Vintage Auto Show Kampala

We've spent the day at a Vintage Auto Show in the gardens of the Sheraton Hotel in the centre of Kampala.

Lots of lovely cars

 Some in better condition

Than others

Glen was in his element

There was even a 1959 Morris Minor - sadly looking rather neglected :(

We took advantage of a rain shower to have a drink and a cake inside the hotel

Then back to the gardens

Now I'm feeling rather tired. We went in by Matatu so lots of walking to and from the taxi park. But I'm sure it must be good for me!

Is Friday a Public Holiday?

On Wednesday and Thursday last week the question everyone was asking was 'Is Friday a public holiday?'

The reason for the uncertainty was the Muslim festival of Eid Al Fitr which is the feast at the end of the month of Ramadan. As the Muslim calendar works on a lunar calender it is difficult to match it to the days of the week used in Uganda, which are based on the solar calender. The festival is declared once the new moon is sighted for the start of the new lunar month.

In Uganda if Friday was the festival of Eid Al Fitr then it was also a public holiday If the festival fell on Saturday then Saturday would be the holiday but there was no alternative day off for workers who don't work on Saturday, such as most office workers.

On Thursday evening the Uganda Muslim Supreme Council declared that the moon had been seen and therefore Friday was a public holiday. E mails and text messages were sent around VSO and my placement organisation. The message seemed to spread as there was very little traffic on the road early on Friday.

So we had a long weekend we didn't expect a week ago. Some of the volunteers planned a quick trip away but we decided to stay put in Kampala. We had a friend, who is currently working in Masindi, staying with us so we've spent the weekend catching up with admin, chatting and eating.

I had already organised the Kampala VSO cluster meeting for Thursday afternoon. After an interesting discussion in the meeting we all stayed at the restaurant and enjoyed a meal together. It was another lovely warm evening where we could sit outside in the garden and chat. Good food and good company, what more could you want.

On Saturday we decided to visit one of our favourite places in Kampala, Cassia Lodge, to see the sunset over the lake. The Lodge is on a hill at the southern end of Kampala and has a fabulous view of the Kampala hills and Lake Victoria. We enjoyed a drink looking out over the view and then headed back to our apartment for a home cooked burger.

Second Anniversary!

Yesterday was 2 years since my first blog post and one year since my Happy Anniversary post. Then I took the opportunity to look back over the year covering the period working my notice, training, packing and fund raising for VSO and my first 9 months + in Uganda.

The second year has been a full year in Uganda with 2 trips back home, once for a month over Christmas and the second for the wedding in June. Both are covered by blog posts and pictures.

This year I've only managed 38 blog posts instead of the 45 in the first year and have had nearly 1,600 page views bringing the total to a respectable 3,600. This will be the 84th blog post and I plan to post 100 overall. Over the past year the most popular post has been 'So, What's it Really Like' posted on 3rd August last year. I obviously struck a chord as the post has nearly 300 page views!

As well as the 2 trips home highlights of the past year have been:

• Our day out in search of a shoebill in late July
• The partner meeting in August including a very interactive day on finance
• A weekend in Lake Mburo to celebrate my birthday in September
• A week away on a road trip around the north and east of Uganda in October, including spending our wedding anniversary at Sipi Falls
• A residential training week for partners in Kampala on 'Integrating Programming and Finance' in November
• Ann and David's visit in February and our holiday week in Murchison Falls and Queen Elizabeth parks
• Completing the grant monitoring at the end of March
• An Easter break spent exploring Kampala
• Barbara's visit in May and June and our holiday week travelling to the South West
• Numerous partner visits with colleagues where we worked hard and then relaxed over a meal and a drink in the evenings

Now our thoughts really are turning towards the next chapter. Where will we be and what will we be doing in a year's time? What are we going to do to earn some money? 

But there are still 3 busy months left in Uganda with more training sessions on core cost budgets and cost allocations, follow up visits to partners and writing up my learning and experiences to pass on. Then there is all of the packing and clearing of our flat in Uganda. So plenty still to do! 

VSO Annual Forum and Return to Work

The VSO Annual Forum was later in the year this year, at the end of June rather than the end of March. This was because of the change in the VSO Uganda Country Director, but it was perfect for us as we had one day of rest after our flight home then three days at the forum.

The schedule was the same as in 2014 with a first day for our partner organisations as well as the staff and volunteers, the second day of activities for staff and volunteers and a final day of team building and fun. This year the focus was around the VSO Uganda Country Strategic Plan consultations. We all had an opportunity to consider the direction of the Uganda office over the next few years in line with the overall strategic direction agreed by London.

For the final day this year we had a morning of team games in the VSO compound, including a photo treasure hunt in teams. The afternoon was free to rest and recover then we spent the evening at the Ndere Cultural Centre. I went there in my first week in country and then again just after Glen arrived. However, recently volunteers have been arriving in ones and twos so many haven't been to the centre. We had a very enjoyable evening, a chance to mix and catch up with people and a show that meant a lot more now that we are more familiar with the different regions and cultural identity of Uganda.

The pictures are not great as I was struggling to get the right amount of light. Without the flash the pictures were bright and colourful but out of focus, with the flash they were in focus but dark. I had to include the final photo of the girls carrying the pots on their heads. They add more and more pots to the stack on their heads while continuing to dance.

After all of the excitement we were glad of a quiet weekend. Then on Monday it was back to work. The week seemed to go very slowly but the days are counting down and there is so much still to achieve.