Fort Potiko

Saturday 6.20.2009
Today we went to Fort Potiko with our teachers. It was a beautiful day, but no one told us that we would be rock climbing. It was about a 45 minute drive in two mutatus. I was so exhausted from singing last night and not in the mood to socialize. But, it all turned out lovely. The drive was fun as usual in the mutatu. The roads here are so terrible. It keeps things entertaining.
Sidenote: There is a wedding going on next door right now. It is so loud. The man on the microphone sounds like he’s on one of those Spanish game shows. I’m not quite sure what he is narrating. I got to watch the traditional dancing earlier. It was amazing.
So, when we arrived at Fort Potiko we immediately started the tour. The fort is dedicated to Samuel Baker who came and freed the slaves that were being held and killed there. It’s not a fort like you would think of back home…the kind that would be in some John Wayne movie. It was a giant rock formation (yes, similar to Pride Rock in The Lion King) that they turned into a fort. The crevices were used as holding cells for the slaves and the slabs of stone were used as execution areas. We saw marks in the stones where the beheadings took place. We climbed to the top of the rock formation, which was very tedious, and we could see all of Gulu. We could even see to Sudan. It was vastly beautiful.
Florence and I took some pictures together on top of the rock. Her husband Jimmy came too. They seemed so excited to be on an adventure like this. And I was so surprised at how willing they were to be rock climbing in dress clothes. We didn’t realize that it would be so intensive. After the tour, we went down to the clearing for the barbecue. Sasha (a teacher from Arizona) made guacamole. It was INCREDIBLE! We dipped chapatti (which is like Ninfa’s tortillas) in it. They eat chapatti here with just about everything. That makes me happy. I love tortillas. We also had barbecue chicken, roasted vegetables, fruit, and corn on the cob. But it was not corn on the cob like back home. Very dry…it reminded me of the corn that we used to play with on pilgrims and Indians/Thanksgiving dress up days in elementary school.
The sunset was astounding. I tried to take pictures of it from the mutatu but they don’t do it justice. It really took my breath away.
Sidenote #2: Abbie and Sasha just got back from town and Abbie brought me a can of ranch Pringle’s. I’m so happy right now.
I played Frisbee with some kids in the field after we ate. I actually was not so bad! Surprising…
Very ready for the ride home. It was so dusty, though. We need it to rain again soon to settle the dust.
Peace-ing out…so tired…good night.Nevermind…there will be no sleeping tonight with the dance party going on next door. The walls are shaking…shaking. And with all the electricity they are using ours will probably go out. There is actually someone blowing a whistle to the beat of the music.