Gulu

Today, I did the craziest thing I've ever done in my life. I stepped into a warzone. Our group made the daring decision to travel into the Gulu region of Northern Uganda. Everyone figured that it was a great opportunity and couldn't miss out. On the road to the region, the distinction was clear. We had to go through a checkpoint and crossed over a bridge to enter Acholiland or "Kony's Land" as the bus driver so ominously called it. All you could see were acres and acres of land with no homes built, as we had seen in the southern parts. The driver told us that a couple of years ago the grassland had been tall bushes, but the government wisely cut down the trees because that is where the rebels dwelled. Soon, we saw a myriad of huts that served as the Internally Displaced People's (IDP) Camps. Once we entered Gulu town, there was a stark contrast to Kampala. It was cleaner and less crowded, but even in broad daylight there was an eerie silence. Tension could be felt in the air. We visited a very large hospital, Locar. And of course being the camera happy tourists, that they are, the group asked if they could take pictures. Why you would want pictures of sick people, many on their death beds....I don't know. Luckily, they were denied! Though the hospital was very large with several wings and great care and attention given to patients, they were obviously lacking in resources and staff administration. Some patients looked as if they had been waiting for hours for simple diagnosis. I later learned that two of my group members, who went to be treated for malaria were pushed ahead of other patients because they are White Americans. Even in the eye of death, my people still find superiority in the White man, or is it inferiority in themselves? The nutrition wing of the hospital impressed me the most. The children were hospitalized because of severe malnutrition and it pained to see them. The myth of starving children in Africa with swollen bellies, had come true. It was largely due to the extreme warfare. Families were unable to farm because their crops had been destroyed or they had been relocated to camps.