My First Trip to Sol View

10/29

I had breakfast with Dorcus as usual and headed to school, which ended up being for nothing 😂.  I went to teacher Rachel's class (below) because I thought that she had told me that the students were doing a lab. "No, I told you Monday, not Saturday," she said. Oops 😂. So, I walked back home. 

Damalie and I walked to Sol View, which is a restaurant/coffee shop that Musana owns in the center of town. It brings in revenue for Musana and is a great place for meetings, live bands, conferences, and getting work done. It was about a 20 minute walk up and down hills and between buildings, and I was joking with Damalie that since there are no street signs or sidewalks, I feel as though giving directions to Sol View is like, "Follow the one foot wide path over the trench. Take a left after three cows. Go right after the big tree with clothes hanging on it. If you reach the chickens, you've gone too far. Walk towards the massive puddle of colored standing water, but do not go through it. Cross the street, and be cautious around boda drivers because they will not yield to you. Walk through the street market until you pass the fish laying out. Hang left, etc." 😂. Every time I heard a grown man's voice say, "Muzungu!" I would not look up, but whenever I heard that from a child, I would smile and wave because they would get so excited. My first trip to Sol View was definitely an adventure. 

Once we arrived, I saw that there were tons of places to sit! The coffee shop was super cute, and then connected was an outside area with tables and chairs, as well as a bar area. When we walked upstairs, there was another bar, a big room for conferences, concerts, and other events, and a loft with comfy couches and chairs. We ordered smoothies and decided to sit by the bar on the main level because that is where the wifi signal was strongest. To use the wifi was the main reason that we wanted to go to Sol View in the first place. The wifi still wasn't great, and I decided that I probably would just have to pay for and load the mifi box that Joseph gave me more often. Not a big deal! Damalie got lots of schoolwork done, and I was able to upload tons of pictures and videos that I had taken at RG for Bryn and Diana Durrill.

I met Solomon, who is one of the Kazindra's college students that stays with them when they are in Uganda. I didn't know that at first, and so I asked if he was one of the Sol View workers. Oops. Little did I know that he would become one of my best friends here!! I found out that Damalie has parents, and she goes to see them occasionally. Originally, I had thought that she was adopted by Andrea and Haril, but I came to know that she just travels around with them. There are better opportunities in the US for college. 

Andrea, Haril, Dezi, Joziah, Papa, Raeesa, Shafik, and Ezekiel all joined us for a late lunch. Damalie and I shared a chicken pizza with cheese, onions, and green peppers. It was good! Solomon had his favorite, whole fish. We went home and the kids did my hair for the fifth day in a row. I took a huge nap until almost 7:00pm and then had leftover pizza and two bananas for dinner. Bananas are one food that I think is better here in Uganda! They seem to be sweeter and have a little more of a tropical flavor. I don't really know how to explain it. It's interesting to look at the difference in my daily nutrition compared to what it was in the US. There is not a whole lot of protein. I guess I should say that there is protein, but it is just not as easily accessible as it is in the US. I can't just go to the supermarket and buy protein bars or frozen chicken strips. Here, I can buy large pieces of freshly cut bony meat, packaged frozen pieces of meat, or eggs. Those are the main sources of available protein, along with the tub of protein powder that Andrea was so smart to bring!! Besides the fruit, pancakes, and mandazi, I feel like I haven't eaten much sugar here and definitely not as much processed/added sugar. I try to limit my sugar intake back home, but after Andrea told me to help myself to the candy drawer, I gladly welcome a piece of candy a day 😂. 

Another observation and difference from America is how the electricity works. Electricity goes off at least once a week and sometimes once a day. Oftentimes, it takes hours before it's turned back on. It's crazy! No fans (AC doesn't exist here😉), chargers, wifi router, water heater, etc.! I am not complaining but just stating that it's funny to go from a very privileged place where this would not be normal to a place where it is very normal. Andrea and I talked about how the country doesn't have enough electricity to fully power every district, so sometimes they shut districts off for a little while, especially if it is about to storm.