It hardly seems possible that I am already nearly half way through my time here in Uganda. I’ve settled into a very different way of life and I cannot imagine how I shall cope with the climate in England after the glorious heat and sunshine of this place.

Power cuts are a way of life in Jinja although I suspect that they are less frequent or prolonged here than in some other parts of Uganda.  In our apartment we are entirely dependent on electricity for lighting, cooking and our luxurious, hot shower.  We had been on the look out for cheap bedside lights as, once cocooned under the mosquito net at night, it’s a faff having to get out to turn off the main light, which isn’t very effective for reading anyway.  The recently purchased solar powered lantern did not prove to be up to the task but it came into its own when we were plunged into darkness for the very first time. Nevertheless, we still soon turned in for an early night. The lantern broke shortly afterwards but since then we have bought two ‘LED super capacity emergency lights’, which are easy to charge and really quite bright. It is impossible to predict when a power cut may occur or for how long it will last.  On the Saturday night of the music festival the organisers experienced a lot of problems with the sound system, which they put down to voltage fluctuations.

We now have a contingency plan for the odd occasion when we arrive home from work and the power is off.  We are lucky to have hotels with generators within walking distance of our apartment.  Sadly, the light starts to fade here before 7.00pm, and so where possible, we set off to find some supper before it gets completely dark.   It does mean that, on the way back, we have to cross one of the most poorly maintained main roads in Jinja complete with road works, armed only with a torch and bicycle light.  On Tuesday we were forced to put the plan into action but were delighted to find a very pleasant outdoor restaurant attached to a local guesthouse.  The mains power was only restored as we were finishing our meal and so we were pleased not to have stayed at home hoping that the supply would be swiftly restored. My least favoured time for a power cut is actually first thing in the morning, not because of the cold shower, but due to the fact that I cannot make a hot drink.  Our little fridge frequently leaks water but most foods survive the power cuts surprisingly well apart from cheese, which does not seem to be very fresh anyway.

The external appearance of the wiring in our apartment generally appears better than I might have expected. However, there is only one rather dodgy looking socket in our kitchen, which we rather foolishly managed to overload whilst trying to juggle kettle, little electric hob and fridge with an extension lead.  The socket looks more singed than ever now and so we have had to transfer our cooking facilities to the sitting room, which is otherwise fairly devoid of furniture but boasts three sockets.  An added complication is the fact that a lot of the appliances available in the shops have two pin plugs even though the sockets are three pin.

Our newly purchased kettle stopped working within a couple of days.  The kettle itself wouldn’t connect properly to the base and so we returned it to the shop. We were a little taken aback when the assistant very willingly and painstakingly took it apart there and then, did a bit of gluing and gave it back to us. It worked for a couple of goes but then the problem returned. So back we went and the process was repeated.  This time we managed to boil the kettle successfully five times.  Chloe returned to the shop yet again and this time had sterner words with the assistant.  We have no idea what he did differently that time but the kettle is still going strong!

On Tuesday I accompanied Susan to the District Education Office.  She wanted to ensure that the letter giving Irise permission to run menstrual health education sessions in schools was still valid.  The system is such that one simply has to turn up at the offices rather than attempting to arrange a specific appointment time in advance.   I think that Susan was hoping to speak to the District Education Officer but they did not appear to be around.  However, after a very short time we were ushered in to see the Inspector of Schools for Jinja.  He was extremely convivial and only too willing to support the sessions.  Indeed he tried to persuade us to visit secondary schools too and I was most surprised when he suggested that we should also establish a peer education programme.  This is something that I had already been thinking about particularly as it has been successfully used in HIV prevention programmes.

As I understand it, all Ugandan children are now entitled to free primary education but families still have to buy uniforms and books etc. However, there are real problems with the quality of teaching. The teachers are poorly paid and payment is often not forthcoming.  As a consequence, teachers often take one or two other jobs such that their attendance in school is poor, and strikes are frequent.  There appear to be a lot of NGOs working in schools. I don’t know whether or not technically we actually need the letter to work legitimately in schools.  However, the charity quite rightly prefers to go through the official channels and it also seems to make it easier to gain entry into individual schools. Apparently Kenya keeps a register of NGOs but nothing similar seems to exist in Uganda.  Unfortunately, I doubt that anyone monitors the quality of the NGOs input or considers how it sits within the broader school curriculum.

Chloe and I also had a chance to meet all the Irise educators this week to get their views of the programme and their aspirations for the future.  The meeting was due to start at three o’clock but by half past three only two or three people had arrived. However, Susan assured us that the rest were on their way and we were finally able to start in earnest at four thirty!

Last Sunday we took a daytime boda trip and instead of going into town headed out into the countryside to Bujagali along the east bank of the Nile. Although it is difficult not to be a little concerned at the poor safety record of bodas (one of the educators was actually injured trying to get to our meeting), this trip was idyllic.  We found a lovely restaurant for lunch perched above the river with vervet monkeys swinging in the trees around us. There was only one other group lunching and, as always, the food and service was excellent. We then headed down to the lake. Jinja is renowned for its adventure activities such as white water rafting. However, the construction of various dams has led to the submerging of some falls such as those at Bujagali, which means the relocation of activities and the apparent loss of income for the associated local services.  Whenever we arrive anywhere there always seems to be somebody ready and willing to take us around, presumably hopeful of earning a little money.  Chloe isn’t always very keen on having an escort but I enjoy the opportunity it gives me to learn more about the local way of life.  On this occasion I wandered around with Tom largely learning about how life had been before the disappearance of the falls. 

We had arranged to meet Amelia later that afternoon at a hotel with a swimming pool some distance way, so necessitating another boda ride. Normally, Chloe sits behind me as it is less comfortable at the very back and she has more protective padding.  It was an unfortunate time to swap positions as this particular driver drove very fast over rough, hilly terrain and I am still nursing a tender coccyx. Part way through the journey it was apparent that we were running out of petrol.  The driver conserved fuel whilst going down hill but we still eventually ground to a halt. We dismounted, he tipped the bike over and then we were able to progress a little further to a ‘village’.  The driver called out and immediately a man appeared with a small water bottle filled with a pink liquid. This was poured into the tank, payment made and we were off again!

Our Ugandan colleagues had already suggested to us that we find a regular boda driver. John had seemed a very good driver on the way out and was obviously local to us and so we took his mobile number and arranged for him to collect us at the end of the day.  He now regards us as his ‘friends’. He doesn’t come that cheap and it’s always difficult to judge whether or not we are being charged a fair price although we have to bear in mind that collecting us from town may in effect be a double trip for him.  However, it does mean that we can avoid going with a random driver at night particularly as once or twice we have come to the conclusion that they have been drunk. I am looking forward to riding my bike again!