The next edition of "Things I've learned in Uganda"...
17. Take time to start a diesel. I’ve never driven one before, so I was more than happy to learn that you have to wait until the engine clicks before you start the car, or it will kill the engine.
18. “It is finished.” It’s the phrase that Jesus said as he hung on the cross, but has a completely different meaning here. A common occurrence in resturaunts when you order is for them to say to you in turn that “it is finished”, meaning that the last of it is gone, and you have to choose something else to order.
19. My stomach is not a missionaries stomach. I should clarify that I did already know this, but I am reminded of it quite often, and I’m not even out in the villages yet. Any recipes for good simple foods you would like to send my way would be appreciated it.
20. Expect the unexpected. As strange as it is, we’ve had three unexpected holidays. The first was when the king of the main tribe here died, and the second and third is a Muslim holiday that I’d never heard of , Idd. Idd has something to do with the moon, and how they have to see that it is full, if they can’t see it due to the clouds, the holiday is not the next day, but whenever they can see it.
21. Don’t talk about pants. Pants here are considered underpants, and the word trousers is the word that we in America would use for pants. Uganda used to be a british colony, so that tradition came from there.
22. Don’t go out past 6pm. Even if it’s still light out, there are some creepy characters. I was on a run one evening with a few other people, and a man came right in my face as I was running and said “Oliotya” and when I ignored him and kept running, he hit another muzungu woman’s arm.
23. Blinkers don’t mean that you are turning. If the right hand signal is going, it means it is not safe to pass. If the left hand signal is going, it means it is safe to pass. They are usually displayed after the car behind honks, asking if it is safe to pass.
24. Trees in the middle of a road. Instead of road blocks or orange cones, people just plant trees in the middle of the road to signify that there is work being done in a certain spot on the road.
25. Moe-squee-toes come in the house especially after 6pm. In Uganda, they don’t say mosquitoes the same, rather the way I spelled it in bold. When we’re home, we leave the doors open until around 6pm, after that the bugs come in a lot more.
26. Hit and run…please! If you are in a car accident and the car can still move…drive away! Otherwise you could quickly become part of a mob scene. The best thing to do is drive straight to a police booth and hope the one other in the accident follows so that it can be sorted out with the police…even though you may wind up paying a large fee because of skin color.
27. The word poop is a swear. Ugandans are shocked whenever you talk about bowel movements. They are fine with saying the four letter s word to talk about it, but never poop.
28. “I am paining”. This simply means that you are in pain, or the way we would say it in America is “I am hurt.”
29. Don’t walk in between people. In Uganda, it is considered very rude to talk in between people who are holding a conversation. They will even grab you and move you aside so that they don’t have to walk through.
30. “Jesus is the wiener man.” No, that is not what they are saying. Ugandan’s accent just makes it sound like that, but in reA.ty they are singing “Jesus is the winner man.”
31. Don’t talk about pants. People giggle if you say pants because they think of that word as underwear. It’s still embarrassing when you forget to use the word trousers sometimes.
32. Fruit really is like candy! For the first time in my life, I have to admit that fruit really is nature’s candy. The oranges here are different. Besides the fact that they are in fact green, they are so sweet and tart. It’s almost like eating sweet tarts. (For those of you who know me really well, my eyes even twitch like tangy candy makes them twitch!)
And check out the New Photo albums!!!
Including pictures of the Rain Festival, Nakigalala village church, Grade 1 Chapel, photo assignments from friends, and a monkey :D
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026782&l=2c589&id=30200100
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2027121&l=57170&id=30200100
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026643&l=f3c07&id=3020010
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2 comments:
When I was in Swaziland and they sang the winner man song I had to listen for a minute to understand that they were really saying winner man! Nice to hear that its not just a Swazi song! Praying for you! - Diane C
Hi Jean! I don't know if you remember me or not, but my name is Tiffany Hess, Amy Porter's friend. I def remember seeing you around Eastern :) Anyways, Amy gave me your blog site and email address to get into contact with you because I too am planning to go to Uganda for six months! I found your what-to-know-about-Uganda tips so interesting! :) My blog site is passionlessaspirant.wordpress.com and my email addy is tffny.hss@gmail.com. I would love to hear more about what you are doing and any tips you may have for me! I enjoyed glancing over your blog- press on! Hope your holiday went well! Sincerely.
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