A fake interview with me (questions inspired by real questions I've been asked):
Q: WOW what's it like driving on the wrong side of the road?
A: Easy! The hard part is dealing with some crazy drivers and loads of motorcycles. Thankfully cars move very slowly (I don't think I've driven >40mph here and usually slower), so you have more time to react.
Q: You're near the equator, so is it like 100 degrees all the time?
A: No! The weather is awesome! It's roughly 65-85 degrees year round, with rain being the only variable. We are in the rainy season now, but the rain is usually only for an hour a day or less. We have almost all of our internal meetings outdoors, eat outside all the time, and every time I walk outside at night, I feel like I'm on vacation. It is definitely weird not feeling a change in seasons - it's hard to get the sense of time passing (and I miss fall colors and Michigan apples), but it's pretty great to be able to be outdoors year round and never have to bundle up.
Q: Any weird surprises?
A: Hm - I guess that my Chinese has come in way more handy than expected. There are several good Chinese restaurants, and it's always best to order in Chinese, and casinos here tend to be filled with Chinese businessmen. I don't like to gamble, so when I've been to the casino with friends, my entertainment is finding a Chinese person to make friends with. I usually get some funny stares, but I've gotten to learn a bit about Chinese companies operating in Uganda and life here for people who don't speak English. I may never use it for work again, but I guess Chinese is a fun language to be able to speak.
Q: Do you lose power a lot?
A: Yes. Computing by candlelight as we speak. It's frustrating and tough to get work done sometimes, but with a combination of generators, candles, and long battery life computers, we cope pretty well, though it's clearly a really bad thing for the country and has gotten way worse even since I moved here. On the plus side, I never fully appreciated how awesome candles were until now.
Q: WOW what's it like driving on the wrong side of the road?
A: Easy! The hard part is dealing with some crazy drivers and loads of motorcycles. Thankfully cars move very slowly (I don't think I've driven >40mph here and usually slower), so you have more time to react.
Q: You're near the equator, so is it like 100 degrees all the time?
A: No! The weather is awesome! It's roughly 65-85 degrees year round, with rain being the only variable. We are in the rainy season now, but the rain is usually only for an hour a day or less. We have almost all of our internal meetings outdoors, eat outside all the time, and every time I walk outside at night, I feel like I'm on vacation. It is definitely weird not feeling a change in seasons - it's hard to get the sense of time passing (and I miss fall colors and Michigan apples), but it's pretty great to be able to be outdoors year round and never have to bundle up.
Q: Any weird surprises?
 |
| Hotpot night at a Chinese restaurant |
Q: Do you lose power a lot?
A: Yes. Computing by candlelight as we speak. It's frustrating and tough to get work done sometimes, but with a combination of generators, candles, and long battery life computers, we cope pretty well, though it's clearly a really bad thing for the country and has gotten way worse even since I moved here. On the plus side, I never fully appreciated how awesome candles were until now.
No comments:
Post a Comment