Running in Mbarara

June 14, 2010

I had a fairly low-key, restful weekend, which is good because our projects begin tomorrow (Tuesday). There is--and will continue to be--so much to be done, so I didn’t mind just chilling.

On Saturday, I started the day with a run with all the girls (what a health conscious group!). There’s a convenient loop around our hostel, and it’s very safe, although we make sure to stay in groups. I think we are something of a spectacle though, since (1) people don’t run much here like in the States (although we are seeing increasing numbers of local runners) and (2) most people have probably never seen such a large group of muzungo (white person/people), let alone running muzungo.

It’s hard running here! Mbarara is at a higher altitude than I’m accustomed to--around 5,000 ft. above sea level, so my lungs definitely work harder for oxygen, and the pressure in my ears was killing me by the end of my run. Hopefully I’ll become acclimated soon.

For the rest of Saturday, we visited the Mbarara University of Science and Technology (MUST), listened to two lecturers at MMHF (the first was on antenatal care; the second concerned the Ugandan health system), went to a track meet at Mbarara Secondary School (what they called “Sports Day”), and later that night, had a group meeting to discuss our upcoming week.

The track meet was definitely a fun, yet interesting, experience. First of all, the track is spray-painted on a grass field, and the start of a race begins with a hand-held wooden clapper. Parents and teachers sat on wooden benches underneath a white tent, while the rest of the onlookers stood around the track or watched from a slight hill or from school windows. Even in the heat, some pupils continued wearing their uniform sweaters.

[A still capture from a video I took at the meet. You can see the black lines spraypainted on the grass.]

I was even more amazed by the attire of the runners themselves. Many ran barefoot 9even for the long distance events that required 12 laps), and it seemed like they ran in whatever they had. Some girls ran in knee-length skirts, while some boys wore board shorts, jean cutoffs, or even floor-length workout pants. A few runners did have actually running clothes. They had a really fast girl who had competed and won accolades at the national level, and she was wearing her shirt from a race in Kampala. She had no competition here, so it was obvious she was just cruising; she slowed down to run with another girl and provide some encouragement.

[Everyone was extremely friendly and curious at the meet, and they would frequently come up to us and want to meet us. We even got a question about President Obama.]

Finally, there was an announcer who was quite entertaining. He commentated over the music in both hilarious English and Runyankole and encouraged the crowed to provide morale for the runners.

Some gems:
*"If you feel that your life is not right, please go to the health tent."
*"People standing on this side of the track, please go away."
*"We have people of many talents here: runners, singers, magicians..."

I took video at the meet, but there’s no way I can upload it here (or email it to Adam), so perhaps I’ll have to make an all-encompassing video post when I’m back in the States.