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Published: July 15th 2009
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MEAT!!!
Where's the beef? Back in April, I made my first trip to Jinja (east of Kampala) to see the source of the Nile River. I went with my students on a geography field trip and had so much fun! Of course, the source of the Nile is Lake Victoria- which is unusual since a lake is normally not considered the source of a river. The source is normally the major river that feeds into the lake. But for Lake Victoria, there is no major river that feeds into it. So the lake itself is considered the source.
We took a 2 hour bus trip long, the students all excited, singing songs and what-not. We made one stop at this place where vendors sell food and drinks along the side of the road. Our bus was suddenly swarmed by vendors selling water, fried bananas, and meat on a stick. There was a point where I swear I was completely surrounded by chicken on a stick! (See picture.) And as good as it smelled, it isn’t safe for mzungus to eat. You really have no idea how long that meat has been there, and if it was cooked before it spoiled. But the grilled bananas
are safe to eat and very delicious. Bananas are a very popular food here, as there is something like 10 different kinds of bananas, each with their own name and own way of being cooked. The banana tree is literally the center of Buganda culture (the people who live around Kampala and south.) Traditionally, they got food, shelter, clothing, etc. all from the banana tree.
Part of the field trip was to stop at this little fishing village on Lake Victoria. The smell of fish was everywhere, but otherwise pleasant. Christine and I watched fishing boats that seconded as ferry boats come in and out from the lake. As the boats were carrying passengers, we got to watch how people “disembark” from a boat. They don’t have proper docks- that is, they don’t have any docks. So someone has to jump from the boat and walk to shore through the water. It kind of reminds you of the 1800’s. But many people pay to be carried, rather than get wet.-As most people don’t know how to swim, they are actually kind of afraid. So I watched as big, strong men carried women, cradling them in their arms, and then
At the falls
Me and Christine also carry men, by letting them sit on their shoulders. Quite entertaining.
Next we visited Bujagali Falls, on the River Nile. HUGH falls… like, there’s no survivin’ a trip down them. But it was beautiful and mighty. Its not really what you think of when you think of the Nile. I am always imagining a very wide river traveling through a desert, and then into the Mediterranean Sea. But this was like a jungle, wet and fresh. So peaceful…until our students found a shallow area around the bottom of the falls and decided to have a water fight--- screams echoing, only just barely drowned out the sound of the falls. Christine and I first enjoyed dipping our toes into the cool water along the falls and then a soda in the cool shade and just took in the peacefulness of it all. I hope I can visit the area again before I leave.
Then we made our way to the tea plantations of Jinja. Mile and miles of BEAUTIFUL TEA! Those of you who know my love for tea and coffee can imagine how cool this was to me. I watched workers, weaving their way through the fields,
picking leaves and collecting them into huge “tea bags.” Tea is a very lucrative business here. The owner of a tea plantation is a very rich man. The kids had a little seminar about the tea plantations as part of their geography field trip and had tons of fun taking “snaps” (photos) of them with their friends in the tea fields. Of course, by the end of the trip, the students were so tired! Still active, but a bit quieter on the bus ride home. They were pleased, we were pleased. I was a great trip.
Two days later, I found myself traveling past Jinja to a village area called Iganga. I got to attend my first Introduction Ceremony of one of Christine’s cousins. The introduction ceremony really has no equivalent in American culture. Traditionally it was the marriage ceremony. As dating or courting does not exist in their culture, the two getting married hardly new each other, if at all, before the wedding, until the groom was officially “introduced” to the bride’s family. He paid the bride price- lots of gifts for the bride’s family and payment for the girl- and the girl’s family decided whether to accept
his offer or not. If the father accepted the man as a good husband for their daughter, the ceremony continued and then were considered married. Hmmmm….. But today things are a little different-- kind of. Normally the bride and groom have met before, and they “secretly” have dated to get to know each other better. The introduction ceremony has sort of become more like the engagement ceremony. A little time after the introduction, there is an official wedding (Christian wedding- much like the western world) that then the country of Uganda officially recognizes the marriage. But at the introduction ceremony, bride price is still paid, and everyone is dressed in their traditional wear (Gomez for women, Kanzu for men).
In my opinion, introduction ceremonies are way more fun to attend than a Ugandan wedding. The weddings and receptions are SO BORING and long. Everything takes about three times longer than it needs to here- including weddings and introductions. But with introductions, there is this traditional aspect that is just charming. The speakers for each side of the family have a sort of battle of wits, with fun bantering between the families. There’s cake and food. The “bride’s maids” get
to talk some, and the Ssangas (aunts) of the bride are brought in and officially accept the groom. The Ssanga actually has a huge play in Ugandan marriage- often responsible for finding a suitable husband and telling the girl what to expect in marriage- like cooking and the scary wedding night! And then the groom’s family (which included me) brings in the mountain of gifts for the bride price. So I got to carry a big basket full of fruit on my head. I was wearing a Gomez, which was a bit long for me, and kind of cumbersome. So I had this basket on my head, all the while praying I don’t trip and fall on my face. But with God’s grace, I successfully carried in the basket, and even (somewhat) properly kneeled as I presented the basket. I must have been pretty impressive, because by the end of it, apparently there were a few men interested in me, and wondering if I was “single and searching…” As nobody knew my name, they gave me some weird Chinese name that I don’t remember. It was random.
One last quick thought on the issue of bride price… If you
consider, in Victorian society and other early times, the woman was burdened with this idea of having a large dowry that her father could give her for marriage. If the girl did not have a large inheritance or dowry, her chances of “good marriage” or any marriage were very slim. In essence, the woman had no value at all. She was only as good as her dowry. In Ugandan tradition, and other cultures as well, the girl really does have a lot of value- worth a large bride price. Yes it is like selling your daughter off to the highest bidder (which really wasn’t the case most of the time), and then the husband feels like he owns the girl because he paid for her. But, at least a girl has a value, she’s worth something. I don’t know, I almost prefer the Ugandan view of the value of women, rather than old Europe that viewed women as worthless and a burden and needing to pay to get a husband. Just food for thought.
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Uncle dick head
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With the marriage issue at the forefront one cannot but wonder if the wedding participants applied for their marriage license? Did they ask permission/license from the state government to wed? I suspect they did not, because even a third world primitive culture knows the right to marry comes from God not man. What a great adventure in Africa!