About 3 hours ago, I stepped off my plane in Entebbe, Uganda. My friend Linda has spent much time in East Africa and told me just take a deep breath of the Ugandan air and tell her what it smelled like. The air was thick with humidity, but the smell was of the fires that burn nearby. My guide, Godfrey, explained that it is the smell of grass burning in local huts and villages.
I left Istanbul in the dark, flew in the dark and arrived in Entebbe in the dark. So I still have no idea what Africa looks like. :D The flight from Istanbul was 6 hours long and I asked the clerk at boarding if he could show me a good place to sit where I could get some sleep. He told me to go to row 25, the very back of the airplane, and no one was seated there. So, I got to sleep for 6 hours. This did a lot to improve my spirits - I wasn't down or depressed, but just so tired and not wanting to be beyond exhausted for my first meeting with Aida.
About 2 hours into the flight, I looked out the window and saw beautiful fires burning all over the ground. Not out of control fires, but contained, nomadic fires. The plane showed that we were near Egypt and Sudan, and the flight attendant explained that the fires were the center of the nomadic tribes.
Upon arriving in Entebbe, I got my luggage -- all my bags made it in great condition -- and went through customs. They didn't even take a second glance at my yellow fever card, nor did they care that I only received the shot 7 days ago, not the 10 that the US says I'm supposed to have. I stepped outside, and a young (mid-20's, I think) Ugandan man holding a sign that said, "Mary". He introduced himself as Godfrey and he is the in-country contact for all the adopting families from our agency. During the 45 minute drive to my guesthouse, we talked about Aida. Godfrey has a young daughter that came to the US to have her heart fixed last year, and Aida's situation hits him especially. He has spent time with her and describes her as sweet and earnest, but also told me some things that will be difficult for her to get used to. One thing specifically - in Uganda, children are generally on a strict routine. Wake up, wash up, get dressed, do chores, and then eat breakfast. Godfrey's observation of American families is that they are much more laid back, and that we "eat breakfast in our jammies", and that this may be difficult for Aida to get used to. :D
Halfway to the guesthouse, it started pouring, and the windows were wide open. We drove with rain splashing our faces, which felt nice after the 30 hours of traveling! The boda-boda taxis (motorcycles) zoomed around us and I started to see the craziness that is Ugandan driving.
I am staying at Alirikos Guesthouse, run by an American couple that just happen to be alumni of Moody Bible Institute. They attended their 50 year reunions last year, so we weren't there at the same time. :D
The guesthouse is cool and comfortable. It is surrounded by a tall wall with barbed wire, and is manned by a guard at all times. Also, a really perky little dog who greeted me by dancing around on her back legs and licking my toes.
Alirikos is a guesthouse mainly for missions groups, but has lately, in the past year or so, become popular with adopting families. It is ridiculously inexpensive ($20 a night, which includes 3 meals and laundry) but quite comfortable. It's a duplex style house, so when my mom comes on Wednesday, she will stay on one side and me on the other.
I left Godfrey with the understanding that we will meet here at 10AM to do some shopping and go see Aida. That's just 4 1/2 hours and I need to get some sleep. But it's so unreal that I'm so close to her right now. I've been quite weepy since landing here. There's something very special about being in your child's birth country - and for us, whether that's China, Haiti, or Uganda, you just want to soak everything in, feeling like you learn more about your child by experiencing their country.
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