Scroll down to view the images or click
here to view the
next page that highlights my arrival at the Nebbi Standard College.
Introduction to the images on this page: We make it to
Nebbi shortly after sunset on Monday night (August 2, 2010). My time in
Nebbi was characterized by many more unpredictable misadventures. One
such adventure occurred early Tuesday morning when I lost my passport
and all my money! Word spreads fast in Nebbi, and the entire town
learned of what happened. I am not exaggerating! (This is quite a
story,
but it is too long to tell here. I will simply say that I did
eventually find everything several hours later.)
Betty had originally
arranged to have me stay at a hotel where white people typically stay.
It had warm showers, gates that shut out the town at night, and very
comfortable conditions. I didn't feel right staying
there. I choose instead to stay at the hotel where Betty was staying.
I would describe the conditions of my hotel room as being the poorest I
have ever stayed in, but as still being above the conditions
that many people in Nebbi were living in. My room was extremely small;
in fact, the room was barely large enough for the bed. The walls were
thin, cracked, and chipping. At one point, the largest rat
I have ever seen ran across the floor in front of me and disappeared
behind the bed. There was a toilet that didn't flush unless you
manually poured water into it. There was running
water (but no hot water) and there was electricity. (It is
interesting to note that the electricity for the whole town of Nebbi is
turned off at midnight and isn't turned on again until 6:00 a.m.) The
hotel had a cleaning girl who did a wonderful job!
What I liked about this hotel was that I got the opportunity to
interact with
Ugandans at night, which I wouldn't have done if I had chosen to stay
at
the more
extravagant and gated hotel.
This is the town of Nebbi near
the hotel where I stayed.
The average income for a person in Nebbi is equivalent to less than
one American dollar per day!
Betty wanted me to see the
village where she and her family were from.
This image was taken in that village. Many young children watched me
from a distance.
This is the home of one of
Betty's
sisters. Betty's sister is the third person standing from the
left.
Betty's sister is among the poorest of the poor.
Yet, she prepared
breakfast and supper for me throughout the week at great sacrifice to
herself!
This is a picture of me
enjoying the hospitality of Betty's sister.
Around the corner behind me, there are over a dozen very young children.
Whenever I looked around the corner, they giggled and ran away.
Finally, one of them came to me and shook my hand.
I was suddenly surrounded by children coming from all parts of the
village wanting to shake my hand!
Betty owns this house in
Nebbi, but she doesn't live here.
It is in need of a lot of repair, but she doesn't have the money to fix
it up.
Why? Because she takes what money she makes and puts it into her school.
This is another picture of
Betty's house (on the right). A more luxurious home is in the
background.
Betty has a vision of someday using this home as a place where
students from her school can come.