Musana Camps

Camp? Campfire? S'mores? Uganda? Who knew? We just got back from Musana Camp yesterday(Uganda time) and are already missing our friends that live there. But no worries! They are coming back to New Hope in about a week. When we really will miss them is when they go back to camp! One person had brought biscuits, chocolate, and marshmallows to camp and we had S'mores over the campfire!

Musana Camps have a trail down to Lake Victoria, and three trails down to the same stream. The first trail leads down to the beginning of the stream. It bubbles out of the ground and is one of the sources of the Nile. The second one the men go down to bathe, because the camp was running low on water. The third one was not a fun trip.

Before I talk about it, let me introduce. . . DRIVER ANTS!!! I know, some of you are probably thinking, "Whats so bad about Driver Ants?" First, let me say whats bad about them. They bite you and it bleeds and it hurts. Whats good about them is that they go in a line like cars and almost all the time, unless they blend in or go under something, you can see them so you can avoid them and not get bitten.

Now, for the story. One of our friends came along with us to the third part. On the way down my dad didn't see them and I almost walked through them. I warned everyone and after I saw them my dad kept a better watch and found some more. We must of walked through them because when we got past them my sister got bit. On the way back up no one got bit, although I almost did, but it was more of a adventure.

The last weeks have been very fun. I've played with friends and other stuff. Uganda itself is fun, except for Jiggers and Driver Ants.

Micah Peterson

Causing a Political Stir in Uganda

I thought I was doing something that was difficult but I certainly didn't think I was going to cause a political stir.

When it rains here in Uganda, it rains hard packing down the soil that may have just been turned over for planting. So, soft dirt turns into something resembling concrete. Soil also tends to dry out quickly after a rain making it difficult to keep it moist for any length of time. Farming God's Way teaches that it is important to have ground cover for your garden to 1. Retain moisture 2. Keep the rain from compacting the soil 3. Replenish the soil with the decaying ground cover.

I decided, the best ground cover for my new garden would be banana leaves. There they are, stacked on top of my car. All I had to do was to drive back to my new garden and dump them off...through the villages of Wabatunda, Wakayamba and Kabbubu.

What does this have to do with politics? That's what I wondered when Jennie Dangers told me I had just made a political statement. What does banana leaves have to do with politics? I just thought people were staring at me because I was a Mazungu driving with a huge pile of banana leaves. Jennie corrected me and said that anyone who wanted to support the incumbent would put banana leaves on their car or boda-boda (motorcycle).

The last thing I wanted to do was to get involved in politics especially since even in Kiwoko (just 2 km from New Hope) there was violence during the primaries just three weeks ago. Just goes to show, you can make a statement...a BIG statement...without even trying. Thanks Jennie.