Ants

I have a very nice house here in Uganda by anyone’s standards. There is one thing about my house that is driving me absolutely crazy. I have these black ants which I can’t get to leave my house. Any time I bring food home they are able to somehow find it and completely engulf the food by the ne_t morning. The __ key isn’t working on this computer so some of these words you will just have to figure out. I will leave a blank where the letter is supposed to go. Maybe that will make this letter a bit more e_citing. I can’t even count the times I have had to go without breakfast because the ants have got after the bread and ruined the whole loaves. If it were only a few ants I would probably consider brushing them off and eating the bread anyways but there are just to many. While on the topic of bread it is very challenging to find a nice loaf of bread because they will often sit at the stores for a long time before selling. To go along with many loaves ruined by ants I have had just as many which have gone moldy within a day or two of buying.
So I have been trying to get rid of the ants for a long time and will succeed for about a week only to have them be back in full force the ne_t week. They have this stuff called DOOM which is used for killing bugs and it works to kill them instantly but doesn’t keep them away.
The one good thing about having the ants is that is has forced me to be very clean. If I spill a crumb on the floor I immediately pick it up. I sweep the floors daily and am regularly washing the floor. I guess it could be a good way to train someone to keep there room clean. So I will continue the battle and while also learning something about good house keeping and grandpa thank you for the letter I appreciate it very much.

Congratulations to my cousin Amy and soon to be Husband Jerrod who will be getting married tomorrow. I am sorry that I have to miss the wedding while over here in Uganda. I am sure it will be wonderful and wish I could be there

Chad

hiking

The last weekends have been great. I have spent them doing once of my favorite activities. The is hardly anything I can think of which is more fun then hiking. It isn’t the hiking I’m used being out in the woods secluded from everything and everyone but enjoyable none the less. The 1st trip was to a place called Sipi Falls it is a series of three waterfalls that has turned into a tourist attraction. There are a few lodges near the bottom falls with great views of both the waterfall and the plans of Uganda. I went with a friend from Baylor who is working here in Uganda she organized a group of us and we headed up from the weekend. We spent most of Saturday hiking to see all of the falls they were beautiful and it helped that we were in the middle of the rainy season and there was an awful lot of water coming over the cliffs. During the course of the hike we got dowsed with water several times from the spray of the falls. It was a great weekend away from site with some friends. The next weekend was yet another hiking adventure. I meet a doctor from the states who was working here in Uganda for the Summer and he has been coming here for some time and had hiked to the top of the ridge that rises up from the east of my town. My town is situated on the edge of the plains near a large mountain range this ridge is the beginning of that range. So we spent most of Saturday afternoon hiking up to the top with another friend from church who was acting as our guide. The hike was very steep but worth it once we made it to the top. The ridge has many small waterfalls lining its face. When we made it to the top we hike along one of the streams to the point where it fell off of the ridge. There were several children playing in the stream near the falls. I wanted to go swimming but have become very scared of the water here due to the Peace Corps nurses who have told us of the sicknesses we can get from swimming. We relaxed by the stream for awhile with all of the children then we went back down.
The one thing that is so different about hiking here is that you can never get away from people they are everywhere. The trails we were using weren’t designed for tourists leisure but as paths for people to get to the fields they are working in. The Ugandan’s think we are crazy to be walking on the trails just get a view from the top they view these trails the same way we view asphalt interstate highways. They are a means of getting from one place to the other. So I hope I will have many more chances to explore the Ugandan country side in the next few months. Thanks for being patient with me as it has been awhile since I last updated this thing.

Chad