Pictures!

Hey Everyone - finally a few pictures!  The one on the right is our Acholi group of 13 and two of our Acholi language teachers.  We were all assigned to Northern Uganda - also called Acholi-land, some in Kitgum (fondly know as south Sudan), some in Pader and some in Gulu town.  It's all known as  Gulu District. Scroll all the way to the bottom to see the other pictures.

The Baboon Mama (below - yeah you thought that was me having gone to seed) was sauntering across the road on our drive from Kampala to Gulu just as we crossed the River Nile.  We saw evidence of elephants having knocked down some trees, but no elephants. Might have been a good thing not to be in the presence of marauding elephants, however.  No other wild things after the baboons, but was lucky to get a pic of this gal and not have her jump in the window.

Underneath  that one and on the left you'll see Ugandan women hand sorting coffee beans, getting them ready for market.  This is part of a non-profit coffee co-op started by a handful of farmers each with 1 - 2 acres, wanting to improve their yield.  What exists now is a co-op of over three thousand small farms.  In their effort to transform their crops,  the culture is being transformed.  To improve yield, the non-profit has taken on issues of gender equity, women's rights, literacy, reducing domestic abuse - all of which turn out to be good for business.  This backdoor approach has had a huge impact, because farmers are seeing the impact these practices have on profits and family units are now consolidating in a way that is rare elsewhere.

The picture of the mud-dob hut was on a trail up the mountain.  People live in these and aspire to a house built from locally made-by-hand mud bricks.  The coffee co-op is making that a reality for some.  The farms are typically on hill-sides most of wouldn't climb, let alone cultivate and farm!

So that's it folks.  More pictures later.  Raining again - will be a good sleeping night.
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