tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62277472655151959252024-03-05T00:43:06.654-06:00Jeff and Krista in UgandaJeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-37589814980564309142010-05-23T18:11:00.001-05:002010-05-23T18:15:24.753-05:00Back in the USSA<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="State"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Jeff and I arrived safely back to the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region> via business class on Delta (family passes- yooh, yooh!)<span style=""> </span>We arrived exhausted and in culture shock, but we are adjusting.<span style=""> </span>Jeff got malaria after getting to the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region>, but we treated it with wonderful African meds and he is recovered.<span style=""> </span>We made it back in time for me to go to the baptism of the son of my life-long friend.<span style=""> </span>This was really nice because I missed her wedding and the entire pregnancy and birth of her first child, so I was glad I could be there for the baptism.<span style=""> </span>Jeff made it back to NY in time for his coming home party/joint birthday party with his nephew Kyle/Kyle’s graduation party/Kyle’s going away party.<span style=""> </span>Quite the event!<span style=""> </span>Jeff is hanging out in NY now and I am in <st1:state st="on"><st1:place st="on">Ohio</st1:place></st1:state>.<span style=""> </span>I’ll be getting ready to go back to IL and start teaching a summer course in early June.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">So that is the end of an incredible experience.<span style=""> </span>There were good and bad parts, but overall, it couldn’t be better.<span style=""> </span>The beauty of the forest, the crazy animals that always kept us entertained, the wonderful people, and our intense and rewarding work. <span style=""> </span>And the opportunity to experience it all together. <span style=""> </span>I can’t describe how much I will miss it.
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<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Kisses,</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Krista</p>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIpEWpwXfGVbVlpxwVovxBMo3FIOlhEHrx1TwtNfT9HBgiUXdukR89mmKI6NVygwf_MbVFIvbPcNNrYKcg19Lga30_9A9ZldzpT7AflTYypcnVaTqcxJAX7ZguBobCI1yDkvbjUg80JsBr/s1600/IMG_7624.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIpEWpwXfGVbVlpxwVovxBMo3FIOlhEHrx1TwtNfT9HBgiUXdukR89mmKI6NVygwf_MbVFIvbPcNNrYKcg19Lga30_9A9ZldzpT7AflTYypcnVaTqcxJAX7ZguBobCI1yDkvbjUg80JsBr/s320/IMG_7624.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474607681585483762" border="0" /></a>
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<br />Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-29950133860579135982010-05-23T18:10:00.000-05:002010-05-23T18:11:35.730-05:00Flying to the UK…Our last night in Uganda, we stayed at the Jane Goodall Institute, which was great! We were the only people there and I was storing my samples in their freezer, so it was convenient to be in the same place as the samples for a quick get-away in the morning. The room we were in had a view of Lake Victoria, so that was really nice. Actually, just to add to all the great things anyone can say about Jane Goodall, I will say that the institute there in Entebbe is a great resource for researchers. So friendly and cozy and convenient! <br /><br />Our airport taxi was over an hour late to pick us up, so we were freaking out! When he came, his trunk was full of stuff so we had to figure out where to put our luggage and he was full of excuses. Actually, our last car ride in Uganda was full of yelling. Him trying to make excuses for being so bad and Jeff and I yelling “can you please stop talking?!?! Drive, we are late, just drive!!!” It was a mess. For sure, Jeff and I will not miss dealing with drivers or public transportation in Uganda. Public transportation in Uganda really requires you separate your mind from what is actually happening to you at the moment. The vehicles always seem just barely in control of the driver. It is a mess. We also decided, we won’t miss all the bugbites. But everything else, we’ll miss. Anyway, we called the guy who runs the airport taxi service and he said we didn’t have to pay since the driver was so bad. Good customer service, I have to say. Though he said he was going to call and talk to the driver and I asked him to wait 20 mins or so. I didn’t want to be in the car with this crazy man when he got that phone call. But the boss called immediately after I hung up. So the driver started yelling over the phone and flailing his arms so hard and so angrily that I was worried he would either lose control of the car or accidently hit me in the face on one of his backswings. Geez!<br /><br />We had all sorts of hijinks once we got the airport, as to be expected, but finally got checked in and past the visa check-point, and to the gate just in time. Apparently we weren’t “just in time” because the flight was then delayed waiting for other people who had not yet made it to the gate. Also, as the plane was taxi-ing out onto the runway, a very bratty little girl (this was the worst behaved Ugandan child I had ever seen) was screaming and crying. Her Mom was totally coddling her and coaxing on the crying because of a complete lack of discipline. So then the Mom unbuckled her and put her on her lap!!!!! Two flight attendants immediately rushed up and said, “Ma’am, we are about to take off, she has to be in the seat. Any child over 2 years old has to be buckled in on their own.” And she freaked out. She was like “This is not my first time flying, don’t talk to me like that, stop being rude to me…” (Jeff would like me to note here that this is literally seconds before we take off. That moment that plane pauses on the runway before gunning the engines.) The female flight attendant walked away and the male flight attendant said “Ma’am, we are going to have to call the captain, if you don’t put her in her seat.” And the woman buckled her in and then the man started to walk away, she said “don’t treat me like I’m rubbish”. The man immediately came back and said (in a pissed off/firm voice), “Ma’am, my only concern is for the safety of your daughter and other passengers on this flight, I’m not being rude to you, she needs to be buckled in.” A woman sitting in the next row back tried to intervene and the flight attendant held up his hand to her very firmly and said “don’t touch me” (because she had been grabbing his arm). He walked away and the woman was still complaining under her breath, but the little girl shut up, sat in her seat, and was well-behaved. Literally, all she needed was some discipline. I mean, get it together lady. And then, when we were coming in for our landing, the little girl was screaming at the top of her lungs and her mother was, again, not disciplining her, just petting her head, etc. And the little girl stood up on her seat – as we were coming in for our landing!!!! Then the mom put her on her lap, again. At this point, I leaned up and said “You need to buckle her in!” And the woman smiled and was like “I know, she won’t stay down”. Finally, she strong-armed her into the seat and strapped her in. What a crazy woman! If this kid had been standing in her seat when we hit the ground, she would have been so badly injured. Geez, don’t fly with your kids if you can’t keep them under control! Jeff would also like me to point out that this kid just wanted attention. He went into an indepth analysis of when she cried and why, which I won’t write out here, but his assessment is that her crying had nothing to do with fear of flying and just a need for attention because she was a brat. <br /><br />Anyway, British Airways was wonderful, as usual. The movie choices were great, the food was great, they were so helpful. We totally forgot to make sure that we had veggie meals, but they have us stored in their system as veggies, so they showed up, as expected. It was great! Unfortunately, they had mushrooms. This has come up before because of my mushroom allergy and they always seem to find some other meal for me (I think they have different veggie options for the different classes, so they just give me a different veggie meal). This time, all the meals had mushrooms, so instead, they took two of their pickle, veggie, and cheese sandwiches that were set aside for the crew and toasted them up for me. They were so delicious and I continue to be amazed at how accommodating BA is! <br /><br />We landed in Heathrow, went through customs, got our bags, and headed out of the airport. We booked the TravelLodge at the Airport, which we weren’t expecting to be much, but we showed up to an amazing hotel! Big, clean rooms with a modern feel. A nice soft bed, a big red couch, a flatscreen tv up on the wall, free coffee and tea in the room and a great shower with high pressure and hot water. I’m not sure if we would be amazed with any 1st world hotel room at this point, but we were certainly impressed with this. And I was able to store my samples in their freezer overnight, which is why we booked this place. Great! We have been walking around the room in barefeet since we checked in. We got a few appetizers brought up to our room to hold us over until we went out for dinner, but then I fell asleep and slept right through dinner. Apparently, I was tired and even the 2 hour time difference has got me. <br /><br />So now we are up and ready for our flight back to the US. There was apparently another volcano issue here and flights in Northern UK were canceled yesterday. I guess it has now cleared up, but my fear of flying is worse thinking about flying into a big volcano cloud. So everyone be hoping for a safe flight back to the US and onto Ohio. Thanks!Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-62306225078392987972010-05-23T17:40:00.005-05:002010-11-28T20:51:10.364-06:00The travels…<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">For our last week in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>, we wanted to do some additional traveling.<span style=""> </span>We have seen a lot of the country already, but there are some places we didn’t get around to visiting.<span style=""> </span>So I guess we have to come back.<span style=""> </span>One place we had to go was Toro-Semliki Wildlife Reserve.<span style=""> </span>When we arrived in 2008, we met the station manager who invited us out for a visit.<span style=""> </span>We never found time, though, and we would always see him in town and promise we were going to come.<span style=""> </span>Plus, I’ve known the past 3 researchers to work at the place.<span style=""> </span>And 2 of them have stayed with us at Kibale for a little visit, so it only made sense for us to go visit there.<span style=""> </span>Semiliki has a research site where they are trying to habituate Chimpanzees.<span style=""> </span>They have been working on this for the past 14 years!!!!!!!<span style=""> </span>And I can testify that those chimps are definitely not habituated yet.<span style=""> </span>There seems to be a lot of questions about why they are taking so long to get habituated, but I don’t know.<span style=""> </span>For the primatologists out there, this is a site where chimps dig wells for water in the stream beds.<span style=""> </span>It is kind of famous for that.<span style=""> </span>It was interesting to see the field site and the forest and so on.<span style=""> </span>They don’t have red colobus there, but they have plenty of black and whites and redtails.<span style=""> </span>They also have some different birds, which Alex and Jeff were interested in (oh, Alex came with us for this trip).<span style=""> </span>The forest is just 300 meters or so on either side of the river there.<span style=""> </span>And it is flat, compared to Kibale.<span style=""> </span>Though there is a big escarpment that they sometimes have to climb, which is high and steep.<span style=""> </span>And next to the forest is the savannah, so the chimps go into the savannah sometimes.<span style=""> </span>Very different.<span style=""> </span>And they have all these cool log bridge things set up over the river, which the trail just winds around and crosses over a bunch.<span style=""> </span>It was cool.<span style=""> </span>They are not allowed to have permanent structures at the field site, so they have an open kitchen, eating area with a thatched roof and then lots of thatched roofed platforms that the tents sit on.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We saw one chimp from a distance.<span style=""> </span>I would argue one of the coolest parts of the trip was the drive there.<span style=""> </span>It is actually only 40 kms birds eye view from where we live, but it took nearly 3 hours.<span style=""> </span>We had to get to <st1:placetype st="on">Fort</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Portal</st1:placename> and then past <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Fort</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Portal</st1:placename></st1:place> and drive through the hills.<span style=""> </span>Because we were starting at such a high altitude, we came into the mountains high up and then actually went down as we were driving.<span style=""> </span>The road was a very windy, mountain road with lots of steep drop offs.<span style=""> </span>It was really cool.<span style=""> </span>See the pictures below.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The trip was good, though we had lots of hijinks.<span style=""> </span>First, we used the driver they recommended and he showed up an hour late in a piece of crap car.<span style=""> </span>The car promptly ran out of gas when we were less than ½ km from our house.<span style=""> </span>Literally.<span style=""> </span>We weren’t even out of the park and it stalled and wouldn’t start and the brainiac driver guessed that it was maybe the fuel, since he put in just enough to get to the field station (we calculated this after a very long and painful discussion calculating what he put in).<span style=""> </span>So I’m not sure how he expected to get back to town.<span style=""> </span>Just to top things off, it was storming out, so we couldn’t even get out of his crap car to wait out the issue somewhere.<span style=""> </span>We ended up calling our usual driver who took care of us after that.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Before leaving, we had drinks at the beautiful, expensive lodge there.<span style=""> </span>The lodge owners were getting ready to move on to a new place and Jeff and I contemplated new career paths for a bit, but then we realized we had better things in mind than being lodge managers.<span style="">
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<br /><span style=""></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQIgdfWhXDbgvoMCa5_mBw5t_F-W0C6t9_dfy-SzStCJ2P9yX4rwWLBz4tj6-Y7Dv1WFHsvqU-jcsqClZQw9VX7FpxQoirQ1oOndaNYAXYI76F6W8tSYgxamTN2i54zzhm45PCpn9OPQS4/s1600/IMG_0439.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQIgdfWhXDbgvoMCa5_mBw5t_F-W0C6t9_dfy-SzStCJ2P9yX4rwWLBz4tj6-Y7Dv1WFHsvqU-jcsqClZQw9VX7FpxQoirQ1oOndaNYAXYI76F6W8tSYgxamTN2i54zzhm45PCpn9OPQS4/s320/IMG_0439.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474604970676614146" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaDdhBv9QJKpXAgbzAexqqx9ww1EKXW-nV98K7lziXkMHcI-5FPRwhK-MzLz499gT3C7NjrgO_EvkwBZ7QRsS6pe3307joWAbUAe04di8KtC9h5pkNt10uSrOLfSIreYWUWye6anJubJwe/s1600/IMG_0435.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaDdhBv9QJKpXAgbzAexqqx9ww1EKXW-nV98K7lziXkMHcI-5FPRwhK-MzLz499gT3C7NjrgO_EvkwBZ7QRsS6pe3307joWAbUAe04di8KtC9h5pkNt10uSrOLfSIreYWUWye6anJubJwe/s320/IMG_0435.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474604962132015986" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy9b6-ZgOLXTjUHJM4mTGejpuTmFdg_1D8zw4-njQCKuQUYCshPQk7O1gwPXwY8lgm6s-Yp2uE5Qix84Rj6LfNsaLl4gpSUVXrLyLx8bLVZHvJO_w3WkzjDJ4rouKdPvV5FaOL4U2wZktB/s1600/IMG_0428.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy9b6-ZgOLXTjUHJM4mTGejpuTmFdg_1D8zw4-njQCKuQUYCshPQk7O1gwPXwY8lgm6s-Yp2uE5Qix84Rj6LfNsaLl4gpSUVXrLyLx8bLVZHvJO_w3WkzjDJ4rouKdPvV5FaOL4U2wZktB/s320/IMG_0428.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474604959268164482" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7nbzlDbD8OoK6_087g_Lre9O9dcVU-yUuimEt39Io932bQuThAAtdd5g4xRJ0Is5iedV2f4PVUzLEdMn7_cHNkZCfLdxktxlZ_NyddEoWk5Lxl9WuCXbE7FJ0eKSlrTR0Jpuej1A84ZEB/s1600/IMG_0425.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7nbzlDbD8OoK6_087g_Lre9O9dcVU-yUuimEt39Io932bQuThAAtdd5g4xRJ0Is5iedV2f4PVUzLEdMn7_cHNkZCfLdxktxlZ_NyddEoWk5Lxl9WuCXbE7FJ0eKSlrTR0Jpuej1A84ZEB/s320/IMG_0425.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474604951334321858" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpIRgli52XUwPnUw93lV2TShPVVYqQi8Pg81UNEa5Q5Dd41GYy-GFh654msZyG7tqBtvKp-hnSrGcKnwzFprrL9Q4x8nWaGmKMwRFYQvCksHzMPhDBt_blBX-JrCEmE4PvsPcx_WhUW0_i/s1600/IMG_0394.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpIRgli52XUwPnUw93lV2TShPVVYqQi8Pg81UNEa5Q5Dd41GYy-GFh654msZyG7tqBtvKp-hnSrGcKnwzFprrL9Q4x8nWaGmKMwRFYQvCksHzMPhDBt_blBX-JrCEmE4PvsPcx_WhUW0_i/s320/IMG_0394.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474604945311463426" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjALU6tnhDwCaV39-LppJ9KHyjMk93M7x35NWQd3ZIvvrnyVkvAiEOXg6uT_gdpn6ZAn1nLTxVdjgIgeWmFACB-wvP4VRjTgSjK6sBl30yauvHEpqsMD3yxghcyPKU31o-euZ1CZErr3wb3/s1600/IMG_0444.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjALU6tnhDwCaV39-LppJ9KHyjMk93M7x35NWQd3ZIvvrnyVkvAiEOXg6uT_gdpn6ZAn1nLTxVdjgIgeWmFACB-wvP4VRjTgSjK6sBl30yauvHEpqsMD3yxghcyPKU31o-euZ1CZErr3wb3/s320/IMG_0444.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474603605442033714" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">After we left Kibale, we traveled to Tororo in <st1:place st="on">Eastern Uganda</st1:place> to go to Emily’s parent’s wedding.<span style=""> </span>It was an interesting event.<span style=""> </span>First, that part of <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region></st1:place> is very different from the lush, green, fertile area of Kibale.<span style=""> </span>It makes you really appreciate where we were living.<span style=""> </span>It is so close to <st1:country-region st="on">Kenya</st1:country-region> that our phones were registering with the Kenyan airwaves and were “welcoming” us to <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Kenya</st1:country-region></st1:place>.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">There were amazing rock structures in this place, but overall, it was very dry and flat.<span style=""> </span>You could see <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Mt.</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Elgon</st1:placename></st1:place> in the distance, which was nice.<span style=""> </span>Emily’s parents had a very traditional wedding in the church and then a huge reception of over 1000 people at their house.<span style=""> </span>It was a bit hard to listen to the sermons at certain points.<span style=""> </span>Especially when they were saying things like “now that they have finally had a wedding, the mother can join the mother’s union”.<span style=""> </span>This is a Mom who raised 6 wonderful kids who are all amazingly successful and have pursued higher education.<span style=""> </span>The money that could have went to their wedding years ago went to supporting their children and I think that is great.<span style=""> </span>She seemed like a great mom to me.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Jeff and I were real Africans at Emily’s place.<span style=""> </span>We brought our own mosquito net and set it up over a mattress that was set up on the floor for us.<span style=""> </span>That is right, we slept on a mattress on the floor, but it was in Emily’s nice room and we had our mosquito net to keep us cozy.<span style=""> </span>And it was actually kind of cozy.<span style=""> </span>It was hot there, though, so that made some things a bit uncomfortable.<span style=""> </span>We also picked some food out of the garden for dinner and ate it – see the photos.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_UdrRbRHU0uw3QsxH1BLHn6cSyEQMtbLhWtqfkaYqBZYM3dV-cIUix99MRFa6XnVAQXpJtQLCP5PHaXSyFY3ET_Z2GvXVil4y7JRTFbp7kX33g3CNavwDS6sc924NE-seQ5Bd-Vc6KVY/s1600/IMG_7702.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh_UdrRbRHU0uw3QsxH1BLHn6cSyEQMtbLhWtqfkaYqBZYM3dV-cIUix99MRFa6XnVAQXpJtQLCP5PHaXSyFY3ET_Z2GvXVil4y7JRTFbp7kX33g3CNavwDS6sc924NE-seQ5Bd-Vc6KVY/s320/IMG_7702.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474602110752035842" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXERkNl31BSeCc-mb8Dsxr_1C6IvpdYe6VH-xzTihqWpeZcTAUdUVzoHzmI7_ArX2Z3H7_3yAKJt-2sh6PL9hYzQtF9uA0jBnWY8_7gv_O7jPTkFex7KYr-f1a2K3LGCqDpm_qCPK7kOv/s1600/IMG_7706.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMXERkNl31BSeCc-mb8Dsxr_1C6IvpdYe6VH-xzTihqWpeZcTAUdUVzoHzmI7_ArX2Z3H7_3yAKJt-2sh6PL9hYzQtF9uA0jBnWY8_7gv_O7jPTkFex7KYr-f1a2K3LGCqDpm_qCPK7kOv/s320/IMG_7706.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474602102795066322" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">At the wedding, everyone was amazed at how well the Mzungus took care of Emily’s baby, Pani.<span style=""> </span>Pani wasn’t used to any of the other people at the wedding, for the most part, so we held her for most of the time.<span style=""> </span>At one point, she really wanted to sleep, but couldn’t because of all the noise.<span style=""> </span>We went over to the side where it was quiet and Jeff held her and swayed with her while I sang to her.<span style=""> </span>I ad-libbed and jeff laughed at my lyrics.<span style=""> </span>It was actually a very precious moment.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Dancing went late into the night, but Jeff and I couldn’t participate.<span style=""> </span>Everytime we walked towards the dance floor, we drew a huge crowd of people just standing and staring at us.<span style=""> </span>The people in this area were not used to Mzungus at all.<span style=""> </span>At one point, Jeff and I went out on the dance floor to dance and it was like the sea parted to let us by and then closed in around us.<span style=""> </span>No one was dancing, they were all just staring at us.<span style=""> </span>The song we liked immediately ended and we were itching to get off the dance floor, so we started to walk off.<span style=""> </span>A woman then stood up and started dancing with me.<span style=""> </span>It was sweet of her and we sat by her for a little bit, but the staring was too much.<span style=""> </span>Emily came over to us and tried to yell at everyone to stop staring and then she gave up and said she couldn’t even sit by us because of all the attention we were drawing.<span style=""> </span>Fortunately, we found a box of wine and a dark corner and hung out there for a little bit.<span style="">
<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ag-B8K3FXNk1mJVm8905jCi3JgR9r-E3PJb5ay0OB4ss806MOCF78tetVtArw2LRkyWOsx_7m4zEyhy0fH3qpKALindfRa0R_b2cxAbqpl2b6-7bqUiveD24bXynyzZ86VAsJNB4p5Oo/s1600/IMG_0482.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6ag-B8K3FXNk1mJVm8905jCi3JgR9r-E3PJb5ay0OB4ss806MOCF78tetVtArw2LRkyWOsx_7m4zEyhy0fH3qpKALindfRa0R_b2cxAbqpl2b6-7bqUiveD24bXynyzZ86VAsJNB4p5Oo/s320/IMG_0482.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474602131166329106" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip3T8VOvXXqLsCLG5nov-786YUdsO816K8taCyZ4oFFYszFem3Me4AD5pOZ_N60GqcgKPd64gUI8H5_fHNMQnshyRtwkZNcHkZnTnksf3F79P4goTfBbRWZZP3FTZDmPRGd_h8eXtXKW5s/s1600/IMG_0489.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip3T8VOvXXqLsCLG5nov-786YUdsO816K8taCyZ4oFFYszFem3Me4AD5pOZ_N60GqcgKPd64gUI8H5_fHNMQnshyRtwkZNcHkZnTnksf3F79P4goTfBbRWZZP3FTZDmPRGd_h8eXtXKW5s/s320/IMG_0489.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474602122260634466" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigg6dVQBu7Jb5aucoWXOb8PZcoCpNp3401aO4CpmC5mxUNs0ct5AQ7dEycNNcgoRCcLx0G0sHsjzj7u2jjbrB3r3sTb_e7MJeHfQZG4hZDvnPo6RsuhPvFyLiK4kIjUYIa3Y7f3n0nLDMa/s1600/IMG_0493.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigg6dVQBu7Jb5aucoWXOb8PZcoCpNp3401aO4CpmC5mxUNs0ct5AQ7dEycNNcgoRCcLx0G0sHsjzj7u2jjbrB3r3sTb_e7MJeHfQZG4hZDvnPo6RsuhPvFyLiK4kIjUYIa3Y7f3n0nLDMa/s320/IMG_0493.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474602117344671042" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The next day was Pani’s baptism.<span style=""> </span>We went to the church for the ceremony, which was nice and interesting.<span style=""> </span>See the photos.<span style="">
<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim6wLQWomNCCZstwSZ88rzV95BCPizGUKRDvYffj-A4BfJq7ccnsUOL_WlLVIyiIkzOhHEDgeESRIDjojwgZTPhVOlmFU3qM3tSmA62b6sxiKTI2pdTkbLqIOuP2ojfC0SNaoTTOaECltF/s1600/IMG_0534.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim6wLQWomNCCZstwSZ88rzV95BCPizGUKRDvYffj-A4BfJq7ccnsUOL_WlLVIyiIkzOhHEDgeESRIDjojwgZTPhVOlmFU3qM3tSmA62b6sxiKTI2pdTkbLqIOuP2ojfC0SNaoTTOaECltF/s320/IMG_0534.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474603597170515362" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzGEyU02L-n4KhqaZzZFAqeSfWRqLKXRe2n8wWusu4Cbc_96t7YQqcVh5jrUn8KOgr6FQUl5zDymbA4A5u8jZroY6KbyzsJHQX7uEOeiLRMQB3HIY7jiABmc0HFOSEKFLFNmNO0hy1kzG/s1600/IMG_0565.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzGEyU02L-n4KhqaZzZFAqeSfWRqLKXRe2n8wWusu4Cbc_96t7YQqcVh5jrUn8KOgr6FQUl5zDymbA4A5u8jZroY6KbyzsJHQX7uEOeiLRMQB3HIY7jiABmc0HFOSEKFLFNmNO0hy1kzG/s320/IMG_0565.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474603587896398050" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQry2pVW6NJQRRePNzRoir7Rt0ojkOuDRX8iNUrmGeTB-_r7s4TyeHFZ8xhkRFfFBjYFKkBZT-lfLsvbDxhVeukx3gVzHgbYSAM2MGbxqHLdZAJ_dnxRlMQzCsgiUsqBDQb0qk2OUUaQk/s1600/IMG_0547.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWQry2pVW6NJQRRePNzRoir7Rt0ojkOuDRX8iNUrmGeTB-_r7s4TyeHFZ8xhkRFfFBjYFKkBZT-lfLsvbDxhVeukx3gVzHgbYSAM2MGbxqHLdZAJ_dnxRlMQzCsgiUsqBDQb0qk2OUUaQk/s320/IMG_0547.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474603592269296594" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">(I missed an awesome opportunity at a photo during the wedding, even better American commentary than this one.<span style=""> </span>When we left the church, there was a girl (homeless?) asleep on the side of the church with a pair of brightly colored Obama flip flops laying very neatly right next to where she was sleeping.<span style=""> </span>I wanted the picture so bad, but didn’t want to invade her privacy.<span style="">)</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Because we were being Africans on this trip, we caught a ride back to town on the truck that was taking back all the soda crates.<span style=""> </span>I guess we should have been more African because we sat in the cab with the driver instead of in the back with the bottles and we ended up getting a citation for having too many people in the cabin.<span style=""> </span>Who knew you couldn’t have 3 people in a truck cab.<span style=""> </span>Anyway, we then loaded into a crowded mutatu for our ride back to Jinja.<span style=""> </span>Along the way, we got stopped by a very sketchy police officer who was not in uniform and made Jeff hand him our passports out the window.<span style=""> </span>It was a terrifying situation, but it ended up working out fine.<span style=""> </span>I think people in that area just aren’t used to seeing whites, I guess.<span style=""> </span>Jinja was a nice place to just hang out, catch up on sleep, and catch up on emailing.<span style=""> </span>We attempted one outing to a restaurant overlooking the water, but came back when we realized they were out of most of their food.<span style=""> </span>Otherwise, we just tried to finalize things in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style="">
<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix051ibp52hWRfw8-BFU91es64qd3OrwEL0YJuGZisFhASi-je5UbH1o6PFZRbXfC_sl4lFGLu7FO2u_N3P7rmc6GnV_amzpnLneUmgmY8KYvJ6svlDkSsMKrf2JBF0GF7_S7OQ7xKwlu5/s1600/IMG_0589.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix051ibp52hWRfw8-BFU91es64qd3OrwEL0YJuGZisFhASi-je5UbH1o6PFZRbXfC_sl4lFGLu7FO2u_N3P7rmc6GnV_amzpnLneUmgmY8KYvJ6svlDkSsMKrf2JBF0GF7_S7OQ7xKwlu5/s320/IMG_0589.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474603582253665394" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">This was the trip of a lifetime.<span style=""> </span>And I think that the two of us being together added to our experience not just because we were together, but because we brought different things to the experience – me with monkeys and forest stuff and jeff with school and children stuff.<span style=""> </span>It was such a great experience!<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>
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<br />Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-90353918835329472622010-05-23T16:54:00.006-05:002010-05-23T17:39:43.288-05:00All the goodbyes…<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Leaving Kibale was very hard!<span style=""> </span>Jeff and I realized shortly before going that we had lived together in our house there longer than we had lived together anywhere else.<span style=""> </span>We loved our house and the forest and the community.<span style=""> </span>It was so comfy and so beautiful and so friendly.<span style=""> </span>So it was very hard to leave.<span style=""> </span>And all we can do is think about how soon and how we are going to get back there.
<br /><span style=""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I think we may have also had an impact on the people we were living around because many of them seemed very sad to see us go and our last few weeks were an ensemble of “goodbye” events.<span style=""> </span>The first was a going away party for Jeff at <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Kasiisi</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Primary School</st1:placetype></st1:place> where he did most of his volunteer work and where he implemented the One Laptop Per Child Program through the Kasiisi Project.<span style=""> </span>We will put up some pictures.<span style=""> </span>The event began with the whole school gathering for a goodbye ceremony for Jeff.<span style=""> </span>The choir sang a lot of songs and did a lot of dances that were really great.<span style=""> </span>They ended with a super sad song about how they were all crying at Jeff’s departure.<span style=""> </span>And people were literally crying.<span style=""> </span>After the concert ended, we were escorted back to the library where the teachers had set up a private party of their own for Jeff.<span style=""> </span>We could only take a few steps at a time as Jeff was busy saying bye to all the kids – some of whom were crying uncontrollably.<span style=""> </span>It was really sad to see.<span style=""> </span>Even before the concert started, we bumped into one of the lead girls in the choir and a very smart student who Jeff had taught that just covered her eyes and ran away from us.<span style=""> </span>When I went to check on her, she again turned from me and wiped her eyes and said she was just so “annoyed” that we were leaving (that is Ugandan for upset).</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The teachers decorated the library with tons of streamers, fresh flowers, and decorations.<span style=""> </span>They bought soda and food (even meat), which the cook made for the party.<span style=""> </span>It was quite the event.<span style=""> </span>They set up a generator and a stereo system and had music playing.<span style=""> </span>And many people gave speeches about how much they appreciated Jeff and would miss him.<span style=""> </span>They talked about the trips he took them on to see chimps, monkeys, the savannah, and other parts of the National Parks in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>They talked about all the help he had been communicating with the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>They talked about how essential he was for keeping the computer classes going and working.<span style=""> </span>They talked about sooo many things that he did for them.<span style=""> </span>It was really touching.<span style=""> </span>They talked about what a hard worker he was and how he had such great foresight and would be fixing things or planning things before they even realized they needed it done.<span style=""> </span>They said that sometimes he would look so tired after rushing around to do things for them and they knew he was working too hard, but they appreciated it.<span style=""> </span>They said that he was so friendly, so full of energy, so full of joy, and that his love was endless.<span style=""> </span>One teacher even said he was like Jesus and the computers and knowledge he was leaving behind were like the Holy Spirit.<span style=""> </span>They told him that Kasiisi was his second home and that he was welcome back anytime and that they were all praying for his quick return.<span style=""> </span>They were very sweet!<span style=""> </span>We ate lots of good food and did lots of socializing and then it was time to dance.<span style=""> </span>This is one of the things I will miss the most about <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> and I actually got teary eyed watching Jeff dance with these colleagues of his that he had grown so close to.<span style=""> </span>You know, many volunteers come in and out of the area.<span style=""> </span>And I think Ugandans are accepting to all of them.<span style=""> </span>But Jeff stayed.<span style=""> </span>He stayed for a long time, which is different than other volunteers.<span style=""> </span>And he is going to keep helping the project.<span style=""> </span>His work doesn’t end now that we are going – he is totally invested.<span style=""> </span>I think that really touches the teachers.<span style=""> </span>And when he arrived, they weren’t sure what to make of him.<span style=""> </span>He wasn’t one of them.<span style=""> </span>But slowly by slowly, they all became friends and colleagues and they accepted him completely.<span style=""> </span>That is really huge.<span style=""> </span>I think it shows the good nature and openness of both the community and Jeff.<span style=""> </span></p>
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<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">Next, we had the Team Krista Football Match!<span style=""> </span>My field assistants noticed some time back that I actually employed enough people to make a football (soccer) team, including subs.<span style=""> </span>So they suggested we make a team and challenge the local village team that has a very good record (Kanyawara).<span style=""> </span>Well, I fired off some of their colleagues and that brought down the size of our team.<span style=""> </span>Plus, two of my employees were women who weren’t going to play, so that also brought down the size of the team.<span style=""> </span>So we gathered some recruits.<span style=""> </span>They were logical recruits, though, really.<span style=""> </span>Of course, we had Jeff (he has to be part of Team Krista). <span style=""> </span>Then there was another Kasiisi Project volunteer working with Jeff who is taking a break before college and came here for a few months.<span style=""> </span>He was apparently a star soccer player in the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region>, so we naturally added him to the team.<span style=""> </span>We also had the data entry guy from the chimp project, who is a great player.<span style=""> </span>And then, in a scandalous move, the captain of the Kanyawara Team and the brother of one of my field assistants decided to join our team.<span style=""> </span>Their other brother, who is the assistant captain for Kanyawara, stayed with the home team to make it fair.<span style=""> </span>Well, the Kanyawara Team includes some village trouble makers, including some people that I refused to hire for my project and some people that were fired from my project.<span style=""> </span>So some of them were out for blood.<span style=""> </span>In fact, before the game even started, a currently unemployed field assistant came over to tell us that he wouldn’t play because the captain was playing on our team.<span style=""> </span>Other members of the team were excited for a fun game, though, and so the match went on.<span style=""> </span>Akora Charles, one of the most infamous field assistants around the field station, who was fired from two projects within a year (including mine) and was recently banned from the field station all together, decided to be very rough with the players.<span style=""> </span>He actually hit the captain from his own team who was playing with us so hard that they were worried he broke his leg.<span style=""> </span>This is setting the stage.<span style=""> </span>Still, we had an exciting and fun game.<span style=""> </span>Oduchu Michael, who I refused to hire on my project and who lost his scholarship through the Kasiisi Project because of being a bad student, was the ref.<span style=""> </span>He was clearly playing for Kanyawara and everyone knew it.<span style=""> </span>After confirming with my field assistants that it was also normal to harass the refs in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>, I went straight into angry fan/coach mode (technically, I was the manager of the team and my oldest field assistant was the coach).<span style=""> </span>I was yelling at the top of my lungs “Open your eyes Oduchu!” and “Your not playing for Kanyawara today!”<span style=""> </span>Needless to say, at half time, we switched refs to one of the field station administrators who was more fair.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The game was ROUGH!<span style=""> </span>Seriously.<span style=""> </span>At one point, someone tripped Jeff and Jeff’s body went flying up into the air and OVER the top of the other person.<span style=""> </span>He landed on his side.<span style=""> </span>He got up and walked right off the field.<span style=""> </span>I’m telling you, I was IMPRESSED.<span style=""> </span>He played for most of the first half with these really hard core guys!<span style=""> </span>And he did well!<span style=""> </span>Anyway, he was finished and his hip later became black, literally black.<span style=""> </span>And the bruise was about the size of a paperback novel.<span style=""> </span>A big rectangle on his hip.<span style=""> </span>It has been about 3 weeks and the bruise is still there.<span style=""> </span>Ouch!</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Anyway, Team Krista Won the match!<span style=""> </span>(I forgot to mention, my guys wanted red shirts, so we got bright red shirts with white letters that said Team Krista on the front and each persons name labeling their own shirt on the back.<span style=""> </span>And we got matching shorts.<span style=""> </span>These guys were looking smart.)<span style=""> </span>We were so excited about winning!<span style=""> </span>The guys played so well.<span style=""> </span>There were three star players and we had promised Jeff’s shiny blue soccer ball to the MVP (we first had to explain what that was).<span style=""> </span>Stod was the standout defence guy.<span style=""> </span>Seezi did an awesome job on offense.<span style=""> </span>But without a doubt, the quiet Mutebi Michael came out as the MVP.<span style=""> </span>He was so intense working the ball down the field and scoring one of the three goals.<span style=""> </span>It was great.<span style=""> </span>He and Stod are from the same village, which is about 8 kms from Kanyawara and they play on their village team there, so they were both really thankful to get the ball.<span style=""> </span>It was so classic <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>They both stood up in front of the team and other people around and introduced themselves and said thanks and made little speeches.<span style=""> </span>I love the introductions to all the people who already know you and the speeches!<span style=""> </span>I brought lots of water, Gatorade, glucose (that is what they normally have after a game), and buscuits, so we set it out for everyone to share.<span style=""> </span>The Kanyawara team was being a soar loser, so they refused to shake our hands.<span style=""> </span>Good enough, some of the players, like the assistant captain, were being very friendly and came over to shake our hands and share in our snacks.<span style=""> </span>When we were getting ready to leave, our new ref came over to me to say there was a problem.<span style=""> </span>Mutebi Michael was looking really upset and I found out that the goalie of the other team was claiming that Michael seriously injured him and that Michael had to pay for him to go to the hospital.<span style=""> </span>So let me recap the incident.<span style=""> </span>Michael was trying to score a goal and ran into the goal keeper in the process.<span style=""> </span>When he got up, the goal keeper smacked him upside the head and people had to go over and restrain him (the goal keeper).<span style=""> </span>Michael was just playing the game.<span style=""> </span>The other guy was being a creep.<span style=""> </span>Clearly, this guy was just trying to take advantage of me and get money out of me.<span style=""> </span>Both team captains were there and the ref and I said “do we need to give this man money?”<span style=""> </span>“No.”<span style=""> </span>“Michael hit him and he hit Michael, so they are even?”<span style=""> </span>“Yes.”<span style=""> </span>So we thought it was done.<span style=""> </span>We finished our snacks and started to leave.<span style=""> </span>Then Michael came up to me and said he was afraid to leave because people were harassing him and saying they were going to knock him off his boda boda when he tried to leave.<span style=""> </span>Then the “injured” man comes over again.<span style=""> </span>Apparently he couldn’t walk and he was really sick.<span style=""> </span>This begs the question “how did you finish the last 30 mins of the game if you now can’t even stand up?????”<span style=""> </span>We said “listen, you chose to play, everyone is responsible for themselves.” <span style=""> </span>Some of the FAs even had examples of this happening to other people and no one received money.<span style=""> </span>I felt so bad for my guys.<span style=""> </span>We had such a fun day and they were looking so smart in their shirts and then this drama was happening because I was white.<span style=""> </span>So finally, we made a plan for one of my field assistants to take this guy to the clinic and I would pay the clinic directly for any care they gave.<span style=""> </span>He refused.<span style=""> </span>He clearly just wanted the money.<span style=""> </span>We eventually walked away from him and walked to the gate to make sure everyone got home safely before Jeff and I returned home.<span style="">
<br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">
<br /></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">At the gate, we were greeted by an angry mob.<span style=""> </span>That is right, an angry mob.<span style=""> </span>The soar losers had decided to riot and refused to let my FAs pass.<span style=""> </span>They were saying it was because of what Michael did to the goalkeeper, but it wasn’t.<span style=""> </span>When we told them we offered to pay, they didn’t care.<span style=""> </span>They just came up with other excuses.<span style=""> </span>After some time arguing and hearing so many threats, like that they were going to beat Michael up if he tried to pass, I told Michael he could stay with us at the field station for the night.<span style=""> </span>I also told him that he could throw it back in those guys’ faces because he would be staying in a fancy place, with electricity, and running water.<span style=""> </span>I mean, that is luxury.<span style=""> </span>Stod, who as I mentioned before is from the same village as Michael, also did not feel safe to pass, so he came back with us too. This is the first time we have ever really felt unsafe at Kibale.<span style=""> </span>And it is just because of a couple of stupid jerks who can’t keep a job and suck at life, to be honest.<span style=""> </span>It was sad.<span style=""> </span>The next day, we were getting all sorts of messages from people saying that they hoped we knew it wasn’t the whole village that felt that way, it was just these few guys who were being bad.<span style=""> </span>That everyone in the community was so upset and wanted us to know they supported us, and things like that.<span style=""> </span>So that was nice.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">As it happened, we found a car that was heading out of the field station and we got the field assistants home safely that night.<span style=""> </span>They didn’t even have to stay an hour later.<span style=""> </span>It doesn’t take much to fool a big, stupid mob, as it turns out.<span style=""> </span>So there it is.<span style=""> </span>The match, the victory, the mob.</p>
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_LIU5ofq9ZKn9uLSTigcznC2-B0lB8ImwHQgXqfsivw81yQQcJ1uJ7wVlB30QFF-t1ABjWb8RUd67KVTijMb56gxurrZiQinHiy3vIAlud3PGVNmce9AVjos159z1M_lBQa1v65YYVC0/s1600/IMG_0347.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0_LIU5ofq9ZKn9uLSTigcznC2-B0lB8ImwHQgXqfsivw81yQQcJ1uJ7wVlB30QFF-t1ABjWb8RUd67KVTijMb56gxurrZiQinHiy3vIAlud3PGVNmce9AVjos159z1M_lBQa1v65YYVC0/s320/IMG_0347.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474592637875939042" border="0" /></a>
<br />This wasn't even the worst of it:
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFoK85bEMYsfQ46EJMKAjJfFn_IKfux-Xx13lSDXyCyURWe2c6zEa2eKhid3b6DH9LXAztryZhK0CJEoo8dOTSXmAQceZ9d01UTa7lxo6-3VtQSYeBKYftWlcROOs2fQlqepuE_r_zkv0A/s1600/IMG_0359.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFoK85bEMYsfQ46EJMKAjJfFn_IKfux-Xx13lSDXyCyURWe2c6zEa2eKhid3b6DH9LXAztryZhK0CJEoo8dOTSXmAQceZ9d01UTa7lxo6-3VtQSYeBKYftWlcROOs2fQlqepuE_r_zkv0A/s320/IMG_0359.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474594409811604658" border="0" /></a><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">Next, we had our going away party at the field station.<span style=""> </span>Alex, our chimp researcher friend who is a Bulgarian that goes to Harvard, and Emily, our Ugandan friend who manages the chimp project, planned a going away party for us at the field station.<span style=""> </span>It was great!<span style=""> </span>They planned for food and bought tons of food and sodas and hired cooks to make a great party for everyone.<span style=""> </span>The field station provided the space and the sound system.<span style=""> </span>Emily had given me a traditional Rotooro dress (the culture of where we live) for my birthday, so I wore that to the party.<span style=""> </span>It was quite a production, as you will see from the pictures.<span style=""> </span>But everyone was thrilled to see me in the dress.<span style=""> </span>They all wanted to know if I would be wearing it in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>I told them probably not, but that I would wear all my other beautiful African-print things that I’ve had made.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The party was great.<span style=""> </span>It was very classically Ugandan.<span style=""> </span>It was supposed to start at 6 pm, so Jeff and I went over about 1.5 hours late and were early.<span style=""> </span>How lame, being early to our own going away party.<span style=""> </span>But once we got there, people started showing up all over the place and it was probably good for us to be there so we could talk to them each a little bit before everything started because we didn’t have time to talk to everyone during the party.<span style=""> </span>There was a head table where we sat with Jerry, the director of the field station.<span style=""> </span>We started with speeches… lots of speeches.<span style=""> </span>Kato, one of the field station administrators was the MC.<span style=""> </span>He had Emily go first.<span style=""> </span>She gave a nice welcome speech and told everyone why she “hates Krista”.<span style=""> </span>It was a great speech.<span style=""> </span>She talked about how I basically kept turning up at Chimp House trying to befriend her and she kept trying to get rid of me thinking that I was going to be yet another researcher who has a short stay and never comes back.<span style=""> </span>But then, as she went through her story, she talked about all the things that happened between us and how she realized I was different, I was so friendly, and how we became great friends.<span style=""> </span>She talked about when I introduced her to Jeff when I came back for my full study and how he was just looking at every ant on the ground seeming totally overwhelmed by the place, but that he is now a pro at knowing which ants bite and which don’t and so on.<span style=""> </span>She had Pani with her as she made her speech and said I was the Number 1 nanny for Pani because I would come down at night to help take care of her before she was able to hire a nanny.<span style=""> </span>It was nice.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">So I was the guest of honor, which I protested saying that Jeff and I should both be the guest of honor, too, but that was knocked down.<span style=""> </span>That was actually really nice, to be honest.<span style=""> </span>After so many times of having Jeff getting more respect than me for being a man here, it was kind of nice that they made a point to have me be the guest of honor.<span style=""> </span>That might sound a bit selfish, but it was ok.<span style=""> </span>Plus, it made for great fun as everyone talked about the guest of honor and her husband.<span style=""> </span>They also started calling him the handsomest man at the party.<span style=""> </span>So that was nice.<span style=""> </span>They also eventually just decided we were one and so they would talk about the One, or one half or the other half.<span style=""> </span>People got really into that – calling us One.<span style=""> </span>Kind of cute!<span style=""> </span>They tried to keep the speeches balanced to reflect Jeff, then me, Jeff, then me, and so on.<span style=""> </span>So they had <st1:country-region st="on">Lydia</st1:country-region>, the headmistress of <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Kasiisi</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Primary School</st1:placetype></st1:place>, give a speech, which highlighted Jeff, but also said nice things about me.<span style=""> </span>They had a representative of the researchers give a speech, which was Pawel, and he said lots of nice things.<span style=""> </span>The Uganda Wildlife Authority representative (the Research and Monitoring Warden) gave a speech and said some nice things about how I was one of the few researchers who had taken time to get to know him over his 5 years at Kibale.<span style=""> </span>The previous Director of the field station gave a speech.<span style=""> </span>He is also on the board for Jeff’s project, so he was able to talk about both of us.<span style=""> </span>And the current Director, Jerry, gave a speech about us.<span style=""> </span>These speeches were kind of interesting for me because they talked about how much they appreciated how serious I was and how I didn’t take crap, more or less, from the field assistants.<span style=""> </span>They said that I was doing a service because I was teaching the field assistants how to be good assistants for future projects and how to do good research.<span style=""> </span>They also thanked me for the training I did for inexperienced field assistants.<span style=""> </span>And they thanked me for always being ready to give guest lectures to visiting courses.<span style=""> </span>And they thanked me for donating research materials to the field station.<span style=""> </span>My field assistants gave a speech as a group, presented by my two lead field assistants, Moses and Sabiiti.<span style=""> </span>They also gave me a beautiful basket and two necklaces.<span style=""> </span>It was really sweet.<span style=""> </span>Everyone’s speech talked about how they were hoping we would come back again soon and how we should greet everyone in <st1:country-region st="on">America</st1:country-region> (here you go <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region>), and how we should forget all the bad things that happened and think of all the good things.<span style=""> </span>Pretty typical things to say in Ugandan speeches, but I am always a little sad about the last part.<span style=""> </span>Later, Alex gave a speech to introduce Jeff who then was to introduce me as the guest of honor.<span style=""> </span>Alex’s speech talked about how Jeff and I helped to make Kanyawara feel like home to him and even after a recent visit to his home town in <st1:country-region st="on">Bulgaria</st1:country-region>, he realized that <st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region> was more of a home than <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Bulgaria</st1:place></st1:country-region> because home is about the people who are there.<span style=""> </span>And Jeff and I helped to make <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> his home. That was really sweet.<span style=""> </span>Then Jeff gave a short speech, especially saying how he really appreciated the field station and the wildlife authority allowing a non-researcher to stay at the field station for such a long time.<span style=""> </span>And then he introduced me. <span style=""> </span>Mostly, I wanted them to know that there are so many things that I appreciated about all of them.<span style=""> </span>I tried to talk about each group of people individually – the field station, the wildlife authority, my cook, my fellow researchers, the project managers, and so on.<span style=""> </span>I told them that they don’t need to ask us to forget the bad because there was no bad.<span style=""> </span>Kibale is our home and we love it.<span style=""> </span>And I said that there are so many things about <st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region> that I would love to take back to <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region> with me.<span style=""> </span>Like the amazing beauty of the place.<span style=""> </span>And the completely friendly people.<span style=""> </span>I told them that there was a generosity in <st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region> that is not found in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region> because people give the last of what they have to others, which is hard to find in other places.<span style=""> </span>And how everyone has such a great community spirit and they are so welcoming.<span style=""> </span>I really love that!<span style=""> </span>I talked a lot about my field assistants and how great they were and I got a bit emotional in this part.<span style=""> </span>Tears were definitely in my eyes as I told them that I wouldn’t have been able to do my research without them and that I was so appreciative of all of their hard work and of being a friend to me.<span style=""> </span>And I told them that I knew I was strict, but that I didn’t think it was fair to me or to them that some people were getting away with not doing their work.<span style=""> </span>And they were all working so hard, that I had to get rid of those people who weren’t.<span style=""> </span>And I said that even though everyone was saying how tough I was, I think my field assistants and anyone in Kibale who ever asked me for anything would say that I never turned away a person in need.<span style=""> </span>And I think everyone agreed to that.<span style=""> </span>Even typing this it just makes me reflect on it all.<span style=""> </span>There is such a huge responsibility that comes along with having that many people being dependent on you.<span style=""> </span>My employees, their families, all the people living in the area who were my friends.<span style=""> </span>They all depended on me and I couldn’t let them down and it was so hard sometimes.<span style=""> </span>And I said in my speech that I wasn’t a big professor, I wasn’t getting funding from a University to be there, I didn’t have a job, I wasn’t some rich Mzungu that was there to give out money.<span style=""> </span>It was just me and I worked so hard to raise the money needed to make sure that they all got what they needed.<span style=""> </span>And I think they did.<span style=""> </span>All of my field assistants talked so much about how they would miss me, their families would miss me, and go into details about ways that I helped them.<span style=""> </span>Little things that were totally within my power, even as an underfunded grad student, made a huge difference to some people.<span style=""> </span>So that was nice.<span style=""> </span>Anyway, I’m just rambling because it was an interesting and unforgettable experience and I don’t want it to be over…</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We feasted on so much food.<span style=""> </span>There was beef, there was cabbage, there was matooke (starchy banana), rice, irish potatoes, peas, g-nuts (roasted peanuts), and popcorn.<span style=""> </span>I also made punch out of mix sent to us in a care package.<span style=""> </span>There were crates of soda and the canteen was serving up other drinks.<span style=""> </span>Once everyone was completely full, we started dancing.<span style=""> </span>It was very fun.<span style=""> </span>At first, they had Jeff and I open the dance.<span style=""> </span>We danced a bit and then had others join in with us.<span style=""> </span>People were being a bit slow about joining in on the dancing, so they had the Mzees, the old men of the field station, do a dance.<span style=""> </span>The old director and the new director got out on the floor and started dancing to a really funny song (no idea what it was).<span style=""> </span>They were doing some awesome moves and then the station manager, Charles Ddumba, who was dj’ing joined them.<span style=""> </span>Very fun.<span style=""> </span>Slowly, people started dancing until we had a full floor.<span style=""> </span>It was quite a feat dancing with that huge dress on, but I did it.<span style=""> </span>Well, that is until I dropped the wrap on the bathroom floor and had to go home and change.<span style=""> </span>People slowly dwindled down until there were about a dozen of us left dancing until after 2 am.<span style=""> </span>It was very fun.<span style=""> </span>I had made a few cds for the party and there were a few <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region> songs on them, but people jumped right into dancing to them, which was nice.<span style=""> </span>The field assistants just didn’t want the party to end.<span style=""> </span>Every song ended with them asking for one more.<span style=""> </span></p>
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<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">A few days after the party, I had all the field assistants come to the house for their last pay, to go over a few remaining questions, and to get lots of presents from us.<span style=""> </span>I asked everyone to bring a cup and spoon since I knew we would be packing ours.<span style=""> </span>And we served Tea, Coffee, and Snacks.<span style=""> </span>Everyone enjoyed eating all the yummy American snacks that were sent to me for Christmas and showed up 5 months later at the end of April.<span style=""> </span>At one point, they asked what some of the Kashi cookies were that they were eating.<span style=""> </span>I said they were cookies and then everyone was repeating it trying to say it “cooookie”, “cokie”, “cookie”.<span style=""> </span>It was sooo cute!<span style=""> </span>And they asked if I baked them.<span style=""> </span>That made me laugh out loud.<span style=""> </span>You know me and that propaned powered burner can work miracles.<span style=""> </span>I wish I could bake cookies on the stove top!</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We then unloaded on them all the things from our house, which they were PUMPED about.<span style=""> </span>Then we went back to the lab where I continued to give them all things.<span style=""> </span>They all got at least one pair of shoes and one pair of boots, which they were pretty pumped about.<span style=""> </span>I just kind of held things up and whoever was the first to raise their hands got it.<span style=""> </span>Stod got a pair of Jeff’s shoes that are kind of these low, stylish, slip-on sneakers that he had bought in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>Stod was so pumped with this stylish gift that he started sprinting around the lab.<span style=""> </span>Jeff had to yell at him to get back to the lab so he could claim more free stuff.<span style=""> </span>We all said our sad, heartfelt goodbyes and they left.
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<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Of course, the goodbyes didn’t end there.<span style=""> </span>Everywhere we went, everything we did, people were saying goodbye to us.<span style=""> </span>It often takes a long time to walk anywhere or do anything in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> because there are always so many people to stop and greet and talk to.<span style=""> </span>But suddenly, everything started taking EVEN longer.<span style=""> </span>We couldn’t go anywhere without people stopping us for so long to know our plans, when we were coming back, to ask us to greet America, our families, each person they had known to visit us during our stay here – the sister, Jennifer, the Mom, the Aunt, and Jean, Jose (that is Josie who everyone just calls Jose), Sarah, etc.<span style=""> </span>One person even greeted my Dad with a big question mark sound in her voice.<span style=""> </span>Fair enough.<span style=""> </span>So many people stopped by the house to say bye.<span style=""> </span>And many people brought us lovely gifts, which was so nice.<span style=""> </span>We had estimated how much we could bring back with our baggage allowance, but suddenly, our whole suitcase was full with gifts and we hadn’t yet packed anything.<span style=""> </span>So nice!<span style=""> </span>Some people came to the house everyday that last week to talk to us one last time and say bye yet again.<span style=""> </span>People were even continuing to say bye to us as we packed up the car and were rushing to leave.<span style=""> </span>I can’t complain, though, it made us feel so loved and we wanted to see all those people over and over again, anyway.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Somehow, we still managed to get a few things done in the mist of all of this.<span style=""> </span>We packed up our whole house and lab and gave away every spare thing we had.<span style=""> </span>(We are talking about a whole room full of gifts to give away – we had so many things to give away of our own and then people who visit always leave things to give, and even some people send things to give away.)<span style=""> </span>But everyone loved their gifts.<span style=""> </span>Those who we did continue to see wore their new clothes proudly.<span style=""> </span>That is something I have always enjoyed about Ugandans – when you give them a gift, they like to show it off to you by wearing it.<span style=""> </span>Even things as simple as socks, I have had people point to them and say, “do you remember these?”<span style=""> </span>My response is always “not really, but I’m assuming I gave them to you since you are showing me.”<span style="">
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<br /><span style=""></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGEg9DSXpCKdCpEWIYMh4BDAAcILf3EuSrdgpGWzp4IWPiQSZY31ByR8p_rKhEqfF_lfy_9PfZFI1TS9qzPA6oCOX-cyF-Jspaz6hoZfw0KZAVrYdy6rD56WVjPejL0Pj6zgMizzQRu3KP/s1600/IMG_7687.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGEg9DSXpCKdCpEWIYMh4BDAAcILf3EuSrdgpGWzp4IWPiQSZY31ByR8p_rKhEqfF_lfy_9PfZFI1TS9qzPA6oCOX-cyF-Jspaz6hoZfw0KZAVrYdy6rD56WVjPejL0Pj6zgMizzQRu3KP/s320/IMG_7687.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474592627995747890" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">Saying bye to all sorts of people on our village walk and baby showing off the dress that my mom snuck away from Baba to give away in Uganda. I hope they both think it was worth it because it looks so cute!
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<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEDgyWZdMWVtrb9-FhjWj7npvQjJWUFeYj2RpHEZ8L12XXwmNBz5pxJgHdRoMiUqsfoXTtmgb6Ic75uXSKOBqxH1cZPazde07F-6i5jBxF6i2iht6ngu-m1niA53noajHmpEbJMJ24ZoG/s1600/IMG_7688.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyEDgyWZdMWVtrb9-FhjWj7npvQjJWUFeYj2RpHEZ8L12XXwmNBz5pxJgHdRoMiUqsfoXTtmgb6Ic75uXSKOBqxH1cZPazde07F-6i5jBxF6i2iht6ngu-m1niA53noajHmpEbJMJ24ZoG/s320/IMG_7688.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474592625921751506" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Jeff and I also went out into the forest to say goodbye to it.<span style=""> </span>This was crucial for me.<span style=""> </span>The forest was a huge part of my life while in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> and I am going to miss it terribly.<span style=""> </span>Jeff didn’t spend all that much time going out in the forest, but he loved it anyway and loved living in it.<span style=""> </span>We took a long walk and went up and down into the valleys where there were “babbling brooks,” as Jeff likes to call them.<span style=""> </span>We walked over the rocky stream at several different spots and had several different nice outlooks over the valley to take in the view.<span style=""> </span>We saw lots of huge trees that were beautiful.<span style=""> </span>And we said our goodbyes.<span style=""> </span>It was sad.<span style=""> </span>On the walk back home, we came across a group of vets and some of the field assistants for another project here who had darted a redtail and were taking measurements, samples, and collaring it.<span style=""> </span>It was crazy to see the redtail laid out on a tarp in the middle of a trail.<span style=""> </span>Plus, it was a bit worrisome to see all these people with face masks on in the place that we were about to walk past.<span style=""> </span>But then we noticed the person writing down the data didn’t have a facemask.<span style=""> </span>And no one had goggles or gowns.<span style=""> </span>What can I say, we get a bit relaxed when doing this work in the forest.<span style=""> </span>I’m not saying it is the best idea, but it is so different from in a lab, huh?</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">On our last morning in Kibale, we tried to make it so that we wouldn’t be seeing many people, but we still had many visitors stop by to see us off.<span style=""> </span>My cook, Abwooli, and her best friend and the KEP cook, Alice Akiiki, hung out in the kitchen helping us to finalize things and taking out the piles of goods that we were leaving for Abwooli.<span style=""> </span>Akiiki was saying her goodbyes to me and started to cry, then Abwooli started to cry, then I started to cry.<span style=""> </span>There was so much to do that morning and I had just been rushing around for the past week and it was continuing that morning.<span style=""> </span>And it was probably good because the only down time I had, when I was hanging out in the kitchen talking to Akiiki and Abwooli, I ended up sobbing.<span style=""> </span>I think that would have been me the whole time, if there wasn’t so much to get done and worry about.<span style=""> </span>Jeff also had his moments and it was just so sad to think about leaving.<span style=""> </span>It still is!<span style=""> </span>Pulling away from the field station for the last time, Jeff lowered his head and cried.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But finally, we were packed in the car and off.<span style=""> </span>We drove past the waving field assistants, the waving school kids, past the gate that says “tell others that Kibale is wonderful!”, past the big sloping meadows full of cows, past the fields of veggies, and the swamp.<span style=""> </span>We drove through the tea and onto <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style=""> </span>It was so sad.<span style=""> </span>Western-Uganda is a BEAUTIFUL place.<span style=""> </span>The animals are amazing!<span style=""> </span>The people are amazing!<span style=""> </span>And Kibale is Wonderful!</p>
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<br />Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-88472798805393314852010-05-23T15:51:00.002-05:002010-05-23T16:53:48.577-05:00King of Toro Birthday<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --></style><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The King of Toro was the youngest king in the world when he was crowned about 15 years ago.<span style=""> </span>He is now at University and just celebrated his 18<sup>th</sup> birthday.<span style=""> </span>This was a HUGE deal!<span style=""> </span>Tons of bigshots came to the palace in <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Fort</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Portal</st1:placename></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>The King’s palace sits high up on a hill in <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Fort</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Portal</st1:placename></st1:place> and when we went to town during the birthday celebration, we saw huge crowds, lights, and tents set up all over.<span style=""> </span>So we had to go up and check it out.<span style=""> </span>It was amazing!<span style=""> </span>It was like a real music festival.<span style=""> </span>There were multiple stages set up. One huge one that had all the most popular Ugandan musicians performing.<span style=""> </span>There were beer tents, vendors selling things, people selling t-shirts, hats, and badges to mark the event.<span style=""> </span>We got a great t-shirt with a picture of the King dressed in his traditional robes posing on his thrown.<span style=""> </span>Nice!<span style=""> </span>There were even promotional tents trying to get people to sign up for mobile phone plans and things like that.<span style=""> </span>And there was one of those cash blowing machines where you go in and try to catch the money.<span style=""> </span>It was crazy!</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">This was actually during one of our last weeks in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>, so we were stressed and overworked, so we could only stay for a short time.<span style=""> </span>We listened to some music and then worked our way up to the palace to see what was going on up there.<span style=""> </span>For some reason, the security guards just let us right in.<span style=""> </span>I told Jeff just to look like we knew what we were doing and I flashed a smile at the guard and away we went.<span style=""> </span>I’m sure being Mzungu played a big part in that pass.<span style=""> </span>So we get up to the palace and there are tons of famous people up there.<span style=""> </span>I mean, Presidents from nearby countries were visiting, the Kings and <st1:place st="on">Queens</st1:place> of other Kingdoms were there, and all the big Ugandan politicians.<span style=""> </span>There were news crews filming and so on.<span style=""> </span>There were tons of big black cars with different country flags on them.<span style=""> </span>Unfortunately, we two stupid mzungus had no idea who anyone was.<span style=""> </span>So we make our way into this super exciting area and have no idea what to do or who to look at or who to try to get pictures of.<span style=""> </span>We focused on not looking lost.<span style=""> </span>We hung out for a little bit, talked to one of the film people, and then left.<span style=""> </span>It was exciting, though.<span style=""> </span>The crowds were outrageous.</p>
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<br />Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-59578516167888994862010-05-23T15:46:00.002-05:002010-05-23T16:32:22.102-05:00Rwanda trip…<st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"></st1:country-region></st1:place><o:p></o:p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimfZ4D_ENZVbtqCvJCWi4vUBYc1ZwjVqrXuSes7fiVNIIiCZJGYKOXUdkRL9XgOz_JO5lURq1NnsmQfAnCCU_rLjkG1kebDwTkWVTkjJ3A_MZ9vuiOhMl-mPLluvTtIs6hSh7eS_KuApO7/s1600/IMG_7317.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimfZ4D_ENZVbtqCvJCWi4vUBYc1ZwjVqrXuSes7fiVNIIiCZJGYKOXUdkRL9XgOz_JO5lURq1NnsmQfAnCCU_rLjkG1kebDwTkWVTkjJ3A_MZ9vuiOhMl-mPLluvTtIs6hSh7eS_KuApO7/s320/IMG_7317.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474570715013387122" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">Next, Jeff and I decided to take a trip to <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Rwanda</st1:country-region></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>This was partly to renew our very outdated visas and partly so I could meet with a gorilla research group.<span style=""> </span>We were actually in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kigali</st1:place></st1:city> during the bombings that went off in late March, but were totally clueless to any of this.<span style=""> </span>In fact, I think there was a grenade outside of the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Kigali</st1:placename> <st1:placename st="on">Memorial</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Center</st1:placetype></st1:place> a few hours after we left.<span style=""> </span>My Mom actually called to tell me about the bombings and I said “Oh Mom, those were weeks ago…”<span style=""> </span>It wasn’t until later that I realized she wasn’t crazy and I was!<span style=""> </span>Anyway, to get to <st1:country-region st="on">Rwanda</st1:country-region>, we took a car to the border of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Rwanda</st1:place></st1:country-region> and got out.<span style=""> </span>The border is interesting.<span style=""> </span>For one, you cannot drive across.<span style=""> </span>You have to get out and walk.<span style=""> </span>We weren’t actually taking a car into <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Rwanda</st1:country-region></st1:place>, so this was okay for us, but even on the return trip, we had to get out of the bus and walk across.<span style=""> </span>We walked across and found one very nice passport inspector on the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Rwanda</st1:place></st1:country-region> side.<span style=""> </span>He was the last nice person we saw for a while, so it is note worthy to comment on him.<span style=""> </span>It started raining and we started walking to find public transport for the 2 hour trip to the capital.<span style=""> </span>The very rude people we ran into who refused to let us share their cover at their little security posts, but insisted on making us fish out our passports (even though we had already finished the boarder crossing), told us the mini busses were about 10 mins up the road.<span style=""> </span>We started walking and getting soak.<span style=""> </span>We approached a group of school-aged girls all coming home from school and we smiled and said hi.<span style=""> </span>It turns out they were not friendly, they were little bitches and they surrounded us and decided to taunt us as we walked.<span style=""> </span>So I decided to be a bitch back.<span style=""> </span>I kept stopping short, which made all of them pile into each other trying to avoid bumping into me.<span style=""> </span>After a few times of this, they dispersed.<span style=""> </span>We then got to the mutatus and no one spoke English (the current official language) or French (the previous official language), so we had a really hard time figuring out where to go.<span style=""> </span>Finally, we ended up in a mutatu that headed for <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kigali</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style=""> </span>Along the way, we met a few nice people who talked to us, but those were few and far between.<span style=""> </span>When the trip started, there had been no English speakers in the car, so I thought I could talk to Jeff (who was sitting in front of me) openly without anyone knowing what I was saying.<span style=""> </span>At one point, the guys next to me were pointing at my ring finger and discussing it in their local language.<span style=""> </span>Already being annoyed by how rude everyone was to us, I held out my hand and said “Yes, I’m married, ok?”<span style=""> </span>A few minutes later, we made a stop and everyone was yelling at us “Mzungu, Mzungu!”<span style=""> </span>We are used to this in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>, but it is usually kids who yell this.<span style=""> </span>Yet, these were adults who were being really aggressive towards us from outside the mutatu.<span style=""> </span>This happened everytime we stopped.<span style=""> </span>It was extremely uncomfortable.<span style=""> </span>So at one point, I said, “Ooh, Mzungu, look at the Mzungu, I’m going to stare at the Mzungu.” And the man next to me and the girl next to Jeff laughed.<span style=""> </span>So we realized we were sitting next to English speakers.<span style=""> </span>I spoke to the guy next to me for a bit and Jeff chatted with the girl next to him and then we arrived in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kigali</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style=""> </span>Somehow, the girl next to Jeff ended up still being with us after we got out of the Mutatu.<span style=""> </span>She said she was helping us find a taxi, then she got in the taxi.<span style=""> </span>She said she was helping us find the hotel, then she was in the hotel.<span style=""> </span>The final straw came when she asked Jeff if he wanted a separate room from me.<span style=""> </span>Oh Jeff, he had no idea what was happening.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">So we settled into our room and headed out for dinner.<span style=""> </span>The town is nice, very European.<span style=""> </span>We found a nearby mall that was obviously a mzungu hangout, which we didn’t realize.<span style=""> </span>We found a great little café with free internet.<span style=""> </span>It had tons of mzungus and all sorts of yummy food we hadn’t seen in forever, like goat cheese.<span style=""> </span>We ordered lots of things and then ended up being pretty disappointed in it overall.<span style=""> </span>But we still ended up coming back to the place multiple times because of the internet and the comforting foods.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">While in <st1:country-region st="on">Rwanda</st1:country-region>, we visited the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Kigali</st1:placename> <st1:placename st="on">Memorial</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Center</st1:placetype></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>It is a museum that documents the 1994 Genocide and other genocides around the world.<span style=""> </span>It was horrifyingly sad.<span style=""> </span>Of course, we all know the sad things that happened and this museum just overwhelmed you with it.<span style=""> </span>At one point, Jeff had to take a break from walking through it because he was so overwhelmed and feeling sick to his stomach.<span style=""> </span>In the museum, the biggest print is the local language there, then French and English.<span style=""> </span>This confused me because I thought they would have the country’s official language first.<span style=""> </span>As we went through the museum, though, it became obvious why they didn’t.<span style=""> </span>So much of what happens goes back to bad ideas from the colonist and this new divide that was created by the Belgians.<span style=""> </span>And the West totally abandoned this little country when it needed them most, so why should they be using their languages?<span style=""> </span>The saddest part of the museum was definitely the “Heroes” section.<span style=""> </span>Jeff and I were both crying.<span style=""> </span>These were people who risked their lives for other people, sometimes saving hundreds of people in the most creative ways.<span style=""> </span>It was so touching.<span style=""> </span>And then reading about the “aid” that came to the rescue, but was really all diverted to the refugees outside the country (aka the murderers who fled the country) was just appalling.<span style=""> </span>Again, it isn’t that this is new news, but having it so in your face had a big impact.<span style=""> </span>Comments about raped women who contracted HIV from being raped not getting any medicine for the past 15 years, but their rapists being given free meds by aid workers in the refugee camps just makes you want to puke.<span style=""> </span>Really sad.<span style=""> </span>This is where it is so important for people to actually think about where their aid money is going and what sort of “aid” they are giving.<span style=""> </span>Just throwing money at a problem and feeling good about yourself does not work.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The other part of the museum had info about other genocides.<span style=""> </span>I thought this part was really good because it highlighted how every continent has had its share of massacres.<span style=""> </span>I feel like sometimes people just blow off the tragedies in <st1:place st="on">Africa</st1:place> as century-long “ethnic” problems and so forth, but that part of the museum showed that all cultures have had their part in genocide.<span style=""> </span>Very sad!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">It was actually extremely weird to be in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Rwanda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>Everywhere you looked, the people were probably either victims of the genocide or perpetrators of the genocide.<span style=""> </span>It was horrifying to think about.<span style=""> </span>And it made me feel bad for being so frustrated at how rude people were acting towards me.<span style=""> </span>I just don’t know how a country comes back from something like that, really.<span style=""> </span>Jeff is commenting here that despite this, they are coming back.<span style=""> </span>It seems like a crazy success story, it doesn’t even make sense.<span style=""> </span>Also, he’s saying how they have a national understanding that they aren’t going to forget what happened, they are going to face it and they are going to face it together.<span style=""> </span>Which is great!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">After <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kigali</st1:place></st1:city>, we went to Ruhengari, which is the base town for the mountain gorilla researchers.<span style=""> </span>It was BEAUTIFUL!<span style=""> </span>Sitting at the base of the volcanos, the views were amazing.<span style=""> </span>And the views on the drive to get there and back were also amazing.<span style=""> </span>It was just mountain after mountain, valley after valley.<span style=""> </span>On our ride back to <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kigali</st1:place></st1:city>, we were driving on top of the clouds and the mountains were bursting through at certain points.<span style=""> </span>It was so breathtaking, I just wanted to make sure I got back there at some point.<span style=""> </span>I am posting a few photos, I hope they show just a gimpse of what we saw on our 2 hour ride.<span style=""> </span>Also, there are some photos of kids who we met on our walk around the town and were dying to have pictures taken.<span style=""> </span>These are just a couple of the dozen or so photos they posed for.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">After some delays, I had a great meeting with the gorilla research group and we are moving forward on discussions for me to get involved with their research… so good news there.</p> <br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" 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/></a>Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-18093171267531379032010-05-23T15:44:00.001-05:002010-05-23T15:46:40.277-05:00Baboon Hunters…<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPSKrm59ZDZNzYgYNMrakI7JnW8U2Ijtzub4-wytZK3wHHWFKpPSvv_6NFVDIieLRcDt5XlWKO1YplPAYrt5a2jk6_Q6ErBp4INppr6sVgSibcXqoXU71AYfK60nwJudARXPH7OfJ9CLc/s1600/IMG_7315.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDPSKrm59ZDZNzYgYNMrakI7JnW8U2Ijtzub4-wytZK3wHHWFKpPSvv_6NFVDIieLRcDt5XlWKO1YplPAYrt5a2jk6_Q6ErBp4INppr6sVgSibcXqoXU71AYfK60nwJudARXPH7OfJ9CLc/s320/IMG_7315.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474569357450632450" border="0" /></a><br /><br /> <p class="MsoNormal">As you may well know from past emails and blog updates, there is a baboon problem at Kanyawara.<span style=""> </span>The baboons are so aggressive and very dangerous.<span style=""> </span>The Wildlife Authority found a solution to this… bring in hunters that eat baboons.<span style=""> </span>So hunters from a different part of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> have been hanging around the outside of the park (the people in this area don’t eat monkeys).<span style=""> </span>They use spears, machetes, and dogs to hunt the baboons.<span style=""> </span>They are only allowed to hunt when the baboons leave the park, but we still see their dogs running around inside the park when they aren’t supposed to.<span style=""> </span>Field assistants have expressed concerned about the baboons being butchered in the village and what effect the blood and germs could have on them.<span style=""> </span>Good question.<span style=""> </span>Nevertheless, the baboons have started respecting people again and have been on much better behavior.<span style=""> </span>One day when leaving the field station, we came across the whole group of hunters and their dogs together and I got this amazing photo!<span style=""> </span></p>Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-52997283040864689292010-05-23T15:34:00.003-05:002010-05-23T16:42:17.589-05:00Cruder and Amanda Visit…<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" 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class="MsoNormal"><o:p>
<br /></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Towards the end of March, two of my friends from high school came to visit us, Amanda and Jeff Cruder (known as Cruder or Crudes).<span style=""> </span>They planned an action filled trip without much time for hanging out at the field station, which is understandable if you want to get in all the good game viewing.<span style=""> </span>So Jeff and I played tour guides for the week.<span style=""> </span>We had been to most of the places we were going, so we opted out of many of the activities due to lack of money.<span style=""> </span>But the group things that were priced on the group rate and not the individual rate were things we joined in on.<span style=""> </span>And we went to a new place, <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Lake</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Mburo</st1:placename></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>We had never been there before, so it was cool to see a new park and a new place.<span style=""> </span>It is a small National Park with a big lake.<span style=""> </span>They take you out on a small boat and give you a tour, seeing mostly birds.<span style=""> </span>It was really beautiful.<span style=""> </span>We also did a game drive and saw some new things, especially ZEBRAS!<span style=""> </span>This is the place in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> to see Zebras and we had not seen them yet.<span style=""> </span>It was fun.<span style=""> </span>They were beautiful and getting a good look at them really gave you the chance to appreciate the amazing designs on their body and how even their hair is striped!<span style=""> </span>See some pictures of our trip below.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm1UAWwZTtHoePHDHUUugJzjeKgMpU0De-WiT8zGjkSYhZ4rJx_Bs_GyQQYfXJwqG5u1uQFXFCbRGxMzDxIZ1idZL2jc7psrJMC7Y8QCleT06Bev4XWRPkGChiYTSJ3cjaeAuCaOsYeEz4/s1600/IMG_9881.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm1UAWwZTtHoePHDHUUugJzjeKgMpU0De-WiT8zGjkSYhZ4rJx_Bs_GyQQYfXJwqG5u1uQFXFCbRGxMzDxIZ1idZL2jc7psrJMC7Y8QCleT06Bev4XWRPkGChiYTSJ3cjaeAuCaOsYeEz4/s320/IMG_9881.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474568096264028610" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpOgjIG7WDrppALqlkz4RWyF4heQWwf7UijMelTQzqoqJFLdalQh8H9DTT8HCS-fSaQxpDhWPdl3giW_1FCbFO-q-SuiUA979R5N1ZbaU_SaYHFWPM7FoIP23A9DZyFiX85ny-j6GNsvu/s1600/IMG_9809.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijpOgjIG7WDrppALqlkz4RWyF4heQWwf7UijMelTQzqoqJFLdalQh8H9DTT8HCS-fSaQxpDhWPdl3giW_1FCbFO-q-SuiUA979R5N1ZbaU_SaYHFWPM7FoIP23A9DZyFiX85ny-j6GNsvu/s320/IMG_9809.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474568090689682018" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2j7xDGHXf3OI_WbJoult51T7966abp1sMkShFmn1ddVhOtWgDkNwB1ka1Sr-1e7nbVg8NBJ-B8944PlvVc7iTVjAG8_sVDcpYVD6C9v6YepyGYEMTx6rL2rcNxK-BVmd93wm12L3VxbWo/s1600/IMG_9944.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2j7xDGHXf3OI_WbJoult51T7966abp1sMkShFmn1ddVhOtWgDkNwB1ka1Sr-1e7nbVg8NBJ-B8944PlvVc7iTVjAG8_sVDcpYVD6C9v6YepyGYEMTx6rL2rcNxK-BVmd93wm12L3VxbWo/s320/IMG_9944.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474568085428235794" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhC_DI0w0dxZL8ITVp-aindJdBLS2sPWQ8F2nB9EtajKMStbFPlO_h_zv3RvSmSu5kI5Y2mK2YrUK4XzZBP4Z0q6eQceM9DLqQmp6GS4wEdWD6CGH9ODJqPG1klRW3RYaa788nPggCx6zM/s1600/IMG_9963.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhC_DI0w0dxZL8ITVp-aindJdBLS2sPWQ8F2nB9EtajKMStbFPlO_h_zv3RvSmSu5kI5Y2mK2YrUK4XzZBP4Z0q6eQceM9DLqQmp6GS4wEdWD6CGH9ODJqPG1klRW3RYaa788nPggCx6zM/s320/IMG_9963.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474567449970627890" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">On our way to Ishasha, where the tree climbing lions are, we heard that the bridge was out.<span style=""> </span>But people at the turn off insisted we could make it over, so we drove on to the bridge where we found two semi trucks on their sides on either side of the bridge.<span style=""> </span>There was a huge line of trucks waiting for the bridge to be repaired so they could pass.<span style=""> </span>We are talking days or weeks of work.<span style=""> </span>And we saw tons of people working on the bridge.<span style=""> </span>It was crazy.<span style=""> </span>See the pictures below.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
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<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwO5HUE25QSQcPxrWShJ3M0dXWF3vrb72cC2Glq_1_yXy0yylm5eE2rSB7pIvmQOSRndUjExw20La4VRK0PijU0PnbZit4o_Lj4A-P6kY2pWviTlsVFBP4Z1AxE8VOpvxErWvXizpBeCYo/s1600/IMG_7453.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwO5HUE25QSQcPxrWShJ3M0dXWF3vrb72cC2Glq_1_yXy0yylm5eE2rSB7pIvmQOSRndUjExw20La4VRK0PijU0PnbZit4o_Lj4A-P6kY2pWviTlsVFBP4Z1AxE8VOpvxErWvXizpBeCYo/s320/IMG_7453.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474567418367668434" border="0" /></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Other fun events from the trip were a night out dancing with my field assistants.<span style=""> </span>Amanda wasn’t feeling well enough to go, so Cruder, Jeff, and I went.<span style=""> </span>We took them out to Club Ecstasy in <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Fort</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Portal</st1:placename></st1:place> and danced the night away.<span style=""> </span>It was very fun.<span style=""> </span>We had some nice forest walks and good trips!<span style=""> </span>And it was funny to have another Jeff (Jeff Cruder) in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>Some of you may remember how difficult it was for people to say Jeff’s name at first.<span style=""> </span>So when they learned Cruder’s name, they were sooo excited.<span style=""> </span>They would point back and forth between Cruder and Jeff and say Jeff a bunch and then shake their hands and tell Jeff “oh, now you have a friend!”<span style=""> </span>I don’t think that was meant to sound the way it did, but it was being said a lot.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We also went to <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Kasiisi</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Primary School</st1:placetype></st1:place> and the choir performed for us.<span style=""> </span>It was really nice, but somewhat interrupted by the rain.<span style=""> </span>Also, we went to the super fancy Ndali Lodge for my birthday.<span style=""> </span>Emily and Jeff had been working hard to plan a super secret celebration for me and it turned out to be great!<span style=""> </span>We spent the whole day at the Lodge.<span style=""> </span>First, we had a very yummy lunch, including a huge fresh salad (see picture).<span style=""> </span>Then we went on a walk to tour the vanilla, coffee, and cocoa plantations and to see the vanilla factory.<span style=""> </span>It was a fun walk and we even got to taste raw cocoa, which is really fruity (see picture).<span style=""> </span>After the walk, we soaked in the pool for a bit.<span style=""> </span>Ndali lodge looks out over multiple crater lakes, so it is completely beautiful and the pool also looks out over the scene.<span style=""> </span>It was awesome.<span style=""> </span>We then did cake and presents.<span style=""> </span>The cake was almost like a big brownie.<span style=""> </span>It was so good.<span style=""> </span>We ended with dinner and some nice red wine.<span style=""> </span>It was a wonderful day!<span style=""> </span>I think everyone had a good time.<span style=""> </span></p>
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMCqQpLrOXrK-5qM6Obyi5hkJksUJfxBQpkrEwCS9R5z_fJwLORa8SBCKU1yWPydwYV5VVq40ExJ7zj8YgiB-MViSCRUDn4xKaN_yRdK8CNZw7Kx294BK5PDVziCwFxQX4yOMUd5fvV3If/s1600/IMG_7518.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMCqQpLrOXrK-5qM6Obyi5hkJksUJfxBQpkrEwCS9R5z_fJwLORa8SBCKU1yWPydwYV5VVq40ExJ7zj8YgiB-MViSCRUDn4xKaN_yRdK8CNZw7Kx294BK5PDVziCwFxQX4yOMUd5fvV3If/s320/IMG_7518.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474568107186922050" border="0" /></a>
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Mzeqh4-c6qMeuKKiFBU-UPCopaOeYbwGMsYB-o0qz1b-u0T8s4BAuxAv73Y3Lrso73_44g2YsacCiT2qt34yAyzkqhuZAcTwmTtI0dEZHVO2putc7gpq4IHmXrsHIphW3QsPOMcfnwSU/s1600/IMG_7513.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Mzeqh4-c6qMeuKKiFBU-UPCopaOeYbwGMsYB-o0qz1b-u0T8s4BAuxAv73Y3Lrso73_44g2YsacCiT2qt34yAyzkqhuZAcTwmTtI0dEZHVO2putc7gpq4IHmXrsHIphW3QsPOMcfnwSU/s320/IMG_7513.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474568101353385538" border="0" /></a>
<br />Other nice pictures from the trip. The first one is a tribute to Jeff's new favorite thing-- birding.
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2Y3gESQHNIMpXXOTX4C7GntXZeF6Q-Ld1R7Ybodd8PNEht20UvcMY_rh3r0w_ZebQGvr34Al6CblwgVH5-iLQ_KZt6xfa_xeVv7FDkRRyhJIqbdIfonWEv39OcVu6kOqNpsUYgpSYtRA/s1600/IMG_0023.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2Y3gESQHNIMpXXOTX4C7GntXZeF6Q-Ld1R7Ybodd8PNEht20UvcMY_rh3r0w_ZebQGvr34Al6CblwgVH5-iLQ_KZt6xfa_xeVv7FDkRRyhJIqbdIfonWEv39OcVu6kOqNpsUYgpSYtRA/s320/IMG_0023.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474567443623650386" border="0" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYkICS10q8XWVWS1bVV7lSuIN0VTS9-9c9tAaFBHAqT2FMSEJy5_-q_BPcmJb_1bi5fcmxQCcV7AJ3trL9ozE1OhMAhsPEoHRYaVs3HxlqS2iXmq1k-oflO_kkEPm4hypfD4NgbI6QWfeO/s1600/IMG_9698.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYkICS10q8XWVWS1bVV7lSuIN0VTS9-9c9tAaFBHAqT2FMSEJy5_-q_BPcmJb_1bi5fcmxQCcV7AJ3trL9ozE1OhMAhsPEoHRYaVs3HxlqS2iXmq1k-oflO_kkEPm4hypfD4NgbI6QWfeO/s320/IMG_9698.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474567434565340754" border="0" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8FkzYPa_6pOTOYQ9R0Ij7OBDAD-qh2VM_ve3Uf0-DckDmTYWu1g7INz6s_9PJA9GCKPBNvra-R3-azo_HqcGC6Ks_h4ajzj2QhOcJKLa7qIzkBJm0zY_fvNXNNppwD1FZxvk8RsEuWVam/s1600/IMG_9745.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8FkzYPa_6pOTOYQ9R0Ij7OBDAD-qh2VM_ve3Uf0-DckDmTYWu1g7INz6s_9PJA9GCKPBNvra-R3-azo_HqcGC6Ks_h4ajzj2QhOcJKLa7qIzkBJm0zY_fvNXNNppwD1FZxvk8RsEuWVam/s320/IMG_9745.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474567429834847250" border="0" /></a>
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<br />Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-9283496103486598142010-05-23T15:19:00.001-05:002010-05-23T15:25:01.217-05:00Update on Jeff’s work…<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">Recently, The Kasiisi Project has had a few more volunteers come to help out.<span style=""> </span>We realized that there are tons of “pay to volunteer” organizations all over the world so we thought this would be a good way to provide extra support for the project. <span style=""> </span>So my job has expanded into being an organizer and leader for young volunteers.<span style=""> </span>Mostly this has made feel like a “dad” because of the age difference and different issues that have come up like receiving a text from some teenage volunteer girls asking me where they can purchase tampons in town.<span style=""> </span>Luckily, I was will Krista and Emily so I could tell them where to go.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I have continued supervising the One Laptop Per Child deployment at <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Kasiisi</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">Primary School</st1:placetype></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>Teaching the students and teachers about the laptops and different ways to use them is a continuous process.<span style=""> </span>I was asked to document how the laptops are used and what we need as an organization to support their use, so I created a short movie.<span style=""> </span>The movie is now on the OLPC YouTube channel—check it out and feel free to donate!<span style=""> </span>After the movie was uploaded, OLPC asked me to guest write on their OLPC News website – it is not yet published though.<span style=""> </span>Shortly after making the movie, we acquired an additional 78 laptops from a failed OLPC deployment in a different part of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>There were two other OLPC corps deployment in <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>Each group of college students deployed 100 laptops at a primary school which was partnered up with an NGO.<span style=""> </span>The college students came for a short time (10 weeks) and then the responsibility of training, encouragement, and support of the project rested on the NGO.<span style=""> </span>Our NGO, The Kasiisi Project, has been a vital reason why the laptop program at Kasiisi has been a resounding success.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">One of the aspects of the Kasiisi Project is their secondary school student support program. Secondary school in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> is not free and the cost is far beyond what most people can afford.<span style=""> </span>Currently we support 90 secondary, university, and vocational students.<span style=""> </span>Funding for the scholarships come from individuals in the <st1:country-region st="on">US</st1:country-region> and <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">UK</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style=""> </span>Sometimes it is one person, sometimes a family, a church, a class, a school, a rotary club…. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We also partner up with other organizations that sponsor students.<span style=""> </span>One of those organizations only sponsors smart double orphan girls to attend a boarding primary school.<span style=""> </span>We tested and interviewed 10 girls from our 5 primary schools.<span style=""> </span>The interviews were the hardest part.<span style=""> </span>We had to verify that the girls went to the schools they claimed to be from and that both their parents were actually deceased.<span style=""> </span>It isn’t as if there is some central student database that stores all this information, so we had to ask some hard questions.<span style=""> </span>Discussing in depth the deaths and burials of the parents of these 14 year old girls is difficult and overwhelming.<span style=""> </span>In the end, we could only choose one girl.<span style=""> </span>The life and future of this one girl will vastly improve because of the opportunity to attend a top boarding primary school.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>It felt great to tell the top girl that she earned the scholarship.<span style=""> </span>However, it was really hard when the other girls would seek me out when I was at their schools to ask if they were getting the scholarship and I had to tell them that they did not get it. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">On my last weekend at Kasiisi primary school, a German Television film crew came to shoot a documentary about ICT use in <st1:place st="on">East Africa</st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>Our OLPC program and my work at the school is being featured in the documentary. </p> Kristahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00828438665905721475noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-51838004251744369442010-05-04T08:35:00.000-05:002010-05-04T08:36:54.553-05:00Other exciting forest days…On another day in the forest, I saw a very strange thing. I was standing under the focal female with two of my field assistants (both male) and a male red colobus approached the female and started mating. The female ran away from him shortly after and suddenly, I saw ejaculate fly through the air over our heads. I made a gasping noise and looked around at the field assistants while they stood smiling awkwardly. I paused for a few seconds and said, “did you see something fly through the air just now?” They said “yes”. I said, “was that urine?” (Ok, I’m not that stupid, but I was trying to ease into it.) They said “no”. And I said, “I think it was ejaculate.” And they said “Yes.” So then I was like: wow, this is amazing, have you ever seen that before, we need to record it… So we then had some very awkward discussion about how to call it and how to spell it. One field assistant suggested calling it an “ejaculatory pass”. I didn’t really know what that meant, so I suggested ejaculated externally. The next morning, I had to have an equally awkward conversation with all of my field assistants about this very same thing so that we could all be sure to record it the same whenever, if ever again, it happens. I think it is just much more shocking to see this in an arboreal species where the ejaculate can literally go flying right over your head – or onto your head, for that matter. <br /><br />My other forest days were also very nice. In K-14, I saw a HUGE caterpillar that was the size of a small snake. I guess these are the caterpillars that turn into the big moths that are all around Kibale at night. <br /><br />Searching for groups in the K-13, K-15 area, I sunk into the huge papyrus swamp (which looks more like a river) twice. Fortunately, it was the same foot both times. So had had to ring out my sock and dump liters of water out of my boots each time. At one point, I sat down and decided to try to let my boot, foot, and sock dry out a bit. Since this area is so degraded, there is actually a good amount of sunlight that shines through, which made me for some reason think that I would be able to dry off. But I was still in a rainforest and there was no drying going on. In the meantime, red colobus started traveling over me and were peeing and pooping as they started to move (that is the typical way it goes). I was totally sitting in the wrong place and was getting the occasional urine and fecal sample dropped on me. I’m so used this now, though, and was so tired from searching all morning and struggling through the swamp twice, that I just wanted to sit there. I was more disappointed about having to move in order to not look like a crazy mzungu than I was about being pooped and peed on. C’est la vie. <br /><br />Later in the day, two of my research groups came together and started to have an intergroup interaction. I was really interested in this, so I walked down to the where the males were interacting and displaying. Right as I was reaching the crosstrail, field assistants from both groups started yelling at me to watch out and get back and just yelling my name loudly. At about the same moment, I heard a huge crack over my head and I just froze not knowing which way to go. About 1 foot in front of me, a HUGE branch landed with a big thud. Little bits of debris hit me as I ran back up the hill. When the males display, they jump on the branches and this can sometimes cause them to break off. I went back to the branch later to see how heavy it was. I picked it up and found it was soo heavy. In total, it was a little bigger than my arm. A bit thicker and a bit longer. It was so dense, though, and had lichens growing all over it. Considering I was over an hours hike away from home, that would have been a tough hit on the head. <br /><br />Anyway, forest days are always nice. You never know what you are going to see. Some days it is something cool happening with the red colobus, other days it is just catching a glimpse of a duiker on the walk back home. But it is always so peaceful and helps calm the mind from everything else going on. <br /><br />The last month or so of my work at Kibale was so full of lab work that I rarely had time to go out into the forest. Jeff and I were working night and day to process all the fecal samples from my project. The lab work was intense, but it was successful. It was nice to have my own lab set up and to feel the progress of slowly working my way through the fecal tubes in the freezer and filling up the hormone cartridges in the box. Some days, we would wake up at 3 am to start working and then have to be up until 11 pm to finish the work. This is much harder to do in Uganda than America simply because of the darkness that is there for 12 straight hours and the bugs that come out at night and the fact that you are never really sealed in anywhere, so if you are out of your bednet at night, you are vulnerable to the elements and the bugs. We didn’t get much sleep that last month, but we got lots of good work done, so that is good.Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-88469279484622579432010-05-04T08:34:00.000-05:002010-05-04T08:35:15.956-05:00The elephants…After my family left, we got back to work seriously. I had a few interesting encounters in the forest (see this and the next entry). The most exciting was seeing 20 elephants one morning. As I was walking out to one of my groups, the field assistant suddenly stopped as we were rounding a corner and said “elephants”. When I looked down the path, I saw several medium to big elephants crossing the trail about 50 meters in front of us. They went off into the forest to the left of the trail and we heard them thrashing about. The field assistant, Jimmy, insisted that we go back down the trail to get away from them. Field assistants are notorious for being afraid of elephants and running from them. Not that I am complaining. Generally, it is good to run from elephants, but not when they are so far away and not bothered by you. After standing further down the trail for a few seconds, I got anxious to see what was happening, so I moved back up. We climbed up the side of the trail a little bit to see if we could see where they were, but we could only see the trees moving. Then one trumpeted very loud. Jimmy yelled “they know we’re here!” and pushed me backwards down the trail. We waited back again and finally I asked if we could find another way around. He said yes, we could go through the swamp, so we turned around to make our way around them in the other direction. About 5 steps later, I started thinking about me and my clumsiness in the swamp and elephants that were headed to the swamp and us trying to sneak around them. I realized that this was a terrible idea and was immediately frightened, but I was trying to act tough. So I waited until we were starting to walk down into the swamp to say “Hey Jimmy, maybe we should listen to see if we hear any elephants in the swamp before we go down there.” He agreed and we listened and immediately heard elephants. Good enough, Jimmy was just as scared as me, so we scurried back up to the main trail. We decided to go back to where we saw the elephants and see if they had left. We got to the point we had been at before and all was quiet to the left of us. They had clearly already headed down to the swamp. So we started walking forward on the path when we heard crashing and trumpeting to our right. More elephants were coming and they were about to cross right in front of us. So we went back to the bend in the road and I staked out a spot for prime elephant viewing. In the midst of this, Jimmy was sure to tell me how those elephants we saw weren’t really that big. How he had seen much bigger ones before. Got it. So next, of course, this massive, massive male with huge tusks comes stomping onto the trail. He crosses and is followed immediately by a tiny little baby. This thing was so small it could barely make its way up the other side of the trail and its little butt stuck out trying to heave itself up. Then another small, but slightly bigger baby went by, then another tiny, tiny one, and finally, another huge male. It was awesome. Jimmy and I were playing a constant game of him forcing me to move back and me coaxing him forward on the trail. We heard more coming, so we waited and watched. A variety of medium sized and large elephants crossed the trail in 2’s and 3’s until 20 had crossed. Overall, this whole thing took about an hour. I was thrilled. I don’t usually carry a camera out to the forest because it is extra weight and it would basically be a biohazardous material by the end of it with all the poop and pee that lands on me, but that day I was thinking it would really have been great to have it. At the same time, I sometimes think that cameras block us form really “seeing” things, so I was also a bit happy that I just took in the sight of these huge elephants bounding across the forest trail in front of me without fumbling for a camera or having my view obstructed by a lens. I won’t soon forget those images, anyway. <br /><br />Jimmy and I went on to search for our group and we ended up in the swamp with elephants crashing around nearby. Jimmy insisted that we were in a safe area, but we were walking over semi-fresh elephant tracks. It just seemed wrong to be in a swamp with elephants hopping over big elephant footprints and piles of dung. We finally reached a point where we needed to wait for the elephants to move to get access to the group. I decided my time was better spent at home doing data entry and other computer work. So I headed off on my own. Let me just say that the walk back was intense and there were several back and forth’s with trying to identify the groups I came across. None of them ended up being the group we had been looking for, but it was so hard to focus when I was so nervous about bumping into an elephant while I’m staring up into a tree. When I finally made it back out onto the main trail, I found a beautiful sight. The sun was shining through the green foliage onto the trail and hundreds of butterflies were floating all over the place. It was beautiful. It was a perfect butterfly garden. In all reality, butterflies are really disgusting creatures that are attracted to poop and dead things, so I’m sure having had elephant poop all over the trail, in addition to the usual monkey poop, was a real perk for these butterflies. This was actually the moment I was most wishing I had a camera. There was plenty of time to take in the butterflies all around me AND get some good shots. But I still was camera-less. It was very peaceful and calming, though.Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-41695300360725742682010-05-04T08:26:00.001-05:002010-05-04T08:33:46.442-05:00The Bushbuck<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CADMINI%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">When we returned home after seeing my family off in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city>, I went out to the lab to check on the data sheets, field gear, etc.<span style=""> </span>I heard a funny noise behind the house that sounded like a baby goat or a baby cow or something.<span style=""> </span>I scoped it out and found a very confused baby bushbuck wandering around the back yard.<span style=""> </span>It was calling out very loudly and kind of walking around in circles – clearly in need of its mother.<span style=""> </span>There is a female bushbuck that hangs out around the field station and lives behind our house.<span style=""> </span>One time, when trying to measure a tree behind the house, I went to step up on some branches and realized that it looked like a home, so I walked around.<span style=""> </span>When I got to the other side, the bushbuck came darting out from the foliage and that is how we learned where the bushbuck lived.<span style=""> </span>So this was clearly her baby and it was so little and cute.<span style=""> </span>It was just figuring out that thing called walking and looked so pathetic.<span style=""> </span>I got some pictures, but it was nervous, so it was trying to run away.<span style=""> </span>See the picture below of the baby.<span style=""> </span>And of the beautiful mother (taken at a different time, but good for comparison).<span style=""> </span>I was sure that the baby wasn’t going to last long with how noisey it was being.<span style=""> </span>There aren’t a ton of predators in Kibale – the random lion, which there hasn’t been one for a long time, and people say there are leopards, more often seen are the African Golden Cat (which may be remembered by some as scaring me half to death when it ran past me in the middle of the night), and the cervil (of course there are also chimps, which eat monkeys and sometimes the antelope and there are birds of prey that eat the monkeys).<span style=""> </span>I don’t know if any of these would eat a baby bushbuck, but I can’t imagine that walking around advertising your vulnerability is a good idea.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sure enough, we stopped seeing and hearing the baby after a few days and I was feeling really sad that something had gotten it.<span style=""> </span>Jeff was more positive, though, that maybe it had learned to be quiet and hide itself.<span style=""> </span>But what does Jeff know, right????<span style=""> </span>A few months later, Jeff came in from the latrine and said that he had seen something in the forest behind our house and it took his eyes a long time to focus, but he eventually saw that behind all the branches, there was a little bushbuck.<span style=""> </span>I went out and looked and sure enough, the baby bushbuck was alive and well and quiet and hanging out.<span style=""> </span>So for the last month of our stay at Kibale, we got to check in on our little bushbuck friend that has his/her little hide out place right behind our latrine.<span style=""> </span>It was hard to see behind the branches, not because it wasn’t in plain view, but because it blended in so well.<span style=""> </span>But after giving your eyes a few minutes to focus, you could always see it laying there, staring back at you about 10 feet away with its big ears.<span style=""> </span>It had grown about 3x in size from when we first saw it.<span style=""> </span>And a few times, we saw it standing up and moving around a bit back there.<span style=""> </span>So cute!<span style=""> </span>And its mom is still around all the time.<span style=""> </span>Geez, we are going to miss that sort of stuff in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region>!<span style=""> </span></p>
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<br />Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-17959029583129974772010-05-04T05:00:00.005-05:002010-05-04T05:29:58.089-05:00The family visit....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/S9_z5ZdJymI/AAAAAAAAAOU/4y62wWRXrqM/s1600/IMG_7056.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/S9_z5ZdJymI/AAAAAAAAAOU/4y62wWRXrqM/s320/IMG_7056.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5467356640062327394" border="0" /></a>
<br /><p class="MsoNormal">My Mom, Aunt Lana, and friend Jean came to visit at the end of January for about 10 days.<span style=""> </span>We had a fun time hanging out around Kibale and visiting <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Queen</st1:placename> <st1:placename st="on">Elizabeth</st1:placename> <st1:placename st="on">National Park</st1:placename></st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>We based ourselves out of the Kibale area, which gave us lots of time for both animals and cultural activities.<span style=""> </span>The ladies adapted well to the rustic conditions and even opted to stay at the low-end places when we traveled.<span style=""> </span>I think they quickly realized the benefits of not staying at the fancy tourist lodges when they woke to hippos grazing outside their banda (grass roofed hut).<span style=""> </span>That sort of seclusion doesn’t happen when you are surrounded by lots of tourists.<span style=""> </span>We did have our fancy evenings, too.<span style=""> </span>We visited Ndali Lodge and enjoyed a meal that cost approximately as much as a month’s rent for me and Jeff.<span style=""> </span>We had an equally expensive dinner while at Queen Elizabeth by splurging on the fancy lodge for one meal.<span style=""> </span>Those three ladies insisted on paying for everything, so we got a nice free vacation and even a break from our usual weekly costs of paying for food, the cook, transport to town, etc.<span style=""> </span>It was a pretty sweet deal.<span style=""> </span>They decided to hang around our house a little more instead of hitting some of the further away National Parks.<span style=""> </span>While this meant they did miss out on giraffes, gorillas, and zebras, it also meant that they got to have some quality time with the local people here.<span style=""> </span>We had all the field assistants and workers over for a traditional Ugandan dinner and we all got to share stories with one another. <span style=""> </span>Another night, we went to a former field assistants house for dinner with his family.<span style=""> </span>We got a tour of the gardens and his home and met so many of his family members.<span style=""> </span>My family had brought gifts that were the hit of the party, for sure.<span style=""> </span>The kids were loving the sweets, the ladies were loving their fancy scarves and earrings, and Richard was so proud of his new school supplies.<span style=""> </span>It was a lot of fun!<span style=""> </span>We also did a trip to one of the primary schools that Jeff works with.<span style=""> </span>I took the ladies on some long, hard walks around the forest and they got to see a variety of monkeys and primates.<span style=""> </span>The red colobus decided to put on a show for us one day by playing all around the house.<span style=""> </span>They were doing good PR for me by posing really great for my Aunt’s photos.<span style=""> </span>We also did a trip to Mweya, where we saw lots of elephants very close up, and tons of other safari animals.<span style=""> </span>We then went to Ishasha where we saw tree climbing lions very close up.<span style=""> </span>A few funny and pathetic things happened at Ishasha.<span style=""> </span>When we were looking for tree climbing lions, the guide told us he knew where they were, but then after some time driving, he gave us a long speech about how all of nature is beautiful and we can’t be sad if we don’t see exactly what we want – clearly setting us up for failure and admitting he didn’t know where they were.<span style=""> </span>Fortunately, we found them and spent some time looking at them and then went on to see if we could find any others.<span style=""> </span>It was during this time, that I leaned forward and saw his eyes shut and said “Ven – are you sleeping?!?!?!”<span style=""> </span>He was, in fact, sleeping.<span style=""> </span>He must have forgotten that all of nature is beautiful and interesting to look at.<span style=""> </span>Hmm….<span style=""> </span>The family thought it was especially funny that Ven promptly hoisted himself up on the windowseal and put his hand up over his eyes to shade the sun and started scanning the horizon for lions.<span style=""> </span>The next morning, the UWA guides continued to show their superb training with our guided river walk.<span style=""> </span>We were walking along the river that divides <st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region> from the <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Congo</st1:country-region></st1:place> and admiring all the hippos when I saw a hippo wag its tail in front of another hippos face.<span style=""> </span>This looked like some sort of social activity, so I promptly asked the guide “What does it mean when the hippos put their bottoms in front of another one’s face and wag their tail.”<span style=""> </span>And she told me, “Oh, that’s when their putting in the shits.”<span style=""> </span>I said, “No, I’ve seen a hippo defecate before and that wasn’t what it was doing.”<span style=""> </span>She replied “Yes, sometimes it is hard to see when they put in the shits.<span style=""> </span>It was putting in the shits.”<span style=""> </span>I insisted that “putting the shits” involved sprays of brown water that the tail splashes around and this was not what I saw.<span style=""> </span>She continued to use the phrase “putting the shits” about 100 times more as my Mom, Aunt, and Jean watched the hippos.<span style=""> </span>Finally, my Mom, the shy little Karen Milich, turned to her with a straight face, pointed to a hippo, and said “Is that one putting in the shits?”<span style=""> </span>In the aftermath, it was pretty freaking hilarious.<span style=""> </span>I will admit I was really frustrated at our guide, Edyta, at the time, and made a bigger stink than I should have, but it is now a really funny thing to look back on.<span style=""> </span>It has continued to be a joke around the field station and the saying was even adopted into a song to the beat of “Putting on the Ritz” when my friends Amanda and Cruder came.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Anyway, I had to be the tough guy on a few occasions during the trip.<span style=""> </span>Not only with those guides, but also to prevent being ripped off.<span style=""> </span>At one point, we stopped to fill up the car with fuel and they tried to cheat me.<span style=""> </span>I saw the amount that was on the pump, then turned to get my money, they cleared the pump and wrote up a receipt for about 5,000 shillings more (approximately $2.75 and a decent daily wage in rural <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>).<span style=""> </span>After some arguing and me standing in a sea of gas station attendants all discussing the matter, I got the right receipt and paid the right amount.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We had an awesome day with the chimpanzees that included resting, grooming, traveling, feeding, babies, etc.<span style=""> </span>It was pretty exciting.<span style=""> </span>We also got a glimpse of the rare L’hoeist monkey while on a forest walk.<span style=""> </span>We saw lots of red colobus, redtails, and black and whites hanging out around the house.<span style=""> </span>And the bushbuck made several nice appearances walking through the yard.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">It was a lovely visit and we had a great time with the visitors!<span style=""> </span>See a few of our pictures below.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
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<br />Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-66446668642903579372010-05-04T04:34:00.000-05:002010-05-04T04:35:34.142-05:00New Years Eve!For New Years Eve day, we were invited to lunch at my field assistant Moses’s house. We walked there in some smart clothes and hung out with his family, including his 2 year old son who showed up a few months back. It was funny because Moses had no son and no wife, but one day he had both. I guess that happens sometimes. Anyway, we had a nice lunch at his house. His mother was very kind to us and they had some other guests over. We knew his sister from when she worked at the field station as a cook. And his son was super shy, but eventually started playing with the toys we brought him. <br /><br />After lunch, we were walking home and got caught in a big rain storm. At first, we kept walking, but then it picked up and our fancy clothes were getting soaked. We went and stood under some trees across the street from a house. A little girl at the house saw us and called us over to her house. We ran over as she and another woman were putting chairs into one of the rooms for us. We went in the room and it was the bedroom of a young woman with a baby. The girl was sooo young! And she had a new little baby. You get used to holding babies in Uganda because women always have their babies with them (no cradles or vibrating chairs to babysit the kids). And women are very friendly with letting others hold their babies. So this woman promptly plopped the baby down on my lap while she started folding the laundry on her bed. The little girl also came in the room. I used up all of my Rotooro and they used up all of their English. I said things like “rain” and pointed at the rain. And they said “yes”. Haha, no we did introduce ourselves and do all of those things. It was nice. The storm lasted for about an hour and they let us just hang out there until it was over. They were very sweet. <br /><br />A few days later, we packed up a bag of food and some baby clothes and took it to them to say Thank You for their hospitality to us and for rescuing us from the rain, which I wrote in a very rough translation into Rotooro. They appreciated the gifts and turned up to our house a few days later with gifts for us. This wasn’t working out! We were supposed to be giving them gifts. They gave us fresh veggies and eggs. And had the baby dressed in the new clothes. The woman, baby, and little girl (maybe her sister?) came. We got some pictures with them and gave the girl a coloring book and crayons. We gave them some snacks and drinks for the visit and sent them off with a few things packed up. <br /><br />Really, that is such a great example of how giving and friendly people are where we live. How often does someone in America just invite a stranger into their house? And then when brought a thank you gift, how often do they take the time to bring another gift as a thank you for the thank you. People here are just so giving and so kind. I know that my emails and this blog sometimes talk about the crazy things that happen to us here and I guess that is because those are things that really stick out as stories to tell, but everyday, we encounter these acts of kindness that touch us so much.<br /><br />When we got back, we were picked up by Julia, an English woman who has been living in another part of Kibale for almost 10 years. She is working on a PhD at Makerere University and came to Kanyanchu (the chimp tracking site in Kibale) to habituate the chimps and do research. She fell in love with the place, as many people do, and worked with some locals to buy big plots of land next to the forest. She is building it up to be a tourist site. We know Julia for several reasons. Obviously because of her research connections, I know her. And Jeff knows her because of his work with the schools. She helps out a school near her and this was one of the schools that Jeff took on the Disney Conservation Grant trips where he took teachers chimp tracking, to Queen Elizabeth, etc. Julia is one of the resident Mzungus, so we bump into her in town and things like that. And I’ve been at conferences in Uganda that she was also at. She is really nice and loves Uganda. Her place is really cool and touches the national park. She has 3 loving crazy dogs, so it was nice to get some pet time, since that is nonexistent in most of Uganda. She has nice trails around her property to take them on walks, so we did that several times. And she has lots of log cabins built up on platforms, which were cool. We stayed up until midnight celebrating, eating, and drinking. There was a full moon and it almost looked like daylight because of how bright it was. So after midnight, we took a walk around the land with her dogs. Since it was night, she didn’t need them on leashes. We didn’t even use torches because it was so light out. It was so cool to go on this late-night, moonlit walk around the land. We slept in the next day and then did another walk. We climbed up on one of her viewing platforms and hung out. Eventually, we headed back to Kibale. It was a very interesting New Year, and a nice visit.Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-3055351811437035342010-05-04T04:26:00.001-05:002010-05-04T04:34:43.764-05:00Holiday Party!<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">For the second year in a row, Jeff and I threw a Holiday Party for the massive army of people that work for me.<span style=""> </span>16 Ugandans were invited, but only 13 made it.<span style=""> </span>We still had up all our holiday decorations as well as 14 big gift bags for my workers.<span style=""> </span>We overworked our little fridge chilling beers and sodas for the big night.<span style=""> </span>We started the night with a bit of socializing and munching on mondazi (fried donut) and g-nuts (roasted peanuts).<span style=""> </span>Then we went outside for some games, which included Who can hit the wiffle ball the furthest?<span style=""> </span>Who can hit the most pitches?<span style=""> </span>Who can throw the Frisbee closest to the tree?<span style=""> </span>Who can throw the Frisbee in the basin?<span style=""> </span>Who can kick the football (soccer ball) closest to the tree?<span style=""> </span>Who can kick the football in the basin?<span style=""> </span>Who can flick the card into the bucket?<span style=""> </span>Who can estimate the distance to that tree stump?<span style=""> </span>The guys really like these outside games.<span style=""> </span>I think they especially like me demonstrating and seeing if I can do it.<span style=""> </span>My two super star wiffle ball hits were ooh’d and aah’d over (pure luck) and my pretty accurate football kicks earned me lots of points with all those guys.<span style=""> </span>At one point, the resident little kid, Atooki, came over and tried to participate.<span style=""> </span>Jeff got a cute picture of him hanging out (see below).<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We moved inside for more games and played Guess how many Sodysponia fruits are in the jar and Pictionary.<span style=""> </span>For the grand prize, we made everyone write down how tall they thought Jeff and I were and then the person with the closest total (adding them together) won.<span style=""> </span>One person thought we were 9 m tall together!!!<span style=""> </span>We are giants!<span style=""> </span>We had a three way tie and had to do a tie-breaker (guess what our favorite colors are).<span style=""> </span>We had a two way tie after that one (Alice Akiiki guessed mine was green, but said Jeff’s was white and Dennis guessed that Jeff’s was blue, but said mine was pink).<span style=""> </span>Finally, we had them write down a number between 1 and 20.<span style=""> </span>Earlier in the day, we had written down the number 17 in case we ran into this very situation.<span style=""> </span>Dennis wrote down 8 and <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Alice</st1:place></st1:city> was the winner with a perfect 17!<span style=""> </span>Wow, why did I just type all that out?<span style=""> </span>That was pretty boring, huh?<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">After games, we gorged on tons of food that Akiiki and Abwooli had spent 11 hours cooking.<span style=""> </span>We had mashed matooke (starchy bananas), kallo (millet bread- a doughy, sticky bread), boiled sweet potatoes, g-nut sauce (a thick peanut sauce), farinda (a creamy mashed bean sauce), tomato eggplant veggie sauce, cabbage, and fruit for dessert (fruit salad with bananas, mango, papaya, pineapple, and passion fruit plus a side dish of jackfruit – a super sweet fruit).<span style=""> </span>Afterwards, it was music time, presents, speeches and that was it.<span style=""> </span>It was a good time.<span style=""> </span>Check out our pictures.</p>
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<br /></p> Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-73152254987241769172010-04-05T07:50:00.005-05:002010-04-08T06:48:13.893-05:00Holidays are here...<p class="MsoNormal">December 23<sup>rd</sup> was the last day of work for my field assistants until after the New Year. They’ve been working for over a year with only short breaks, so I decided to give them a nice long break for the holidays.<span style=""> </span>This meant that I needed to get all of their pay organized before the end of the day.<span style=""> </span>In the morning, they requested that they leave early that day.<span style=""> </span>I told them that I had to go to town to get all the money from the bank, but that I would do my best to be back in time.<span style=""> </span>I checked my bank account, and of course, the transfer from my University had not yet arrived (despite having submitted it a month and a half before and begging for it to be ready in time for Christmas pay).<span style=""> </span>Thoroughly frustrated with U of I, I worked out with Jeff to borrow money from his account until I could replace it.<span style=""> </span>Jeff has a mastercard, which means there is only one bank that accepts his ATM card.<span style=""> </span>So we went to town and ran some errands.<span style=""> </span>Then Jeff got in line and waited.<span style=""> </span>The line was out the parking lot of the bank.<span style=""> </span>And this really means there were 3x as many people that were sitting in the grass waiting to cut in line.<span style=""> </span>This is a part of <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region> that Jeff and I cannot stand!<span style=""> </span>People just make a mental note of where they would be in line (aka, if I stood in line, I would be behind the guy in the yellow shirt), but they then go off and sleep on the grass or go shopping at the market and expect to just walk into line when they return hours later.<span style=""> </span>What is worse is that no one else has a problem with this!!!!<span style=""> </span>Okay, that is a very random sidenote.<span style=""> </span>So Jeff stood in line for maybe about 2 hours and realized he wasn’t getting anywhere.<span style=""> </span>We also realized that we wouldn’t get home in time to pay everyone.<span style=""> </span>So we worked out with our friend Alex to borrow money from him.<span style=""> </span>We ran to a new bank in <st1:place st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Fort</st1:placetype> <st1:placename st="on">Portal</st1:placename></st1:place> (which means no one has accounts there yet and there wasn’t a line) and got the money out.<span style=""> </span>We got the money out and rushed back to the field station.<span style=""> </span>Once we got back to the field station, all the field assistants were waiting.<span style=""> </span>We hurried and put the money in their little Christmas boxes where I had put sweets and tea and little gifts for Christmas.<span style=""> </span>My happiest field assistant looked in his box, smiled widely, jumped up from his seat and skipped off towards home yelling thanks and Merry Christmas.<span style=""> </span>That was what I was expecting from all 12 of them, but instead, a whole bunch of shenanigans ensued, which I won’t bore you with.<span style=""> </span>It ended, though, with my most problematic field assistant pushing me too far and me telling him he was no longer on the project.<span style=""> </span>Our discussion finally ended when he got down on his knees to “beg” my forgiveness and I walked into the house and shut the door.<span style=""> </span>The amount of games this guys plays is unbelievable and I certainly didn’t need to watch him act like that after everything he has done.<span style=""> </span>I promptly put his pay in an envelope to his mother as a Christmas gift and asked one of the cooks to take it to her.<span style=""> </span>So that was a bit of a Christmas disaster.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">We are including a picture of the bank line Jeff stood in. <span style=""> </span>Note the people sitting along the ledge to the right.<span style=""> </span>They are all keeping track of their imaginary spot in line.<span style=""> </span>You can’t see in the picture, but there are also people in the grass to the left doing the same thing.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The next day, Christmas Eve, Jeff and I went for a walk in the village to deliver some presents.<span style=""> </span>We had a cute handmade baby doll that my family had gotten for Alain.<span style=""> </span>We found her at her Mom’s house and gave it to her (see pictures).<span style=""> </span>Then we went to the tailor who makes all my fabulous dresses and gifts and gave her a reusable shopping bag from Target because we noticed she had one of these that she liked a lot, but was falling apart.<span style=""> </span>This was a thank you for the many bags she has made for me.<span style=""> </span>As we were walking, we saw lots of children carrying papyrus on their heads to cover the floors for Christmas day.<span style=""> </span>Papyrus is a plant that grows in the swamp and it provides a nice cover for the floors on special occasions.<span style=""> </span>It gives a soft place to sit and looks really pretty because of its bright green color.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Christmas Eve night, we had the remaining people at the field station over for dinner – Emily (chimp manager), Emily’s sister, Faith, Emily’s niece, <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Marion</st1:place></st1:city>, Alex, and Julie (both chimpers).<span style=""> </span>We had Christmas decorations thanks to my Mom and Jeff’s sisters.<span style=""> </span>We had the little tree lit up and the light up snowman and electric candles, plus real candles that were red.<span style=""> </span>Everyone made something to have.<span style=""> </span>Jeff and I made pesto pasta.<span style=""> </span>Emily and Faith made meat (the most special item).<span style=""> </span>Julie brought up some curry and rice that her cook made.<span style=""> </span>Alex brought chocolates for dessert.<span style=""> </span>Jeff and I brought wine, Alex brought gin and tonics, and Emily brought sodas and beers.<span style=""> </span>We ate and chatted and eventually settled down to watch the NEW Harry Potter, which Alex got in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city>.<span style=""> </span>Half way through, the baby got fussy, so we had to call it a night.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Here are some pictures of the night.
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy4yV8mtKvqgrbFt4oV4ufcbvQXvwvVn-whf3Zz7yANePNBiyZF8BevH3Fy9IlDnUz4LFsqPql8sxNU-Km8yx22t6iG0NJxMsvPJk3bZsGCAKZ9Y0YhR1kc7IxRlVgmQpojou_CjGYAbIe/s1600/IMG_6746.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy4yV8mtKvqgrbFt4oV4ufcbvQXvwvVn-whf3Zz7yANePNBiyZF8BevH3Fy9IlDnUz4LFsqPql8sxNU-Km8yx22t6iG0NJxMsvPJk3bZsGCAKZ9Y0YhR1kc7IxRlVgmQpojou_CjGYAbIe/s320/IMG_6746.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456638033327928786" border="0" /></a>
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<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="country-region"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]-->Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-83660850852591508262010-04-05T07:26:00.002-05:002010-04-05T07:50:23.393-05:00Christmas in Queen<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/S7ncKQyI1KI/AAAAAAAAALs/QPg_MynknOg/s1600/IMG_6762.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/S7ncKQyI1KI/AAAAAAAAALs/QPg_MynknOg/s320/IMG_6762.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456634492398130338" border="0" /></a>For Christmas, we went to Queen Elizabeth National Park for the day and had lunch at the very fancy Mweya Lodge. It was me, Jeff, Emily, Pani (Emily’s 2 month old baby), Marion (Emily’s neice), Faith (Emily’s sister), Alex (chimp researcher), and Julie (chimp researcher). We met at Emily’s early in the morning and piled into her car. Our first stop was the Equator where we took the mandatory tourist photos. Then we drove slowly through the park looking at buffalo, elephants, warthogs, kob, birds, and other animals as we approached the gate. At the gate, Emily and I successfully talked our way through without paying. The funnier part was that just Emily and I got out of the car and talked to the rangers, but then we drove through the gate with all 7.5 of us. We got up to the lodge and relaxed for a bit before going in to eat. We had a nice table on the veranda with a beautiful view. The table was covered with Christmas party hats and Christmas “crackers”, which are tube shaped presents that you pull on the ends of and they pop open with gifts inside (apparently this is an English tradition??). We opened our crackers and found our paper crowns, lame jokes, and cheap toys. Then we headed up to get loads of food. It was a buffet and they increased the price by 3 times just for the holiday spirit. Jeff and I were determined to get our money’s worth, so we stuffed ourselves silly. We took it slow and ate for several hours – slowly but surely eating, eating, eating. Jeff ate piles and piles of meat (of which there was a lot) and I refilled my plate with heaping piles of salad. Fresh salad is hard to come by in this part of Uganda – scratch that, it is impossible to come by in this part of Uganda – so I ate TONS! It was really good! After we got done eating, we walked Alex, Julie, and Marion down to the boat launch to take a trip on the channel to see wild animals. Jeff and I have done this a few times before and are currently broke, so we opted not to go. Emily and Faith stayed up at the lodge taking care of the baby. After we saw those three off on the boat launch, we took a relaxing walk back to the lodge and hung out with those ladies. At 7 pm, we picked the boaters up from the launch and headed back to Kibale. It got dark shortly after we left Queen and we drove for most of the way in the dark. Since electric power is rare in most parts of Uganda, the way was mostly dark. Every few miles, we would come upon a trading center or village where tons of people were gathered to party for Christmas. Most people hung out around the places that had generators to power lights and music. Everyone seemed to be having a great time!<br /><br />Check out our pictures below of all our Christmas fun!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/S7ncKDpWcrI/AAAAAAAAALk/h-94umEZ4EM/s1600/IMG_6765.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/S7ncKDpWcrI/AAAAAAAAALk/h-94umEZ4EM/s320/IMG_6765.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456634488871613106" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4j1JIWP_6_QRTF910Bkj596ImpL5G_Pkd8sLqDggDcCl0IpLJYZV4vMdj_Ob4hfpaYJj0bo7WSFCU0ac-72A6X24VirUjrPnE1bg6O9Rm9WGmKlwxMyiR4bofREUqOBjOWPY5ydvhJN2Y/s1600/IMG_8669.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4j1JIWP_6_QRTF910Bkj596ImpL5G_Pkd8sLqDggDcCl0IpLJYZV4vMdj_Ob4hfpaYJj0bo7WSFCU0ac-72A6X24VirUjrPnE1bg6O9Rm9WGmKlwxMyiR4bofREUqOBjOWPY5ydvhJN2Y/s320/IMG_8669.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456634485978781218" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvsnActUSnE1zphP18rTNGJsOTubYn1TIUsRAP7JAV7iKE9D2bzJB3v4y8-g74ouH5QOyQKiahz2GLVcrR1yWg23qP3YGRcVKHEaNmr_Jp0ByuqIMHr6zi2vAcXGDQUyNzt0rliI0mlPk/s1600/IMG_8700.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvsnActUSnE1zphP18rTNGJsOTubYn1TIUsRAP7JAV7iKE9D2bzJB3v4y8-g74ouH5QOyQKiahz2GLVcrR1yWg23qP3YGRcVKHEaNmr_Jp0ByuqIMHr6zi2vAcXGDQUyNzt0rliI0mlPk/s320/IMG_8700.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456634471537736578" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYQAV6SkyEZlYnvrXU_BApxoStZSid4Z7mVNn1rZYsDybEe2cR8TUrHAZbBdACmF97ep2E8m9tD-efDVHoG5sRtIrcjiCRVacWKGZM5dU85EKhuZ8pXUXzyOhk_L5pXuo1JDB5QxeM9YCI/s1600/IMG_8685.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYQAV6SkyEZlYnvrXU_BApxoStZSid4Z7mVNn1rZYsDybEe2cR8TUrHAZbBdACmF97ep2E8m9tD-efDVHoG5sRtIrcjiCRVacWKGZM5dU85EKhuZ8pXUXzyOhk_L5pXuo1JDB5QxeM9YCI/s320/IMG_8685.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456634462247476674" border="0" /></a>Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-60731519200953406492010-04-05T07:25:00.001-05:002010-04-12T08:21:29.443-05:00Obama (the chimp) is dead<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">This is a text message I received in December.<span style=""> </span>Thank goodness for that parenthetical statement, huh?!?!<span style=""> </span>Obama was a two year old chimp (named around the time of the nomination of someone we all know) in the Kanyawara community.<span style=""> </span>His mother, Rosa, never emigrated out of the group and therefore has continued to have weak young (all 3 have died) most likely due to inbreeding.<span style=""> </span>There was a disease outbreak in the chimp community of some sort of cough.<span style=""> </span>Little Obama got a cough and was then found dead.<span style=""> </span>His mother showed up to a feeding tree that the field assistants were at carrying his dead body.<span style=""> </span>She continued to carry him around.<span style=""> </span>Emily (the chimp project manager) asked Jeff and I to go out and get some footage of mother and baby.<span style=""> </span>Jeff was the camera man and I was the guide.<span style=""> </span>We wandered out to the popular feeding tree of the week and found it empty.<span style=""> </span>I hooted and the chimp field assistants hooted from just a short distance away.<span style=""> </span>We went and found two field assistants with a group of 6 chimps, including Rosa and Obama.<span style=""> </span>There were two adult males and two adult females with infants (one being Rosa and the dead Obama).<span style=""> </span>The other infant was a similar age and was sooo cute.<span style=""> </span>It was goofing off and having a good time.<span style=""> </span>But every once in a while, it would wander over to Obama and poke him.<span style=""> </span>It was sad to think that just a day before, Obama was a cute little furball like that infant.<span style=""> </span><st1:place st="on">Rosa</st1:place> kept an eye on Obama, who she left laying on the trail next to her.<span style=""> </span>Every once in a while, she would swat a bug off of him.<span style=""> </span>The adults were grooming each other and just hanging out.<span style=""> </span>After a little time, they got up and started to move.<span style=""> </span>The males vocalized loudly as they were leaving and kind of turned around to vocalize.<span style=""> </span>I’m not sure if this had anything to do with Rosa and the baby or not.<span style=""> </span>She hung back a little and eventually picked up Obama and started to go.<span style=""> </span>She followed them for a while and eventually branched off and found a little tree to feed in.<span style=""> </span>She was about shoulder height in this little tree and held Obama in her lap as she fed.<span style=""> </span>His limp body just hung over the sides of her body.<span style=""> </span>Jeff got some good footage of all of this.<span style=""> </span>Then she started moving again.<span style=""> </span>She took us through some tangles of vegetation and then back out onto a trail where she struggled with Obama’s body.<span style=""> </span>She looked so tired and I felt really bad for her.<span style=""> </span>When the chimps split up, one FA stayed with us and Rosa and the other went with the other chimps.<span style=""> </span>Jeff and the FA were eager to keep up with her and get good footage of her, but I was feeling too bad for her.<span style=""> </span>I just wanted to hang back and give her space.<span style=""> </span>She kept stopping to rest and sometimes was even dragging the body.<span style=""> </span>Chimps travel on all 4 limbs and babies usually cling to their moms, which allow the moms to still travel with all their limbs.<span style=""> </span>Obama wasn’t able to cling, obviously, so <st1:place st="on">Rosa</st1:place> was struggling to keep hold of him and move down the trail.<span style=""> </span>She eventually met back up with some other chimps in THV (thick ground vegetation that is a pain in the butt for researchers).<span style=""> </span>When we got to this area, we found 2 other field assistants watching other chimps.<span style=""> </span>We stayed with Rosa and Obama.<span style=""> </span>At one point, she was up in a shrub and had Obama next to her on top of the vegetation.<span style=""> </span>She was eating with one hand and resting her other hand on the top of his body (I think to keep track of it).<span style=""> </span>Then she let go and started eating with both hands.<span style=""> </span>It wasn’t long before the body started to move and the field assistants and I let out a collective “OOOH!”<span style=""> </span><st1:place st="on">Rosa</st1:place> reached down through the vegetation and grabbed his hand just at the last second and pulled the body back up with her and held it.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>A little bit later, some other field assistants and the female researcher who is here right now showed up to watch <st1:place st="on">Rosa</st1:place>.<span style=""> </span>They had apparently lost their focal individual.<span style=""> </span>At this point, there were something like 6 field assistants and a researcher and me and Jeff with this poor chimp.<span style=""> </span>Apparently the field assistants and researcher were fine with this, but I wasn’t.<span style=""> </span>So Jeff and I left.<span style=""> </span>We had followed her around for several hours and Jeff had gotten lots of good footage for Emily.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The next day, vets from <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city> arrived at the field station to make arrangements for the necropsy.<span style=""> </span><st1:place st="on">Rosa</st1:place> continued to carry Obama around, so they darted her on the third day, took some blood samples, and took the baby away from her.<span style=""> </span>Most recent reports say that she is doing fine and that she is even starting to swell (aka – is getting ready to mate).<span style=""> </span>And that is the story of Obama the chimp.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-29767278280569703262010-04-05T07:22:00.001-05:002010-04-05T07:24:23.627-05:00New posts coming..Sorry for the long absence. Krista has been writing up blog posts for months that haven't made it up yet. I will be posting them, starting with Christmas, over the next few days.Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-27655569390687499322009-11-26T11:27:00.007-06:002009-11-26T12:56:13.929-06:00Happy Thanksgiving!To celebrate Thanksgiving, we went on a walk in the forest and planned a dinner of Ugandan-style thanksgiving food. W e are going to have Pumpkin soup, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, canned corn, greens, rice, wine, and a chocolate cake for dessert. We hope you all have a wonderful day and enjoy the yummy food!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDjLFXhAuAthGsR_3v5ar6CsHmewxpfM8WFLCieYl5G2r8rVtbZN_YfjfcCl_yCipDzCgc7R2b4SBL_w6zJCOCKfemHnMPXSzuCO-J6iCqCXf-amM-bxVqWjd0xvmwZV1ScA79op2-nNB4/s1600/IMG_6420.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDjLFXhAuAthGsR_3v5ar6CsHmewxpfM8WFLCieYl5G2r8rVtbZN_YfjfcCl_yCipDzCgc7R2b4SBL_w6zJCOCKfemHnMPXSzuCO-J6iCqCXf-amM-bxVqWjd0xvmwZV1ScA79op2-nNB4/s320/IMG_6420.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408465998843260386" border="0" /></a><br /><br />A few things we did this week to celebrate the holidays:<br />1) We went to one of the primary schools that Jeff works with and handed out t-shirts that my Aunt sent. We had about two hundred t-shirts and thanks to the poor attendance at the end of the school year, we were able to give a shirt to every kid. Our friend Alex came along to document, so check out the pictures. One of the funniest moments was at the end of the day when a first <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsu9Oloi1kKpaj9_-sPu80PKynMeujOF9q_TasUqKbxiOgMLSJGx1k2EPF8Gmi-MXCQWd19w_Ysu7zxw0pu8Fvr-xcnCzknzlxztG9Vgx-OEOx_aYmbt5YbrXUfHRPIpgb5BTUqfV302l3/s1600/IMG_6478.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsu9Oloi1kKpaj9_-sPu80PKynMeujOF9q_TasUqKbxiOgMLSJGx1k2EPF8Gmi-MXCQWd19w_Ysu7zxw0pu8Fvr-xcnCzknzlxztG9Vgx-OEOx_aYmbt5YbrXUfHRPIpgb5BTUqfV302l3/s320/IMG_6478.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408480723612784530" border="0" /></a>grader came up to us crying because he had been outside playing instead of in his classroom when we handed out the shirts. You would have thought this kid just broke his leg, not missed out on a free Akron Zips t-shirt. The tears were streaming down his face. So we gave him one. But the older kids who decided to skip class got a stern warning and no t-shirt.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw7KeDKPRyI/AAAAAAAAAG0/WeANp4u-C0k/s1600/IMG_6509.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw7KeDKPRyI/AAAAAAAAAG0/WeANp4u-C0k/s320/IMG_6509.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408482820111681314" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw7Je9v2C5I/AAAAAAAAAGs/cZEJzsEUUSQ/s1600/IMG_6484.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw7Je9v2C5I/AAAAAAAAAGs/cZEJzsEUUSQ/s320/IMG_6484.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408481736327039890" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This day was really nice for Jeff because he often has to deal with solving a lot of problems at the school. The work he is doing here is wonderful and important, but that also means complicated and frustrating. So having a day to just hand out free t-shirts and enjoy the instant gratification that it brought to the kids and us was wonderful. In the end, the t-shirts won’t mean as much as the other things he has done, but it was so rewarding to have a nice, uncomplicated day of giving.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw69Hx6VspI/AAAAAAAAAGc/bDljvMeAa9Y/s1600/IMG_6455.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw69Hx6VspI/AAAAAAAAAGc/bDljvMeAa9Y/s320/IMG_6455.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408468143873307282" border="0" /></a><br /><br />2)On Tuesday, we went to the Kasiisi Primary School “Christmas Concert”. More on this in a future post.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw7MKMEMPNI/AAAAAAAAAG8/OK_-iaH_TRY/s1600/IMG_6676.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw7MKMEMPNI/AAAAAAAAAG8/OK_-iaH_TRY/s320/IMG_6676.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408484677928107218" border="0" /></a><br /><br />3) Today I handed out sugarcane to my field assistants to enjoy. My guys love sweet things, so this was a real treat that made them super happy first thing in the morning. I suggested that they could<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn4v1TMUcafqUDtctVeX_R1t_zj0ssvcihgIeB5GRqQe1P46AaOSboee2Rsgi3sSTIcTi69ZBGIm1siNZFCn58N9Uz71AGuUelM4Ym146DxUyAhq8hJpMguJvKAQ4mKF94T3YarKqzPdYb/s1600/IMG_6681.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjn4v1TMUcafqUDtctVeX_R1t_zj0ssvcihgIeB5GRqQe1P46AaOSboee2Rsgi3sSTIcTi69ZBGIm1siNZFCn58N9Uz71AGuUelM4Ym146DxUyAhq8hJpMguJvKAQ4mKF94T3YarKqzPdYb/s320/IMG_6681.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408487029786170802" border="0" /></a> pick it up after work, but they definitely wanted it right away.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUfPz_OiMh2Lbn2o9VCzmBHSEFfLXlB7cTIZ-QR59zm4x51qw7yKcgS-VAc8Yv1-P01M342iv4bJs7mrQUjHmigCD_vrLx09bv1__AMq0ygPkPoKHhDiKBZc29eFUM5IyJI7OgVTy_4iZt/s1600/IMG_6683.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUfPz_OiMh2Lbn2o9VCzmBHSEFfLXlB7cTIZ-QR59zm4x51qw7yKcgS-VAc8Yv1-P01M342iv4bJs7mrQUjHmigCD_vrLx09bv1__AMq0ygPkPoKHhDiKBZc29eFUM5IyJI7OgVTy_4iZt/s320/IMG_6683.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408485935562304738" border="0" /></a>Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-37580469776912724692009-11-26T11:05:00.008-06:002009-11-26T11:25:00.608-06:00Alain’s Second Birthday
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<br />
<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">My first field assistant and good friend, Prime, has a beautiful little girl named Alain.<span style=""> </span>She is one of our favorite kids around.<span style=""> </span>So we threw her a make-shift birthday party with little notice.<span style=""> </span>Jeff made pancakes and we covered them all around in Nutella to look like a cake, we had candles, gifts, and Finding Nemo to watch.<span style=""> </span>It was really fun.<span style=""> </span>Here are some pictures, including her blowing out her candles, sharing her gifts with everyone and enjoying them herself, and a video of her hilarious response to the movie.<span style=""> </span>She was so concerned that her Dad wasn’t watching, so she kept pointing everything out to him.<span style=""> </span>She is so smart and can say so many things.<span style=""> </span>She is adorable.<span style=""> </span>And she is <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw628e_EW6I/AAAAAAAAAFk/6g8GFW3Vc4M/s1600/IMG_5939.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw628e_EW6I/AAAAAAAAAFk/6g8GFW3Vc4M/s320/IMG_5939.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408461352744541090" border="0" /></a>wearing an outfit my Mom boug<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJJ0gLpTxFZPMHo9KsekRVt9SATaYY50YUZfu3-mX2i1VHb_L6XCI_S9Umu79nhe1eGHoerH8UdH2z4DX5W8ViF19v5ZDPaWwMbIcz7RzFHqFllgvG1sZGwbCgaddBchvf8tqUyujAgAA/s1600/IMG_5952.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzJJ0gLpTxFZPMHo9KsekRVt9SATaYY50YUZfu3-mX2i1VHb_L6XCI_S9Umu79nhe1eGHoerH8UdH2z4DX5W8ViF19v5ZDPaWwMbIcz7RzFHqFllgvG1sZGwbCgaddBchvf8tqUyujAgAA/s320/IMG_5952.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408462884189574178" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJuscwcqUdAr8ARqDHvsNJoVyvm2WgHRhlVP6CPcKivyQFjoE6IuVdY82l6zCJXpjCYv1Z_S1-1viUY7vvBVyCdb5ciFAdIidfqzXNlE-YGAraCaU1flHmcy_EydGHV-nNhBrIMFeyLebk/s1600/IMG_5962.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJuscwcqUdAr8ARqDHvsNJoVyvm2WgHRhlVP6CPcKivyQFjoE6IuVdY82l6zCJXpjCYv1Z_S1-1viUY7vvBVyCdb5ciFAdIidfqzXNlE-YGAraCaU1flHmcy_EydGHV-nNhBrIMFeyLebk/s320/IMG_5962.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408464234058243346" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfTFiE1ZcymanSAj8B_ECsrFNEVCzKnHuCJsz4EJlj9SgRI77CCYzp2e2DxE8ldItNODSx1dzHYC6wUrNSGAhuw-Itd7vbZFMfOSru27exEPVZb_OuGKUL-MJNhcbNmiWwLTspDQiZYDX/s1600/IMG_5936.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfTFiE1ZcymanSAj8B_ECsrFNEVCzKnHuCJsz4EJlj9SgRI77CCYzp2e2DxE8ldItNODSx1dzHYC6wUrNSGAhuw-Itd7vbZFMfOSru27exEPVZb_OuGKUL-MJNhcbNmiWwLTspDQiZYDX/s320/IMG_5936.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408460461333130882" border="0" /></a>ht for her.<span style=""> </span>:)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw644uL73II/AAAAAAAAAF8/LU-jj9LHx2k/s1600/IMG_5957.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw644uL73II/AAAAAAAAAF8/LU-jj9LHx2k/s320/IMG_5957.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408463487128820866" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKyfROLRbBt13YrIpVYJ-GsJtnLIf8rDB0emy71JbrsTZGpJ9sux9A-rDvM0fUmYpvAWDA5vhliZvHCHHWSNLi9_2RrglO2KqfD6rP-rs7bShQ6DCwRe0TXdjQDb67waneZo_xap43mHE2/s1600/IMG_5950.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKyfROLRbBt13YrIpVYJ-GsJtnLIf8rDB0emy71JbrsTZGpJ9sux9A-rDvM0fUmYpvAWDA5vhliZvHCHHWSNLi9_2RrglO2KqfD6rP-rs7bShQ6DCwRe0TXdjQDb67waneZo_xap43mHE2/s320/IMG_5950.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408462102161404562" border="0" /></a></p> Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-26094970003013876032009-11-26T10:21:00.004-06:002009-11-26T11:03:07.576-06:00The Introduction
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw6r-7wrgcI/AAAAAAAAAFE/ofYcyhR7tco/s1600/IMG_5913.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_qHaePTrGaes/Sw6r-7wrgcI/AAAAAAAAAFE/ofYcyhR7tco/s320/IMG_5913.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408449300200653250" border="0" /></a>
<br /><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]-->In <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Uganda</st1:place></st1:country-region>, when a man wants to “wed” a woman, there is a very formal process.<span style=""> </span>In <st1:country-region st="on">Uganda</st1:country-region>, there is a difference between being married (a less official, kind of common-law situation, usually because people don’t have money for all that goes into a wedding and introduction) and being wedded, which is the typical <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region> idea of marriage.<span style=""> </span>The first part of getting wedded is the introduction.<span style=""> </span>This is a huge party and huge charade of acts to try to work out the logistics of the marriage.<span style=""> </span>It includes the groom needing to be able to pick out the bride (from a hilarious selection of first very young girls, then slightly older, finally a group that includes the bride dressed very fancy).<span style=""> </span>Then the girl is sent back into <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGO1DLdZtrgI7nvwu1pwcuzbW6znrWsry6_X22Go7_0c10e95_eP2aO65fGq3lxieJSeRHjtQll9HnWkxnLQm0vYgBUiELwABTxRtlM3em4d3i4LT9F66fAvb35lm1agGXQmUgy3LNWy0p/s1600/IMG_5915.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGO1DLdZtrgI7nvwu1pwcuzbW6znrWsry6_X22Go7_0c10e95_eP2aO65fGq3lxieJSeRHjtQll9HnWkxnLQm0vYgBUiELwABTxRtlM3em4d3i4LT9F66fAvb35lm1agGXQmUgy3LNWy0p/s320/IMG_5915.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408452340354230834" border="0" /></a>the house and the negotiation begins.<span style=""> </span>Each side has a negotiator and they discuss the bride price.<span style=""> </span>This is mostly how many cows for the girl.<span style=""> </span>Our friends that we sat near said that they have seen every extreme of this.<span style=""> </span>Sometimes the family is so happy for their daughter, they say they don’t want anything.<span style=""> </span>Other times, the groom is willing to pay anything.<span style=""> </span>And sometimes a decision can’t be reached, so there is no wedding.<span style=""> </span>Our negotiations started at 18 cows, I think, but ended in 4 being paid.<span style=""> </span>Plus, there were crates of beer and soda, which were brought in different waves, which added to the suspense.<span style=""> </span>There were interesting jokes, like if the beer crates were missing any, the brides family would say they were being cheated by the man.<span style=""> </span>If they were all full, they would say the man must have no friends to come all this way and not meet anyone to share a drink with.<span style=""> </span>After all the formalities, there was great entertainment, including a man dressed as a woman and doing traditional women dancing.<span style=""> </span>And there was food.<span style=""> </span>It was a great time, so check out the videos and pictures.<span style=""> </span>This couple will probably be getting married in the spring.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7NCpcpXu1SWNKmX5rBuO6DR4bUhYWyJSxssiHDXUhxi_bd-aUSbSZcTjJSZjecdN_psiWM1lQbr9Ofcrf7Lr2iBE8ZQMB-pov0G_bNNCVwR_5Ghyphenhyphen28yQhxbfew9iQpLsWmtI09K0dlyVD/s1600/IMG_5930.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7NCpcpXu1SWNKmX5rBuO6DR4bUhYWyJSxssiHDXUhxi_bd-aUSbSZcTjJSZjecdN_psiWM1lQbr9Ofcrf7Lr2iBE8ZQMB-pov0G_bNNCVwR_5Ghyphenhyphen28yQhxbfew9iQpLsWmtI09K0dlyVD/s320/IMG_5930.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408454969148371970" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzb5P4b9xgCWOFwjpYHWLkYx3iw02j4WSML1Uzwh3lssGjbbtOB3pVfVH1hEqQLNN42pDx4U7x8Gg_c_mjbLQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-80588918066194320282009-11-26T04:38:00.004-06:002009-11-26T12:58:58.885-06:00Invaded by Ants!!!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAC5SX_wxkZUIx1XffIOjASksKDrPL75Z3Htw9sBRbs4H7gaiCBNg9vsRoYshklv-oaJ7lhhF7NFe7SUjmP2YFt7_E3T3mt-ijHm2jWAilorhNCIBGk1LLR1q-Y1nkcQ78ctJ9EsfNG98P/s1600/IMG_5729.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAC5SX_wxkZUIx1XffIOjASksKDrPL75Z3Htw9sBRbs4H7gaiCBNg9vsRoYshklv-oaJ7lhhF7NFe7SUjmP2YFt7_E3T3mt-ijHm2jWAilorhNCIBGk1LLR1q-Y1nkcQ78ctJ9EsfNG98P/s320/IMG_5729.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5408361922422087650" border="0" /></a><br />Hello Everyone -- Sorry that it has been so long since the blog has been updated. We have both been very busy, so we decided to put in a joint effort to get things updated. So Jeff will upload some pictures and I’ll write some descriptions. I hope you enjoy! - Krista<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Invaded by Ants!!!</span><br /><br />Africa is full of many different types of menacing ants. There are ants that destroy the food, ants that eat the house, little ants that inject poison in you and give you a fever, and big ants with huge mouths that bite and cling to you. They are amazing creatures, but mostly really annoying when they are biting you and destroying your things.<br /><br />The big biting ants, safari ants, invaded our house twice in one week. These creatures are amazing. They build bridges by linking their legs together so that many form a cluster and others can walk over them. They can even form these bridges over moving water! It is amazing to think about but terrifying when you wake up to find these bridges all over your house as the ants work to invade every space. Worst of all, is that we usually realize that these guys are around the house when we go out to pee in the middle of the night and start to feel painful bites all over our feet and legs. The ants have been around our house a lot, but only invaded twice, which is good, I guess. But every time they invade, it is a major rebuilding. We have to throw out all the food, wash all the dishes, clean out the whole house. We use soapy water to initially try to get them to go so then all of that needs cleaned up. And we applied kerosene (which stinks and gives you a big headache) and ash around the house to keep them out. Unfortunately, the moment it rains, those things get washed away and the ants come back in. So eventually, I did a completely un-conservationist thing and decided the ants need to go. Keep in mind, these are things that can eat animals alive, especially if the animals are captive and can’t get away. So they are scary.<br /><br />If the nest had been in the forest, I would have left it alone, but it was at the field station behind the big trash pit. It was HUGE! The size of a US bathroom, I would say. The whole area was covered in reddish dirt mixed with lots of little black spots. The black spots were actually heads of dead ants that had been eaten by the others. It was amazing. It is hard to capture such a crazy thing, but we got one picture and one very shaky video that just looks like the earth moving. <iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxgIcRQflZ6c8p6gfRL-ZuXFrUo5NfoNTDs721vbxDzyBHfmmNRvXRuhrGXwB6aUfyZbtiKra7DXjn8NEcS' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-87018265905180125082009-06-01T04:08:00.006-05:002009-06-01T04:18:47.650-05:00Charging Baboon and Mob Justice<link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CUsers%5COwner%5CAppData%5CLocal%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceType"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PlaceName"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">We made it to <st1:placename st="on">Kibale</st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on">National Park</st1:placetype> safely and are now back in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city> for a few days. We've had two interesting experiences that we want to share with you.
<br />
<br />We were sitting on our couch with our backs to an open window when we heard the familiar sound of a "galloping" baboon. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2s9_UyEtjsWyDmZphRSnJN6fOouVBQNY_PfErRaicnIm9yrJF74NPa4OOyjBpTF7r4S9uOeXEh-aODcncCMi6X1xYOuIIWb7MdSKojCM9B77-Rfc0oSIf2J3hAWoEnETgNYDZ_EC6fLp/s1600-h/image12.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2s9_UyEtjsWyDmZphRSnJN6fOouVBQNY_PfErRaicnIm9yrJF74NPa4OOyjBpTF7r4S9uOeXEh-aODcncCMi6X1xYOuIIWb7MdSKojCM9B77-Rfc0oSIf2J3hAWoEnETgNYDZ_EC6fLp/s320/image12.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342284135033667714" border="0" /></a>We turned around to watch them pass by (which is always entertaining) when we were startled to find a large male baboon charging toward the window directly at us. We weren't in any real danger because our window has both a screen and bars. It came within a few feet of the window before it stopped short at our window and flashed its teeth at us in a clear attempt to show us that it 1. wasn't afraid of us and 2. we should be afraid of it. I ran outside with a pan and ran after it making all the noise I could and trying to look really scary, although I'm sure I looked funny to anyone else who happened to see me. At least Krista was supportive of my banging-pan display.
<br />
<br />The other experience happened as we were unloading
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">off the bus from Kibale. The bus lot in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city> is a very
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwIr1TcIidp14PWOSZl4stdkD_flrRUKZgrz7hpTUhOlvzVuwuWBzoT01HMY6UiGhXSg3NUny-4Xos88oohSPjts3nqNVH78MI_E-yNjUFd-nZFMuMu-bSi_7ZF-qI_8Aa0XsPuHII8Ttg/s1600-h/Cropped+image58.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 242px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwIr1TcIidp14PWOSZl4stdkD_flrRUKZgrz7hpTUhOlvzVuwuWBzoT01HMY6UiGhXSg3NUny-4Xos88oohSPjts3nqNVH78MI_E-yNjUFd-nZFMuMu-bSi_7ZF-qI_8Aa0XsPuHII8Ttg/s320/Cropped+image58.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342284352775197890" border="0" /></a>busy place with buses and people all around. I heard some commotion outside the bus where the luggage was being unloaded. There was a group of people gathered around a man who was holding his body sitting on the ground as if to protect himself.<span style=""> </span>The people around him were grabbing at his clothing and hitting him with papers, ropes, and different fabric pieces (this is what your average person at a bus “station” in <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Kampala</st1:place></st1:city> is carrying around with them apparently).<span style=""> </span>Before long the man’s shirt was torn off and he was trying to run away but he didn’t make it far before the crowd knocked him down again.<span style=""> </span>I lost sight of him for a moment as the crowd closed in around him.<span style=""> </span>The next thing I heard was a cheer from the crowd and I saw the man running, completely naked, out of the lot down the busy street.<span style=""> </span>Then we saw some of the people from the crowd walking away with his torn pants and shirt as they were going through is pockets.<span style=""> </span>It seems as though we was trying to steal something and the crowd decided to inflict it’s own sort of punishment against him.
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Otherwise we are having fun catching up with everyone here and getting settled back in our house.
<br /></p> Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227747265515195925.post-57970803055996597022009-05-26T06:28:00.001-05:002010-11-29T17:51:17.406-06:00NIghtime walk in LondonWe were lucky to get upgraded to 1st class on our flight to London. We enjoyed comfy reclining chairs, gourmet food, great entertainment, and endless drinks. After taking a much needed nap, we hit the town to have a yummy meal in the West End and on to a romantic walk along the Thames. Here is a picture from that walk. We went on to try to visit our old clubbing stomping grounds at the Sports Cafe in Piccadilly Circus, but they were way too posh for us with their dress code, cover charge, and line to get in. Today, we're hoping to re-visit the British Museum. Jeff recalls thinking of a Simpson's episode the last time we were there. "Give my regards to the British Museum!" Chief Wiggum said to Bart as he locked him in an Egyption Pyramid Tomb.<br /><br />Tonight, we are off to Uganda! Jeff has an exciting new project introducing computers into one of the schools where he is working. The laptops were provided through a great program called One Laptop Per Child (<a href="http://www.laptop.org/">www.laptop.org</a>). And I will be working double hard on collecting lots of great data and samples from the red colobus monkeys.<div style="clear:both; text-align:NONE"><a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><img src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" alt="Posted by Picasa" style="border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;" align="middle" border="0" /></a></div>Jeff Bittnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03992866853441777585noreply@blogger.com3