It was flying thousands of miles and knowing I was going to be
away from home for a few weeks. It was the anticipation, the anxiety, the
excitement and the uncertainty, not knowing what to expect in a different
country like America. The hearty welcome by family and friends throughout the
trip made my time in the US something I’ll never forget.
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| Family Selfie in tinny Bubble |
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| Welcome home sign |
20th November 2014 will always be memorable to me!
Standing outside in visa office of the US Embassy, I swiped my hand over my
forehead hoping to clear the precipitation starting to gather there. It was a
hot day and no sign of any wind. I watched disappointed faces coming out of the consul's booth. It was my last chance to get a visa for the trip we were
planning and the pressure was on. I shoved my hand into my coat to squeeze a
token Kait gave me on my way to the Embassy. She told me it was supposed to
give me good luck during the interview! “Card number 5632, you are next.” I
approached the booth. “Gentleman I see you were denied a VISA two weeks back.”
“Yes sir,” I reapplied. The Consul asked “How has your situation changed in 2
weeks?” I answered him back and said nothing has changed! He looked
me in eyes and didn’t know what to say, he grabbed a blue paper and stamped on
it and said enjoy your trip to America! All of the hard work and stress had
paid off! 20th November is also Kait’s Birthday and we
celebrated it in style.
12th December 5:10am was plane time! I had to work
during day, but I hardly concentrated at my desk. My friend Reagan dropped Kait
and I at the airport at 3am, we checked in and headed straight to the waiting
room. Kait kept holding my hand and saying we are going home. I felt
blood surging through her palm which reminded me of the day we drove
together on dusty road to Bulopa, dodging pot holes, overtaking sugar cane
trucks and Boda drivers to meet my family! I firmly held her hand and repeated
yes we are going, she smiled back and everyone in the airport felt our
excitement!
At around 4:30am, I heard sound in the waiting room saying, those
going to Istanbul and boarding Turkish airlines go to gate 2, my heart
thumped as it started to dip! We walked through the final
check in the airport and boarded the plane. After listening to
safety tips which sounded scary, the plane rolled down to the runway and a few
minutes later we were up in the sky. I pulled out my phone and took the first
selfie on a plane. I kept looking down out the window and felt like we were not
moving anywhere, but looking on the screen we were moving about
580km/hr!, and in 39 minutes we were crossing Sudan. I
asked for a glass of vodka, plugged in earphones and listened to
music. Hours later I looked back at the other passengers in the
plane and almost everyone was asleep. 6 hours later the captain said
we were landing in Istanbul. We headed straight through security, and got our
documents verified again. After 2 hours of layover, we boarded a
Boeing. It was a huge monster plane and to be sincere I wondered about how it
would even take off the ground, but before you know we were in the air and
crossing the Atlantic Ocean! We hit turbulence and the face of the flight
attendant sent a signal of worry, but a few seconds later the plane was stable.
I let out a sigh of relief and asked for another glass of vodka.
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| Plane Selfie |
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| Spreading Wings |
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| Relaxing In DC |
Landing in Washington, DC was amazing. The beautiful lights
reminded me of candle light in huge market night in the village, it was quite
romantic. Finally we touched down at Dulles International Airport. Lots of
people on plane clapped their hands and I don’t know why but I clapped too
because 9 hours of safe travel from Istanbul was remarkable.
Crossing immigration and customs in Washington, seemed
easier and faster than I thought, till when they sent me back at customs saying
that my pass wasn’t stamped. Kait’s heart pumped like
crazy and her nerves might have tingled like she had stepped on a sharp
nail. I would read that on her face from the other side, as I ran
back through immigration again for a stamp. But everything was fine
and it was just a matter of time until we held hands again! Our flight to St.
Louis was delayed by an hour, but at around 11 pm we landed in St. Louis,
dragging our bags, tired from the long journey. However, I got a jolt of energy
finding the smiling face of Mama Maloney jumping around and waving a sign post
“welcome home Kait and Julius”. The hugs and the smiles are the kind of welcome
that makes you instantly feel at home.
It was wonderful hospitality and I hope I'll be given the privilege in the
future to reciprocate. It was meeting and getting to know the amazing family
members of Kait, I have never felt at home like I did being around the amazing
Maloney family and friends. It was so exciting. We had overcome all
the barriers. I remember how we rolled in the streets of St. Louis playing
Ugandan music and this was our wish coming true!
A long story short, St. Louis gave me a fantastic illustration
that fur exceeded my expectation It was running errands every day, seeing
new places and learning more about the "American Way of Life." It was
appreciating the uniqueness of a country that allows for diversity, but still
has very patriotic citizens. It was testing new recipes, trying new
foods and beer.
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| The Maloney Magnificent kitchen |
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Frog Legs |
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| Frog Legs Ready |
I was in St. Louis at the right time of the year (according to me) to
experience change in weather, I will never forget that morning when I opened
the curtain and it had snowed, I smiled like an innocent baby and Kait prepared
me to go play in snow like it was my first time in school during winter. While
standing inside the house, she goes “Julius, do you feel like you are sweating
with all of those clothes on?” and when I said yes she responded, “That’s how
you know you have enough clothes on!” Watching A Christmas Story and seeing the
Christmas lights decorate the park, going to the arch, the St. Lois zoo,
visiting the Budweiser brewery and the road trip across River Mississippi with
Kait’s dad are memories that will long stay in my mind. It was all the fun of
the unforgettable St. Louis nights. It was appreciating the beauty of St.
Louis, a calm town to me with good road network.
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| Snow Time |
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More Snow |
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Snow Neera! |
A highlight of the trip was meeting with different people for a common cause of
raising money for Uganda Village Project, the public health organization that
Kait and I have both worked with. It was learning about different cultures and
beliefs and knowing that the stereotypes we hear about a certain nation are
often wrong. It was laughing about our differences and uniting in our
similarities and realizing that what unites us is a lot more than what divides
us. It was making lifetime friends and knowing that I will not be stranded if I
travel to St. Louis again even when I am 80 years old!
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| UVP fundraiser |
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| UVP fundraiser |
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| corporate night at the fox |
Reflecting on this trip, I have a brighter vision, seeing the world in a wider
and clearer perspective. My time in the States will be a story my grandchildren
will get tired of hearing, a story of inspiration, love, snow, new foods, new
Christmas traditions, new experiences and new friends. I wish I
stayed much longer, but I know I’ll make my way there again.
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| Across R. Missisipi |
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| Heading out USA |
Lots of Friends in US and back home keep asking me if i liked the
States and i had a good a great time! I believe that the surest way to make
more of your self is to become more aware of what is out there and to expand
your definition of what's possible which is something i plan on doing for many
years to come!
