Hello, all! It has been a great final week in Uganda. Last weekend the students helped to paint a mural on the gate, plant flowers around campus, and clean up the bore hole. These projects were quite successful and I was glad to see them through to the end. 

I had the best last day at Hope North on Thursday before we left for Kampala for the weekend. I thought that I would spend most of the day packing, but of course that only took me about twenty minutes. Jackie and I went on a long walk afterwards and I realized that that would probably be the last time that I walk down the road leading to Hope North. I have been going on runs up and down that road all summer so it was definitely a bittersweet feeling to be walking on it one last time. It wasn't the last time though. After Jackie and I returned we realized that we needed to walk to the trading post to get some penny candy for our workshop with the children that live near Hope North later that afternoon. During the workshop we played games and taught the kids how to properly wash their hands. We bribed them with the candy afterwards. We were able to showcase our temporary hand washing stations and create a community involvement project through this process. 

The girls signing up for toilet paper

Afterwards I helped Jackie pass out toilet paper to each of the girls in their dormitory. The previous day I helped Jackie buy one roll of toilet paper for each girl at Hope North. We also bought cleaning supplies for the latrines and a trash bin. Hopefully these things will help improve the quality of life for the students. As we got back from passing out the toilet paper our hand washing stations from Bweyale were delivered. Bolton had some stands made for two new tanks for each of the latrines. I didn't think that I would get to see them before I left so that was definitely a plus to the day. I was also able to give some of my clothes that I did not want to take back home to the ladies of the water management team. The water management team (AKA the water smart team) is comprised of a group of elected students that we have been teaching smart water practices to. They have taught me caught a lot more than I would ever be able to teach them. 

After dinner Mama Yunice, Mama Yunice's children, Mama Rose, and Mary (AKA Akiki) performed a number of songs in order to say goodbye. They were all very beautiful and I am so grateful that they did this last final act of kindness for me. They asked us to perform a song for them in return and lo and behold we actually had one to perform. A few weeks ago we become obsessed with the Roots and Miley Cyrus version of We Can't Stop. Jackie plays this awesome instrument from her country (I wish I could spell it, but I am not even going to try) and I asked her if she could play it. So for about two hours Jackie played the chords, Bolton used his deep voice to sing "It's our party we can do we want...", and I sang. Needless to say when we performed for Mama Rose and Mama Yunice they did not know what to think. 

The next morning Chris picked us up and we traveled to Backpacker's hostel in Kampala. That whole process was a little rough, but we went to a pool afterwards so everything was okay. Bolton screamed "VACATION!" and did a cannonball into the pool. Every time we leave Hope North we call it a vacation because it sounds more exciting. We decided to go to bed early because we had to get up at the crack of dawn the next morning to catch the shuttle to Jinja so that we could go white water rafting. 

Zoom into our faces. It's worth it. 

After a three hour car ride we finally made it to the Adrift launch site on the Nile River. We ate breakfast, got into groups, and then got into our raft. For the first thirty minutes our guide explained some safety precautions and practices. The way he did this was awesome because instead of watching a boring video we actually got to perform some of the practices in the water. For example, we flipped our raft and then flipped it back over so that he could show us what to do if we capsized.  During the half day trip we went down four rapids. The first two were class threes and involved going down some pretty big waterfalls (big in my opinion anyway). The second one we capsized which was pretty terrifying. I managed to get under the boat and take a few breaths in the air pocket of our raft, and then I came back out into the open air. The rapid was not very large so it wasn't too bad and gave me a rush of adrenaline. We managed to not capsize on the third rapid and that was awesome because I got to see it as we went over it. The fourth rapid, however, was a different story. This rapid was at the tail end of a class six rapid making it a class five. Class five is the maximum class that you can go over so I knew that it was not going to be good. We had to portage around the class six and then get into the boat where we immediately went down the rapid. Our guide asked us if we wanted to go the safe way or take a 50 percent change of not flipping the boat another way. The three of us were with a group of five German volunteers and they were ready to take their chances. I found out later, however, that there really isn't a 50/50 chance or a "safe way" with this rapid. Pretty much everyone flips and we did not make it very far. It was the most terrifying moment of my life. I have never been under water for that long and I thought I was going to drown. I kept getting pounded by waves and somehow managed to make it through without losing my paddle or hitting my head on a rock. Once I was out of the rapid a safety a safety kayaker found me and I cradled myself like a baby on the nose of the kayak. Once I was able to breath I started to laugh like a crazy person because I somehow managed to not die! After that we pulled up to the shore and ate lunch at another Adrift site. 

Me bungee jumping! 

After lunch we got on a bus to the Adrift resort in Jinja and it was time for me to bungee jump. I found out about this towards the beginning of the summer, and I knew that it was something I had to do. I am turning 23 on Tuesday and my thought was, "There is no better way to end my 22nd year of living than by going bungee jumping"". I had told several people that I was going to do this so I knew that I couldn't back out. I climbed to the top of the launch pad with three other German guys from our rafting group. I wanted to go first because I could not stand the anticipation, and I wanted to get it over with. I managed to not freak out until I hopped over to the edge of the launch pad. My body started to go numb and I couldn't feel my fingers. I told the bungee master that I couldn't feel my body and all he said was, "That's beautiful, Mary". I was told to do a sort of swan dive off the platform. I did not do that. As soon as the bungee master and his assistant yelled "ONE, TWO, THREE, BUNGEE!" I jumped off the platform and it was not very graceful, but it was one of the coolest things I ever done. The jumping off was awful, but the jump was awesome. Once I was pulled into the boat waiting for me below, I started laughing again. I guess the fear of dying causes me to laugh after I actually don't die.  

We went white rafting and I bungee jumped over the Nile River. I couldn't have asked for a better way to end my time in Uganda or better people to spend it with. It has been an amazing summer. I am going to miss this country that is filled with lush landscapes, unique cultures, and beautiful people. I want to thank the University of Arkansas Honor's College and the Clinton School of Public Service for giving me this once in a lifetime opportunity. I also want to thank my travel companions, Bolton, Jackie, and Dani, for putting up with  me and doing some amazing work. I also want to thank my family for supporting me through this journey with all its rewards and challenges. Lastly, I want to thank all of you for reading my blog! 

With love, 

Mary Nell 

Jackie would not let go of the raft

This picture. 

The painters of the gate mural

The ladies of the water smart team 

Hello, all! I have decided to dedicate a blog post to our recent trip to Murchison Falls. Here are a few facts about Murchison Falls for your reading pleasure. Murchison Falls features a gigantic waterfall on a portion of the Nile River that flows across northern Uganda. It is also Uganda's largest national park and is known for its wildlife. It features four of the "big five": buffaloes, elephants, lions, and leopards.

The Hope North Gang: (left to right) Joe, Dani, Bolton, Jackie, Mary, and me

We were granted the immense pleasure of visiting this majestic national park. We were also surprised to hear that our little friend, Mary (AKA Akiki), was going to accompany us. Mary is the daughter of Mama Rose, the sweetest lady in the entire world that prepares our meals for us at Hope North. Mary hangs out with us almost every night, and we were more than delighted to have her join us on this adventure. Our trusty driver, Chris, picked us up from Hope North at 8 o'clock in the morning on Thursday, July 10th. We traveled 45 minutes to one of the gates into Murchison. That, apparently, was not the correct gate so we traveled another 2 hours to the proper gate. Once we entered the park we drove about 50 kilometers through the game reserve where we saw giraffes and a variety of antelope. We finally reached the ferry that runs across the Nile River. Once we finally made it across we made our way to Red Chili Hideaway, a campsite for visitors of Murchison Falls. There we had lunch which was quite a treat. I normally don't eat beef in the United States, but I have been craving a cheeseburger for some weeks now. Why? I have no clue. It was not what I was expecting. Cheese is not really a thing in Uganda which in my opinion is a darn shame because cheese is amazing. Anyway, the cheeseburger tasted more like a Philly cheese steak than a cheeseburger, but you take what you can get.

Jackie and I on the water cruise

After lunch we made our way back down to the shores of the Nile in order to catch our water cruise to the falls. We were the first ones to arrive on the boat that reminded me of a very large party barge. We were unpleasantly surprised to find out that we were joined by about 30 other tourists who were from a myriad of countries. The water cruise was a bit of a snooze fest, but we did manage to see some hippos, (a lot of hippos in fact) crocodiles, elephants, and a variety of birds. There were a number of avid bird watchers on the water cruise as well.

Crocodile regulating his body temp

After about two hours we finally reached the falls. We signed up to hike around the base of the falls so the boat captain dropped us off at the trail head. This was by far the best part of the trip. We got to see the falls from a number of different views. I was so enamored by the enormity and intensity of this water fall, and I have seen some pretty awesome water falls in my lifetime. Pictures definitely do not do it justice.

We made our way to the top of the falls, took some pictures, and took off for Red Chili in Chris' van. That night we dined on chicken pasta and banana cake. Red Chili was abound with tourists around a bonfire. Our accommodations were rather nice. Jackie, Mary, and I stayed in a tent that was potentially surrounded by wart hogs throughout the night. What's up, Pumba?!

We woke up at 6 the next morning in order to catch the ferry and take a game drive tour. The ferry was delayed for about thirty minutes because some hippos were too close to it. I think hippos are so adorable, even though I know that they can be very aggressive. To me they were a very welcome sight. Once we made it across the Nile we met our game drive tour guide, Simon. Simon informed us of the history of the game reserve in Murchison National Park and the different animals that reside there. We saw some elephants, giraffes, and a variety of antelope. We did not see any lions, however. Simon noticed that the antelope were acting as if a lion might be around, but we never saw it. This was rather disappointing, especially to Mary. She probably had never been farther than her school, never been on a boat, or never seen giraffes or elephants. It was very rewarding to share this experience with her.

After the game drive, we made our way back to Hope North. I have eleven days left here and thus, I am trying to get as much work done as possible before I leave. I am planting flowers around campus with some of the students this Saturday and am quite excited about it. I will post a reflection piece on my work and time here before I leave.

Thanks for reading, friends!

Mary Nell