Out West

The building before we started

Demolition

It has been a while and I really haven’t updated you all so I thought it was overdue. I want to make this update exciting but really life here is often quite ‘normal’. My life is not what I consider difficult it is just life and mine is much easier than the Ugandans around me. My life style would be similar to what most people experience going to a cabin in the woods. I have a room in a brick building with an iron sheet roof. Water is pumped from a bore hole through a filter using solar to a tap stand where people from the school and community get their water. My lunch and dinner are made for me and water is even boiled for me to bathe with. There is no electricity but all in all my living situation is nothing to complain about.


Starting the installation

Elephant!!!!

Now to get to what I have been doing for the last month. As I mentioned in my last post I am at the Western Uganda Baptist Theological College (WUBTC), a long name for a college to train pastors. The roof on the classroom building was 23 years old and had many bats and rodents living in it and needed to be replaced. eMi designed a new roof that included a row of windows that would allow more light to enter the dark class rooms. WUBTC asked eMi to send a construction manager to manage the construction of the new roof and windows. And that is why I have been in western Uganda for a month.

Some students and teachers

Trusses and first purlin installed

Akankwasa the mason

Shelling beans

Porter, Brian, cutting bricks

My role of construction manager has three main roles, ensure the quality, handle the finances and disciple the workers. Pretty much make sure everything runs smoothly. A subcontractor was hired to do the metal work. I also hired a few workers to do the masonry work. Working with subcontractors anywhere can be a real challenge add to that cultural differences and it goes to a whole new level of frustration. There are times were I just wanted to fire the sub and do the work myself. I had to remind myself that I am here to teach and often teaching isn’t easy. One of the things I am have been realizing more and more is how different this culture is. Also how long it takes to understand a different culture. I have been in Africa for 10 months now and all I know is that I know less than what I thought I knew after my first week in Africa. I am often challenging things that are very engrained in the culture. I expect the sub to come when he says he will or call me otherwise. I also expect him to be honest and take responsibility for his and his workers actions.

Bottom sheets installed

Almost finished

Getting Close

Now you may say this sounds like the subs in Canada and it is true to some extent but is much different. Here is one example, he had not paid his workers for a month and I talked to him about it and he said he had an agreement with his workers that they could ask for an advance if they needed money before the end of the month. What he said was true but what but he did not mention that this was not the agreement with all his workers and he told the workers he did not have money to give them the advance. So did he tell me something that was untrue? You can be the judge of that. More and more I realize shame is a very big thing here and people will lie or not tell the whole truth just to avoid being shamed. So that is the main challenge I face here. The actual workers on site are good at what they do and a good to work with.

Driving 70 in a 30 zone and still getting passed

Even though the work was not completely finished I had to go back to Kampala for some work related things. It was a little disappointing to not see it finished but that is part of life. So last Tuesday I drove back to Kampala it was not too bad of a drive. I did see hyenas when driving through the park. I did get frustrated with the stupidity of other drivers. I did enjoy driving halfway across a beautiful country.


Now that I am back in Kampala I am saying good bye to all the other interns because they are leaving on Wednesday. I was supposed to go with them but things change and a ministry in South Sudan asked me to come there for a month. Then things changed again when the leader of Hope for Sudan was shot in an ambush while travel in eastern South Sudan last week. With our key person on the ground in South Sudan injured we thought that I would no longer be going but he is a fighter and is soon to be out of hospital and is making plans for me to come there still. I am not sure when I am going all I know is that I fly back to Canada on August 28. Here is more on what happened to Romano Romanos Narrow Escape. Just to limit worrying the area I am going to is safe then were the attack occurred.

Need a mattress?

Hyena!!!

Well that is what I have been up to. Please pray South Sudan, Romano and the work I will be doing there.

Blessings,

Aaron