Maid of Honor- Ugandan style

It's 1:30 PM here on Monday afternoon, and I would normally be in school right now, but I had to take a sick day as a result of several trips to the bathroom to throw up. So, now that those fun details are out of the way, I'll get on with the story :-)

Sharon, a close friend I met while studying here last year, met a Ugandan man during our rural homestays a year ago, and a few months later, he proposed. I attended their "American wedding" in May of this year. Yesterday was their "African ceremony." Since they were already married, it wasn't a real wedding, it was just a celebration. But it was exciting and cultural, nonetheless. The ceremony started at 2pm, but Sharon picked me up around 1:30, then went to get her hair done, and we didn't arrive at the ceremony until 5:00pm. . . "African time" at its best, I suppose. We arrived in a 15 passenger van that drove us to the head table. When we stepped out, a large portion of the crowd greeted us with "ulations" (long, wavering, high-pitched sounds resembling the howl of a dog or wolf with a trilling quality, according to Wikipedia, but if you ask me they sound more like high pitched squawking birds). What I did not know when I arrived at the wedding was that I would be considered her "maid of honor" and sit next to her at the head table. This also meant that the best man and I followed the couple around all evening, stood behind them while cutting the cake, stood with them as they gave speeches, and walked around with them while they greeted the guests. The best man constantly asked me throughout the evening when he could attend one of these ceremonies for me. I told him I'm nowhere close to marriage, and haven't found the right guy yet, and he then took it upon himself to introduce me to nearly EVERY single man at the ceremony! He told them all, "She's available, and looking for a husband! Won't you help her?" Ha. I don't think that's quite an accurate description, but it did create some interesting (and very awkward) moments. The ceremony ended with dancing to Ugandan music, as is typical for these types of events. I was peacefully enjoying watching everyone else dance when suddenly the MC of the night, a 50-60 year old man, who was completely drunk, grabbed me and got me to dance with him. He kept asking people to take his picture as he danced with the "muzungu." He was so proud of himself for teaching a muzungu how to dance. It was a fun evening, and it was great to finally see Sharon again. Some of the adult leaders from the university were there, as well, and it was nice to see them again. It was certainly an interesting and cultural experience, but it was enjoyable. And, possibly one of the best parts of the evening was the amazing local food! I haven't been able to find local food since I've been here, and I've been wanting to try it all again. The wedding had matooke (smashed bananas), noodles, rice, beans, pumpkin, cabbage, g-nut sauce (a favorite of mine), beef, chicken, and pineapple. It was a fabulous meal, though apparently it didn't sit too well with my stomach, since I'm not at school today.




In other news, I drove the VIA car on Saturday for the first time. Granted I only drove it for about 10 minutes each way (on a trip that should have taken five, but I was too afraid to go fast because it was raining and terribly muddy--much like driving in snow) and I stayed on mostly back roads without traffic. You have to start somewhere though. We drive on the left side here, and traffic is unlike anything I've ever seen in America. You have to be ridiculously aggressive if you plan on going anywhere. Many nights, traffic is at a standstill for hours. It's crazy! I've only driven once, but I eventually hope to gain enough courage to drive in the city. We'll see.