Mzungu

One of the most surprising and hilarious aspects of living in Africa is being one of the only white people around. I didn't realize how different my skin color would make me from the rest of the population. Whether you are driving in a car or walking down the road, people will almost always stop to stare at the white person, especially in small villages. The first time I walked down the dirt path to where most of the villagers live, I was BOMBARDED with about 20 little kids holding onto my arms and yelled "mzungu, mzungu!!!!!!!!" (mzungu is the Lugandan word for white person). It was so shocking and hysterical that I had no idea how to react! They love to touch my skin, feel my hair, and listen to my foreign voice. Some of the elders in the village are even afraid of white people because they have never seen anyone with my skin color before. The funniest part is that it still happens every time I walk down that little dirt path to the village! It really makes you feel like a celebrity, but it also makes you realize how much you stand out. I would like to think that by the end of my 3 months in Uganda I will have really meshed into the culture, but my skin color is preventing me from doing that. No matter how "African" I act, people will always be staring and wondering what silly thing the mzungu will do next.