Category Archives: uganda

01/08/22: welcome to all my new Facebook friends!

Since my last Facebook post I’ve arrived back in the UK, sorry to leave Uganda but also pleased to be back. Really helpful to have a bit of a gap before starting to work again, corresponding to only a 2 week gap 2 years ago when going to Uganda. But the thing uppermost in myContinue reading “01/08/22: welcome to all my new Facebook friends!”

25/06/22: return to the UK, the countdown is on!

My two year stint in Uganda is coming to an end. So wonderful to be here! Students and colleagues have been fantastic, really appreciated the opportunity to get to know some wonderful people running homes for vulnerable children, I’ve met Stanley the artist, engaged with a lovely church, all in the Pearl of Africa, aContinue reading “25/06/22: return to the UK, the countdown is on!”

01/05/22: getting round Kampala on the back of a boda (2)

About a year ago I wrote this post about getting round Kampala on the back of a boda, or boda boda, a motorcycle acting as a taxi. It is remarkable how quickly something which starts of as completely unthinkable becomes entirely normal. A number of colleagues stop and offer me lifts in their cars ifContinue reading “01/05/22: getting round Kampala on the back of a boda (2)”

17/4/22: school is returning to normal!

A very happy Easter to you as we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! With a week off school. Hallelujah once again! Meanwhile, at school there is a very satisfying sense of things returning to normal. Since the beginning of the pandemic, when school has been in session on site, we’ve adoptedContinue reading “17/4/22: school is returning to normal!”

03/04/22: student as teacher – and green pens….

It’s a great privilege at Acacia School that we’re able to split what are already, by UK state school standards, small groups, into 2 for mathematics, which we call ‘core’ and ‘extended’. And I’m really enjoying teaching Grade 7 (Year 8) core, a group of 8 students. They may not find the subject easy butContinue reading “03/04/22: student as teacher – and green pens….”

09/01/22: banana trees are fascinating!

One of the many great joys of spending time in two very different countries in different continents is the sense of awe and wonder at things which would seem entirely normal if one only ever lived in one place. Occasionally this happens going back to the UK, I well remember returning from Dar es SalaamContinue reading “09/01/22: banana trees are fascinating!”

17/10/21: using an oven without a thermostat

When I came to live in my little house here in Muyenga, Kampala, last November, I was pleased, albeit not terribly surprised, to find that the kitchen had a gas oven. Great! Thinks I, can do some cooking! The gas supply is from a canister which is kept in a cupboard next to the ovenContinue reading “17/10/21: using an oven without a thermostat”

3/10/21: the longest power cut I’ve ever experienced

I was just about to set out to school on Monday last week at my usual time of 7am – when the electricity went off. OK, no big deal, happens from time to time. I remember when I was in Tanzania reflecting that you could tell people who were familiar with this part of theContinue reading “3/10/21: the longest power cut I’ve ever experienced”