First Blog

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This is my first blog and I'm going to use it to update family and friends and anyone else who's interested on my time in Uganda. I arrived here last week and will be working as a VSO volunteer at the International Hospital Kampala. I'm a management accountant and will be working in the Finance Department here at the hospital - my previous jobs were all in big companies in the UK so I'll be learning a lot, and hopefully sharing some of the skills I've got.

I had a week of 'In Country Training' with 10 other new VSO volunteers which is aimed at giving us an initial orientation (security, road safety, culture, food and language). We stayed at the Lweza Conference Centre just outside Kampala and it was a very gentle introduction to Uganda. And after the last few weeks of running around doing last minute things, packing and saying lots of goodbyes it was lovely to have every day organised and plenty of time to reflect on what the next two years will bring.

On Friday we all left Lweza and headed off to our new homes with our new employers ... for me it was a thirty minute journey through the outskirts of Kampala but for some it was a 5+ hour journey up country. My new home is a hospital guest house which I'm sharing with 5 other IHK volunteers. It's pretty comfortable - I have a double bed etc and share a bathroom with hot water and a bath/shower with one other person. Our kitchen is enormous and has a 'proper' gas cooker - a lot more than the VSO minimum of 2 rings. I'm not sure how much cooking I'll be doing as we have two lovely ladies who cook prepare breakfast and dinner every day and lunch is provided at the hospital.

I think I'm going to have quite a busy social life here as there are about 20 VSO volunteers here and Ugandans are very friendly and sociable. Kampala has a lot of different restaurants so I'm looking forward to trying them all - it will help me get over my top table addiction. So far I've been to 2 Indian restaurants which were both excellent - as one is on the way home from work and hospital staff get a 10% discount it's going to be difficult to resist. I'm not sure if I'll ever find a martini as good as Baltic's .... or even any martinis but I'm up for a bit of research!

I'm into my second day at work and am being eased in very gently with a 2 week induction programme so I can get to know all about the hospital and how the Finance department works. Yesterday I fell asleep reading at about 9pm and I underestimated how tiring it is meeting new people and absorbing everything about a new workplace. As I haven't worked full time since I left the Telegraph last September it was a bit of a shock to the system to be in one place for the whole day!

I need to go now as it looks like it might rain soon - my first in Uganda - and I don't want to get caught in it!

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Comments

[Lizzy]

Lovely Blog
Just so you know I have recieved this transmission - I have emailed you so i hope you have recived that too!!!