Last Day of Orientation

Friday - June 19, 2009
Today was our last day of orientation at the IC house. We met with Phil and discussed our Research Initiatives. We met for the first time in our groups based on which school we will be working at. I will be with Sharon, Kate, and Lisa. We discovered that the focus for our research will be the “students.” We will focus on their empowerment/voice, life stories, and the role of extra-curricular activities in their lives. It will be very interesting when we get to talk with the students and hear from them about their future goals and what they plan to be doing ten years from now.
After our meeting we had lunch at the Kope Café with Dana and Daneen from group one. It was the best meal we have had so far. It was a very westernized meal. I had a vegetarian pizza and it was unbelievable having food that I recognized. I will be spending much time there, but the only drawback is that the Kope Café is known for its terrible turn-over time. We waited hours for the food, but it is absolutely worth the wait.
When we were finished eating we went back to the IC house and met with our content area groups. We shared different strategies with each other and ideas on how we could go about teaching social studies to the students in Gulu.
After going back to the hotel to shower we all prepared for the Meet and Greet teachers night. This was the first time we all got dressed up and actually looked like very smart (good-looking) Mzungu’s (Whites.) We all walked like a parade through downtown Gulu, and it was pretty awkward and uncomfortable. We were walking through the streets past these people that have nothing, and we all were dressed up looking like a million bucks. A few of us felt like we should have sent for a mutatu (taxi van.)
We all met our teachers and it was very exciting. However, my teacher was about 2 hours late and I was sitting at the table like an idiot. I was talking to my schools headmaster. He is a really cool guy and I am very excited to be at his school. Once my teacher finally arrived I was thrilled to see that he was wearing a baseball cap. I was really happy about that. His name is Okello Lawrence and we has been teaching for the past 6 years.
We talked a good amount about languages in Uganda. There is no official language and we said that Lwo, is dying. He said that Northern and Southern Uganda will never decide between Lugandan and Lwo, therefore English is very widely used in schools and in the home. He said that Gulu children can speak in Lwo, but they cannot read or write in Lwo. It was a very interesting conversation and a good ice breaker. I look forward to spending more time with him and learning from him.
After the teachers left we went to Bamboo to see Lisa from group 1 sing. I was flabbergasted at how amazed she was. I am amazed that she has not been signed to a record deal yet. She is unbelieveably talented and a really cool girl too. All the girls from group 1 completely baffle me more and more each time I talk to them. Each of them have stories that top the one before it. Check out Lisa Swetman on Itunes. You will be impressed, or at least see why I was impressed.
Not only did she sign but Michael whipped out the guitar and totally shocked me at how talented he is. I am also very upset that he never told me how good he was at the guitar and singing. I was very proud. It probably ranked in the top 10 nights of my life. Big John has moved it into his top 7 nights. So, that should tell you how great it was.