Dinner Party in Kampala

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Monday & Tuesday, February 6-7, 2006 KAMPALA, UGANDA

Really, life is getting better. Although we had a day to recuperate when we first arrived, we really didn’t have an opportunity to get ourselves organized. In a way, it was nice that we got the sightseeing out of our systems, and it was wonderful to have it all organized by Sarah, so that we could enjoy our second week sans sightseeing, but I am only now feeling ready to start to write anything. Sorry about that!

I think that we didn’t tell you that their maid QUIT a few days before we arrived! Almost unheard of, but it happened, in large part, because they expected her to pay for the numerous daily calls that she had been enjoying…obviously, that was why the house hadn’t been cleaned, laundry done or the food cooked.

One really has to have someone to do all of these things…the house is not at all secure, well, safety-wise it is, but when the wind blows, it blows in through the windows all of the red dust, dirt, and grime which coats everything. Dusting and vacuuming have to be done daily. It is really a never-ending task.

Also, Sarah and Nate are the first occupants of this house now that it has been acquired by the Embassy for its staff. Apparently, even though it is a GRAND house, three bedrooms, three and one-half baths, TV room, living room, dining room, 2-car garage, guard house, etc., the previous owners/occupants had pretty much trashed the place, including apparently keeping chickens in the house. There are still some kinks to work out, such as getting the plumbing to work properly.

Sarah and Nate work very long hours at the Embassy, daily and weekends as well, so their heads are not in housekeeping. So, picture this: maid quits, mom and step-dad arrive and the new plumbing gives out! The new maintenance person at the Embassy refuses to let plumbers in without someone in the house, so fortunately, when the dining room light globe filled with water and then FELL on the dining room table, sending glass shards EVERY where, Bill and I could stay here while the repairs are made. Temporary ones while we were gone for the weekend, and then more permanent ones over the last couple of days. EVERYTHING takes time, time, time…no one come prepared to finish a task. Well, the water is now working and we are free to roam about.

We offered to cook for them, and it turned into a formal dinner party for 10. Courtney, a Hawaiian former opera singer, Robert a very interesting 20-year old Marine, Dottie and Darrell, parents of very interesting Josiah and Olivia, teen-agers plus Sarah and Nate and Bill and Marie.

We started to buy the food after work on Monday. Went to a very bright and nice supermarket, found everything that we needed and were minutes away from checking out when the electricity went off. Not unusual, since the country is experiencing an intense 18-month drought, the worst in 100 years, so there isn’t enough water to produce hydro-electricity. You would think that now that there are “rolling” black-outs, that perhaps this major dept store would have generators (Broken) or even hand calculators, but no, nothing, so after about 10-15 minutes, we left everything in the cart and tried to find other stores that had what we wanted. Very dreary evening.

The next morning, Tuesday, I got up early to ride to the Embassy with them, to check my email and to find some good beef, both of which were possible. Fortunately, when I was buying the beef, I met an interesting woman mid-30’s who grew up in the Congo during the wars, and her father was a doctor who told the rebels, “when I feel at all threatened, I will leave.” She spent the first 8 years of her life there, and then, because of the distance for education, the family ended up returning to Belgium. In her adulthood, though, she has spent a great deal of time in East Africa, and today, has opened a grocery store that features Belgian products aimed at the foreigners who work in Uganda. She said, “I have a taxi driver who is reliable, but his car is old, shall I call him for you?” So, she did, and since then, we call Hussein whenever we need to go someplace.

The advantage of staying with one’s daughter is a free place to stay. The disadvantage is that usually these Embassy homes are away from the hot, humid, dusty, dry city centers…so we have to spend time and money to get anywhere! Most of the people, including the taxi drivers, do have cell phones, and the reception is MUCH BETTER than anything that we have in the US of A. No one walks around saying, “can you hear me??” No one shouts into their phones. Just like Greece. You would think that American competition would improve, but apparently, the companies are still battling for turf and use different systems, so we, especially in David City, are going to be stuck with a very low level of service.

Well, back to the dinner party…the meat was excellent. I made a pot roast, with roasted potatoes and carrots (not enough, so at the last minute I had to run to the local bazaar to get more), plus a fairly decent ratatouille and rice. Sarah and Nate added cheese cubes and crackers, and oh, yes, I made houmous and tahini (which Sarah decided needed more tahini) and baba ganoush. The South African wine pinotage, a red wine of which I am unfamiliar, was wonderful!!!

Oh, yes, because it is Sarah’s birthday this week, I made her an apple pie, to which we added local ice cream. The conversation just flowed. Sarah spent the first part of the evening helping Olivia with her math homework. Even the Marine decided that the teacher must have left something out, but by the end, Sarah, Olivia and some of Olivia’s classmates, via cell phones, got the four problems worked out. I have to say, this math is far ahead of what our boys have in 8th Grade in David City, and we thought that was advanced!

Bill and I have been interested in how we respond to the Marines that we are meeting. This is a rather easy job, guarding an Embassy, but to get here, you have to have been in Iraq. Drew, our companion over the weekend, is now in his early 30’s and Robert, is only 20, but both joined to get out of somewhere, and both feel that their lives have been immensely improved by their choices. Fascinating to listen to them solve problems, especially Robert, because he is only 20, not legal to drink! I must say that I feel much safer with Sarah being here when men and women (yes, there is a female Marine stationed here) are guarding our Embassy. No matter what we feel about the war, we do support the men and women who are there trying to make a difference!

So, that brings me to the end of Tuesday evening, and the kitchen was filled with ALL of the dishes from a party for 10. Bill was a trooper saying that since I had cooked all day, he would spend the next morning doing the dishes, which he did, and once again, the house looked clean and spiffy.

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Photos

Nate & Sarah's House
Nate and Sarah have a wonderful, well planted compound. Their house has 4 bedrooms and 4 baths, with large kitchen, dining room and living room

Sarah & Nate in SuperRite
WE took this photo JUST before all of the electricity went out. Our cart was full; we had everything that we needed for the dinner party. The generator wasn't working and management had no other contingency plans, such as a calculator...so we had to walk out, to try to replicate what we had just found!

Our Dinner Party
From left - Marie, Dotty, Josiah, Olivia & Darrel

At the Table
From left - Olivia, Josiah, Bill & Darrel. Not pictured are Robert, Cortney, Marie & Dotty