India. Very Good?

July 22 – August 1

UGANDA VS INDIA

India: Local food is da bomb! You can find moist cakes and good deserts. More people ask for tips even when they are just giving you directions for something you already know the location to. There is a stronger scent of urine in the big city. More wi-fi locations. Toll roads = less pot holes. Air conditioning and fans are in every shop/ hotel room. The street dogs are treated better and there are more. Things are cheaper. Smoking is VERY common to see in public. Drinking in public is less common. There are more street lights. More motorbike drivers wear helmets. Camels are a thing here. Cows can do and go wherever they want. Women have to be more covered up. Less ‘western’ clothes available. Less English spoken. More jewelry worn by men and women. More organized businesses/ customer service. MORE COCONUTS for me to enjoy! Pomegranates… those are just a few. Uganglish does not work... at all. 

Ten days spent roaming around India was good enough for me to experience enough of it. India can be a bit overwhelming and I’m glad it was the first part of our trip. We arrived at 3am, got driven to the main bazaar, and had our senses shocked by a powerful smell of urine when we had to walk down an alley to reach our hotel. We finally got settled into our hotel when the sun started rising at 5:30am. After having a 22 hour layover in the Qatar airport I was happy to crash on a real bed and get some shut eye.

We stayed at the Smyle Inn hotel for about 8 bucks a person each night. In the morning, or I should say afternoon by the time we got up, we made arrangements with the travel desk (conveniently located in the hotel) to go on a 7 day tour around Rajasthan in a private vehicle for the price of 150 USD per person. The trip included a driver, gas, and fees for the toll roads. With this option we had a lot more freedom to do what we wanted and see more things. If we would have taken the train we would have spent 135 USD for a 7 day railway pass and had to figure out transport to and from each palace, temple, fort, restaurant… you name it.

Originally we planned to hit just Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur. With our private ‘tourist’ vehicle and driver we were able to see New/ Old Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Judhpur, Ranakpur, Udaipur, and lastly Pushkar. Each of these places are known for something unique they either make or have locally along with the historical sites you could visit.

Delhi is the capitol where we wondered through the main bazaar, visited a local Hindu temple, drove around parliament buildings, and experienced the Lotus Temple for the Ba Hai religion.

Agra is home to the popular Taj Mahal and Red Fort of Agra where we wondered around aimlessly without a guide and played the real life version of ‘Choose Your Own Adventure.’ Agra is known for camel leather and inlayed marble.

Jaipur is home to the Amber Fort and Water Palace (a palace built in a lake). It is also known as the Pink City and silver is easy to come by here.

Judhpur is also known as the Blue City and has a fort/ palace located on top of a hill. It is known for textiles and spices.

After traveling for this amount of time I already started losing track of where and when we saw things. Palaces, Forts, Temples, and even the layout of cities all became a blur at this point.

Continuing…

Ranakpur is located near the Himalayas and is home to a beautiful Jainism Temple. When we were here we also experienced the traditional way to make floor mats with an old style loom. Some of the rugs we were shown take between 7 days and 7 months to make depending on the size and detail of the pattern.

Udaipur has a nice City Palace to walk around in that was occupied until the 1950s. The area is also known for its small detailed paintings and handmade journals.  

Pushkar is the last place we visited before venturing back to Delhi and was my favorite. It is a small city located near the desert where 3 of us rode camels and slept in the desert for the night. In the morning we rode camels back to town and walked around to look at crafts and drank green lassies while watching cows block traffic.

By far my favorite part about being in India has been the food! After depriving my taste buds in Uganda for over two years they deserved such wonderful food. Paneer (cheese). Naan (pita like bread). Cashew curry. Fresh coconut water. Mutter (peas).  Spices. Nom Nom Nom.

Very Good?

There is so much I could write about but I rather have people ask me questions about my experience when they see me or have an itching to ask.

Aloo Mutter (potato and peas!)

New Delhi

Ba Hai Lotus Temple. Made of marble and concrete

The trucks here are sooooo cool!

I present to you... the baby ka-Taj 

We made it!!!

Mosque next to the Taj

one of the 4 spires at the Taj

I sat on the actual bike seat... 

Red Fort in Agra... aka the giant maze!

Inlaying of marble. You can also find this detail in many Palaces and at the Taj Mahal

One of the many temples

The hidden jem we were taken to between Agra and Jaipur 

I like cool looking doors....

Bangles! 

I tried it... and it was HOTTT

India!

Fort in Jaipur I believe

The same fort from up close

One of the mirror rooms in one of the palaces... oops forgot which one

The Blue City, Judhpur

Sarah riding Johnny the camel

Look who we found in India!!! Craig and DJ!

Rice, Naan, and Paneer Tikka :)
My last meal in India and it was delish!

Next stop: NEPAL!!!! 

Qatar Layover 22 hours

I’m traveling with three other RPCVs from my group in Uganda (Kendra, Sarah, and Kristina) which gives me some sort of comfort that I am able to share these amazing experiences with them over the next few weeks.

Last night around 11am we arrived at Qatar International Airport for our 22 hour layover. We were hoping to get a hotel but there was an earlier flight to India they wanted to put us on that was full so… unfortunately we did not qualify for the free hotel room even though the flight they wanted us to get on was booked. It was a bummer but we found some comfy chairs in a semi-private area and passed out after a long day of travel. 

This is part of the indoor playground!

Managed around 6 hours of sleep

After wandering around all morning with our 20 QR food voucher we filled our bellies with food and set up a FREE three hour tour around Doha. We were the only ones going on a tour at midday which may have been idiotic because it was 113 degrees outside BUT we had the whole air conditioned coaster (mini bus) to ourselves. Another plus was that our guide and driver were both from Nepal, where we are going in two weeks! It was destined to be.

Qatar (Kut-er) has a population of around 2.1 million with a majority of its residents living in the capitol Doha. The currency of Qatar is Riyal and 1 USD = 3.6 QAR. Only 20% of the population are locals while the other 80% are foreign workers. The city of Doha is relatively new in the 1990s and is preparing for the World Cup in 2022 by building the largest football stadium. The architecture is bea-utiful here! We are experiencing the Islamic holiday of Ramadan, which last for a whole month and ends next week, with fun decorations all around but unfortunately a large majority of the shops are closed along with ALL of the restaurants because you fast from sunrise to sunset. This means no food or drink until it gets dark and our flight leaves just after the sun sets. Luckily we can still enjoy food at the airport.

This was designed by a Chinese-American to look like a covered Islamic woman.
The windows on the top are the eyes.

Persian Sea with Doha skyline

Open aired theater/ cinema used at night when it cools down

According to our tour guide the local residents make about 8,000 USD per month or 100,000 USD a year. With locals there is only a rich and a very rich class. Some of the individuals even own their own conservation area with camels, Oryx, and gazelles. Since Qatar is a desert they have to import and maintain any vegetation that they have. Their children get free education, health care, electricity in their house, and running water… at no cost. The 80% of foreign workers get anywhere between 300 to 10,000 USD a month with an average being closer to 3,000 USD.  

The lights and stars are decorations for Ramadan!

At the bottom of one of the residential buildings.
Armani shop to our left.

Qatar Riyals!

There is a manmade island in Doha with residential housing built around 3 marinas. Each area around the marinas can be home to up to 40,000 people. The ‘apartment’ building had shops and restaurants in them so you never really have to leave. I even saw a Ferrari dealership across the road from one of these residential buildings. You will notice most of the buildings are more of a natural color due to the amount of sandstorms. On average a small sandstorm will go through Doha once a week. 

Qatar is a peninsula surrounded by the Persian Sea on three sides with Saudi Arabia to the South. They are the number one exporter for natural gas and the 10^th for petrol. Petrol here is so cheap you can get 4 liters for 1 USD! While water on the other hand is more expensive because comes from the Persian Sea then goes through a desalinated process. After the desalinated process they add minerals although I am unsure of what kind and how much.

Hear no evil. See no evil. Speak no evil.
Artwork on the sea side

Simba!

The mustache was drawn on. haha. 

Camel Glam shop! Decorate your camel!

A bird trap shop :/

We were unsure if we were going to be able to afford leaving the airport on out RPCV budget but three hours was perfect J

Next Stop: INDIA!!!

RPCV!?

Thursday I officially completed my Peace Corps service and am now a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) from Uganda 2012-2014. I feel like I belong to a secret society now.

My last week at site was hectic completing the playground but… I DID IT! I also spent 7 days with Sipi before leaving him with his friends. His plan is to fly to America in October and he will be fostered with a family until I return. Right now I’m actually sitting at the Entebbe airport getting ready to leave J

My post Peace Corps plan is quite… epic. Traveling to Qatar, India, Nepal, Vietnam, Cambodi, Thailand, Singapore, then my last stop in the Philippines before moving to Taiwan for a teaching position. Crazy!

I have no regrets from these past two years and feel as though I am leaving Uganda on a good note. Who knows if I will ever return… there are just so many other places to see out in the world. 

Right now I am on vacation mode and will probably not be posting things for some time. When I have down time during my journey  I may write a few posts, but if you don’t hear from me for some time check back after I have some time to settle down in Taiwan (October).

Adventure time!

PHOTOS TO COME

Rukungiri. Miranda Memorial. The Village.

Almost two years ago after swearing in as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Uganda I traveled for 9 hours on a bus bound for Rukungiri in the southern hemisphere. Back then I had everything I owned in Uganda crammed into two large bags and a backpack, today I could fill the back of a pickup truck. The longer I have been here the more crap I accumulate. It feels good to say goodbye to it all. When I leave Uganda in a few weeks I will be traveling for nearly 2 and a half (2.5) months with nothing but a backpack. I decided to sell my hiking backpack and opt for a smaller backpack that I can take as a carry on while flying. I'm attempting the minimalist traveler lifestyle until I accumulate local crafts and momentos to bring back home. This shall be interesting but it is something I look forward to. Roughing it with a few change of clothes and what I think I need to get by. Then when I reach Taiwan to start my new job teaching English (why not?), I will accumulate a bunch of crap again.

Over the past few weeks I have been reflecting on my site quite a bit. I’ve had some good times, decent times, and rough times here in my little village. Two years ago I arrived at a primary school that was doomed to fail because the directors already had plans to close it down the following school year. Most volunteers would deem that worthy of a site change. Not having a defined role. No designated counterpart. Let us start off with the fact that I am NOT and Education volunteer. I guess that could actually be a good thing looking back…

I set up my house and walked to town often. I would walk to town 6-7 times a week which is about a 10 minute car ride or a 40 minute walk. When it would get late enough in the day I would walk back with my bag full of groceries and a watermelon under my arm.

During the dry season I would fetch my own water located at the school which is a quarter mile from my house. Some days I would carry 20 liters other days I would carry 160 liters and add it to my water tank.  Each 20 liter jerrycan weighs about 40lb. You do the math. Now picture a track field… that is walking the complete circle of the track once. May not seem too far to some of you but this water is in a plastic container (jerrycan) with handles that dig into your skin and you are carrying one in each hand (80lb).  The school used to have a bore hole with a bucket attached to a rope that would have to be pulled up. Now the school has a proper water pump. I still fetch my own water but it is easier to reach. During the wet season I have the roof and gutters to thank for feeding my 220 liter water tank.

Things may not have worked out with the primary school and it is unfortunate that a lot of my effort and time was washed away trying to improve something that didn’t have a future. I thought a few times about looking for a new organization to work with but for some reason I always made the decision to stay. They gave me freedom here to do what projects I wanted and to leave often to discover something new about Uganda. I made relationships throughout town that took months to form. I kept myself busy with camps and helping other volunteers with their successful events. After working hard and co-directing the National Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World) last fall I needed something new.

 I was back at site with little to do. I decided to write a grant for a playground. Great... but what if the school closes due to lack of funds. I am no omushabuzi (business women) and tried to help a local tailor with some new ideas and products but that failed. I tried encouraging the school to teach the kids how to make something worth selling for profit. Fail. I felt lost. But I can’t say I didn’t try. Lucky for me, a year and a half into my service  (January 2014) instead of the school completely failing they decided to turn the school into a PTC (Primary Teachers College). At first I was upset that they took my kids away but then I got over it and realized that this school is actually working. The new principal is great, the students are more responsible, the teachers no longer board at the school, the students actually pay their school fees, and the school has enough money to build real dorms. This also posed a problem that I have no connections with this new group of people. I got to know the students and the staff of the primary school. They knew who I was. These people have no idea who I am and why I am here. They don’t know that I have considered this place home for the past two years and that they are encroaching on my home. I felt violated at times being called Mzungu (foreigner/ white person/ etc) at the school I have worked at for almost two years. The staff would ask me for things because I somehow look like I have money with my dirty jeans and worn out shoes. For the first few weeks it was almost unbearable. This made me distance myself from getting to know the staff and students. I knew I was leaving soon and it would have made it harder for me to leave.

I have 4 days left at site. I am finishing my playground , selling my things, and packing out. It is bittersweet. At times this place really really sucked but when I came back after a few weeks or a long weekend I felt at home. The people in my village greet me by my name. The kids all know me because they attended the school. I always greet the traffic police on my walk to town and they always ask how Sipi (my dog) is doing. The first thing people ask me in town is either ‘Where is Sipi?’ or ‘How is Miranda?’ (the school I am at).

 I like it here but I am ready to leave. My time here in Rukungiri is coming to an end. Maybe someday I will be back… but there are so many other places in this world I look forward to seeing more. I have accomplished my goal and left a footprint. People know me and many of them know what I have done here. I taught lessons about life skills at the local community church and explored Planet Earth with the students at Miranda. I have succeeded if even one individual made reusable menstrual pads because I was able to pass on the knowledge. Everyone saw how well I treated a dog and some of them even began to understand why I was so compassionate to such a 'beast.' Lastly, I have built a dream and created a playground…fitting for someone who has a degree in Parks & Recreation.

Next week I will start my nomadic life for the next 3 months. Until I leave Uganda, I will spend a few days encouraging others that there is an end to this seemingly long journey and I get a week with my fuzzball Sipi before we part.

Here’s to tomorrow! Hoping to have a nearly completed playground ready to use!

My fuzzball, Sipi

Rukungiri Town

Locally made scrubs... heck yes

My compound... I live on the right in the row of doors somewhere

Walking to town... those buses fly by