Only 2 more days in Uganda!!!!!!!!!!

Now I'm not going to lie, I'm VERY excited to come home!!! I can't wait to get back to my clothes (so I don't have to wear the same 7 outfits that I've been wearing for the last 3 months), food (bagels, chocolate milk, etc.), hot water for a shower, washing machine, and my family and friends!!!

This last week was less than exciting. Initially, I was really looking forward to getting back together with our huge group of 32 mzungus, but then the stress and annoyance of traveling with that many people kicked in, and I was over it by the end of the first day. Then we had 3 long days of presentations and my research was criticized by the ADs in front of the whole group after I had presented. It also didn't make things better that the same AD brought it up again, the following day, as an example of what not to do. I was less than thrilled, to say the least....

We came back to Kampala today, and I have tomorrow and most of sunday to hang out, pack, and do last minute shopping before I leave for entebbe airport Sunday at 7:30pm. First I fly to Amsterdam, arrive there around 6am, then I depart for san francisco at 11am and land in Cali at 1:30pm. It would be nice if it were only a 2 1/2 hr flight from amsterdam to san francisco, but in reality its 11 hours, blah. I hope there are some good movies on the flight to keep me entertained, and I'm expecting to have to do stretches in the aisle so I can manage sitting for so long! But I'm looking forward to my free glass of wine :)

It's crazy to think that before I know it I'll be back home and back to the all the comforts I used to take for granted. I think I might be in shock/euphoria for a few days before it really hits me that I'm home. Although I'm super excited to come home and see everyone, I'm concerned that I won't be able to convey what this experience has meant to me in a way that people can understand. I'm expecting most people to want a one sentence answer of how my time in Africa was, and the idea of summing up 3 1/2 months in Uganda into one sentence is immensely daunting. At the same time, I'm worried that I'll struggle transitioning back into life in the US with all the comforts of a car, good roads, safe food/water, and the security of a job and money. At this point I don't really know how I'm going to manage re-adapting to my old life, the thought of it right now scares me.

On a more positive note, I've grown so much from my experience here that I'll be able to tackle so many more obstacles at home that before I would had been to afraid to. For instance, riding public transportation in Denver. I wouldn't say I was afraid, but it was more of not wanting to trek down to the light rail station and just not feeling comfortable traveling around on my own. But I realized here, if I can tackle Kampala, I can tackle any city. Additionally, I think I'll be much more comfortable being independent and making sure my needs are met instead of allowing people to walk all over me. Living in a developing country forces you to develop a thick skin or else you'll never survive. I hope I can bring this Ugandan survival skill back home with me.