Fulbright Orientation

Last week Bry'Chell and I went to Washington DC for the Fulbright in African Orientation. My brain is still swimming from all the information we received.

I must say, I am more excited about going to Uganda now than I was before the meeting. That's saying a lot. I've been so wound up for the past two months, I babble incessantly about Uganda and Fulbright.

It was three days of input and conversations that answered the questions I didn't even know I had. Some was stuff I know we had to hear, but wasn't that exciting, like U.S. foreign policy. Most of it was fun and interesting--talking to other Fulbighters, meeting folks who have actually been to Uganda. Of the folks going to Uganda, Bry'Chell and I are the only ones who have not already been in the country.

OK, it's a little embarrassing to admit, I finally learned how to spell Fulbright--one "l", not two. Oh well, spelling never was my strong suite.

The Fulbright folks sent us a check that was supposed cover part of our expenses. Thanks to the good sisters, it covered all of our expenses. We did not stay at the lovely two hundred a night hotel, rather we stayed at the equally lovely convent for free.

Thanks to Sisters Marian, Lourdes and Petra, we had a great time at Immaculta Convent. Bry'Chell especially enjoyed having a TV in our room, which she watched more than I should have let her. Well, there has to be some reward to behaving well during a day full of meetings that are undoubtedly boring from a 12 year old perspective. I, on the other hand, delighted in conversation with other Sisters of Providence.

We took in a few of the sights, the National Basilica with the newly dedicated statue of our own Mother Theodore in the Mary Garden and the American Indian Museum, also fairly recently opened. The musuem was great, a wonderful mix of the historical and the current. The space was beautiful and gave a feel for the range of Amerindian culture.

Getting Closer

Our departure date, which hasn't actually been set, is getting closer. This week I received my first round of shots--hepatitis--two of them, tetanus and a TB test, which isn't really a shot but still involves a needle. The nurse drew enough blood to transfuse a small child, but didn't leave any bruises. For me, that was pretty good.

Pat McGreal and some of the students at Mother McAuley High School collected some school supplies for children in Uganda and gave them to me to take. I was touched and impressed that they would make such an effort. I just met Pat a week or so ago and she was willing to help. That's pretty cool.

Tomorrow we leave for orientation in Washington, DC. This feels like a big deal--official and all. We won't, however, be staying at the $200 a night hotel. We'll stay for free with some of the good sisters in DC. I've always been impressed with the public transportation in DC, so it won't be any problem getting around. So, what are they going to tell us? Who are the "they" that will do the telling?