Leaving Uganda on June 16th from Entebbe Airport at 12:00 am was a different experience than arriving four months earlier on Feburary 12th. I did not mind waiting in line, did not have any anxiety about finding my gate or having all my important papers in place. Maybe I was still running on 'Ugandan time' or it could have been the fact that the airport only has four gates and my yellow fever vaccination papers were unecessary to re-enter Canada. I think the real reason is that my best friend Caroline had stuffed a letter in to my bag and I was reading it in the lineup.
Leaving the community of Kytegyme had filled me with a great saddness. Fortunetly Caroline hadtold me that I had to go back to Canada because I hadimportant things to do, and once I had finished university then I should come back. So I stood at the airport knowing that although I loved the community, my new friends and family, going back was necessary.
Walking beyond security was a culture shock in itself, just beyong the checkpoint were aisles and stores full of alcohol, make-up and magazines. I stood in front of the display window for cosmetics admiring the new colours and products. As I walked past a wall of fashion magazines I realized four months is a long enough time for me to miss Jessica Simpson having a baby, men to start wearing rolled up pant legs and no socks and for belly shirts to become the new rage.
Almost immediately after sitting down I watched two incredibly blond women, a mother and daughter, stomp towards the door. Their quick gait was enough to catch my attention as people in Uganda tend to saunter while they move. On a number of occassions I have been told I walk like a soldier and have since then tried to slow down my pace. They approached a security guard and without asking how he was, proceeded to yell about their dogs accomodations, who was being taken on the airplane. It struck me that a dog was being taken on a plane, a privilege few people have and I knew I really was going back to Canada now.
No comments:
Post a Comment