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| Christmas Day |
First of
all I would like to start by wishing everyone a belated Merry Christmas! This blog post
is very late but the sentiment still counts- I hope you had a wonderful time
celebrating with your family and friends.
This year, Christmas was a very different experience for me. I am used to spending it with my family
in wintry England with traditions such as sharing a big roast dinner, opening presents together and playing fun games.
Despite
this difference, my Christmas in Uganda was memorable for this reason and it
was so interesting to spend it in a different culture. I may not have experienced
some of my usual traditions but I enjoyed making precious new Christmas
memories.
In some
ways, being away from home made me think more about the reason for the season
because that is the most important thing: Jesus’ birth. This was a gift. Sometimes
the commercialisation of Christmas in the western world can be overwhelming with
the adverts for presents and food starting in late October and the frantic rush
of the Christmas bargain shopping. Being distanced from this helped me to feel
the ‘peace on earth’ of Christmas.
Here is what my Christmas time looked like:
Christmas
contanta at KBC
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| Singing |
On the Sunday
before Christmas, Kate and I performed in the KBC Christmas contanta
concert. There’s been a big build up to
it as the choir have been practising twice a week during November and December
so it was the Christmas event I was most excited about. I loved it because it
really helped me to feel ‘Christmassy.’
We were pretty proud that we managed to remember the words to the songs in Luganda and even managed to sing a Luganda song we’d never heard before by following the words on the screen and practising our ‘smile and mouth the words’ look.
We were pretty proud that we managed to remember the words to the songs in Luganda and even managed to sing a Luganda song we’d never heard before by following the words on the screen and practising our ‘smile and mouth the words’ look.
Everyone
looked so smart as the ladies wore long red dresses with the men in suits and
ties. This made a contrast to our usual
outfits when working on the projects so Kate and I made the most of dressing
up. The stage also looked beautiful with the Christmas display at the front.
I’m so glad
that we joined the choir- the contanta definitely put me in the Christmas mood!
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| Kate and I |
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| Girls |
Christmas
contanta at Watoto Church
On Monday
21st, Olivia (the Smile volunteer who lives with us) took Kate and I
to see the Christmas contanta at Watoto Church. Watoto is one of the biggest
churches in Kampala and we had to get there three hours early to make sure we
got a seat as it’s a popular event. It was very worth the wait as the
performance was incredible. It was in the style of a theatre show with lots of
light effects, costumes and dancing whilst retaining the clear message of the
Christmas story.
Christmas
Eve
We decided
to host a Christmas Eve party at the Smile house with our friends from church
and it turned out to be one of my favourite days because it made me appreciate the friends we have made here over the last three months even more. It was good
fun to share food and chat in the garden. Thank you to everyone that came!
Christmas
Day
On Christmas
morning, we went to the church service at KBC after a delicious breakfast treat
of Nutella pancakes. It was lovely to be able to wish our friends who hadn’t
travelled to their village happy Christmas and it was a joyful service.
When we
arrived back at the house, we ate Kate’s delicious Christmas snack foods she’d
cooked (thank you Kate) and opened the presents we’d bought for each other and
packages from home. Unfortunately, mine from home hadn’t arrived but thank you
to my family for sending them- it’s the thought that counts and I can’t wait to
open them when they arrive.
We enjoyed
a delicious roast chicken dinner thank you to Kate’s amazing cooking and were
all able to Skype our families. It made my day to be able to talk to mine and
know I was still part of their Christmas day.
My favourite part of the day was mine and Lois’ adventure up
the hill near our house to meet some of our friends. We didn’t have a clue how
to get up there which resulted in us climbing up rocks and through the bush
etc. so by the time we arrived, I was covered in thorns on my dress- a midi
dress and sandals really aren’t suited for that kind of hike.
It was so worth it when we got to the top- the sunset was absolutely stunning! It was kind that you see in photos with bright orange and yellow colours sinking below the skyline. I could have watched it for hours.
It was so worth it when we got to the top- the sunset was absolutely stunning! It was kind that you see in photos with bright orange and yellow colours sinking below the skyline. I could have watched it for hours.
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| God's masterpiece |
Boxing Day
It's not every day Boxing Day you get to go to the beach! We decided to make the most of spending the Christmas season in the sun by heading to Spinner Beach on the shores of Lake Victoria near Entebbe with a group of friends from church. It was a great day of relaxing and chatting ended by another beautiful sunset over the water.
I have really appreciated the time we have had off from our work on the Smile projects over the Christmas period as it has given us time to relax and enjoy spending more time with friends here.
It has been such a special and valuable experience to spend Christmas in a new country- I'm sure I'll remember Christmas 2015 for a long time to come!
It's not every day Boxing Day you get to go to the beach! We decided to make the most of spending the Christmas season in the sun by heading to Spinner Beach on the shores of Lake Victoria near Entebbe with a group of friends from church. It was a great day of relaxing and chatting ended by another beautiful sunset over the water.
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| Fun at the beach |
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| Chips and chicken for lunch |
I have really appreciated the time we have had off from our work on the Smile projects over the Christmas period as it has given us time to relax and enjoy spending more time with friends here.
It has been such a special and valuable experience to spend Christmas in a new country- I'm sure I'll remember Christmas 2015 for a long time to come!
Love from Stephanie x
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