As some of you might know, I like food. I like cooking, eating, hell even doing groceries. More than one person has commented on the fact that I always seem to be eating throughout the entire day. So I feel it as my moral obligation to introduce you to eating – Ugandan style. The basics Uganda is lush and green, has regular rainfall and is thus very suitable for growing… Lees verder »A girl has got to eat
Getting the facts straight According to Wikipedia, Africa is the second-most largest and second-most populous continent. With 1.1 billion people, it holds about 15% of the world’s human population. There are 54 fully recognized sovereign states, nine territories and two de facto independent states with limited or no recognition. The largest country by population, Nigeria, has 177 million inhabitants, whereas the smallest country, the Seychelles, has about 90,000 people living… Lees verder »‘Cause this is Africa
In my first week working for CHAI I attended the annual conference bringing together all CHAI Access teams. We watched a documentary on tuberculosis (TB), following three patients. Besides the general pain and misery caused by the disease, the thing that actually left me astounded was the invasiveness of the treatment. I am part of CHAI’s Access team and we are working so hard every day to increase people’s access… Lees verder »Saving lives, one pill at a time
You were lost… ‘You were lost, long time, welcome back’. Ugandans have multiple ways of greeting you after you have been away for sometimes not more than a day. After six months (hard to believe I have already used half of my time here), I think I am in a position to share some of my thoughts on the people whose country I am living in. Ugandans are lovely. Sure,… Lees verder »Are we together?
I pass the Dutch embassy every Monday when driving home from my weekly meeting at the Central Public Health Lab. Whenever I go out for a run, I run past the residence of the Dutch ambassador. I look up to our red-white-and-blue waving proudly and wonder where all my fellow countrymen in Kampala are hiding. This week marked the five month anniversary of my stay in Uganda. Sure, in those… Lees verder »O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Last week I went on holiday in my own country. While enjoying the ever wonderful company of my friends and family I realised that living in the Netherlands is most certainly different from living in Uganda. Think shower water pressure, biking home alone late at night, speaking and hearing Dutch all the time and unlimited supplies of good cheese and hagelslag. However, October has arrived and while seemingly endless rain… Lees verder »Danger, danger: Ebola
Kampala occupies a series of hills at an elevation of about 1,190 metres. This is quite a change from the Netherlands, where 26% of its area is located below sea level and only about 50% of its land exceeds one metre above sea level. Our highest ‘mountain’, the Vaalserberg is 323 metres high. I am definitely moving up. In daily life, this is not very noticeable. Of course, with 2,000… Lees verder »Ain’t no mountain high enough
Purchasing a new best friend In 2013, 419.577 new cars were registered in the Netherlands, of which 6,86% were Toyotas. In the same year in Uganda, 2.465 new vehicles were registered, of which 45,2% were Toyotas. The market for new cars is not what you would call a cash cow in Uganda. Used vehicles however, are very popular. Also in 2013, 50.659 vehicles were first registered with the Ugandan Revenue… Lees verder »Let’s talk transport
I write this, sitting out on the patio of my (temporary) apartment, enjoying the comfortable Kampala climate (not too hot, never too cold, perfect combination of the warming sun and a refreshing breeze). This first Sunday in Uganda provides me with the opportunity to contemplate on my first week with the Clinton Health Access Initiative. If I would have to describe my experiences so far in one sentence it would… Lees verder »Same same, but different
Spending one year living and working in Kampala, Uganda. When I first started thinking about this in February, I had absolutely no idea what to expect. To be honest, I had to check the map to find out the exact location of the country and its neighbours. Having seen only North Africa (Morocco, Egypt), I relied on what I heard about sub-Saharan Africa in my International Relations studies. But surely,… Lees verder »Expectations