We were forced to have a week in Kampala to get paperwork done. We delayed two days in the hopes of getting the paperwork completed in Kisoro to register the Home but sadly it wasn't done despite endless promises by local government officials.
We did get the Medical Centre re-registered and Mike re-licensed as a Doctor plus the car licence and Mike's Ugandan driving permit. The last two were quite fortuitous as we were stopped by the Police twice on the way back for document checks.
The date on our re-entry permits was not correct. They had put 2015 instead of 2016 but said it could only be done within a month of expiry. When Mike said they had stamped and corrected his last year, the lady took his passport and cancelled it !!
Mike, in a moment of madness, decided we should try driving through the centre of Kampala to get to our destination. I navigated us off a large and chaotic roundabout and saw two cars coming straight towards us side by side. I thought for a moment...is this Kampala driving or a one way street? Looking at the cars behind it was clearly one way. We pulled over safely but the traffic police noticed and pulled us over as we attempted the roundabout again. There was a long conversation about paying a fine but it became apparent they wanted money not paperwork so in order to carry on we handed over the equivalent of £5. An official fine is £50. We also discovered it is the norm to ignore red traffic lights unless on a major road. We were happily joining the tangle of cars crossing a junction with red lights to our side with a traffic policemen standing in the centre...texting!
Whilst in Kampala I got an email from the British High Commisioner offering us a brand new cooker if we could transport it away. It did not fit British safety standards so she was not allowed to use it. Our first item for the upstairs of the Hostel when finished! It's quite magnificent and not something we would have paid out for. The cupboard on the right houses the gas cylinder. I only hope we can find canisters the right size here. Still, how fortuitous we were in Kampala at the time and how fortuitous we could fit it in the car.
We also got to visit Jackson. He is much the same, only bigger. Sadly the school no longer has a physiotherapist but they say they still massage his limbs. He can feed himself after a fashion so long as someone guides his hand to his mouth. It is a very nice environment and well equipped.
Back on site our final dome collapsed. I have my suspicions that someone tried to climb it who was more adult sized than child! It provided good shelter for the children to play under. We have removed it and are going to erect a thatched shelter.
Several of our little ones are getting on their feet but not quite walking solo. These children are ones where the family need to have them walking in order to cope. Usually it is a Granny who can no longer carry a child on her back. I reckon that in the next two months we will have half a dozen ready to be resettled.
On our journey we stopped at a cultural museum where we learned some uses of cow's urine. Drunk warm and fresh in the morning it is good for coughs. Instead of toothpaste you can swill your mouth with it. Rubbed on your body it is good for rashes, particularly measles. I couldn't help but wonder who is going out in the morning to collect this fresh urine... and how!
Now this is what I call a souvenir.
I want one!
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