So here I am in Manila again, thinking that I probably have lots of things that i could blog about but not feeling like doing so. Instead I'll see what flows...
I am rounding the final turn for sure now- and i can practically see home. The plane trips that brought me from Entebbe to Dubai and Dubai to Manila were just a blur. I don't even know how the time went by without me really sleeping or watching that many movies. However, I did watch this really sweet documentary about guys that do super intense rock climbing, and then the guys that- incomplete with the gear- insist on free climbing. Then there are a few other guys who have also discovered base jumping and realized that when falling doesn't necessarily equal death, that they could free climb even higher and on even more perilous climbs. Fantastically radcore.
But did you need to hear that? I don't know. I'm wondering if this is the last blog I'm going to write before arriving home. Too bad I didn't apply that "finishing well" philosophy to literacy. I'm ok with slipping right now. My english is real good.
What have I learned? What do I do when I get back? These are questions I've skirted thus far. I might keep blogging, since many people have been courteous enough to say aloud that they enjoy my writing.
If constancy and familiarity still have a voice, I will probably meet them over coffee in Sidney, at one of those places that open onto beacon. The Thursday market will inevitably roll by and I'll inevitably see a few friends I never expected and miss a few i did.
Engrossed in my cultural fellows I will buy any number's 12OZ to share the last months together. Ah the loveliness of a small town! Perhaps conversation will spill past the weather. Perhaps while sitting and talking and walking these next days these will let unwritten blogs spill through my sleeve off of the ridges of my soul.
Maybe it will just be good to be back.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Monday, August 2, 2010
Its time to talk about...
Going home.
I'm trying not to count the days, but I do sometimes anyways. I can tell you from my cognitive slippages that the date I leave Uganda is soon. I mentioned in a blog long ago that my brother was engaged. Apparently engagements lead to weddings, and it is just one such that has helped me set dates for my departure (Not in a twisting-of-the-arm sort of way, I should say. I'll be very glad to be back to my Home-and-Native.) I hope only to leave well, and sometimes that means to look at the road in front of me instead of the house beyond the hill.
Regardless, for an accurate upkeeping of life and times in my blog, I think its right to presently update it with the details of this upcoming event (my leaving, not the wedding. I'll leave that to someone else.)
I fly out from Uganda in about 12 days. I land in warm and wet Manila (5 hours ahead) a day later, where I stay for about a day and a half; picking up details, doing laundry, and saying hellos and farewells. Then I fly back to vancouver (back 15 hours) where I will land and by-and-by get myself over to the island (where I will arrive with no travel fatigue, culture shock, acclimatizating, or jet lag.) in not much, but enough time to make the grand wedding that it will be.
There you have it. I want to go on a bit about the theme of change and the fact that they put a stop light in down the road from me while I was gone. But one of the guys who runs this internet cafe has just let me use the laptop that he uses normally because the normal computers are full. Now he's hanging around and looking like he wants it back. I relent.
Until next time, or until I'm home. (But don't stop checking this blog!),
A Canadiano named Michael
I'm trying not to count the days, but I do sometimes anyways. I can tell you from my cognitive slippages that the date I leave Uganda is soon. I mentioned in a blog long ago that my brother was engaged. Apparently engagements lead to weddings, and it is just one such that has helped me set dates for my departure (Not in a twisting-of-the-arm sort of way, I should say. I'll be very glad to be back to my Home-and-Native.) I hope only to leave well, and sometimes that means to look at the road in front of me instead of the house beyond the hill.
Regardless, for an accurate upkeeping of life and times in my blog, I think its right to presently update it with the details of this upcoming event (my leaving, not the wedding. I'll leave that to someone else.)
I fly out from Uganda in about 12 days. I land in warm and wet Manila (5 hours ahead) a day later, where I stay for about a day and a half; picking up details, doing laundry, and saying hellos and farewells. Then I fly back to vancouver (back 15 hours) where I will land and by-and-by get myself over to the island (where I will arrive with no travel fatigue, culture shock, acclimatizating, or jet lag.) in not much, but enough time to make the grand wedding that it will be.
There you have it. I want to go on a bit about the theme of change and the fact that they put a stop light in down the road from me while I was gone. But one of the guys who runs this internet cafe has just let me use the laptop that he uses normally because the normal computers are full. Now he's hanging around and looking like he wants it back. I relent.
Until next time, or until I'm home. (But don't stop checking this blog!),
A Canadiano named Michael
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Jackie Chan and an American take on Africa
Regularly while in the Philippines I would have someone shout at me, "Americano!". Not because all white people are Americans, but because that is what we call them in the Philippines. Its enough to irk you if you let it, but with some cultural stretching, you can learn to take it just as if someone had said "howdy dude" from a horseback in Arkansas, which is probably more or less what they meant in the first place. It was just me who took it all wrong.
Having traveled with a couple Filipinos over into Uganda, I've realized that I didn't have it so bad. Shoimar is regularly called after, "hey, Jackie Chan!"
No, he's not Chinese, no he doesn't look Chinese. But as an Asian mzungu, he is "Jackie Chan!" The great thing is that he rolls with this like I wouldn't. He introduces himself as Jackie Chan in group settings and might even do a mock Karate chop if called by the handle in the street. Its pretty great.
I was having a conversation about these things with a white South African, who said that even he sometimes gets called "American."
"I've never been anywhere even remotely near that part of the world!" he exclaimed. "If I tried to go there they'd probably take one look at my passport and send me back!"
Alternatively, upon talking to a Ugandan who spent time in India, he said that he was once asked if there was any black people in South Africa. "Of course," he answered, "why wouldn't there be?"
"Oh," they answered, "because when we watch their cricket team, we only see white guys playing."
But we're not like that in Canada are we? We are multi-national and usually have a good sense of who is from where right? I don't know. But I do know that most people, when they are going to somewhere in Europe or Asia will specify the country.
"Yes, I'm going on a business trip to germany, but I'm going to lay over a weekend in London to see my uncle." or, "We're going to spend two weeks vacation in Thailand and then fly back to Japan."
But if you are going to a country in Africa, even though it is a really really big and diverse continent, you say, "I'm going to Africa." Maybe you will specify and say "Uganda" like I do most of the time and have people looking at you, trying to figure out if Uganda is in Africa or Central America. For many people, it seems like Africa is taken as just one big country. The different colors on the globe that devide it into many pieces are like statelines in the US. Nobody says "We're going on a trip to California, do they? They just say, I'm going to the USA?" Wait, they don't even do that most of the time!
And for immigrants or those of different heritages in Canada or the USA, you could be Korean, or Scottish, or Indian, or African? Or you are irish-canadian, Mexican Canadian, or Afro-Canadian? That hardly seems fair.
This all to put no offense to anyone, but to merely say, we humans are a confused bunch.
Not to let myself off the hook. I tried to figure out where New South Whales was the other day, and found myself exhausting pretty much every continent for possibilities. Turns out, as you yourself probably know at the drop of a hat, it is in Australia. What do I know?
Having traveled with a couple Filipinos over into Uganda, I've realized that I didn't have it so bad. Shoimar is regularly called after, "hey, Jackie Chan!"
No, he's not Chinese, no he doesn't look Chinese. But as an Asian mzungu, he is "Jackie Chan!" The great thing is that he rolls with this like I wouldn't. He introduces himself as Jackie Chan in group settings and might even do a mock Karate chop if called by the handle in the street. Its pretty great.
I was having a conversation about these things with a white South African, who said that even he sometimes gets called "American."
"I've never been anywhere even remotely near that part of the world!" he exclaimed. "If I tried to go there they'd probably take one look at my passport and send me back!"
Alternatively, upon talking to a Ugandan who spent time in India, he said that he was once asked if there was any black people in South Africa. "Of course," he answered, "why wouldn't there be?"
"Oh," they answered, "because when we watch their cricket team, we only see white guys playing."
But we're not like that in Canada are we? We are multi-national and usually have a good sense of who is from where right? I don't know. But I do know that most people, when they are going to somewhere in Europe or Asia will specify the country.
"Yes, I'm going on a business trip to germany, but I'm going to lay over a weekend in London to see my uncle." or, "We're going to spend two weeks vacation in Thailand and then fly back to Japan."
But if you are going to a country in Africa, even though it is a really really big and diverse continent, you say, "I'm going to Africa." Maybe you will specify and say "Uganda" like I do most of the time and have people looking at you, trying to figure out if Uganda is in Africa or Central America. For many people, it seems like Africa is taken as just one big country. The different colors on the globe that devide it into many pieces are like statelines in the US. Nobody says "We're going on a trip to California, do they? They just say, I'm going to the USA?" Wait, they don't even do that most of the time!
And for immigrants or those of different heritages in Canada or the USA, you could be Korean, or Scottish, or Indian, or African? Or you are irish-canadian, Mexican Canadian, or Afro-Canadian? That hardly seems fair.
This all to put no offense to anyone, but to merely say, we humans are a confused bunch.
Not to let myself off the hook. I tried to figure out where New South Whales was the other day, and found myself exhausting pretty much every continent for possibilities. Turns out, as you yourself probably know at the drop of a hat, it is in Australia. What do I know?
Sunday, July 25, 2010
tri-nations + SA +Tonga x2 + adobo=
Shoimar's birthday celebration at Hopeland base; the "green house".
Shoimar, is my Filipino compadre of 24 years. Joining him and myself for some pre dinner blues jamming was a india-influenced Ugandan named John. Add to that a white South African (who I take to be of British Heritage) and two Tongans. Added up, this was an all male United Nations Birthday celebration worthy of all the pork Adobo we devoured accordingly.
I didn't take any pictures, but if i did I don't think I'd post them. At this time I've almost the card full on my digi-camera, and I think that sacrificing all the pictures I've taken and kept over the past half a year to one attempt to share one more one more time over a computer somewhere in Uganda might be less than wise. But what do I know?
Shoimar, is my Filipino compadre of 24 years. Joining him and myself for some pre dinner blues jamming was a india-influenced Ugandan named John. Add to that a white South African (who I take to be of British Heritage) and two Tongans. Added up, this was an all male United Nations Birthday celebration worthy of all the pork Adobo we devoured accordingly.
I didn't take any pictures, but if i did I don't think I'd post them. At this time I've almost the card full on my digi-camera, and I think that sacrificing all the pictures I've taken and kept over the past half a year to one attempt to share one more one more time over a computer somewhere in Uganda might be less than wise. But what do I know?
Saturday, July 17, 2010
2nd blog from Uganda
Last weekend I attended a "introduction" which, in Ugandan culture, is something between an engagement party and a wedding. It involved much eating, singing and dancing. We all knew that Africans can dance, but seeing them giving it up, I have a new suggestion to make.
I've seen dance crews in the Philippines Dance, I've seen break dancers in a street battle in Ukraine, I've seen Canadians tap and Americans swing and prove that white men actually can dance. I've seen "America's Next Top Dance Crew and "Britain's got talent" and know full well that there are many people who can dance. But i suggest that Africans alone are dance. They are amazing.
So it is with a sadness that I've observed such a beautiful culture and people offset by violence and echoes of evil. As a large gathering of people watched the world cup in Kampala last week, a bomb went off killing many. Kampala may be the capital, but its population is relatively small. Probably under 2 million. I think of how even one murder shakes my home greater-area city of some 300,000 and imagine how this larger kind of terror traumatises a city and a nation.
I think it is safe to say that Uganda has accepted me! I have, in past travels, noticed that there are two things that transcend cultures and borders; those being music and sport (usually football [soccer]). On those levels I have already connected. But there is a third level, i have discovered, that perhaps resonates more deeply in this country than even the others. This is to dig: to garden.
For Ugandans, gardening (or simply "digging") is a way of life. To see a "Muzungo" (foreigner) putting his back to the task cuts some of the undeniable cultural barriers. For me its been easy. Some hard work, but also a joy to be able to break and plant in the red Ugandan earth. As a result of my interest, I was invited to an agricultural show in Jija town. This is something like our "fall fair" in Canada. I had to laugh when I walked in. Of course Michael would find himself at an African Country fair.
"Farm boy"
Internet is not just a walk down the road anymore, so I haven't posted an update for two weeks before now, but I thank you for checking in again.
If you're talking with a Filipino this week ask him how his family back home is. The Philippines has just been smashed by an unexpectedly large Typhoon which has left many powerless, flooded, or even homeless. Pray for the Philippines.
I have been asked if it is hotter in Uganda than the Philippines. The answer to which is "no". It is actually quite pleasant here, with occasional showers and a frequent breeze. The current temperature here is probably about what it is back home. 20 or so.
I've seen dance crews in the Philippines Dance, I've seen break dancers in a street battle in Ukraine, I've seen Canadians tap and Americans swing and prove that white men actually can dance. I've seen "America's Next Top Dance Crew and "Britain's got talent" and know full well that there are many people who can dance. But i suggest that Africans alone are dance. They are amazing.
So it is with a sadness that I've observed such a beautiful culture and people offset by violence and echoes of evil. As a large gathering of people watched the world cup in Kampala last week, a bomb went off killing many. Kampala may be the capital, but its population is relatively small. Probably under 2 million. I think of how even one murder shakes my home greater-area city of some 300,000 and imagine how this larger kind of terror traumatises a city and a nation.
I think it is safe to say that Uganda has accepted me! I have, in past travels, noticed that there are two things that transcend cultures and borders; those being music and sport (usually football [soccer]). On those levels I have already connected. But there is a third level, i have discovered, that perhaps resonates more deeply in this country than even the others. This is to dig: to garden.
For Ugandans, gardening (or simply "digging") is a way of life. To see a "Muzungo" (foreigner) putting his back to the task cuts some of the undeniable cultural barriers. For me its been easy. Some hard work, but also a joy to be able to break and plant in the red Ugandan earth. As a result of my interest, I was invited to an agricultural show in Jija town. This is something like our "fall fair" in Canada. I had to laugh when I walked in. Of course Michael would find himself at an African Country fair.
"Farm boy"
Internet is not just a walk down the road anymore, so I haven't posted an update for two weeks before now, but I thank you for checking in again.
If you're talking with a Filipino this week ask him how his family back home is. The Philippines has just been smashed by an unexpectedly large Typhoon which has left many powerless, flooded, or even homeless. Pray for the Philippines.
I have been asked if it is hotter in Uganda than the Philippines. The answer to which is "no". It is actually quite pleasant here, with occasional showers and a frequent breeze. The current temperature here is probably about what it is back home. 20 or so.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
I'm here!
I arrived in the YWAM Base outside Jinja, Uganda last night and already I've been more caught up on the progress of the World cup than I have since It started.
Today we have come into Jija. It is an endearing town that reminds me of Kamloops if you'd believe it. So far Uganda very much agrees with me. The people seem warm, friendly and at ease. The weather is cooler with a breeze and drier than what I've become used to over the past months, again, resembling an inland BC climate (in the not-snowy season). There is African music floating in the door from outside, which is so beautful a thing. I'm not sure if I can say much more on my experience until I learn to look right-left crossing the road instead of left-right. Although I will say that Uganda, thus far, has me captured.
Today we have come into Jija. It is an endearing town that reminds me of Kamloops if you'd believe it. So far Uganda very much agrees with me. The people seem warm, friendly and at ease. The weather is cooler with a breeze and drier than what I've become used to over the past months, again, resembling an inland BC climate (in the not-snowy season). There is African music floating in the door from outside, which is so beautful a thing. I'm not sure if I can say much more on my experience until I learn to look right-left crossing the road instead of left-right. Although I will say that Uganda, thus far, has me captured.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Silugnan, San Lazaro, Song and Dance
This picture is pretty much the same place where the picture heading my earlier blog was taken. It goes to show how fast and green things will turn in the Philippines when the rain starts to fall. The soil is very fertile and allows grasses to spring up virtually overnight.
Here we have another before and after at silugnan
I went back to silugnan on Thursday. It was great. I started clearing an area of grass and weeds and am proud to say that Noli, the provincial farmer said of me, "you are a real farmer". Bab, who manages the property, seconded the motion to someone else, who passed on his compliments. It went straight to my heart.
But I'll say it so certain friends back home don't have to...
"Farm Boy."
I took some pictures when i was at the ECCC on Saturday.
This is an old part of San Lazaros Hospital, which is something of a sanctuary/garden adjoining the chapel. The peace you feel when you walk in is incredible. Suddenly the sounds from the streets and aura of a hospital dissolves into the chirping of birds and stone walls that echo stillness.
I leave for Uganda in three days. I recently watched the documentary "war dance" which is very good. If you want to taste some Uganda, I recommend that film.
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