Ready to Go!

Well, the bags are packed, the bills are paid, and the puppies are confused and subdued. We’re set to head off tomorrow morning! Well, Barbara and I are anyway. The puppies are set to head over next door, although they don’t quite realize it yet. They’re going to have a great time with Pat and her chocolate lab Jake.

The picture is how my friends from OHSU sent me off before my final day there last week. My cube was filled with various stuffed African animals as well as an incredibly large cardboard syringe. Presumably, that once held the HGH that Bob the gorilla (sitting on my keyboard) used to get so buff. Another picture was taken with me in it, but since it’s hard to tell which one is me and which one is the gorilla, I figured I’d post just this one. I’m sad to be leaving a bunch of really fun people, but I don’t have any regrets about choosing this trip. I’m sure it’ll be a wonderful character building experience. Hopefully, the character building will involve as little sickness as possible, but that’s what immodium and cipro are for.

Speaking of poop, the poops are definitely going to be missed. It’s weird to think that I get so much fun out of having a little dog sitting in my lap or throwing the ball for them and watching them race back as fast as they can whilst trying to steal it from each other. They’re great friends who always love us no matter what, and it’s often humbling to get frustrated with them when they just have no idea they’ve done anything wrong.

Anyway, we’re off to Uganda! We’ve got 20 hours of flight time ahead of us! Woo hoo! The best part of the next few days will be finally getting to Mbarara and settling in to our new home for the next few months. I know it’s going to be quite different from Nigeria, but the fact that we’ve been to Africa before has caused many of the concerns I had to be minimized this time around. For example, we’ll be cooking all our own food, and the idea of going to the market to buy my own food when I don’t speak the language was intimidating the first time I did it. Now that I’ve done it once, at least I don’t have that level of unfamiliarity to get past.

One of the things that worries me is that I will constantly be comparing Uganda to Nigeria. That’s not really fair to either place, so hopefully I can have the grace to do it objectively and in a way that is as respectful as possible. Probably the more interesting side of things for you all is how it compares to the U.S., and that is something I’m a bit more qualified to report on. I can tell you right now, even before going, that the weather is warmer this time of year than it is in Portland. See? That’s the kind of brilliant insight you have to look forward to. Hopefully, Barb will post some or you’ll be stuck with this dribble. Anyway, we’ll be thinking of you all as we travel!