Abayudaya and Sipi

Celebrating the Sabbath with the Abayudaya
I showed up Friday afternoon to secure a place to stay and see how things were a little bit. It was a little scary because initially I was looking for the Rabbi- figuring he would be a good point person. But he was at the primary school, which was in a different area than the Synagogue. Luckily I ran into Alan, who showed me around, found a family I could stay with, and pointed my boda boda (the name for small motorcycles here) driver in the right direction. There I talked with the Rabbi who was clearly very happy to have another Mzungu visitor. Then I returned later that evening, and met the rest of the family I was staying with. They are actually the family of the sister of the Abayudaya Rabbi currently studying in the US- R. Gershom. Friday night services were fun, they had lots of singing and music, the children were really involved and there were (surprise) lots of white people in the area to volunteer! There was a doctor performing cleft surgeries (free of course) in Mbale, a couple working to help develop small business, three ladies working through Kulanu to help with education, and three couples in their mid twenties.
The meal was simple, the people around here, (and in almost all of Uganda for that matter) are subsistence farmers and we had beans, rice and cabbage- but the family was really friendly. Of course I only know what is going on when they speak English- 90% of the time they are talking in their local language. On Saturday after services I ate two lunches, cause I just couldn’t turn down their hospitality! After Havdullah, and consistent friendly invites to stay another night with the family- I did. What they really wanted was for me to stay the next 3 nights with them, and maybe I should have- but for some reason my mind was made up to see more of Eastern Uganda. The next morning I shared a boda boda into town with the mother- and so on this tiny motorcycle (scooter if you’re not being polite) there was the driver, his daughter in front of him holding my backpack with all my stuff, me, and Ya’el sitting side saddle. I am sure we were quite a sight! I left her my email address, and besides Habitat (everyone, even cab drivers, want to be in contact with Americans so they give you their email address) I think I am most likely to stay in contact with the Abayudaya.

I am now at Sipi falls, having climbed to the tallest point in this local area under the guidance of Paul…my guide. It is really quite beautiful up here. All the land around is fertile farmland with tall trees everywhere. Mesas and valleys are the landscape. I am pretty sure that Paul either wants to tire me out or test me, he is walking just about as fast as is humanly possible without running- and up hills at that!

We’re now at waterfall #2. I like this one because you can walk underneath. I could take a shower if I wished.
Well, we visited the last waterfall, and I back at where I’m staying now- the Crow’s Nest. Its build into a mountain, and I am now on top absorbing the view all around, and especially the three falls I visited today. We truly walked a long way! I was smoked pretty much the whole way; for a smaller guy, Paul sure is good at walking. Its also really nice that because there are so few cars I can, from up here, hear a lot of what’s going on all around.

I finished that sentence, sat listening and lazily enjoyed the view till I fell asleep- there on top of a mountain. I also napped today- for about 2 hours, and I can see how simple it would be to fall into this sort of lifestyle if one has loads of money; as it is easy, “relaxing” and… easy. Anyway, I am now in Mt. Elgon National Park, and tomorrow I will hike to see the peak. Alas, if I had brought a sleeping bag I could have slept on the side of the mountain!
So I met two Peace Corps volunteers last night at the Crows Nest (this is not this area’s busy season and we were the only guests!) I was struck that both girls, (well not girls but maybe now women yet either?) here had such freedom of movement- they took this weekend off, and one of them had gone home for Christmas, their motivations- they weren’t hippie types but rather “typical” Americans who really wanted to help out, and their view of the Peace Corps. There are 150 of them in Uganda, WOW. They seemed to be doing good work, but oversight here is low- for example, there is one girl who just spends most of her time with her British boyfriend who works in Jinja. The amount of aid work being done here is impressive, though to some degree that may add to the widespread corruption as the government doesn’t have to work as hard to keep citizens happy. I have seen plenty of Mzungus here, and I think just one group were straight tourists.