"I want to go and see the Nile, the longest thing in Africa..."

*** Just to note: the title of this post is from a song that I learned from some of the local children here.

If you haven't gathered it yet, I got to see and even touch the Nile River. We took a boat to the starting point of the Nile. Just some facts about the Nile and East Africa: there are 4000 liters per minute that enter the Nile from underground springs plus all the water that enters from Lake Victoria, it takes about 3 months (approx. 90 days) for a water molecule to travel through the entire river, there are over 132 different species of birds in East Africa. The boat took us to a little island where we got off and walked around. It was right at the starting point of the Nile so that was pretty neat to see. Some of the birds we saw were absolutely beautiful and colorful, too. The best part about being in the boat was seeing a monkey jump out of a tree to another tree and just grab onto a branch. It's almost as if all the animals that we saw on this part were trained to do what they did. The worst part about the boat ride was either all the ants that climbed onto me or the fact that I had to sit by a 300+ pound man.

After the boat ride we ate lunch and then visited some more NGO's. Then we visited an AIDS treatment center and gathering place called Living Positively. They were all so excited to see us and right when we got there they started singing a song and dancing. A lot of them even came up and hugged us. The kids were playing with a rag "soccer" ball so I joined in the best I could in sandals. We walked over to see their chicken coop and to see where they make their pottery to stay busy. As we were walking two little boys came up and held my hands. It was a weird feeling for me because I didn't really get a chance to talk to any of the kids there but they were still so warm and welcoming. It makes me curious as to if they are taught to be nice to mzungus or something because they think we will help them. I think they just wanted a friend and that's what I was for them for about 20 minutes. We then travelled to an all girls boarding school. It was interesting but they are redoing some of their rooms so it will be a lot nicer. I believe it was like a technical school, but I'm not really sure. I was starting to get tired and ready to leave so I wasn't really asking questions or talking to too many of the girls. However, some of the girls wanted to meet the boys so I did shake a lot of hands and say hello.

Once we left there we headed to Bujagali Falls. This was the most relaxing part of the day I think. It's amazing that watching water fall over rocks can be so relaxing. I took some time to sit by myself and think about life and that was exactly what I needed at that time in the trip. The only bad part was the people trying to sell you useless junk and services. They just would not stop hassling me and I told one off and just walked away. They were frustrating me like crazy. But once I got some time to myself, I sat and soaked it all in. And it was well worth it too.

After dinner at the hotel we went to the karaoke bar. There me and my roommates ("the man cave") sang Paula Abdul's "Straight Up." We were obviously a crowd favorite. Well at least the people in our group got a good laugh. I also tried learning some new dance moves from a few guys that looked about my age, maybe younger. It was a real fun night and a good break away from seeing all the need and poverty we see daily.

I woke up today and went to Kampala's Pentecostal Church (KPC). This reminded me a lot of the style and set up of Crossroads in Cincinnati. They had a really big stage and lots of musicians and displayed everything on a projector screen in case you couldn't see. I was expecting a lot more than what it was, but it was still interesting nonetheless. It wasn't as cultured as I thought it might be, and compared to stories from our leader's last time here, it was toned down a lot. Service lasted an hour and 45 minutes, and the bench was uncomfortable, but it was interesting to hear some of the comments the pastor made about the US and Barack Obama. Everyone still thanks us for getting Obama to office. In the afternoon after some Chinese food for lunch, I made free to do whatever I wanted. I was going to lay down to take a nap, but ended up talking with Tanner the whole time about life. And then some girls came in and wanted to go to the craft market, so we tagged along for that. There I got about half of my shopping done. We're going to another craft market tomorrow and then back to this one if we can't find things at the other one. Once we got back I got a nice cold Coke made with real sugar. I'm going to miss those when I get back to the States. I played on someone else's drums for a little bit before returning to my room to take a nap. First nap of the whole trip, and it was very much needed. Overall it was a good day and very much needed time for myself and not scheduled. For dinner, we ate some pineapple that Paul bought, and had some roasted jack fruit seeds (or nuts I forget what they're called), and the owner's daughter, Rhianna, made us all some wonderful smoothies. She's such a cutie and has a British accent (from her father).

Tomorrow we are delivering our donated school supplies to three schools. Too bad in two of them the children are out until early February so we won't be able to play with them. We will be able to talk with the teachers and head master though as they prepare for the start of the new term. Tomorrow should be a very educational day (no pun intended) with a free afternoon. Tomorrow is a national holiday here...it's Liberation day. So hopefully there will be something unique we can experience.

***Extra Notes:

• I have a lot more bug bites.
• I have a bunch of little bumps on my hand that I think may be some reaction to a plant or possibly from the heat with wearing work gloves.
• I have a mustache
• I picked up a new hobby, harmonica.

I think that's all I have at this time. Still really looking forward to the safari, but won't be able to tell you about that until later on, or maybe not until I return....I love the comments and they're always so encouraging so thanks for that. And thanks to those of you who donated items for the schools. And thanks for the prayers. I love you all....