Tenth Day in Uganda

SixSeeds friend Andy Mills has created "The 5810 Project," predicated on the belief that while “teaching a man to fish” will provide him with a fish diet for a lifetime, it will not lead him out of poverty. To escape poverty people need to develop sustainable business activities. The 5810 Project’s vision is to help people build businesses and break the poverty cycle in Uganda. SixSeeds will be posting portions of blogs from our friends as they go through this journey.

Today, the three of us tried our luck at teaching again. Today, Andy taught the oldest kids again, but Ted and I switched classes; Ted took the nursery class and I taught the middle age groups. Because the Ugandan school system is based upon the British school system, the middle age group is P1 level and the oldest kids are P2. Ted taught more numbers and letters to the kids, while I taught Science and Andy taught English. We were all impressed once again today by their enthusiasm in the classroom. Every time we asked a question, all the kids were jumping off their benches with their hands in the air, yelling “Teachah, teachah!” Finally, we were reminded how special an individual has to be to teach little kids.

After school, we headed to Jinja, where the source of the Nile is located. We went to Budjagali Falls, where there are three rapids flowing into the beginning of the River Nile. When we got there, a man came up and asked us if we would pay 10,000 Ugandan Schillings (a little less than $5) to see one of his companions jump into the river with a can of water, and swim down through the rapids. Them man navigated through the rapids swiftly but safely, and it was a thrill to watch. Then, a man started blowing his whistle at us, motioning for us to come up the embankment and watch his show. For 5,000 Ugandan Schillings, we were able to see a man who had a crippled leg, but an extremely muscular upper body and second leg, climb up and balance at the top of a 12 foot pole.

After seeing the Nile, we headed back to the hotel, ready for a night of sleep before our ventures into the slums tomorrow morning.