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The milk was off this morning. So far, so normal. In a country where bagged milk is transported in open crates under the blazing equatorial sun, it’s fair to say it doesn’t keep as long in the fridge as you might hope. So this was not an unusual or unexpected occurrence. It’s always good to budget in some extra time in the morning routine for such eventualities…

Most of my days in Uganda feel somewhat normal now, even mundane – shopping, cleaning, cooking, school runs, helping with homework, chatting with friends. Just like life in the UK. But occasionally the odd day crops up where I realise that life really is different here. A Uganda-sort-of-day. I don’t mean a bad day. I mean a day where there are constant reminders that we are guests in a culture very different to that of our passport country.

Today was a day of contrasts. If you were playing ‘spot the difference’, I don’t think my scale and polish at Basil’s Dental Clinic, my conversation at the optician’s about Sophie’s next eye appointment or my visit to Shoprite supermarket would have stood out as being all that dissimilar to a UK experience. Although, saying that, the X-ray machine at the dentist’s was broken…

There were some more obvious items to circle. Or colour. Whatever way you like to do your ‘spot-the difference.

There was the ‘quick pop-in’ to register with our new home internet provider (the old one stopped working). There wasn’t much of a queue and yet somehow it took over an hour. And as far as I know, the process still hasn’t been successful…

A poor route choice then meant that what would have been a 10-minute journey on clear roads took the best part of another hour as I sat in traffic…

At school pick-up, more traffic chaos as people gathered in their finery for a funeral which was to take place directly opposite the school.

After school, the girls and I got to know the family of one of Sophie’s new classmates. Pretty ‘normal’, right? But in this instance, the contact was initiated because the family lives close to the school and their home is the ‘safe haven’ our girls will be taken to in the event that we’re unable to reach them. Elections are coming up and it’s possible that protests will mean some of the roads will become impassible.

As we arrived back home and settled down to homework, music practice, dinner preparation etc, I received a phone call from an acquaintance who was coming to collect something from our house. Now, giving directions in Uganda is most definitely something which I have not yet mastered… Many people travel or arrange deliveries/collections using “boda-bodas” – ubiquitous motorbike taxis which can transport anything from people to bedframes, chickens to cows, food takeaways to another boda-boda… Directing boda drivers is more of an art form than a science. It involves multiple phone calls throughout the journey, a thorough knowledge of local vegetation, gate colours and road gradients and, it turns out, knowing to call the local hairdresser’s a ’saloon’ not a ‘salon’… I’m proud to announce my success on this occasion, although I suspect it was, in fact, primarily due to my acquaintance’s ability to translate my bumbling efforts into useful directions for the driver, rather than any skill of my own…

To top the day off, I spotted a suspicious-looking boil on Sophie’s side at shower time. Now you may or may not have heard of mango worm. If you have, you’ll know what I was worried about, if not, don’t google it unless you’ve got a strong stomach… after assembling the vaseline, dettol and sticking-plasters, further investigations determined that she was thankfully worm-free! We are so grateful to God for us all generally being in good health since moving to Uganda, but it was a timely reminder of how the list of common childhood ailments to look out for is that bit longer than in the UK.

I don’t know if this day sounds stressful to you?  The amazing thing is that two years ago I wouldn’t have contemplated trying to accomplish all this in one day.  Even a year ago I would have set out in the morning with a slight knot in my stomach.  But, do you know what? I really enjoyed today.  I couldn’t do it every day – for starters the girls were in bed nearly two hours late and the house is a bomb site… But in all the delays, traffic chaos and interruptions, the day was filled with the joy of human interaction.  Meeting a total stranger with her gorgeous new baby to buy some items from an expat Facebook page.  Getting to visit more near-strangers willing to open their home to our kids. Many interactions with local Ugandans, each of them contributing in small way to this growing feeling of belonging, of home. 

This afternoon I squeezed in a quick coffee at one of the cafes near school, called Endiro.  This evening I found out what its name means! The office Secret Santa presents were exchanged today.  Adam really enjoyed choosing a selection of cheeses for one of the young professionals in the office who has recently visited Europe and raved about the food there.  But what he didn’t know was that Benji was, in fact, Adam’s Secret Santa too.  Today he gifted Adam an ‘Endiro’ – a woven pot which the head of the family traditionally uses at Christmas to eat cooked millet out of.  It’s hard to express the satisfaction and joy that brought Adam and me.  That thoughtful exchange of culture and friendship is so precious – it’s what makes a Uganda-sort-of-day the best of days.

This evening I realised I still hadn’t unpacked the milk which I bought earlier in the day.  I think it might be off in the morning.  Oh well, there’s always UHT…