When Rachel and I had said all are goodbyes, we were sad to be leaving Uganda but excited about seeing all of our friends and family at home. We were driven to the airport by the same taxi driver as when I went to Zanzibar so we were a little early and decided to sit in a small café area and play cards to pass the time. There was a man sitting at the table behind us who kept attempting to scratch his thought and making a horrible gargling noise. Rachel and I were nearly sick and were hoping that he wasn’t on our flight. When check-in opened, he queued up directly behind us to check-in for our flight. The thought of him sitting beside us for seven hours to Dubai seemed unbearable. Thankfully he wasn’t seated beside us but I could hear him when I walked past on a toilet trip.
We successfully made it to Addis Ababa where we were meant to just touchdown and take off again to head towards Dubai. Whilst on the ground, they found a leak in the plane and all passengers were asked to disembark the aircraft whilst they attempted to fix it. Rachel and I panicked to begin with as we knew that we had connecting flights to get in both Dubai and Heathrow to catch. After waiting in the Ethiopian airport for a few hours, we were informed that we would have to spend the evening in a hotel and fly out 24 hours later than scheduled. We were both frustrated as now that we had started travelling, we just wanted to get home.
The hotel that they put us up in for the evening was beautiful and even had a bath! Something which was had not seen in four months. They supplied us with three good meals and then we were shuttled back to the airport the following day. They had kept our luggage overnight but we had to collect it at the airport the following morning and check it in again. My patience began to decrease whilst standing in the line as the Ethiopians kept pushing to the front of the queue. Apparently Africans do not understand this concept.
Three hours later, Rachel and I reached the front of the queue. Originally our luggage had been checked in directly from Entebbe right through to Belfast but they informed us that we would have to pick it up in London Heathrow. After a few minutes, the man informed us that he was able to check it in the whole way through which was a relief to Rachel and me as we knew we had quite a tight connecting time. The computer system crashed during our check-in though so although both of our luggages was going all the way to Belfast along with me, the y could only check Rachel in to London Heathrow and she would have to check-in again there.
This was fine until we reached London. When Rachel went to check-in, they said that it was unlikely that they were going to get her onto the flight. I didn’t know what to do as I would have to pay for another ticket home if I didn’t take my seat that had been booked but I didn’t want to leave her behind. Thankfully they were able to get her on the flight although we were not seated together.
Fifty hours later, we touched down in Belfast City airport. Neither of us had ever been so glad to see Northern Ireland in our entire lives. The wait for our luggage was rather short but it felt like a lifetime when we knew your families were waiting around the corner to give us a huge hug. Mum, Dad and my brother were all there to welcome me home with huge smiles on their faces (and a few tears from mum). What more could I ask for?
Friday, 25 June 2010
Saying my goodbyes!! :(
The last few days in Kampala were the hardest of all. I hated saying my goodbyes when leaving home, but it was even more difficult in Uganda as I don’t know if I am ever going to see some of the people ever again.
I returned to Montessori for one final time and gave them lots of resources to use in their classroom. They were so grateful for them and I was greeted by 28 little children hugging my legs once again. It was very difficult to say goodbye to them but I’m glad that I can leave knowing that they all are safe and come from good homes and will be looked after.
The street boys on the other hand were a different matter. I had such a passion for these boys that I asked my dad to contribute into helping one of them start a business. I was able to help Ronald, one of the older street kids, to set up his own rolex (of the food variety) business. He now has the opportunity to make some money to support himself but also has to give a tiny bit back each week to HM who is looking after it for me. Overtime, the money that Ronald gives back will be enough to start another street boy in his own business. Hopefully over time, many of them will be able to benefit from this idea. Saying my goodbyes to them was emotional but they are strong boys and I know that my other friends in Uganda will continue to look after them for me. Someday I will return to see them again!
On Tuesday evening, HM ended up in hospital with malaria. This was not the way in which I planned to say goodbye to him as I didn’t want to leave knowing he was unwell but thankfully he managed to recover and pay us a short visit on our final evening.
Rachel and I both enjoyed our last evening in Uganda so much. We were invited round to Kate’s house for dinner with her and HM and then preceded onto Bubbles to meet some friends and finished the night in Iguanas with some dancing. It was a great night and definitely a great way to finish our once in a lifetime trip to Uganda but it was really sad as well. I don’t want to single anyone out but some of my goodbyes were rather emotional. I did manage to hold back the tears though which is surprising for me. Whether I knew the people for the entire four months, or just a few weeks as it neared an end, I loved every single one of the new friends I made and I hope that the friendships will continue for life!
I returned to Montessori for one final time and gave them lots of resources to use in their classroom. They were so grateful for them and I was greeted by 28 little children hugging my legs once again. It was very difficult to say goodbye to them but I’m glad that I can leave knowing that they all are safe and come from good homes and will be looked after.
The street boys on the other hand were a different matter. I had such a passion for these boys that I asked my dad to contribute into helping one of them start a business. I was able to help Ronald, one of the older street kids, to set up his own rolex (of the food variety) business. He now has the opportunity to make some money to support himself but also has to give a tiny bit back each week to HM who is looking after it for me. Overtime, the money that Ronald gives back will be enough to start another street boy in his own business. Hopefully over time, many of them will be able to benefit from this idea. Saying my goodbyes to them was emotional but they are strong boys and I know that my other friends in Uganda will continue to look after them for me. Someday I will return to see them again!
On Tuesday evening, HM ended up in hospital with malaria. This was not the way in which I planned to say goodbye to him as I didn’t want to leave knowing he was unwell but thankfully he managed to recover and pay us a short visit on our final evening.
Rachel and I both enjoyed our last evening in Uganda so much. We were invited round to Kate’s house for dinner with her and HM and then preceded onto Bubbles to meet some friends and finished the night in Iguanas with some dancing. It was a great night and definitely a great way to finish our once in a lifetime trip to Uganda but it was really sad as well. I don’t want to single anyone out but some of my goodbyes were rather emotional. I did manage to hold back the tears though which is surprising for me. Whether I knew the people for the entire four months, or just a few weeks as it neared an end, I loved every single one of the new friends I made and I hope that the friendships will continue for life!
Safari at Murchisson Falls
Friday morning was an early start as we headed to the Red Chillis Backpackers to begin our safari journey. We had a long six hour drive to reach Murchisson Falls National Park so had a pit-stop in Masindi on route for some lunch. When we finally arrived, we went for a walk up around the famous waterfall before heading back to camp for dinner. It was beautiful to stand a listen to the flowing water and learn all about its history.
Well our plan was to head back to camp for dinner anyway. Our bus broke down on the journey from the waterfall to camp and we had to wait around for an hour whilst they sent another one from camp to collect us. We had some fun climbing trees in the middle of the park whilst we waited but were glad to finally reach camp by the time we got there. On arrival, they greeted us and gave us a safety talk. The only thing that I remember from the entire talk was that the hippos like to come out of the water during the night and wander around the campsite, so if you hear a hippo, don’t get out of your tent! Alarm bells went off in my head at this point but thankfully I didn’t hear any hippos on either of the nights that I stayed.
Up bright and early the following morning, we began our game drive at 6.30am. We had to leave this early in order to see all the animals as they tend to hide away as the day goes on due to the heat. We managed to see a wide variety of animals including baboons, warthogs, buffalo, giraffes, elephants and lions. I think we were very lucky to see the lions as one of the guys back at the game said he had never seen a lion and had worked there for over a year. We also saw the crane which is the national bird of Uganda, but unfortunately we didn’t manage to see the leopard that the other group did. Their photos looked amazing.
After some lunch back at camp, we headed out on a boat cruise down the Nile to see the hippos and crocodiles. Before getting on the boat, everyone was scared of getting sun burnt but unfortunately the weather went the opposite way for us and it began to rain. They had to attempt to pull down the sides of the boat to keep us dry, but this proved to be a difficult task due to the wind. My contribution wasn’t much appreciated at the time as I sat and took photos of everyone fixing it, but they did appreciate them after when they could add them to their memories. We made our way down the Nile to the waterfall again and were able to see it from another angle. It was a beautiful afternoon and definitely a worthwhile trip.
Back at camp again on the Saturday evening, we sat in the restaurant and socialized with some of the new people we had met. Turns out that two of the boys we met stayed in the same hostel as us back in Kampala. This was really nice as it meant that we had made new friendships that could continue after our few days on safari. Toilet trips in the dark were also quite eventful during that evening. Tent ropes in the dark are never a good thing.
Sunday was our final day on safari when we headed to a rhino sanctuary to go rhino trekking. On route, our bus got a flat tyre so we had yet another delay but we were soon on our way. It was amazing to go on foot around the sanctuary as you felt so close to the animals. It was a little scary as the guide told us to climb a tree if one charged at us and I could not see many trees around but thankfully this was never an issue.
We made our way back to Kampala after a fun filled weekend with plenty of memories, laughs and photos to remember it forever. I’m so glad that I was able to fit this adventure in before the end of my trip.
Well our plan was to head back to camp for dinner anyway. Our bus broke down on the journey from the waterfall to camp and we had to wait around for an hour whilst they sent another one from camp to collect us. We had some fun climbing trees in the middle of the park whilst we waited but were glad to finally reach camp by the time we got there. On arrival, they greeted us and gave us a safety talk. The only thing that I remember from the entire talk was that the hippos like to come out of the water during the night and wander around the campsite, so if you hear a hippo, don’t get out of your tent! Alarm bells went off in my head at this point but thankfully I didn’t hear any hippos on either of the nights that I stayed.
Up bright and early the following morning, we began our game drive at 6.30am. We had to leave this early in order to see all the animals as they tend to hide away as the day goes on due to the heat. We managed to see a wide variety of animals including baboons, warthogs, buffalo, giraffes, elephants and lions. I think we were very lucky to see the lions as one of the guys back at the game said he had never seen a lion and had worked there for over a year. We also saw the crane which is the national bird of Uganda, but unfortunately we didn’t manage to see the leopard that the other group did. Their photos looked amazing.
After some lunch back at camp, we headed out on a boat cruise down the Nile to see the hippos and crocodiles. Before getting on the boat, everyone was scared of getting sun burnt but unfortunately the weather went the opposite way for us and it began to rain. They had to attempt to pull down the sides of the boat to keep us dry, but this proved to be a difficult task due to the wind. My contribution wasn’t much appreciated at the time as I sat and took photos of everyone fixing it, but they did appreciate them after when they could add them to their memories. We made our way down the Nile to the waterfall again and were able to see it from another angle. It was a beautiful afternoon and definitely a worthwhile trip.
Back at camp again on the Saturday evening, we sat in the restaurant and socialized with some of the new people we had met. Turns out that two of the boys we met stayed in the same hostel as us back in Kampala. This was really nice as it meant that we had made new friendships that could continue after our few days on safari. Toilet trips in the dark were also quite eventful during that evening. Tent ropes in the dark are never a good thing.
Sunday was our final day on safari when we headed to a rhino sanctuary to go rhino trekking. On route, our bus got a flat tyre so we had yet another delay but we were soon on our way. It was amazing to go on foot around the sanctuary as you felt so close to the animals. It was a little scary as the guide told us to climb a tree if one charged at us and I could not see many trees around but thankfully this was never an issue.
We made our way back to Kampala after a fun filled weekend with plenty of memories, laughs and photos to remember it forever. I’m so glad that I was able to fit this adventure in before the end of my trip.
The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music
On Thursday 13th May, The Ugandan Amateur Dramatics Society were presenting ‘The Sound of Music’ in the National Theatre. Rachel and I decided to go and support the event as one of our friends who is volunteering in Uganda on a gap year was participating in it. It was a really lovely evening and a high standard of production. The little children who played the Von Trapp family were excellent for their age and made you smile throughout the entire performance. In the middle of the performance, a bat flew into the auditorium from backstage and unsettled the audience but the performers continued as normal. I was unable to get involved in something like this in Uganda as I was only there for four months but it has made me consider going back to my childhood and joining something similar again.
Zanzibar
After going to bed at 2am, I was woken by a phone call from the taxi driver at 4.37am to tell me that he was waiting for me outside. He wasn’t meant to be there until 5.15am, so I had to jump out of bed, got washed, dressed and head down to meet him. He drove me to the airport and we arrived at 6am. I had told him that I didn’t need to be there until 7.30am but he was being safe I suppose, so I had to wait for an hour and a half before check-in. Everything went smoothly in the airport and I managed to get some sleep on the rather turbulent journey to Zanzibar. When I arrived in Zanzibar I had to get a visa. I was a little confused when the man asked me for US$100 as I was expecting it to be US$50. Apparently Irish citizens have to pay more than British ones which is the opposite from Uganda.
After making my way to the hostel and getting settled in, I decided to go for a walk around the capital of Stonetown. It was a beautiful quaint town with lots of tiny shops and stalls to look around. The only problem was that everyone kept trying to persuade me to buy their things as I was travelling around alone. The girls who had been studying in Zambia were due to arrive the following morning, so I passed some time shopping, grabbed a bit to eat for dinner and then resorted to my hostel room by 7pm to watch a few dvds as I didn’t want to be out in the street on my own after dark.
After eating a yummy breakfast on the roof top terrace of the hostel, I was rather excited about seeing Kirsty and Rachel. When I returned to my room, I received a text from Kirsty saying that their train to Dar Es Saleem had broken down and that they would not arrive in Zanzibar until the following afternoon. So that meant another day of chilling out on my own in paradise. Some people may think of this as idyllic but it did get rather lonely.
By lunchtime on Tuesday, the girls FINALLY arrived. We dropped their bags off to the hostel and then went for a catch-up lunch. It was great to hear all of their stories as I could relate to so many of them. There were so many similarities in our experiences but they were totally unique at the same time. Later that evening we headed to a food market at the marina. It was beautiful and reminded me of the continental market at the City Hall during the Christmas period. We tried a few of the local dishes including chocolate and banana pizza and sugar cane juice. They were both pretty tasty.
By Wednesday, we decided to head up to the northern part of Zanzibar to hit the beach. We chose to stay at Nungwi in a place called Jambo Brothers. The first room they tried to give us had a leaky sink, no toilet seat and the door wouldn’t lock, so we ended up getting moved to another room. The room didn’t matter to us thought when we saw the beach. The sand was white and the water was turquoise. It was how you would imagine paradise.
African culture was paramount in Nungwi. Everything just took so long as they were so laid back about everything and never in a hurry. Kirsty and I ordered a fruit salad at the restaurant and we honestly thought that they were growing the fruit for us; it took that long to come.
The weather on Thursday, our first full day at the beach was awful. It poured down the entire day. It eased off a little at one point but it wasn’t for long as it soon started to empty again. Being from Northern Ireland we are used to the rain, but it’s not meant to rain in the paradise island of Zanzibar. We decided to try and not let it dampen our spirits and went for a swim in the sea anyway. It did reach the point where we had to go inside though but it was still nice to be able to catch up with the girls.
The sun was out in all its glory the following morning so the three of us were on the beach from bright and early. By 9am the heat was powerful. As we lay there, several beach boys approached us to try and sell us their things. Their ‘names’ made me laugh as they included Barack Obama and Stevie Wonder. We had a great time sunbathing, playing with the beach ball and also learning some Swahili.
Saturday was my final day in Zanzibar with the girls before heading back to Kampala to see Rachel again. We began the day on the beach once again and lay there for the majority of the morning. By the early afternoon, it was too hot to lie out so we decided to go and get some milkshakes instead. Later in the afternoon I spent my final time on the white sanded beach before heading for a shower. One of the Israeli boys we met informed us that there was hot water if you flicked a switch around the back of your room. I was so excited to finally have hot water but angry that I hadn’t realised before this.
My final night in Zanzibar included a party on the beach. This is a weekly occurrence in Zanzibar at the Kendwa resort so we headed there with some of the other travellers that we had met. Rachel decided to stay behind as she was feeling unwell but Kirsty and I had a great night just dancing away to all the African tunes that we had learnt over the few months and the old faithful that you know from home too. It was a great way to end my time in Zanzibar.
During my week in Zanzibar (East coast of Tanzania), I had a wonderful time and it was nice to get away from the city like ways of Kampala for a while. I think it has made me realise how little time I have left here thought and that I need to make the most of it and squeeze in every little memory that I can. Kirsty and Rachel have already left Zambia for good and miss it so much, and this has made me realise how much I am going to miss Uganda. I may not have learnt much in Zanzibar, other than a few Swahili terms and tasted new foods, but it was definitely a worthwhile experience and one I would never change.
After making my way to the hostel and getting settled in, I decided to go for a walk around the capital of Stonetown. It was a beautiful quaint town with lots of tiny shops and stalls to look around. The only problem was that everyone kept trying to persuade me to buy their things as I was travelling around alone. The girls who had been studying in Zambia were due to arrive the following morning, so I passed some time shopping, grabbed a bit to eat for dinner and then resorted to my hostel room by 7pm to watch a few dvds as I didn’t want to be out in the street on my own after dark.
After eating a yummy breakfast on the roof top terrace of the hostel, I was rather excited about seeing Kirsty and Rachel. When I returned to my room, I received a text from Kirsty saying that their train to Dar Es Saleem had broken down and that they would not arrive in Zanzibar until the following afternoon. So that meant another day of chilling out on my own in paradise. Some people may think of this as idyllic but it did get rather lonely.
By lunchtime on Tuesday, the girls FINALLY arrived. We dropped their bags off to the hostel and then went for a catch-up lunch. It was great to hear all of their stories as I could relate to so many of them. There were so many similarities in our experiences but they were totally unique at the same time. Later that evening we headed to a food market at the marina. It was beautiful and reminded me of the continental market at the City Hall during the Christmas period. We tried a few of the local dishes including chocolate and banana pizza and sugar cane juice. They were both pretty tasty.
By Wednesday, we decided to head up to the northern part of Zanzibar to hit the beach. We chose to stay at Nungwi in a place called Jambo Brothers. The first room they tried to give us had a leaky sink, no toilet seat and the door wouldn’t lock, so we ended up getting moved to another room. The room didn’t matter to us thought when we saw the beach. The sand was white and the water was turquoise. It was how you would imagine paradise.
African culture was paramount in Nungwi. Everything just took so long as they were so laid back about everything and never in a hurry. Kirsty and I ordered a fruit salad at the restaurant and we honestly thought that they were growing the fruit for us; it took that long to come.
The weather on Thursday, our first full day at the beach was awful. It poured down the entire day. It eased off a little at one point but it wasn’t for long as it soon started to empty again. Being from Northern Ireland we are used to the rain, but it’s not meant to rain in the paradise island of Zanzibar. We decided to try and not let it dampen our spirits and went for a swim in the sea anyway. It did reach the point where we had to go inside though but it was still nice to be able to catch up with the girls.
The sun was out in all its glory the following morning so the three of us were on the beach from bright and early. By 9am the heat was powerful. As we lay there, several beach boys approached us to try and sell us their things. Their ‘names’ made me laugh as they included Barack Obama and Stevie Wonder. We had a great time sunbathing, playing with the beach ball and also learning some Swahili.
Saturday was my final day in Zanzibar with the girls before heading back to Kampala to see Rachel again. We began the day on the beach once again and lay there for the majority of the morning. By the early afternoon, it was too hot to lie out so we decided to go and get some milkshakes instead. Later in the afternoon I spent my final time on the white sanded beach before heading for a shower. One of the Israeli boys we met informed us that there was hot water if you flicked a switch around the back of your room. I was so excited to finally have hot water but angry that I hadn’t realised before this.
My final night in Zanzibar included a party on the beach. This is a weekly occurrence in Zanzibar at the Kendwa resort so we headed there with some of the other travellers that we had met. Rachel decided to stay behind as she was feeling unwell but Kirsty and I had a great night just dancing away to all the African tunes that we had learnt over the few months and the old faithful that you know from home too. It was a great way to end my time in Zanzibar.
During my week in Zanzibar (East coast of Tanzania), I had a wonderful time and it was nice to get away from the city like ways of Kampala for a while. I think it has made me realise how little time I have left here thought and that I need to make the most of it and squeeze in every little memory that I can. Kirsty and Rachel have already left Zambia for good and miss it so much, and this has made me realise how much I am going to miss Uganda. I may not have learnt much in Zanzibar, other than a few Swahili terms and tasted new foods, but it was definitely a worthwhile experience and one I would never change.
3 weeks left!!
My official time in Uganda is now over but I am so glad that I decided to stay in Africa for an extra few weeks before returning to reality. There are so many things that I have wanted to do during my time here that I have not yet experienced. Over the next three weeks, I will try to keep you all updated on the many adventures I hope to have. I am heading to Zanzibar tomorrow and a safari will definitely be squeezed in somewhere before I leave. Hope everyone is doing well at home, and I do apologise to all my friends at Stran for having so much fun when you are all stressing on teaching practice. But then again, you did all have the option to study abroad too!! See you all in three weeks.
Love Natalie
Love Natalie
Week 13: My final week in school and the scariest moment of my life
Personal and Cultural Development
As this was yet another stressful week full of lesson planning and resources making, Rachel and I didn’t really get up to many other adventures. We did decide to treat ourselves to a yummy Chinese on Tuesday evening though after both having our tutor visits earlier that day. We headed to the Red Lantern and ordered some dinner including prawn crackers. When they arrived, the crackers were a variety of colours including pink, green and blue. They seemed a little odd but we munched away at them anyway. Rachel ended up spending the remainder of the evening being sick. We are unsure if this was anything to do with the crackers but it seems quite likely as I was also ill the following day. This is just a warning against multicoloured prawn crackers for all of you!!
On Friday evening, Rachel and I headed out for dinner with a few friends. Unfortunately, one of our friends had received some bad news this day so we spent the evening trying to cheer her up. After dinner at Javas, we headed to the good old faithful of Emin Pasha for some live jazz music and then onto Iguanas for some dancing. It was a lovely chilled evening to celebrate the end of teaching practice.
Although it was a struggle, I managed to pull myself out of bed and down to Zai Plaza (a Ugandan shopping mall) for 9am this morning to get my nails done. Wasswa, the nail artist was so excited when I told him that I was heading to Zanzibar the following morning and ensured me that he was going to make my nails look amazing and then I could advertise for him whilst I was away. They did indeed look very good. Everyone commented on them. I’m not sure whether people will want to travel from Tanzania to Uganda thought to get their nails done though.
I spent the rest of Saturday morning sorting out money and other bits and pieces for heading to Zanzibar. Around lunchtime, I headed to Kiwumu slums to visit the street kids and prepare lunch for them once again. Kate and I headed deep into the slum to buy some beef and rice. The rice bag split on the way back but luckily we managed to save it. Whilst dinner was cooking, some of the boys were playing football. Next thing we knew, one of the boys was lying on the pitch. Kate initially ran over to see if he was okay, but after realizing something was wrong, Rachel and I rushed over to attempt to help her. He was unconscious but we didn’t want to move him in case he had any unseen injuries. Whilst Kate and Rachel attended to the boy, I phoned Roscoe (the man in charge at our hostel) and asked him for advice on how to get him to the hospital. Roscoe immediately came to the slum and offered to take him but by this stage (20 minutes later), the girls had managed to get the boy to come round and he didn’t need to be taken to the hospital. Thankfully HM arrived not long after this so he was able to speak to him in Luganda and check that he was fine. This has to be one of the scariest moments of my life. We had no idea who to contact or what to do if the boy died. Did anyone care enough about these boys to come and help?
On Saturday evening, Rachel had organized tickets for us to go and see a talent show in the school that she has been teaching in over the past few weeks. After a long trek down a muddy road, we reached a beautiful school. It was far more westernized than the one that I had been teaching in and seemed to be well equipped. When Rachel had mentioned a talent show, I assumed that it would be in a small assembly hall with a few acts, and a barely audible sound system. Boy was I wrong. They had put in so much effort for the occasion. A stage like you would see at a Snow Patrol concert back home had been erected on their football pitch and they had djs and lights galore. At the interval, they even had local artists perform. Rachel and I had no idea who they were but the kids were going crazy at the thought of them being there. To be honest, I thought that the kids who performed were better than the artists.
Professional Development
This was my final week teaching in Montessori Children’s Academy and involved many different lessons once again. I had the opportunity to go swimming with my Year 2 (primary 3 in Northern Ireland) and get into the pool with the children. Teacher Jen had reminded me on Friday to bring my swimming things to join them in pool and then ended up forgetting her stuff herself. I do feel that it was beneficial to be in the pool with the children as I was able to encourage them to progress a little deeper into the water, which they were comfortable to do when they knew I was there to help them. One little boy kept pretending that he was drowning even though he was a strong swimmer. My stomach was in my mouth most of the time trying to ensure that everyone was safe.
On Tuesday morning, both of my tutors came to visit me during the same lesson. I initially panicked a little at the thought of six adults (the two tutors, the teacher and three classroom assistants) all watching me teach, but it all went well. They both gave me positive reports and said that I would be a great teacher if I continue to teach in the way that I did.
I had the opportunity in school this week to teach the children some more songs. They really enjoyed ‘Our God is a Great Big God’ and ‘I may never fly like Superman’. They were still singing them out in the playground for days afterwards. We also had several weddings in the playground this week. Different members of the classroom were being matchmakers, pairing the others and having a wedding ceremony at lunchtime. One of the little boys even asked me to marry him. He came in the following day and told me that he had to call the wedding off as his daddy told him that he wasn’t allowed to marry anyone older than him and started crying. He wasn’t too upset though as he ended up marrying one of the girls in the class by lunchtime.
Friday was my final day in Montessori. As glad as I was to finish my entire lesson planning, I hated the thought of leaving all of my pupils behind. We spent the day learning about the water cycle and taking lots of photographs to concrete the memories that had been formed there. Teacher Jen helped the children make cards for me during their art lesson and I received a huge hug from every individual before I left (even the boys who are ‘too cool’). One of the little boys told me that he was going to hug me forever as he didn’t want me to leave. I hope to return and visit them again before I return to Northern Ireland.
As this was yet another stressful week full of lesson planning and resources making, Rachel and I didn’t really get up to many other adventures. We did decide to treat ourselves to a yummy Chinese on Tuesday evening though after both having our tutor visits earlier that day. We headed to the Red Lantern and ordered some dinner including prawn crackers. When they arrived, the crackers were a variety of colours including pink, green and blue. They seemed a little odd but we munched away at them anyway. Rachel ended up spending the remainder of the evening being sick. We are unsure if this was anything to do with the crackers but it seems quite likely as I was also ill the following day. This is just a warning against multicoloured prawn crackers for all of you!!
On Friday evening, Rachel and I headed out for dinner with a few friends. Unfortunately, one of our friends had received some bad news this day so we spent the evening trying to cheer her up. After dinner at Javas, we headed to the good old faithful of Emin Pasha for some live jazz music and then onto Iguanas for some dancing. It was a lovely chilled evening to celebrate the end of teaching practice.
Although it was a struggle, I managed to pull myself out of bed and down to Zai Plaza (a Ugandan shopping mall) for 9am this morning to get my nails done. Wasswa, the nail artist was so excited when I told him that I was heading to Zanzibar the following morning and ensured me that he was going to make my nails look amazing and then I could advertise for him whilst I was away. They did indeed look very good. Everyone commented on them. I’m not sure whether people will want to travel from Tanzania to Uganda thought to get their nails done though.
I spent the rest of Saturday morning sorting out money and other bits and pieces for heading to Zanzibar. Around lunchtime, I headed to Kiwumu slums to visit the street kids and prepare lunch for them once again. Kate and I headed deep into the slum to buy some beef and rice. The rice bag split on the way back but luckily we managed to save it. Whilst dinner was cooking, some of the boys were playing football. Next thing we knew, one of the boys was lying on the pitch. Kate initially ran over to see if he was okay, but after realizing something was wrong, Rachel and I rushed over to attempt to help her. He was unconscious but we didn’t want to move him in case he had any unseen injuries. Whilst Kate and Rachel attended to the boy, I phoned Roscoe (the man in charge at our hostel) and asked him for advice on how to get him to the hospital. Roscoe immediately came to the slum and offered to take him but by this stage (20 minutes later), the girls had managed to get the boy to come round and he didn’t need to be taken to the hospital. Thankfully HM arrived not long after this so he was able to speak to him in Luganda and check that he was fine. This has to be one of the scariest moments of my life. We had no idea who to contact or what to do if the boy died. Did anyone care enough about these boys to come and help?
On Saturday evening, Rachel had organized tickets for us to go and see a talent show in the school that she has been teaching in over the past few weeks. After a long trek down a muddy road, we reached a beautiful school. It was far more westernized than the one that I had been teaching in and seemed to be well equipped. When Rachel had mentioned a talent show, I assumed that it would be in a small assembly hall with a few acts, and a barely audible sound system. Boy was I wrong. They had put in so much effort for the occasion. A stage like you would see at a Snow Patrol concert back home had been erected on their football pitch and they had djs and lights galore. At the interval, they even had local artists perform. Rachel and I had no idea who they were but the kids were going crazy at the thought of them being there. To be honest, I thought that the kids who performed were better than the artists.
Professional Development
This was my final week teaching in Montessori Children’s Academy and involved many different lessons once again. I had the opportunity to go swimming with my Year 2 (primary 3 in Northern Ireland) and get into the pool with the children. Teacher Jen had reminded me on Friday to bring my swimming things to join them in pool and then ended up forgetting her stuff herself. I do feel that it was beneficial to be in the pool with the children as I was able to encourage them to progress a little deeper into the water, which they were comfortable to do when they knew I was there to help them. One little boy kept pretending that he was drowning even though he was a strong swimmer. My stomach was in my mouth most of the time trying to ensure that everyone was safe.
On Tuesday morning, both of my tutors came to visit me during the same lesson. I initially panicked a little at the thought of six adults (the two tutors, the teacher and three classroom assistants) all watching me teach, but it all went well. They both gave me positive reports and said that I would be a great teacher if I continue to teach in the way that I did.
I had the opportunity in school this week to teach the children some more songs. They really enjoyed ‘Our God is a Great Big God’ and ‘I may never fly like Superman’. They were still singing them out in the playground for days afterwards. We also had several weddings in the playground this week. Different members of the classroom were being matchmakers, pairing the others and having a wedding ceremony at lunchtime. One of the little boys even asked me to marry him. He came in the following day and told me that he had to call the wedding off as his daddy told him that he wasn’t allowed to marry anyone older than him and started crying. He wasn’t too upset though as he ended up marrying one of the girls in the class by lunchtime.
Friday was my final day in Montessori. As glad as I was to finish my entire lesson planning, I hated the thought of leaving all of my pupils behind. We spent the day learning about the water cycle and taking lots of photographs to concrete the memories that had been formed there. Teacher Jen helped the children make cards for me during their art lesson and I received a huge hug from every individual before I left (even the boys who are ‘too cool’). One of the little boys told me that he was going to hug me forever as he didn’t want me to leave. I hope to return and visit them again before I return to Northern Ireland.
Week 12 and school takes over, just like at home!!
Personal and Cultural Development
This week was probably the hardest for me so far as I have been stressing a little bit with planning lessons for Montessori and making all the resources that go along with that, but I had a lovely day on Saturday. Rachel and I decided to spend a day at the pool with our friend Kate. This task wasn’t as simple as we first thought though. We ended up visiting four different pools before we found one that was open. One had a wedding around the pool, another was under construction and one was just closed. By the time we eventually began to lie by the pool, the sun started to go behind the clouds. Typical. Rachel and decided to make full use of the treatments that the hotel offered instead and decided to get a full body massage. When they say full body, they really do mean it. We also spent some time in the steam room and sauna. It was lovely just to relax and enjoy.
Later on Saturday evening, Rachel and I headed to the slums to see the street kids with Kate and HM. We decided to make them rolex for dinner as a special treat but it definitely seemed like a better idea at the time. We began at 6pm and by 11.15pm no-one had yet eaten. When they were finally ready, the boys loved them so they were worth the wait. During the 5 hour wait, some of the boys were teaching me some more Luganda and others were teaching me some new dance moves. They seem to think that I need to improve mine. We had such a good evening just hanging out and having fun with the boys. One of the boys asked me to be his mum which is really difficult, especially since Rachel and I do not have much longer left in Kampala but it’s also a privilege. I love these boys to bits and they are definitely going to be the hardest ones to leave when we have to return to Northern Ireland.
Sunday morning was quite an experience in church too. Rachel was feeling unwell so I decided to go to Watoto church with our other Irish friend. We were running a little late but there were still a few seats in the main auditorium. An usher guided us to seats right at the VERY front of the church, directly behind the pastor. It was a little intimidating but I really enjoyed the service.
Professional Development
I spent this week in school again and taught a variety of lessons including tenses, time, communication and diseases. I also got the opportunity to take my class swimming. This was great as I got to chat to the children on the bus there and get to know them a little better. Some of them were petrified of the water and I spent most of my time trying to encourage them. Coach Isaiah has even asked me to join the children in the pool next week. This is something that would never be allowed due to child protection in Northern Ireland, but I think it will be very beneficial to the children’s progress.
This week seemed pretty intense with the amount of preparation I had to do for lessons. All resources had to be hand-made due to a severe lack of teaching resources within the classroom. I sat on Monday evening and made 28 individual clocks using card and drawing pins in order to teach my class about time on Tuesday. Hopefully they will be able to use them within their class again though.
I have taught my favourite lesson so far this week. My class was learning about different forms of communication including letter writing. To encourage the children to write these letters, I arranged to set up pen pals with children in a school in Northern Ireland. My pupils were so excited to learn about children at the other side of the world and eager to write to them. We finished this lesson by allowing the children the opportunity to see ‘Skype’ as a form of communication. I had organised for my brother to be online to talk to them. They were amazed that they were able to see and talk to someone in Northern Ireland. Their little faces were a picture. My poor brother got asked the same questions over and over again though. What is your name? What age are you? When is your birthday? What football team do you support? Do you have a super cool sister?
As well as teaching my favourite lesson so far this week, I also taught the most difficult one. I was given the title of ‘The six immunisable diseases in childhood’. The children probably knew more about the topic before the lesson than I did. I had to do a lot of research before this lesson and eventually decided to attempt roleplays with the class but this was an absolute disaster. The children are not used to learning in this way at all and seemed pretty confused by the whole concept. I hope to get the opportunity to attempt this method of teaching again to show both the teachers and pupils that learning does not always have to be stuck behind a desk.
This week was probably the hardest for me so far as I have been stressing a little bit with planning lessons for Montessori and making all the resources that go along with that, but I had a lovely day on Saturday. Rachel and I decided to spend a day at the pool with our friend Kate. This task wasn’t as simple as we first thought though. We ended up visiting four different pools before we found one that was open. One had a wedding around the pool, another was under construction and one was just closed. By the time we eventually began to lie by the pool, the sun started to go behind the clouds. Typical. Rachel and decided to make full use of the treatments that the hotel offered instead and decided to get a full body massage. When they say full body, they really do mean it. We also spent some time in the steam room and sauna. It was lovely just to relax and enjoy.
Later on Saturday evening, Rachel and I headed to the slums to see the street kids with Kate and HM. We decided to make them rolex for dinner as a special treat but it definitely seemed like a better idea at the time. We began at 6pm and by 11.15pm no-one had yet eaten. When they were finally ready, the boys loved them so they were worth the wait. During the 5 hour wait, some of the boys were teaching me some more Luganda and others were teaching me some new dance moves. They seem to think that I need to improve mine. We had such a good evening just hanging out and having fun with the boys. One of the boys asked me to be his mum which is really difficult, especially since Rachel and I do not have much longer left in Kampala but it’s also a privilege. I love these boys to bits and they are definitely going to be the hardest ones to leave when we have to return to Northern Ireland.
Sunday morning was quite an experience in church too. Rachel was feeling unwell so I decided to go to Watoto church with our other Irish friend. We were running a little late but there were still a few seats in the main auditorium. An usher guided us to seats right at the VERY front of the church, directly behind the pastor. It was a little intimidating but I really enjoyed the service.
Professional Development
I spent this week in school again and taught a variety of lessons including tenses, time, communication and diseases. I also got the opportunity to take my class swimming. This was great as I got to chat to the children on the bus there and get to know them a little better. Some of them were petrified of the water and I spent most of my time trying to encourage them. Coach Isaiah has even asked me to join the children in the pool next week. This is something that would never be allowed due to child protection in Northern Ireland, but I think it will be very beneficial to the children’s progress.
This week seemed pretty intense with the amount of preparation I had to do for lessons. All resources had to be hand-made due to a severe lack of teaching resources within the classroom. I sat on Monday evening and made 28 individual clocks using card and drawing pins in order to teach my class about time on Tuesday. Hopefully they will be able to use them within their class again though.
I have taught my favourite lesson so far this week. My class was learning about different forms of communication including letter writing. To encourage the children to write these letters, I arranged to set up pen pals with children in a school in Northern Ireland. My pupils were so excited to learn about children at the other side of the world and eager to write to them. We finished this lesson by allowing the children the opportunity to see ‘Skype’ as a form of communication. I had organised for my brother to be online to talk to them. They were amazed that they were able to see and talk to someone in Northern Ireland. Their little faces were a picture. My poor brother got asked the same questions over and over again though. What is your name? What age are you? When is your birthday? What football team do you support? Do you have a super cool sister?
As well as teaching my favourite lesson so far this week, I also taught the most difficult one. I was given the title of ‘The six immunisable diseases in childhood’. The children probably knew more about the topic before the lesson than I did. I had to do a lot of research before this lesson and eventually decided to attempt roleplays with the class but this was an absolute disaster. The children are not used to learning in this way at all and seemed pretty confused by the whole concept. I hope to get the opportunity to attempt this method of teaching again to show both the teachers and pupils that learning does not always have to be stuck behind a desk.
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