Day 11

12/27/08

Shavua tov! It is now Saturday night and I am back at Anne’s. Anna is gone and it is a bit lonely being the only muzungu and Westerner. Shabbat was great in Nabugoya. Last night, I lit Chanukah candles with the Israelis in the guesthouse. We then walked to the synagogue where there were so many visitors that, for the first time ever, there were more muzungus in Nabugoya than Ugandans. The services were full of African/Jewish songs once again and all the first-time muzungus seemed to really enjoy it. There were two families from the West Coast there. One was backpacking with their children, all under the age of 13, for one year around the world. The other was doing a chesed project in Uganda and brought gifts for the Abayudaya. There were visitors form Kampala and Chicago as well and someone brought bottles of wine so we were able to make a proper Kiddush this time. After the service Friday night, we went back to the guesthouse and ate with all the muzungus. We had matoke, potatoes, greens, fish, and vegetables. The families sat together at the big table and the Israelis and I sat at a smaller table. I got some good Hebrew practice again and numerous visitors form the other table came to meet us throughout the meal. I thought my trip was pretty interesting but I always felt pretty lame when these guys told about their year-long backpacking adventures.
The other muzungus included a doctor from Chicago who is here for three weeks to help out in the Abayudaya clinic, an attorney from New York researching the international criminal courts, and a woman working with the coffee co-op here that is shared between the local Jews, Muslims, and Christians. Everyone had a different story about how they ended up here and it was exciting to hear others’ and share my own. After dinner I spoke for a few hours with the visiting rabbi who runs a nondenominational school in Phoenix. We shared some views and others differed but I really enjoyed the dialogue and his perspective on Jewish history. I went to sleep around 12:30am and slept well until 7:30am. I woke up, ate some fruit for breakfast with everyone else, and then headed to the synagogue for services at 9am. As I walked, I bumped into Jen, the woman at whose house I spent the night I landed in Uganda. She was visiting her Ugandan “family”, Rabbi Gershom’s family, whom she befriended in the States and whose impact on her life resulted in her relocation to Kampala, Uganda. The services were similar to last week’s, enjoyable and unique. The Torah was read by several different people and Rabbi Kleinberg led the Mussaf service. After the service, the community gathered for Kiddush outside the synagogue and I spoke more with Jen and was introduced to the doctor of the Abayudaya clinic, Dr. Samson. I then went to the guesthouse for lunch which I ate with Yisrael, Rabbi Kleinberg and Marc, who happens to be a professor of Jewish history in a university in CA. I mostly listened to Rabbi Kleinberg and Marc discuss the present situation of Jews in the world and was fascinated by how much I don’t know. I threw in a line here and there when I thought I had something valuable to add but I easily recognized that I was the least knowledgeable individual regarding the topic and I had much more to learn by listening than I had to add. After lunch I slept for a couple of hours, then returned to the lobby area to find the Israelis making guacamole. I shared some of that with them and we then began to sing zmirot, songs that are traditionally sung on Shabbat. We sang for about an hour, with various others joining us at times for one song, two songs, or more. The father of the backpacking family, Tzvi, joined us for a bit and it turns out his brother is some famous TV-personality in Israel. After singing, we returned to the synagogue for the evening service and havdallah, the blessing symbolizing the distinction between Shabbat and the rest of the week. The whole community gathered outside the synagogue and the blessing was recited, then Chanukah candles were lit. Chanukah songs of Abayudaya, Israeli, and American tradition were sung as everyone stood in a circle holding hands. I then returned to the guesthouse, lit candles for Chanukah with the Israelis, then said goodbye. I went to Rabbi Gershom’s house, spoke with Jen for a bit, loaded my pictures from the Torah dedication ceremony onto Rabbi Gershom’s computer, and took a boda home with a guy named Noah who is working for an NGO in Sudan. Tomorrow I will hopefully post this in town and then head to the Abayudaya again for three weddings and a music festival. Then I think the Israelis will come back to Mbale with me and I will spend tomorrow night with them before they leave the area on Monday. I hope everyone at home had a great weekend and happy Chanukah (only one day left!) Shavua tov!