Suubi - Day 1

We made the trip out to Suubi baby's home this morning, arriving just before noon. Our apartment is very spacious and comfortable, with panoramic views of the lush Ugandan countryside available from our balcony. It is very tranquil here. Banana palms, pawpaw trees, goats and cattle grazing, well kept gardens and children's homes dotted around the village - well over a hundred of them, each housing up to 8 children and a mother.

Once settled and unpacked, Hannah, Julie Ann and I went for a stroll around the village with Jean - a teacher - up to the top of the hill and then back down the other side, greeting children of all ages as we went. Did I mention it's filthy hot here, except for a delicious breeze blowing through? Thank God for that, else I'd fry. As it is, I must contend with a delightful shade of vermillion by the time I get to the top of the hill.

Ruth, our supervisor, was very welcoming and seems very keen to get us started, beefing up the curriculum. That shouldn't be too hard, because currently there isn't one. They won't know their 2yr olds in a few weeks or so. They have been running riot out of sheer boredom, but that will soon change, mark my words. As I now understand it, we have been placed here to not only put a programme in place, but also to teach the nannies how to deliver it once we are gone.

We have a few more volunteers arriving over the next week. One from the Netherlands, one from the USA and another Kiwi...making 4 of us Kiwi in  total. Go Team New Zealand! I think I'm actually going to enjoy it here, away from the bustle and intimidating personas of the city. We are not officially rostered on until Monday, so we will spend some of tomorrow down in the home, off the clock, getting to know the children and familiarizing ourself with the nannies and routines. The rest of our weekend will be spent exploring, finding the markets for supplies, attending the service on Sunday and getting to know everyone. How civilized...