July 24, 2009 - Pader to Lira

I don’t know if I’ve mentioned yet how much I look forward to the milk coffee we’ve been enjoying with breakfast every morning. There is a big thermos of very hot milk and you poor that into a cup where you have put a spoonful of ‘Star’ coffee. Yummmmm. We picked up a can of the coffee at a little grocery store this evening to bring back home.

We started off today with a meeting at the CPAR office. They gave a great overview of all the projects underway and expressed the need for continued support of Northern Uganda in the rebuilding process, which is something we definitely have witnessed firsthand.

Just before we said goodbye to head on to Lira, we sang ‘Gulu’ for them. For those of you reading this who haven’t heard it yet, it is a song Dwight wrote about the civil war and the hope for peace in Uganda. Thankfully that peace is here now.

The next stop was the Awero Health Centre where we dropped to see how it is doing since our last visit in 2007. The maternity ward was busy…three women were waiting to see a doctor, one woman was delivering and several others were in the recovery room with their newborns….teeny tiny little cuties. Across the yard at the outpatient department, was a large crowd of people waiting to see the doctor.

When we arrived in Lira, we learned there is a big wedding of a government official from Kampala this weekend. As a result, our hotel reservation had been given away to wedding guests who were committed to staying longer than us. Yikes! I was a little nervous. Luckily, after trying several (six) other hotels that were fully booked with wedding guests, we managed to find one that seems to have just opened and were able to get rooms there. And they have hot water in the shower…our first of the trip. We both took showers when we checked in and I didn’t have any hot water so assumed there was none, but by the time Dwight got in it had heated up.

(Above) Our room in Lira

The hotel isn’t prepared for food service yet so we drove into Lira and found a tiny little place where we had a delicious meal. I had beans, posho, and cowpeas, and of course a Fanta orange drink. My meal totalled 3200 shillings, which is roughly $1.85. We have developed quite a liking for posho so Henry told me the recipe and I plan to make it when we get home.

Things look at bit more lush around Lira…comparatively speaking but they are not having enough rain either. But again those skeeters are a nuisance tonight.

Speaking of water…it is surprising how obsessed you can become about water when you can’t just drink it from the tap whenever you want. I feel the need to acquire vast quantities of bottled water. However, I drink sparingly as bathroom facilities are not available when out in the field.