Charging Elephants and the falls, far far away.

Tuesday, we awoke early to the most wonderful sunrise. I ran with my camera to catch the pre dawn light as it disappeared with the rising sun across the landscape. The story of the day was this: We found an elephant, hanging out on the side of the road (3-5 meters from the car!) and he let us tape him for a long time. First, he peed. Seeing an elephant pee...well, oh my goodness!! It was a sight to behold (which, you can see once I can put up the video) Next, he threw dirt on hims self and fluttered about his giant ears. And then... he charged!! Just a step or two, but it was scary!! We backed off, watched a little longer and then moved on.

We had a nice time with the giraffes too, but nothing as exciting.

After the safari, we had lunch back at the lodge and had some rest time. (I NAPPED!! Me, of all people!! Laid my head down and NAPPED!) Eventually, I turned on the computer and found that Sassy (my little web book) had made friends with a whole smattering of tiny ants which thankfully do not bite. Just a little memento from the trip which does not go away...

At the end of lunch, I met Jenny with New Hope Orphanage. She was part of a group of 55 people from one church (with 3500 families) from Colorado Springs, CO. Jenny and her family had moved to Uganda 24 years ago to minister after the war that was being fought here then. Her parents are still here running New Hope with her. Her brother is now a pastor at their home church, the one visiting. This church also has 2 other trips happening in two other countries. Ministering trips-three at the same time. And usually they have six!! This is a slow year! Unheard of in the Jewish world...a model I would like to adopt...Jenny and I spoke about God, being called, and how challenging the education system is here in Uganda. The kids are just not learning how to think. They are simply learning how to memorize and regurgitate. Academic bulimia at its best...a country at its less than best as a result. How can people imagine a different, or even a better world than the one they are in if they do not know how to IMAGINE at all?

In the afternoon we took the boat ride out to the falls. Hannah (UK) and Johannes (German) were a couple on the boat. Hannah, my age-ish, is doing an elective at a hospital in Uganda for a month of the summer. She and I spoke about the fight against TB, AIDS and malaria that is an ongoing war here. She reopened my eyes to all of the positive work being done in this country to fight for change. If Rwanda is a model for fast change led from the front, then Uganda is an example of slow change led from the middle. Anything accomplished here is hard fought by the few for the sake of the many one small battle at a time. Including the one against education.

The falls were far off (2 plus hours) and we could not get so close. On the way we saw worthogs, the great egret, 2 different ibises, Egyptian geese, yellow billed some or another, a red breasted ant eater...the list goes on. OH! And Hippos!! tons and tons of hippos. Plus a few crocodiles/aligators (since I do not know the difference, I cannot say with confidence what we saw...)

We made it back very late (around 6 when we should have been back by 5:30). I really had to use the bathroom after 3 plus hours on a boat. I ran up to the gatehouse to the water entrance way and begged to use theirs. Sure, no problem. I entered on of the cleaner bathrooms I have seen here and noted what looked to be a basket of wetnaps on the back of the toilet. Upon further investigation, I realized, they were not wetnaps but rather condoms!!

What a country. One of the ongoing, underlying battles is against HIV and AIDS. The approach is educate, educate, educate, protect, protect, protect. The ABCs (as Jennie had explained them to me earlier) Abstinence, Be Faithful, Condoms. All in an effort to slow the rampant spread of HIV/AIDS. Coming from the US, it is so strange to see a campaign of this topic since we are to Puritan about sex. But oddly, so are Ugandans. Having to talk about sex is still so taboo!! Fighting a campaign for safe sex without talking about sex certainly has its challenges. At the end of the day, our social mores are in direct competition with our will to survive and one has to give. The two seem to be compromising, one for the other. In the mean time, people are still dying...