List 2

More random facts…


It is very rude it eat while walking. Maybe “rude” isn’t the right word- more like uncivilized. If you eat and walk, it means you have very bad manners. I was walking home with some teachers the other day when we came across a group of little boys munching on sugarcane on their way home from school. The teachers stopped them on the road and lectured them for a full 5 minutes.

What has four legs, plus two half claw/half legs attached to a triceratops-looking head, plus some things that may or may not be folded wings on its back, two pairs of antennae on its head, plus another pair of butt antennae? I have no idea. Lots and lots of brownie points for anyone who can tell me what this thing is:
I have these bugs in my house sometimes, and I think they are the weirdest looking things ever! The way they move is really weird too- hard to explain, but they seem to be more animal-like than bug-like in their movements.

There are GIANT birds here called Maribou Storks. They are enormous, hideously ugly scavengers, and I am scared half to death of them- they’re over 4 feet tall, taller than my little brother! They’re found in bigger cities, and in Masaka (my nearest big city), they happen to hang out near the post office. While going to check my mailbox is generally a very enjoyable experience (thanks for your letters and packages!!), it is slightly less enjoyable because the birds are there glaring at me! They’re not really scared of people, either, which makes them that much more intimidating. And the worst part of the whole thing: Maribou Storks are not native to Uganda. They apparently migrated here and took up residence when Idi Amin ruled the country and there were so many dead bodies left out in the open.

Something else giant is termite mounds, which are found everywhere! This one is about 8 feet tall:

Tiny kids walk around by themselves. Can you imagine securing your 3 year old to your your 7 year old’s back and then sending them down the road, with their health record cards, to get their immunizations? When my clinic does immunization outreaches to the villages, more than half of the little kids show up unaccompanied.

Tiny kids also play with knives haphazardly, and no one seems to mind. I’m talking big machete-sized knives, too! I’m always afraid there’s going to be a serious accident. Somehow, there never is; I don’t get it.

Fried grasshoppers are a favorite snack here- they’re actually pretty decent. (The legs are removed, so you just eat the body.) People think it’s funny when I tell them that, in my country, we have grasshoppers— but we don’t eat them. After learning of this atrocity, people generally respond that, now that I know grasshoppers can be eaten, I have to share my knowledge with Americans. That way, you guys can all experience the deliciousness of grasshoppers as well. Maybe you shouldn’t ask me to cook Ugandan food for you when I get back… ;)