There must be dust

In the words of a Ugandan:  "Kiboga is extremely hot, dry and dusty. The green of the countryside is slowly fading into a brown rocky landscape, which I am slowly coming to terms with..."


In the words of an unseasoned Mzungu:  "Damn, it is 200 degrees here! Yeah, and I do mean Celsius! Can someone pass me a popsicle, please?"


I'm just back from holiday break in Bangladesh and Thailand - both countries known for their heat, even in winter - but somehow the climate in Uganda has knocked me over. Must have something do the equator and proximity to the sun; geometry, you know. And physics and stuff.


Anyway, I went for a run through the village this morning and came back with a coating of dust that could have passed for a fake spray-on tan. If only the sock lines had not given me away, I could have taken myself straight to the Jersey shore! When I blew my nose, dry red dust came out. Ten minutes later, the water from my shower ran red. My white running shirt is permanently brown. And this evening I picked some greens for dinner, but they looked more like browns. Had to go through the following rinse cycles to get them clean enough to cook - 1 (brown run-off), 2 (brown again), 3 (red, a sign of progress), 4 (orange, almost there!), 5 (finally clear). Good to go. I just fear for the day when the dry season means a water shortage, which it soon will.

Just back from a run - how did you know???

They say that the dry season will last about 3 months. Time to buy a dark-colored shirt that will swallow up the dust and enjoy some mangoes! Oh yes, and popsicles - I am totally freezing guava juice when I get home.