Computers

Last week saw the arrival of the fifteen brand new laptops that we purchased for the school. I set them up for the teachers to use at that time and they were very excited figuring out how to type out their lesson plans, tests and notes for their students. They are eager to learn how to make Powerpoint slides and use the projector in their classes, and that will come with time.

Yesterday, I bought the wireless router from the Orange network store in town, so we can provide web access. Setting up the internet connection was relatively easy considering it's such a high-tech gadget in this arguably low-tech environment. It only involved one unhelpful call to the customer care number and one return visit to the Orange store to configure the router correctly, but within a few hours, the lab was ready for the students to start their computer class this afternoon.

Megan is the computer instructor, and she had 22 very excited girls in her classes today--many of them had never used a computer before so they were enjoying figuring out a few basic skills in their first lesson. They particularly enjoyed playing an on-line typing instruction game.

We look forward to providing computer training for the students, so they will possess valuable skills when they go to university and enter the job market. We also are excited to train the teachers to incorporate some of this technology in the classroom.

Service

It is a common experience for Westerners visiting or living in Africa to have to adjust to the unpredictable nature of customer service standards. One the one hand, it is can be difficult to be "allowed" to do any sort of physical labour for yourself. For example, the cook for the school personally delivers tea to my office everyday, and if I try to take the dirty dishes back myself and any of the staff see me, they will inevitably look horrified and rush to relieve me of my load. Similarly, the students in my Sunday School class won't let me sit on the bench until they brush the dust off it for me first and the staff at the supermarket in town volunteer to push the cart around for us when we're shopping and then carry the bags out to the vehicle. I appreciate the help with heavy loads when needed, but it can get a bit embarrassing when people offer to take even small packages from me, so I won't have to carry them.

However, there are times, when the customer service can leave you shaking your head in bewilderment. Waiters will dutifully take your order, disappear back to the kitchen for some time and then return to let you know that whatever you ordered is "finished." We have learned to ask "Do you have this?" and point to the item on the printed menu before ordering to try to avoid the long wait and then be disappointed. All of us have stories of this nature we could tell, but today, an interaction with the lady at the bakery was pretty classic, and I felt the need to share the story.

Sue and I went into town today to do a bit of grocery shopping. We stopped into the bakery that we frequent a fair bit. The items for sale are a bit hit and miss, but every once in a while I will pick up a pastry "cheese pie" for a snack. I hadn't had one in awhile, so I ordered one. The lady behind the counter asked if I'd like it warmed up--they have a microwave, which is pretty upscale for this part of the world. As I intended to eat it a bit later, I declined the offer of the warm-up.

Well, she gave me this look that said I was nuts to eat it cold and said, "You don't want it warmed up!??!" as if I had no idea what I was talking about. Her accusatory tone made me feel the need to defend myself so I said that I liked them cold. She sort of rolled her eyes, shook her head, wrapped up the pie and the look on her face communicated that she'd be telling another "crazy muzungu" story around the dinner table tonight.

Meanwhile, Sue decided she'd like a pie too, so she ordered one and said that she would like it warmed up. The same lady, who had just served me, looked at Sue and said "You want it warmed up!??!" in a similarly shocked manner. Sue re-stated her wishes and the lady replied, "No power."

We had a good laugh as we left the bakery.

the infamous cheese pie (not heated up)

Opening

Yesterday was the Grand Opening celebration for Timothy Girls College. It was a really wonderful time where all the builders, the staff, the students, people from the community, other expats and many members of the Kibaale Community School staff came together to mark the start of this exciting project.

Here are some things that stood out as highlights for me:

-the local District Education Officer saying how proud he is that the Luwengo district now has a school dedicated to educating the girl child. This is a stated focus for the Ugandan Ministry of Education and Sports, but many areas in the nation still can't provide such schools. He promised to do all he can for us as we seek to register the school officially and that was good news indeed!

-the choir made up of all 21 of our students performing 2 songs. Five of the girls had only arrived the night before and had to learn the numbers very quickly. They sounded great!

-hearing the Kibaale staff members cheering loudly in celebration as a long-term goal of that project was being realized.

-seeing how proud of their work the builders were and having a chance to thank them publicly.

-listening to Esther, the first girl that reported for school, speak articulately to the crowd about how happy she was to be a part of the first class of TGC

-greeting a former student of mine when I lived in Uganda in 1996. She is now a nurse that works in the Kibaale clinic, and she recognized me as her former teacher and found me to say hi.

-chatting with another former student of mine who is very seriously planning to run for office in the next election in 2016. He currently works in Kibaale and wants to represent that area in order to bring further development to Rakai district. He was also telling me what a wonderful opportunity it is for some of our students who have come from Kibaale. They have such disadvantaged backgrounds that to be able to study at an A-Level school like ours would have been totally out of reach without the sponsorship they've received.

-being able to tour people through the site and see the support from so many people from the community.

We have high expectations for Timothy Girls College, and it will take time to develop our program, but it feels like we're starting well and it is such a privilege to be a part of it.

Chapel

Since Timothy Girls College is a boarding school, we have the opportunity to meet together on Sunday mornings for our weekly chapel service. We have had two such meetings since the school opened, and I've really enjoyed joining the students in the worship service. The girls lead the singing with local drums as the only accompaniment and everyone joins in very enthusiastically.

It is very hard to convey the mood of an African worship service in words and photos alone; even video doesn't quite capture the atmosphere. The girls in the chapel services sing at the top of their lungs, dance, pound the drums, clap their hands and shout; it is really very fun to be a part of it all. I can't join in the Luganda songs, and it's sometimes difficult to recognize the ones in English, but I can't help but be touched by the excitement all around.

You'll just have to visit sometime and experience it for yourself!

some students presenting a "special"--a song they prepared to perform at the service

the cooks left lunch preparations and joined in and provided the drum accompaniment