Less than three weeks after getting home from Madagascar, I’m off in a few hours’ time  to Uganda for a month!

Summary of my (provisional) itinerary

Mon. 28th Oct:  Arrive in Entebbe where I will be met by Rev Sam Opol and taken back to his home in UCU, Mukono for two days. I will meet Josephine, one of the old TESS sponsored students who has just returned from doing a Masters in Railway Engineering in Addis Ababa.

Wed. 30th:  Sam will drive me to Teso (in north eastern Uganda) to stay at his family home in Serere with Margaret and the twins. I am looking forward to meeting Kenneth Adiamet and Michael Onyege whom I haven’t seen for more than 20 years but have made contact with thanks to social media!

Fri. 2nd Nov:  I will go to my ‘home’ in Kobwin to stay with John and Harriet Omagor for three days. During this time, I will visit Ngora Deaf School and Ngora Hospital.

Mon. 5th:  Driving to Soroti to spend time with Ben Ejadu and his brother Robert Okiror to help them develop Homestead Tours and Safaris. We plan to visit Pian Upe Reserve bordering Teso in Karamoja before I spend a night with Robert in his village home in Tubur. I am looking forward to seeing my namesake, Arakit Margaret who is now 3. Robert will accompany me throughout and will probably do most of the driving, which I will appreciate as it is raining a lot and the murram roads are apparently quite bad.

Mon. 11th:  Return to Soroti and stay with Naphtali and Gaudesia Opwata for two nights.

Wed. 13th:  Go north to Ococia (near Orungo) to spend two days with Emmanuel Eyomu in the school for children with special needs where he teaches art and craft. I brought back seven of Emmanuel’s paintings last year, all of which were sold in exhibitions in Nottingham and Loughborough. On our return to Soroti, we will visit his sister, Jane Adongo, who was sponsored by TESS and is in charge of a Health Centre at Oditel. I will also meet the 15 year old triplets whom I helped when they were born in a camp in 2004. I haven’t seen them since they were six!

Fri. 15th:  Return to Naphtali and Gaudesia in Soroti for five days during which time I expect to see many friends and old students, one of whom is Joel Odongo in Katine. He has set up an organisation to teach those who have no work new skills such as making soap. I have also been asked to visit the TESS offices in Kapir.

Wed. 20th:  Visit Joseph Asutai and his projects at Awoja on my way to stay with James Ikara for two days at Nyero Alternative Technology Training Centre.

Fri. 22nd:  Stay with Kokas and Margaret Osekeny in Nyero, one of my first friends in Teso from 25 years ago before returning to Sam and Margaret Opol in Serere and then back to Kampala on Mon. 25th November.

I arrive home on Wednesday 27th November.

I hope to add to this Blog whenever I have internet access as well as post some photos on Facebook.