Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Tuesday, 30 October 2012
Final dinner in Entebbe!
Team Uganda are enjoying their final supper in Entebbe after a long journey south today from Murchison Falls. They will shortly be heading for the check in desks at Entebbe airport in preparation for their nine hour flight home!
Monday, 29 October 2012
Team Uganda en route to ZIWA Rhino Sanctuary...
Inspire Update:
Team Uganda 2012 left the Red Chilli Rest Camp at 6.30am (local time). They have now left Murchison Falls National Park (2 hour drive from accommodation to the National Park exit) and they are nearly in Masindi on their way to Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary.... see link below...
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| Approaching the urban area of Masindi in North-West Uganda |
Rhinos at Ziwa
GAME DRIVE & MURCHISON FALLS
Team Uganda 2012 had an early start this morning starting with a game drive through the park, viewing animals very much in their natural environment and searching for movements of animals through the long grass on either side of the safari tracks.
This afternoon they have been to Murchison Falls (a geography paradise), also known as Kabarega Falls. At the top of Murchison Falls the Nile forces its way through a 7 metre gap in the rock and tumbles 43 metres through the gorge before flowing west into Lake Albert. It is hydraulic power... in action!
The group have seen hippos, elephants, giraffes and crocodiles to name a few animals!
The group went on a boat trip close to the falls (see image below) and it was 'awesome!' What a great way to finish off a sensational expedition!
This afternoon they have been to Murchison Falls (a geography paradise), also known as Kabarega Falls. At the top of Murchison Falls the Nile forces its way through a 7 metre gap in the rock and tumbles 43 metres through the gorge before flowing west into Lake Albert. It is hydraulic power... in action!
The group have seen hippos, elephants, giraffes and crocodiles to name a few animals!
The group went on a boat trip close to the falls (see image below) and it was 'awesome!' What a great way to finish off a sensational expedition!
Boat Safari to the base of Murchison Falls
Murchison Falls
Message for Parents - Return time to LP....
It is still a couple of days away, but we anticipate that Team Uganda 2012 will return to Field House car park at school between 8.45am and 9.15am on Wednesday 31st October, provided there are no delays! I will post any changes or updates on this blog!
Sunday, 28 October 2012
Red Chilli Hideaway!
Team Uganda 2012 have experienced a long journey up to Murchison Falls today from Jinja... 7 hours was the predicted journey time, but it was more realistically 11 hours, but remember......TIA ("THIS IS AFRICA" as we taught students before they departed LP!) The team eventually made it to the Murchison Falls National Park entrance at 3pm (local time) after stopping for lunch in Masindi and it took the group a further two hours to get into the depths of the National Park (roads were waterlogged in places due to intense convectional rainfall)!
At 7pm (UK time) I am pleased to write that all students were reported as being in their beds after enjoying supper in the restaurant (see image below), and they are now no doubt either sleeping, or listening to the sound of hippos in the distance! It will be an early start tomorrow morning! It is a beautiful setting and they certainly deserve the rest and excitement coming up tomorrow.
From Jinja at dawn to Masindi for lunch to Murchison Falls National Park this afternoon
Team Uganda 2012 arrived at their accommodation at 6.45pm (local time) this evening
The restaurant area at Red Chilli Rest Camp where the team enjoyed dinner earlier
Saturday, 27 October 2012
Off to Murchison Falls National Park
Following out project work in and around Jinja, on the northern shores of Lake Victoria, we leave at dawn tomorrow for the Murchison Falls National Park.
Our journey will take us north from Kampala via Nakasongola to Masindi, where we will stop for lunch. The geographers among you will be interested to know that we will then be touching the edge of the Rabongo forest before driving through the park itself to the top of the Murchison Falls and scenic views down over the Nile. We will then drive back to our accommodation at Red Chilli Rest Camp.
The journey to the park is expected to take seven hours.
Our journey will take us north from Kampala via Nakasongola to Masindi, where we will stop for lunch. The geographers among you will be interested to know that we will then be touching the edge of the Rabongo forest before driving through the park itself to the top of the Murchison Falls and scenic views down over the Nile. We will then drive back to our accommodation at Red Chilli Rest Camp.
The journey to the park is expected to take seven hours.
SITE WORK IS COMPLETE!
CONGRATULATIONS & WELL DONE TEAM UGANDA 2012!
You have done an absolutely amazing job and the pictures on this blog show all of your hard work and effort which will be appreciated by so many people in Jinja.
Final work/site text update..... "Today the team finished re-painting the outside of the YMCA nursery at 4.30pm (local time) and it looks... AWESOME! They absolutely love it!"
To celebrate the hard work of all of the members of the Bujagali Trust, Inspire and LP the whole of Team Uganda 2012 are enjoying a treat meal out in Jinja as I write (with some meat no doubt) before embarking on their safari journey to Murchison Falls in North-West Uganda early tomorrow morning!
On behalf of all at LP we would like to thank the Bujagali Trust for working with us so closely in England and in Uganda, but especially for their dedication to our school projects. Sue, Rich and Emma... it is very, very much appreciated. THANK YOU!
Photos below from the YMCA nursery earlier this afternoon and tonight's dinner in Jinja.
Friday, 26 October 2012
Facelift for YMCA Bujagali Nursery
Half of the 'Team Uganda' group began work at a local nursery this morning. Our task, quite simply, was to clean off all of the old, deteriorating paintwork and repaint the facade, giving the nursery a freshen up. With pictures, numbers and the alphabet to add, along with trust logo, there is still much to do in the morning.
We worked throughout the day scraping, sanding and painting a few coats on what is a very long building, but by the time we needed to pack up for the night all agreed that great progress has been made. The plan is to return in the morning to complete the job before having an afternoon off to explore parts of Jinja. We will then return to pack ready for an early departure to Murchison Falls on Sunday morning.
We worked throughout the day scraping, sanding and painting a few coats on what is a very long building, but by the time we needed to pack up for the night all agreed that great progress has been made. The plan is to return in the morning to complete the job before having an afternoon off to explore parts of Jinja. We will then return to pack ready for an early departure to Murchison Falls on Sunday morning.
New awning at Sonrise orphanage
Having had our work curtailed by rain yesterday, many of the group returned to Sonrise early this morning in an attempt to complete the task of erecting an awning for the young children.
Although the framework for the covering had been put together, there was still much to do. Posts were sunk into the ground and concreted in to ensure long term stability. The covering itself, 5m x 4m, consisted of a layer of tarpaulin laid over the framework with sections of bamboo matting laid on that. It was a very satisfying task for those who saw it through from the planning stage to the end and is a wonderful addition to the facilities at the orphanage.
The pictures below show the finished product and the awning before being added to the posts.
Although the framework for the covering had been put together, there was still much to do. Posts were sunk into the ground and concreted in to ensure long term stability. The covering itself, 5m x 4m, consisted of a layer of tarpaulin laid over the framework with sections of bamboo matting laid on that. It was a very satisfying task for those who saw it through from the planning stage to the end and is a wonderful addition to the facilities at the orphanage.
The pictures below show the finished product and the awning before being added to the posts.
Thursday, 25 October 2012
New benches for the local church
With our work at Valley View complete the team hurried back to Jinja to begin two more projects. The first was a lean-to awning to provide shade at the Sonrise orphanage and the second was to construct a dozen benches for the local church.
Rain hampered the progress of the awning but the general framework for the construction is ready and should be completed tomorrow morning.
The church benches have been put together with local labour. The wood was cut, shaped and then sanded before construction. We made good progress with this and had time to varnish all twelve before the end of a long but very productive day.
When we attended the church service last Sunday there were a number of people left standing at the back and this afternoon's work will have guaranteed more seating as the church continues its attempt to expand its influence in the community.
Rain hampered the progress of the awning but the general framework for the construction is ready and should be completed tomorrow morning.
The church benches have been put together with local labour. The wood was cut, shaped and then sanded before construction. We made good progress with this and had time to varnish all twelve before the end of a long but very productive day.
When we attended the church service last Sunday there were a number of people left standing at the back and this afternoon's work will have guaranteed more seating as the church continues its attempt to expand its influence in the community.
PTA and Bujagali Trust books link!
The Leighton Park PTA has raised monies to purchase books for schools in Africa and three weeks ago approached the Bujagali Trust's UK manager, Sue Symonds, to enquire as to how that might be managed. Sue responded immediately with a number of options for schools in Uganda and, as a result, the PTA sent the trust a cheque for £400.
This arrangement was entirely separate from the current Uganda trip but, by pure coincidence, Sue arrived in Jinja yesterday for one of her many visits each year.
With Valley View being one of the many schools that the trust supports the staff and pupils received a welcome boost this morning when Sue arrived to hand out exercise books and pencils for every child in the school. Some of the LP students working at Valley View today helped her give out the books and the excitement in every classroom was clear to see.
With text books to follow at Valley View and a number of other schools in Jinja the trust are clearly spreading the PTA donation around.
It was a real privilege to see the effect of this donation as it took place. Thank you to the PTA and thank you to the trust in managing this so swiftly as to enable our students to be a part of the process.
The photos below say it all!
This arrangement was entirely separate from the current Uganda trip but, by pure coincidence, Sue arrived in Jinja yesterday for one of her many visits each year.
With Valley View being one of the many schools that the trust supports the staff and pupils received a welcome boost this morning when Sue arrived to hand out exercise books and pencils for every child in the school. Some of the LP students working at Valley View today helped her give out the books and the excitement in every classroom was clear to see.
With text books to follow at Valley View and a number of other schools in Jinja the trust are clearly spreading the PTA donation around.
It was a real privilege to see the effect of this donation as it took place. Thank you to the PTA and thank you to the trust in managing this so swiftly as to enable our students to be a part of the process.
The photos below say it all!
Work completed at Valley View School
Our work at Valley View was completed today. The painting of the well documented kitchen was finished and it now sits very proudly, like the other buildings, boasting the school colours.
Other projects completed included the painting of two classrooms with the addition of some intricate educational diagrams and the construction of football goals for the small recreational area at the back of the school. The goals generated considerable interest from the pupils but after their completion there was a near riot when we produced a ball for them to play with! A small sided game very quickly became a mass football festival with even a couple of staff joining in. The goals have clearly been a welcome addition to the facilities!
Other projects completed included the painting of two classrooms with the addition of some intricate educational diagrams and the construction of football goals for the small recreational area at the back of the school. The goals generated considerable interest from the pupils but after their completion there was a near riot when we produced a ball for them to play with! A small sided game very quickly became a mass football festival with even a couple of staff joining in. The goals have clearly been a welcome addition to the facilities!
Text message update from Jinja...
.. Text message received from Elen (Inspire Assistant Leader) at 8pm (UK time) this evening....
"Hello! Just texting at the end of a great night. We had a quiz hosted by 'Quizmaster Mark' and questions and tasks were prepared by the students. Today was a really productive day and now Valley View School has a newly painted kitchen and classrooms with artistic diagrams and pictures painted on the walls. Some students even squeezed in some teaching! Later this afternoon at Sonrise childrens and babies home we built some benches for their church and also an awning respectively. Energy is high here and everyone feels happy with the progress made today!"
SLEEP WELL TEAM UGANDA 2012! REALLY GREAT WORK!
Uganda's Oakview...
.... At 1pm (UK time) the finishing touches to Uganda's Oakview at Valley View School in Nakabanga district were completed and here is the finished kitchen that cooks food for over 300 children and staff everyday (see image below)
Absolutely..... FANTASTIC!
Well done Team Uganda 2012 for your hard work and efforts over the last couple of days! I am so proud of you all and also of Team Uganda 2010 for starting the development project and for aptly naming the kitchen 'Oakview'! The whole LP community raised the funds to enable this to happen and everyone is really happy with this amazing finished product! Thank you to you all, especially to the Bujagali Trust team in Jinja and Inspire Worldwide and our very own community in Reading for making this happen. This has been a challenging project but one that is so very worthwhile!
Very well done... Caroline :)
Absolutely..... FANTASTIC!
Well done Team Uganda 2012 for your hard work and efforts over the last couple of days! I am so proud of you all and also of Team Uganda 2010 for starting the development project and for aptly naming the kitchen 'Oakview'! The whole LP community raised the funds to enable this to happen and everyone is really happy with this amazing finished product! Thank you to you all, especially to the Bujagali Trust team in Jinja and Inspire Worldwide and our very own community in Reading for making this happen. This has been a challenging project but one that is so very worthwhile!
Very well done... Caroline :)
OAKVIEW IS COMPLETE!
Update from Jinja:
Team Uganda 2012 have literally just completed the finishing touches to the 'Oakview' kitchen at Valley View Primary School! This is fantastic news and shows the real result of a longer term sustainable development project from the foundations being dug two years ago to a fully renovated kitchen today. This really will make the lives of so many children in the Nakabanga community so much better! Outstanding team effort LP! Well done to everyone! Thank you especially to the Bujagali Trust (www.bujagalitrust.org) for all of your help and support in making this project so successful for everyone involved.
Lots of exciting things have happened this morning at Valley View with funds raised by LP.... so keep watching this blog for a photograph update and a full review from Team Uganda 2012 when they get time and internet access at their guesthouse!
The group are now en route from Nakabanga district to Sonrise orphanage in Jinja town to make some wooden benches for the church (where they attended the service on Sunday). Keep up the good work Team Uganda!
Wednesday, 24 October 2012
LP returns to Valley View School!
Team Uganda followed in the footsteps of the 2010 group today when they visited Valley View Primary, the scene of four days of project work two years ago.
The tasks for the day included the refurbishment of two classrooms and painting the school's kitchen.
One of the classrooms was painted on the previous trip and then had intricate educational diagrams painted on the wall. Today this room has been completely repainted and the finer pictures will be added tomorrow.
The school kitchen (Oakview) was started during the 2010 project work and completed a few weeks later. It was aptly named by members of that group and has been a talking point here in the last few days. Today, the group were excited about completing the task as the kitchen has never been properly painted in the school colours.
The porous brickwork needed a thorough rubbing down before an undercoat was added. By the end of the day the deep red bottom colour had been started. Our 'Oakview in Africa' will be properly finished tomorrow!
The pictures below show the kitchen earlier today and the old kitchen in action. The old kitchen has been used as a store for the last two years but today it was brought out of retirement whilst the new kitchen was out of action. It will amaze many readers that this little old shack was producing lunches for 300 pupils before! Footnote: it was good to see dinner plates donated by Leighton Park still being used today, two years on!
The tasks for the day included the refurbishment of two classrooms and painting the school's kitchen.
One of the classrooms was painted on the previous trip and then had intricate educational diagrams painted on the wall. Today this room has been completely repainted and the finer pictures will be added tomorrow.
The school kitchen (Oakview) was started during the 2010 project work and completed a few weeks later. It was aptly named by members of that group and has been a talking point here in the last few days. Today, the group were excited about completing the task as the kitchen has never been properly painted in the school colours.
The porous brickwork needed a thorough rubbing down before an undercoat was added. By the end of the day the deep red bottom colour had been started. Our 'Oakview in Africa' will be properly finished tomorrow!
The pictures below show the kitchen earlier today and the old kitchen in action. The old kitchen has been used as a store for the last two years but today it was brought out of retirement whilst the new kitchen was out of action. It will amaze many readers that this little old shack was producing lunches for 300 pupils before! Footnote: it was good to see dinner plates donated by Leighton Park still being used today, two years on!
Tuesday, 23 October 2012
Project work at Sonrise orphanage
Today we returned to Sonrise to work and help make a difference to the home and it's surrounds. With the buildings having been recently renovated there was a fair bit of debris around the site and under seriously hot sun one group spent three hours removing broken bricks, broken glass, stones and waste left by the builders. Under Sally's guidance they also levelled off sections of the garden which has initiated a safer play area for the children who live there.
A second group spent most of the day sanding down and painting the new water tank at the orphanage. This was no straightforward task as the sanding produced considerable dust and the porous nature of the tank's construction meant that two undercoats had to be applied with the required drying time. During the afternoon they pressed on with the main colour and just managed to complete their task before we packed up for the night.
A smaller group spent the afternoon at the children's home down the road constructing small football goals from felled trees! This did present a challenge but, with the help of a couple of locals and the arrival of extra tools, the goals were completed just before the end of the day. We hope to return before the end of the week to add nets.
Pictures below from today:
THANK YOU LP FUNDRAISERS & SPONSORS!
After so much fundraising and sponsoring within the LP community and outside of the community in 2012 (Reading Half Marathon, South Downs Walk, Nightrider to name just some of the events that have taken place) we decided to contribute our funds to the building of the water tank at Mutai Secondary School in Jinja. This was completed in August, but yesterday, Team Uganda 2012 saw it for themselves and they received an amazing welcome from the Mutai community and Headmaster as the local people knew exactly that our LP team represented the school that provided them with a water tank that could store 20,000 litres of water for them to access on their doorstep! Wow.... what an emotional moment!
THANK YOU!
THANK YOU!
Monday, 22 October 2012
Mutai visit (sport)
Something amazing happened yesterday just prior to our football at Mama Jane's. Most of their boys walked to the field in shoes, but then took them off to play football in bare feet!
The same happened today with all of the home players in bare feet apart from 'George', a very talented player, whose skills and ball control were that good we videoed him keeping a ball up in the air at the end of the match.
Clearly up against it with skilful and athletic opponents our chances were not helped by searing heat and a pitch of varied lengths of grass! In parts it was knee length, in others bare earth. Putting the right weight on a pass was going to be a challenge but the LP tactic of not using the facilities on offer and hoofing it upfield proved useful whilst Jack and Henry had the energy to chase everything up front.
Trained observers in the game will know that such tactics are rarely successful and, as fatigue set in, attempts to 'play the ball around' were frustrated when either the ball or worse, one of our midfield quartet, got caught up and/or disappeared in the long grass! James, Jordan, Tommy and even the taller Simon all came unstuck in these conditions. A half time score of 1 - 1 was a tribute to the resolute defending of our back four of Alex M, Tom R, Kit and Jonny B and some acrobatic saves from Francois. Sadly, it wasn't to last! As the local primary school flooded out to boost the home support the men of LP wilted under the African sun or got waylaid looking for each other in the long grass! Three further goals for the home side saw the Mutai boys run out 4 - 1 victors but football, fellowship and friendship were the winners! It was a match these boys will never forget!
After lunch, the girls hurriedly organised themselves in preparation for their netball match. The match started on a court with no lines and with a public footpath running through it! The match rules were slightly different to what we are used to as well with no offside rule, no footwork rule, no replay ball and there was certainly contact! It was 'go anywhere you like' netball but, the LP girls quickly adjusted to match their barefooted opponents. The stifling heat and undulating nature of the ground tested the stamina and strength of the visitors who never gave up! The score ebbed and flowed as both sides took the lead at different times. Rossy,Helen and Nicole were the goal scores with Finty and Maya working tirelessly in the centre. Many a home attack came to nothing due to the sterling defence; Martha and Charlotte holding firm there. At the end of a competitive game the final score was 13 - 13 and so, unlike the boys, the girls remain unbeaten in Africa!
The same happened today with all of the home players in bare feet apart from 'George', a very talented player, whose skills and ball control were that good we videoed him keeping a ball up in the air at the end of the match.
Clearly up against it with skilful and athletic opponents our chances were not helped by searing heat and a pitch of varied lengths of grass! In parts it was knee length, in others bare earth. Putting the right weight on a pass was going to be a challenge but the LP tactic of not using the facilities on offer and hoofing it upfield proved useful whilst Jack and Henry had the energy to chase everything up front.
Trained observers in the game will know that such tactics are rarely successful and, as fatigue set in, attempts to 'play the ball around' were frustrated when either the ball or worse, one of our midfield quartet, got caught up and/or disappeared in the long grass! James, Jordan, Tommy and even the taller Simon all came unstuck in these conditions. A half time score of 1 - 1 was a tribute to the resolute defending of our back four of Alex M, Tom R, Kit and Jonny B and some acrobatic saves from Francois. Sadly, it wasn't to last! As the local primary school flooded out to boost the home support the men of LP wilted under the African sun or got waylaid looking for each other in the long grass! Three further goals for the home side saw the Mutai boys run out 4 - 1 victors but football, fellowship and friendship were the winners! It was a match these boys will never forget!
After lunch, the girls hurriedly organised themselves in preparation for their netball match. The match started on a court with no lines and with a public footpath running through it! The match rules were slightly different to what we are used to as well with no offside rule, no footwork rule, no replay ball and there was certainly contact! It was 'go anywhere you like' netball but, the LP girls quickly adjusted to match their barefooted opponents. The stifling heat and undulating nature of the ground tested the stamina and strength of the visitors who never gave up! The score ebbed and flowed as both sides took the lead at different times. Rossy,Helen and Nicole were the goal scores with Finty and Maya working tirelessly in the centre. Many a home attack came to nothing due to the sterling defence; Martha and Charlotte holding firm there. At the end of a competitive game the final score was 13 - 13 and so, unlike the boys, the girls remain unbeaten in Africa!
Mutai visit (part 2)
Following the art session we had an official welcome from the Mutai Head, Emma. He explained, in some detail, just what our support for his school has meant, not just for Mutai, but the whole community. The Bujagali Trust has constructed classrooms in the last six months and the addition of the water tank allows for 20,000 litres of water to be stored when full.
The official welcome ended with local children singing and dancing for us before we replied with a near perfect rendition of 'Oh Happy Day' which had the school community joining in!
Lunch was taken in a classroom before our afternoon challenge of taking on the Mutai School senior teams at football and netball.
The official welcome ended with local children singing and dancing for us before we replied with a near perfect rendition of 'Oh Happy Day' which had the school community joining in!
Lunch was taken in a classroom before our afternoon challenge of taking on the Mutai School senior teams at football and netball.
Mutai School visit (part 1)
Today's visit to Mutai Secondary School has allowed our students to engage with their Ugandan counterparts in a number of different ways.
The morning session was an art partnership where students from both schools paired up. The aim of this was to encourage interaction and to produce murals from their own thoughts and imagination. The session was led by Angelo, a local artist, who encouraged and cajoled everybody to think freely and express themselves. The initial ideas for each partnership was to produce two individual paintings. The challenge for each pair was then to produce a combination of the two on a canvas.
Quite apart from the obvious aim of producing a 'team' work of art (and there were some excellent exhibits at the end) the session demanded communication between the individuals in each pair and, thus, conversations developed beyond what was being produced on the canvas. It was an inspiring session and many surprised themselves with their final results!
Message from the Bujagali Trust Country Manager...
Richard Symonds (Bujagali Trust Country Manager) has contacted the UK Bujagali Trust Team today to say...
" We are having lots of fun and we are all up to our necks in paint! "
Keep working hard Team LP! Well done!
Communication just received from Team Uganda!
It is Monday morning in Jinja and Team Uganda are travelling on the road to Mutai School for a day of project work as I write! They are just passing Valley View school on their bus (2010 main LP project site - see images below from 2010) and where the foundations for the LP funded kitchen (aptly named Oakview) were being laid almost two years to the date (see image below). No doubt an updated image will be uploaded of the completed 'Oakview' kitchen in the coming days once the 2012 team have visited Valley View themselves:
FOUNDATIONS OF THE VALLEY VIEW KITCHEN BEING LAID - OCTOBER 2010
Before Team Uganda 2012 start work at Mutai Secondary School this morning one of the first things they will see is the LP funded water tank that was built in August 2012... which now supplies clean water to the local community!
FANTASTIC WORK LEIGHTON PARK!
HAVE A GREAT DAY EVERYONE!
Sunday, 21 October 2012
Happy Birthday message to Lawrie!
Monday 22nd October:
Jack Sanchez would like to say 'Happy Birthday' to his dad and hopes he has a great holiday! So, with love from Jack...........and Henry, Happy Birthday Lawrie!
Best wishes from 'Team Uganda'!
Jack Sanchez would like to say 'Happy Birthday' to his dad and hopes he has a great holiday! So, with love from Jack...........and Henry, Happy Birthday Lawrie!
Best wishes from 'Team Uganda'!
Visit to Mama Jane's orphanage
After a quick lunch on the go - a Rolex (chipati with an omelette inside) - we spent the afternoon at Mama Jane's. This is a town based orphanage, cramped for space but with ever developing facilities. Since the last LP visit here in 2010 they have added a health centre and another classroom. Today our group split into three with some going to a local park for football, another group cooking dinner for 100 and others spending time playing with the children. The football started as a kick about but very quickly became a little more competitive, especially after the LP team took the lead! In the end, a 3 - 3 draw seemed a very fair result.
The footballers returned to find dozens of happy children sat playing with toys and puzzles that we have had donated or been able to buy following our group's fund raising. Seeing so many happy faces in such a confined space was a sight to behold. Our dinner of rice, mince, vegetables and tons of fresh fruit was excellent; six of the group were involved in its preparation.
Tonight we have a tired but happy group. Tomorrow sees the start of our school project work with an early start and a longer coach drive.
The whole group is bonding well and there is a collective determination to make the most of this trip. They have had a very good weekend!
Pictures below from this afternoon:
The footballers returned to find dozens of happy children sat playing with toys and puzzles that we have had donated or been able to buy following our group's fund raising. Seeing so many happy faces in such a confined space was a sight to behold. Our dinner of rice, mince, vegetables and tons of fresh fruit was excellent; six of the group were involved in its preparation.
Tonight we have a tired but happy group. Tomorrow sees the start of our school project work with an early start and a longer coach drive.
The whole group is bonding well and there is a collective determination to make the most of this trip. They have had a very good weekend!
Pictures below from this afternoon:
Sonrise church visit
This morning we left early to meet the children from the Sonrise orphanage and walk them to church. The service serves the local community and was held in the grounds of the second of the two orphanage buildings.
During the two hours of the service reference was made to the LP team and the work that we would be undertaking in the locality. This was met with applause especially as part of our work next week will be to construct more benches for the church.
It is customary for visitors to talk about why they are present in Jinja and so we did this and sang the 'Team Uganda' version of 'Oh Happy Day' which went down well. James Carragher gave excellent accompaniment on his guitar! Rose, you would've been proud of them!
The picture below shows the church shortly after the service.
During the two hours of the service reference was made to the LP team and the work that we would be undertaking in the locality. This was met with applause especially as part of our work next week will be to construct more benches for the church.
It is customary for visitors to talk about why they are present in Jinja and so we did this and sang the 'Team Uganda' version of 'Oh Happy Day' which went down well. James Carragher gave excellent accompaniment on his guitar! Rose, you would've been proud of them!
The picture below shows the church shortly after the service.
Saturday, 20 October 2012
Team Uganda prepare for church!
The group are now preparing to set off to a local church service this morning at Sonrise!
The students have prepared a song to sing and share with the local community during the service which will be enormously appreciated and enjoyed by all!
Well done Team Uganda!
The students have prepared a song to sing and share with the local community during the service which will be enormously appreciated and enjoyed by all!
Well done Team Uganda!
Saturday 20th October 2012
This morning's visit to Jinja market opened a few eyes to market shopping in Africa (see images below)! Whilst searching for the produce to prepare lunch for forty people we had some interesting experiences negotiating prices for flour, vegetables, rice, cooking oil, potatoes and local beef! Nothing was left to the imagination!
With lunch onboard, we set off for Sonrise orphanage with four aims for the day: to prepare lunch, to clean the orphanage, to play with the children and, after lunch, to take 24 of them swimming in a local pool! We are happy to report that all four were completed without any mishaps!
We divided the group into three for cooking, playing and cleaning and all set about their tasks without fuss. Clearly, the most fun was playing with the babies and younger children and, as the groups rotated in their tasks over a two hour period, all of our students enjoyed total interaction with the youngsters. To say that they had fun was an understatement!
Lunch included chapatis which were made from scratch with locals. They then went down well with beef, rice and vegetable stew.
Our afternoon at a local pool was a festival of fun whilst keeping a very close eye on the non-swimmers. To put it all into context, these children only swim once a year if they are lucky! A great day for all!
Meet our staff!
Gery & Elen from Inspire spent four days doing preparation work for us in Jinja before the team arrived. As experienecd trip leaders they have assessed all of our planned activities and will continue to do so on a daily basis. They are integrated members of 'TEAM UGANDA'!
Our 'on the ground' staff, Rich and Ema, have been working locally to put project ideas together for a couple of months now. The variety of our activities is very much down to their background work and planning. By the end of our trip, the results of our efforts as a group will have contributed significantly to the current needs of the Bujagali Trust and given our group an incredibly rewarding Ugandan experience.
Our 'on the ground' staff, Rich and Ema, have been working locally to put project ideas together for a couple of months now. The variety of our activities is very much down to their background work and planning. By the end of our trip, the results of our efforts as a group will have contributed significantly to the current needs of the Bujagali Trust and given our group an incredibly rewarding Ugandan experience.
Friday, 19 October 2012
Happy Birthday message to Celeste!
Finty Kelly is desperate to get a Happy Birthday message to her mum! So, Celeste, here it is:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to YOU!!
with love from Finty and all of us in 'Team Uganda'! xx
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to YOU!!
with love from Finty and all of us in 'Team Uganda'! xx
Reading-Uganda-source of the Nile!
After an eventful journey, we arrived in Jinja approx 5 hrs after landing in the morning sun.
A quick lunch and brush up was followed by a short bus ride to the source of the River Nile. It is incredible to think that intrepid explorers of the past like John Speke and David Livingstone travelled for months and years to find the Zambesi, the Nile and Lake Victoria and yet here we are, 'Team Uganda', dropping out of the sky, less than 24 hrs after leaving LP, standing on the shores of the lake where the Nile begins its long journey to the Mediterranean!
How far is that? asked one curious student, to be answered by a local who was unsure of the distance in miles, but was confident enough to say that if you dropped a tennis ball in the river where we were it would arrive in the Med three and a half months later! We are a tired but upbeat bunch this evening. Dinner will be early tonight and that will quickly followed by sleep! Tomorrow morning we will be off early to Jinja market to buy food that we will be preparing and sharing with the youngsters at Son Rise orphanage.
Photos below from the source of the Nile.
A quick lunch and brush up was followed by a short bus ride to the source of the River Nile. It is incredible to think that intrepid explorers of the past like John Speke and David Livingstone travelled for months and years to find the Zambesi, the Nile and Lake Victoria and yet here we are, 'Team Uganda', dropping out of the sky, less than 24 hrs after leaving LP, standing on the shores of the lake where the Nile begins its long journey to the Mediterranean!
How far is that? asked one curious student, to be answered by a local who was unsure of the distance in miles, but was confident enough to say that if you dropped a tennis ball in the river where we were it would arrive in the Med three and a half months later! We are a tired but upbeat bunch this evening. Dinner will be early tonight and that will quickly followed by sleep! Tomorrow morning we will be off early to Jinja market to buy food that we will be preparing and sharing with the youngsters at Son Rise orphanage.
Photos below from the source of the Nile.
Team Uganda arrive in Jinja!
Just a short note to let you know that the team arrived safely in Entebbe early this morning and they have all now arrived at their hostel in Jinja J
They met Geri and Elen (the Inspire Leaders) at the airport and later today the team will be doing some in-country training and preparation run by the Inspire leaders. They will also meet the Bujagali Trust staff who will be supporting them whilst they are on the project sites in Uganda over the next 10 days or so. The team will have the opportunity to settle into their accommodation today (see images below) as well and get some rest and sleep later this afternoon before visiting the Bujagali Trust project sites tomorrow.
They met Geri and Elen (the Inspire Leaders) at the airport and later today the team will be doing some in-country training and preparation run by the Inspire leaders. They will also meet the Bujagali Trust staff who will be supporting them whilst they are on the project sites in Uganda over the next 10 days or so. The team will have the opportunity to settle into their accommodation today (see images below) as well and get some rest and sleep later this afternoon before visiting the Bujagali Trust project sites tomorrow.
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