kampala to celebrate tony's 21st birthday. first we played some telephone pictionary in a coffee shop. then went to ranchers for dinner. i had some kind of a hamburger and we shared a piece of cake ugandan style. then we wandered around the mall (garden city) for a awhile. i found some balloons from a kid's birthday party on the roof and gave them to tony. he loved it all.
-saturday morning we left for jinja. we went rafting for 6 hours. 31 km of nile. it was stellar and super extreme. our guide was named sadu and he was super rad. we flipped the boat. it was great.
-sunday morning i went bungee jumping. 43 meters. 140 some odd feet. enough said.
-got a free water by crawling into a kayak hanging upside in the bar.
-i had a super cross cultural dinner i was invited to by a friend. there were sudanese, two rwandans, a family of tanzanians, and a swiss couple. not to mention my american self. super rad.
-the usp led worship for chapel this morning. i played drums for the first time in prolly at least 2 years. it went super well.
- i need a nap.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
The Real Adventures of Cap'n Psalty
- we visited a mosque and i spoke to a muslim man who was trying to persuade me to convert. i didnt.
- we went on a one day visit to The Aids Support Organization (TASO) in jinja. they had a drama group who sang and dance and shared their stories with us. it put faces to HIV/AIDS for us.
- made mac and cheese for my family. found kraft mac at garden city in kampala. but it was 10,000 shillings a box ($5). i couldn't do that cuz i would need 4 boxes. so i then found kraft white cheddar mac for 5,000 schillings a box. that sealed the deal. i also purchased peanut butter and strawberry jam in garden city. i prepared the sandwiches, and added some local sausage to the mac (mac and weens style) and my family was delighted. never had peanut butter, or jam, or mac and weens before.
- taught tony and dennis some american pick up lines. we laughed alot about those. dennis wrote them down.
-i had my shredded pants tailored for 1,000 shillings (50 cents). and it was a BIG tear.
-gained head of the house authority when mother left wednesday. then handed it over to martin when i left friday. now she's back. and in charge.
- i have killed several wasps, that is true. friday i punched one three times in the face then punted it. that happened.
- we left friday for an entire weekend trip to jinja and the source of the nile. friday night we met with three american missionaries. two had been missionaries to uganda for 12 years and worked in prison ministry. the other was a young single lady who worked in prison ministry and with different youth ministries.
- went swimming for the first time in uganda. the pool at the place we were staying was exquisite. there were also frogs in the kiddie pool. i caught two.
- went on a tour of jinja, which i renamed the "jinja safari." saw the source of the nile, visited a fishing village, what was once considered the "beverly hills" of uganda but is not much now due to idi amin, and visited an industrial alley in the city appropriately nicknamed "ting ting" due to the work of the blacksmiths and metal workers there.
- had a stellar chapati, chicken, and guacamole wrap for lunch.
- went on a boat tour of lake victoria and the source of the nile. caught a dead fish. saw a cobra and a monitor lizard.
- took part in a synchronized swim dance.
- ate indian food for dinner. mutton biryani.
- sat on the shore of lake victoria, the world's second largest lake (superior is first), and watched the lanterns of the fishing boats move across it at night.
- gave two sermons sunday morning at new life missionary baptist church in jinja. i spoke with a translator repeating me in lusoga. wonderful people and a great time!
- we went on a one day visit to The Aids Support Organization (TASO) in jinja. they had a drama group who sang and dance and shared their stories with us. it put faces to HIV/AIDS for us.
- made mac and cheese for my family. found kraft mac at garden city in kampala. but it was 10,000 shillings a box ($5). i couldn't do that cuz i would need 4 boxes. so i then found kraft white cheddar mac for 5,000 schillings a box. that sealed the deal. i also purchased peanut butter and strawberry jam in garden city. i prepared the sandwiches, and added some local sausage to the mac (mac and weens style) and my family was delighted. never had peanut butter, or jam, or mac and weens before.
- taught tony and dennis some american pick up lines. we laughed alot about those. dennis wrote them down.
-i had my shredded pants tailored for 1,000 shillings (50 cents). and it was a BIG tear.
-gained head of the house authority when mother left wednesday. then handed it over to martin when i left friday. now she's back. and in charge.
- i have killed several wasps, that is true. friday i punched one three times in the face then punted it. that happened.
- we left friday for an entire weekend trip to jinja and the source of the nile. friday night we met with three american missionaries. two had been missionaries to uganda for 12 years and worked in prison ministry. the other was a young single lady who worked in prison ministry and with different youth ministries.
- went swimming for the first time in uganda. the pool at the place we were staying was exquisite. there were also frogs in the kiddie pool. i caught two.
- went on a tour of jinja, which i renamed the "jinja safari." saw the source of the nile, visited a fishing village, what was once considered the "beverly hills" of uganda but is not much now due to idi amin, and visited an industrial alley in the city appropriately nicknamed "ting ting" due to the work of the blacksmiths and metal workers there.
- had a stellar chapati, chicken, and guacamole wrap for lunch.
- went on a boat tour of lake victoria and the source of the nile. caught a dead fish. saw a cobra and a monitor lizard.
- took part in a synchronized swim dance.
- ate indian food for dinner. mutton biryani.
- sat on the shore of lake victoria, the world's second largest lake (superior is first), and watched the lanterns of the fishing boats move across it at night.
- gave two sermons sunday morning at new life missionary baptist church in jinja. i spoke with a translator repeating me in lusoga. wonderful people and a great time!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
The adventures of Cap'n Psalty (Pirated Blog)
- The list of things I have captured goes on. This weekend I punched a wasp in the face. And then I punched Mary because she got in the way of me punching the wasp.
- My friends are collecting this creepy campaign poster of a guy named Arafat. I am plotting to capture the real Arafat and marry him off to an American.
- My host family does not know this yet, but I have 134 toads under my bed. They sing me to sleep at night.
- I coordinated a synchronized swimming dance in the pool in Jinja. I was the finale. As it should be.
- I am addicted to kool-aid. It’s a problem. I have begun snorting the packets. The USP students are getting to liberal with their drinking of my kool-aid so I skip the water bottle and just inhale it.
- The last drum I made is secretly full of bees. Live bees. I am waiting patiently for someone to hit the drum and get a fun buzzy surprise. I hope I don’t forget and hit the drum myself…
- I have begun carrying around a man purse. You may think this sounds strange but it just looks so good on me. It is my African murse.
- I have become completely accustomed to men holding hands. I plan on continuing this trend in America. My man friend, Boniface, and I held hands after we went out for a nice dinner this weekend.
- I thought I was getting pretty good at the squatty potty. But this weekend I missed. BAD. It was a very poopy problem.
- I can now communicate with the monkeys. We have developed our own language that I call Monknatese. They tell me secrets about Africa.
*this post has been pirated and not original natebell material. i will hunt down the culprits and force them to play my buzzy bee drum. thank you for bearing with us during this unfortunate circumstance.
- My friends are collecting this creepy campaign poster of a guy named Arafat. I am plotting to capture the real Arafat and marry him off to an American.
- My host family does not know this yet, but I have 134 toads under my bed. They sing me to sleep at night.
- I coordinated a synchronized swimming dance in the pool in Jinja. I was the finale. As it should be.
- I am addicted to kool-aid. It’s a problem. I have begun snorting the packets. The USP students are getting to liberal with their drinking of my kool-aid so I skip the water bottle and just inhale it.
- The last drum I made is secretly full of bees. Live bees. I am waiting patiently for someone to hit the drum and get a fun buzzy surprise. I hope I don’t forget and hit the drum myself…
- I have begun carrying around a man purse. You may think this sounds strange but it just looks so good on me. It is my African murse.
- I have become completely accustomed to men holding hands. I plan on continuing this trend in America. My man friend, Boniface, and I held hands after we went out for a nice dinner this weekend.
- I thought I was getting pretty good at the squatty potty. But this weekend I missed. BAD. It was a very poopy problem.
- I can now communicate with the monkeys. We have developed our own language that I call Monknatese. They tell me secrets about Africa.
*this post has been pirated and not original natebell material. i will hunt down the culprits and force them to play my buzzy bee drum. thank you for bearing with us during this unfortunate circumstance.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
happy women's day!
-its been crazy around campus lately due to guild elections (student government elections). campaigning is done much differently here than in america - as apparent by african politics in general. its a crazy time.
-i helped do some campaigning for my friend tonny. he is running for member of parliament representing the law faculty. so i made some posters for him featuring him amidst a group of us americans bearing two thumbs up in his direction. then i wrote, "law abiding americans for law abiding tonny."
-i drove a van on the wrong side of the car and on the wrong side of the road.
-went with tonny to do some grass roots campaigning in the hostels. students here expect to be bribed and think that is normal and how politics are to be done. people said they would pledge their votes if tonny would return with booze and sweets. but they were serious.
-last week was also hiv/aids emphasis for the usp. we heard a seminar and traveled to jinja to an hiv/aids outreach program there. so sad, but wonderful opportunity for the hope of Christ to overcome.
-in the spirit of elections, some friends made posters for me as if i could run for USP president. they posted these up by way of post-it notes. i guess i won by no contest.
-i walked home with a fourteen-year-old boarding school student who guessed my age to be 40. how disappointing.
-we had a great worship time last week in which i helped by way of slapping and slamming my hands against a drum. it sounded much better than this description might suggest.
-last week i had dinner with american missionaries, shauen and krista trump. we had lasagna and green beans and garlic bread and ice cream and brownies = terrible for most of my insides, but excellent for my tongue!
-yesterday was women's day. the guys and i celebrated by going to kampala and eating hamburgers. also terrible for my insides. but it was delicious. then i had dinner with a former missionary to somalia in the 1950s-60s that was super rad and reminded me so much of my grandpa. i wanted to hug him, but this was just our first dinner. his name was karl wesselhoft. he was born in germany.
-he said, "you brought christianity like a potted plant. we must break the pot and plant it in our native soil." wise grandpa man!
-i helped do some campaigning for my friend tonny. he is running for member of parliament representing the law faculty. so i made some posters for him featuring him amidst a group of us americans bearing two thumbs up in his direction. then i wrote, "law abiding americans for law abiding tonny."
-i drove a van on the wrong side of the car and on the wrong side of the road.
-went with tonny to do some grass roots campaigning in the hostels. students here expect to be bribed and think that is normal and how politics are to be done. people said they would pledge their votes if tonny would return with booze and sweets. but they were serious.
-last week was also hiv/aids emphasis for the usp. we heard a seminar and traveled to jinja to an hiv/aids outreach program there. so sad, but wonderful opportunity for the hope of Christ to overcome.
-in the spirit of elections, some friends made posters for me as if i could run for USP president. they posted these up by way of post-it notes. i guess i won by no contest.
-i walked home with a fourteen-year-old boarding school student who guessed my age to be 40. how disappointing.
-we had a great worship time last week in which i helped by way of slapping and slamming my hands against a drum. it sounded much better than this description might suggest.
-last week i had dinner with american missionaries, shauen and krista trump. we had lasagna and green beans and garlic bread and ice cream and brownies = terrible for most of my insides, but excellent for my tongue!
-yesterday was women's day. the guys and i celebrated by going to kampala and eating hamburgers. also terrible for my insides. but it was delicious. then i had dinner with a former missionary to somalia in the 1950s-60s that was super rad and reminded me so much of my grandpa. i wanted to hug him, but this was just our first dinner. his name was karl wesselhoft. he was born in germany.
-he said, "you brought christianity like a potted plant. we must break the pot and plant it in our native soil." wise grandpa man!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
vote natebell usp!
10 days in kapchorwa!
-most beautiful place i have ever been or seen with my own eyeball lookers!
-caught tons of chameleons, maybe less
-climbed many trees
-hiked mountains almost everyday to waterfalls and caves
-tore an enormous hole in my pants while playing soccer with school kids. from the crotch to the ankle. embarrassing? no. losing to school kids in soccer. embarrassing? a little. there was more of them though.
-carried banana tree stems on my head.
-mistaken multiple times for being asian, or specifically chinese.
-shared a room with a hen that was incubating. named her jacqueline.
-had miserable diarrhea for 4 days.
-improved my slingshot skills to expert.
-visited compassion international with my host brother sam (12), and watched him write a letter to his sponsors.
-was nearly trampled by hundreds of kids who wanted to touch the "muzungu" in the two schools i visited.
-ate a handful of white ants live. and more. heads and wings and all.
-took a 6 hour hike in the mountains.
-went on a coffee tour. made coffee from step one. world's best cup of coffee - congratulations everyone! (ELF)
-found a banana slug. appropriately named by color and size.
-saw crocodiles as we drove over the nile. boom.
-many great discussions about dowery/bride price, circumcision, and other customs and traditions of the people of kapchorwa.
-I <3 AFRICA.
-most beautiful place i have ever been or seen with my own eyeball lookers!
-caught tons of chameleons, maybe less
-climbed many trees
-hiked mountains almost everyday to waterfalls and caves
-tore an enormous hole in my pants while playing soccer with school kids. from the crotch to the ankle. embarrassing? no. losing to school kids in soccer. embarrassing? a little. there was more of them though.
-carried banana tree stems on my head.
-mistaken multiple times for being asian, or specifically chinese.
-shared a room with a hen that was incubating. named her jacqueline.
-had miserable diarrhea for 4 days.
-improved my slingshot skills to expert.
-visited compassion international with my host brother sam (12), and watched him write a letter to his sponsors.
-was nearly trampled by hundreds of kids who wanted to touch the "muzungu" in the two schools i visited.
-ate a handful of white ants live. and more. heads and wings and all.
-took a 6 hour hike in the mountains.
-went on a coffee tour. made coffee from step one. world's best cup of coffee - congratulations everyone! (ELF)
-found a banana slug. appropriately named by color and size.
-saw crocodiles as we drove over the nile. boom.
-many great discussions about dowery/bride price, circumcision, and other customs and traditions of the people of kapchorwa.
-I <3 AFRICA.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
im alive.
updates and highlights from the past few weeks:
- spent a weekend in Luweero. spent a day at a Compassion International children's development center. met one of the director's, Emmanuel. talked awhile and he invited me to join his new holistic child development program after i graduate. another opportunity.
- maria, the 9-month baby, eats dirt and charcoal. i've caught her several times.
- the cosmic pterodactyl spreads it wings directly over my home. it followed me here i suspect.
- tony sent me this luganda proverb, "even a small boy can play the drum and the elder dances. so never undermine the young."
- found a fan for our room. its wonderful to have a breeze. cant open the windows b/c of the malaria mosquitos. dirty rascals.
- im the water runner now cuz i can carry to jerricans full of water at the same time. my family can't believe it. "it's like you're carrying nothing!" they cry.
- visited the sight where 26 ugandan christians were martyred in 1885 by king mwanga II.
-had lunch with boniface, from gulu, who has experienced the worst of the war in the north with the LRA. sad, sad, story.
- i have now had porridge several times now. it is something like oatmeal minus the oatmealish part. really, i think i like it.
- visited the Kasuubi tombs, the burial sight of four of Buganda's kings. one king, Mutesa I had 30-40 wives and 124 children and a pet leopard. his palace is now the largest grass-thatched hut in the world.
- visited another child development program called hope for youth uganda. i helped build a pig sty and played drums while the kids sang and dance. many could not believe a muzungu like me could play drums. they danced like they love to. its great !
- i killed and butchered a chicken.
- started running with my friend john. he's from gordon college. this means i can now shower on monday, wednesday, fridays. i especially like these days cuz it means i can get all the shampoo out of my hair.
- my musician friend ben calls me, nathan the percussion discussion.
- i have crossed paths with large groups of men jogging, chanting, and all carrying large sticks. this was especially nerve-racking the first time, me being the only white person around when a street full of stick-wielding men run towards me chanting. something uncomfortable about that. i found out later they are training to become police officers.
- our room was sporting a wretched stench for several days, so after a thorough search, martin and i found a dead and rotting rat corpse in his desk. stench is gone now compliments of strong and potent perfume.
- i have now caught many lizards. and large ones too.
- also we got a pet kitten to control the rat/mice population in our home. i had to name it. it is now nala. though most my family is not good with the letter "r," so it sounds more like nara. thats ok.
- i got a slingshot so tony and dennis and i can go hunting, im so psyched.
FUN CULTURAL FACTS TIME!
- as long as one has on a tie, you look "smart." so men here do not concern themselves with the length of the tie. so you're tie is only half or one-third the length of your chest, no worries.
- women kneel as part of their traditional greeting to men or older woman.
- the university has 2 push mowers which the mow the flat areas, which is only the football fields. the rest of the 80-plus acres are slashed with machetes since the university is on the side of a mountain. hard workers.
- lines are not a concept that has any value here. people do not wait in line, or stand in lines. or form themselves in line. if i line up behind someone, i expect to be helped next. but rather i will be passed by someone who will squeeze next to the person being helped. so i dont know if i'll ever get accustomed to a non-line system. i've only known lines since i learned them in preschool. its blowing my mind!
- we take tea everyday when i get home from school. tea time came with the british obviously. so i drink lots of tea. hot tea. i've introduced the idea of iced tea, but my family thinks its ridiculous. i'll make them try it.
- there are not ice cubes here, but there are lots of straws.
- affection. interesting. more affection is shown publicly between the same sex. close friends, who are guys, will hold hands as they walk and talk. romantic affection is not for public display. so i have had to hold hands twice during conversations. im still adjusting.
to come...
-going far north to for a "rural home stay" for 10 days. i'll be out of reach for that time.
so good morning. and in case i dont see you, good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight.
- spent a weekend in Luweero. spent a day at a Compassion International children's development center. met one of the director's, Emmanuel. talked awhile and he invited me to join his new holistic child development program after i graduate. another opportunity.
- maria, the 9-month baby, eats dirt and charcoal. i've caught her several times.
- the cosmic pterodactyl spreads it wings directly over my home. it followed me here i suspect.
- tony sent me this luganda proverb, "even a small boy can play the drum and the elder dances. so never undermine the young."
- found a fan for our room. its wonderful to have a breeze. cant open the windows b/c of the malaria mosquitos. dirty rascals.
- im the water runner now cuz i can carry to jerricans full of water at the same time. my family can't believe it. "it's like you're carrying nothing!" they cry.
- visited the sight where 26 ugandan christians were martyred in 1885 by king mwanga II.
-had lunch with boniface, from gulu, who has experienced the worst of the war in the north with the LRA. sad, sad, story.
- i have now had porridge several times now. it is something like oatmeal minus the oatmealish part. really, i think i like it.
- visited the Kasuubi tombs, the burial sight of four of Buganda's kings. one king, Mutesa I had 30-40 wives and 124 children and a pet leopard. his palace is now the largest grass-thatched hut in the world.
- visited another child development program called hope for youth uganda. i helped build a pig sty and played drums while the kids sang and dance. many could not believe a muzungu like me could play drums. they danced like they love to. its great !
- i killed and butchered a chicken.
- started running with my friend john. he's from gordon college. this means i can now shower on monday, wednesday, fridays. i especially like these days cuz it means i can get all the shampoo out of my hair.
- my musician friend ben calls me, nathan the percussion discussion.
- i have crossed paths with large groups of men jogging, chanting, and all carrying large sticks. this was especially nerve-racking the first time, me being the only white person around when a street full of stick-wielding men run towards me chanting. something uncomfortable about that. i found out later they are training to become police officers.
- our room was sporting a wretched stench for several days, so after a thorough search, martin and i found a dead and rotting rat corpse in his desk. stench is gone now compliments of strong and potent perfume.
- i have now caught many lizards. and large ones too.
- also we got a pet kitten to control the rat/mice population in our home. i had to name it. it is now nala. though most my family is not good with the letter "r," so it sounds more like nara. thats ok.
- i got a slingshot so tony and dennis and i can go hunting, im so psyched.
FUN CULTURAL FACTS TIME!
- as long as one has on a tie, you look "smart." so men here do not concern themselves with the length of the tie. so you're tie is only half or one-third the length of your chest, no worries.
- women kneel as part of their traditional greeting to men or older woman.
- the university has 2 push mowers which the mow the flat areas, which is only the football fields. the rest of the 80-plus acres are slashed with machetes since the university is on the side of a mountain. hard workers.
- lines are not a concept that has any value here. people do not wait in line, or stand in lines. or form themselves in line. if i line up behind someone, i expect to be helped next. but rather i will be passed by someone who will squeeze next to the person being helped. so i dont know if i'll ever get accustomed to a non-line system. i've only known lines since i learned them in preschool. its blowing my mind!
- we take tea everyday when i get home from school. tea time came with the british obviously. so i drink lots of tea. hot tea. i've introduced the idea of iced tea, but my family thinks its ridiculous. i'll make them try it.
- there are not ice cubes here, but there are lots of straws.
- affection. interesting. more affection is shown publicly between the same sex. close friends, who are guys, will hold hands as they walk and talk. romantic affection is not for public display. so i have had to hold hands twice during conversations. im still adjusting.
to come...
-going far north to for a "rural home stay" for 10 days. i'll be out of reach for that time.
so good morning. and in case i dont see you, good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
last tuesday - NRM Day!
- the players: dennis, tony, me, debbie, mary, jameisha
- objective: visit ssezibwa falls. catch a monkey.
- supplies: bananas we bought from the market, tropical trail mix (from america)
- taxi (15 passenger van) to tony's home (1,000 schillings = 50 cents).
- named tony's pigs wilbur and kunta kinte. we had cool drinks. we posed with spears then threw them. i missed the tree. but i killed a bush. tony gave me a traditional magic stick. it's a stick with a cow tail attached to the end. you dance with it for luck.
- Taxi to Ssezibwa Falls. Sorta. We had to walk most the way. And it was hot. i made alot of sweat
- The park costs 3000/= ($1.50). I climbed up the falls and found many offerings in the rocks on top of the falls. there were clay bowls and pots and gourds full of juice.
- i almost caught a frog.
- i stuck my face in the river above the falls. it was so hot and so my face was very relieved in the cool water.
- saw a green snake. i wanted to go down towards it but the guide would not let me.
- the story of the falls: so a woman gave birth to twins. not humans but two rivers. this river and the falls are a traditional Bugandan holy site. traditional worshippers come and offer sacrifices and offerings to the spirit of the river. it is believed to manifest itself in the form of a large snake that lives in a cave on top of the falls. this cave is full of clay pots and offerings and small spears. there are also many shells (sea shells were a form of currency in ancient times) and coffee beans (a symbol of unity) spread about the cave and outside.
- the guide told us about what i call "blood coffee." close close friends used to unify themselves by taking a coffee bean and cracking it open. they would take the two part seed and each take one piece. then they would cut themselves on the stomach and bleed on the coffee seed. they would then exchange the bloody coffee seeds and eat the others "blood coffee." like becoming blood brothers. this makes people even closer than family according to tradition. i asked dennis and tony if they wanted to do it and dennis said he would if tony would and tony said no way.
- we had "chips" for lunch. that is fries. i shared my tropical trail mix and tony and dennis, who had never had it, loved the stuff. great success!
- met a child named Saint Ivan on the walk back. actually he was following us so i introduced myself. he told me his name and that he was 10. moments later i looked down at him and he was smiling and looking up at me. then he reached and grabbed my hand.
- took a taxi back to mukono. ate a cooked banana.
- met up with dennis at 5 for tony's football match.
- good day.
- objective: visit ssezibwa falls. catch a monkey.
- supplies: bananas we bought from the market, tropical trail mix (from america)
- taxi (15 passenger van) to tony's home (1,000 schillings = 50 cents).
- named tony's pigs wilbur and kunta kinte. we had cool drinks. we posed with spears then threw them. i missed the tree. but i killed a bush. tony gave me a traditional magic stick. it's a stick with a cow tail attached to the end. you dance with it for luck.
- Taxi to Ssezibwa Falls. Sorta. We had to walk most the way. And it was hot. i made alot of sweat
- The park costs 3000/= ($1.50). I climbed up the falls and found many offerings in the rocks on top of the falls. there were clay bowls and pots and gourds full of juice.
- i almost caught a frog.
- i stuck my face in the river above the falls. it was so hot and so my face was very relieved in the cool water.
- saw a green snake. i wanted to go down towards it but the guide would not let me.
- the story of the falls: so a woman gave birth to twins. not humans but two rivers. this river and the falls are a traditional Bugandan holy site. traditional worshippers come and offer sacrifices and offerings to the spirit of the river. it is believed to manifest itself in the form of a large snake that lives in a cave on top of the falls. this cave is full of clay pots and offerings and small spears. there are also many shells (sea shells were a form of currency in ancient times) and coffee beans (a symbol of unity) spread about the cave and outside.
- the guide told us about what i call "blood coffee." close close friends used to unify themselves by taking a coffee bean and cracking it open. they would take the two part seed and each take one piece. then they would cut themselves on the stomach and bleed on the coffee seed. they would then exchange the bloody coffee seeds and eat the others "blood coffee." like becoming blood brothers. this makes people even closer than family according to tradition. i asked dennis and tony if they wanted to do it and dennis said he would if tony would and tony said no way.
- we had "chips" for lunch. that is fries. i shared my tropical trail mix and tony and dennis, who had never had it, loved the stuff. great success!
- met a child named Saint Ivan on the walk back. actually he was following us so i introduced myself. he told me his name and that he was 10. moments later i looked down at him and he was smiling and looking up at me. then he reached and grabbed my hand.
- took a taxi back to mukono. ate a cooked banana.
- met up with dennis at 5 for tony's football match.
- good day.
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