After riding in a small crowded van over bumps and potholes for 5 hours, we finally arrived in Kapchorwa, Uganda, where we would spend the next 9 days for our rural homestays. Most students were alone with their families, but I stayed with another USP student, Shanley. Our family was incredible!! Our host dad, Moses, was a reverend and stayed home during the day. Our mom, Justine, was a 3rd grade teacher. Our little sister, Isabella, was a little devil!! She was extremely ornery...but she was cute when she slept! haha! Our house was made of sticks and mud.
I don't have enough room to tell everything we did that week...but I'll tell some of the highlights! We helped fetch water from the well every day. It was a 10 min. walk downhill to the well, then a 15 min. hike back uphill, which wasn't very fun. Shanley and I felt like such weaklings compared to the other women, esp. our host mom! We struggled carrying one bucket of water each while out mother carried one on her head and 2 buckets with her hands, while being 8 months pregnant! wow...
While there, I slaughtered my first chicken :) I stepped on its wings, held its head with my right hand, then sawed its neck with my left hand. Descriptive enough?? We then poured boiling water over the chicken; this helps remove the feathers. We then cut the guts out, then cut the chicken into pieces (wing, leg, thigh, etc.) After cooking for a couple of hours, we had chicken that night with our supper! I killed another chicken later in the week...same process.
One day we went with our mom and dad to the prenatal check-up. The nurses tested them again for HIV. The nurse showed me how to perform the HIV test, then how to read the results. That was really neat!
2 days while we were there, our dad took us hiking. We hiked to the top of a cliff, overlooking one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen. We could see so far into the distance, where the land and sky blended together in a beautiful blue color. I'll post pics on Facebook!!
Our family didn't have electricity,either, of course, so we spent the evenings talking by the light of the lantern. We absolutely loved our time with our Kapchorwa family.
There's so much more to tell, but I'll wait til I get home to share all the stories!!
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