annesophiefortier10

It’s me again! I am not on the road to Kampala, but I still need to catch up on my blogging. My last post finished when I returned to Rugazi to begin our community placement (the real deal this time). Divided into the groups Rugazi A and B, twenty of us packed into a MUST bus and sped down the speed-bump-riddled roads to the Rubirizi district (we call our roadtrips African massages since you get shaken up pretty well). Upon arrival, we realised had no running water again. No big deal, because it will come back on right away right? Not so this time, and our custodian/babysitter (because we’re clueless as babies) Martin recruited the guys haul 20L jerry cans for our water needs. This is when I learnt the interesting way that Ugandans close their ... read more

To my dear friends and family, I know, I know, I've been terrible at keeping you all up to date with my Ugandan adventure. These past couple weeks have been busier than expected and my blog has been placed on the backburner. But I am back and ready to brag about the amazing time we’ve been having in the Pearl of Africa! At the time of my last blog, I had just arrived in Rugazi for a week of clinical learning and community touring. Five people joined our team for the occasion: two medical students from the U of S, Brianna and Jennifer, and their supervisor Dr. Amber, as well as two Ugandan students from MUST, Ken and Resti. Our days consisted of mornings in the wards of Rugazi's Health Center IV (abbreviated to HC IV), ... read more

Greetings from Mbarara! What’s new? After six days in this new city, we managed to flood our bathroom, subsequently run out of water, and get invited to a Ugandan wedding! But first things first: Mbarara is a busy and bustling city. My first impression: wow, there are so many boda bodas! These Ugandan taxis on motorcycles are as numerous as cars and are way more reckless on the road (which is saying something since vehicle drivers are notoriously reckless). They also can carry up to three passengers behind the driver or transport large bunches of bananas, parcels, or even goats on occasion. Mbarara has held nothing but surprises so far. While some things may seem similar, in reality, almost everything is different. For example, the toilets in our house: we didn’t know that the toilet handle ... read more

My sleep-deprived brain is able to formulate one thought at the moment: I could be an airport intercom announcer. I speak fluent French, and I can have inintiligebly fast speech. That's all I need, right? Actually, I shouldn't trust my reasoning right now because I am running on 3 hours of fragmented sleep. The first plane of my two day flight itinerary left at 6 o'clock this morning and, as I am not the best sleeper during flights, it left me in a bit of a zombie state. That's okay though because it's a small price to pay for a three month trip to Uganda. All these months of planning, frenzied shopping, and packing have led to this: a group of U of S students (though it's just Casey and I in Toronto for now) stepping ... read more