Twelve Days of Christmas!

During this past Christmas season, my family rewrote "The Twelve Days of Christmas" to incorporate African objects. The items we included are very common at Christmas time. Here is "The Twelve Days of Christmas" Ugandan style. 

On the first day of Christmas, my good friend gave to me...

Toto's new shiny gomesi! ("Toto" is the Ateso word for mother. A gomesi is the traditional dress for the ladies in Uganda)

Two yellow jericans. (This is what people use to fetch water)

Three bars of soap. 

Four sets of clothes. (At Christmas, people here get a new outfit)

Five kilos of rice. (Christmas would not be Christmas without rice for lunch)

Six bodas waiting. (Town get very busy during Christmas time. The most common form of transportation is a boda-boda, a motorcylce or bicycle taxi)

(I only had a picture of one boda-boda. Usually bodas will park by other bodas while they wait for passengers.)

Seven mzungus coming. ("Mzungu" is the Swahili word for "white person". Many of our neighbors invited our family of seven over for a meal to celebrate Christmas) 

Eight plates or pilau. ("Pilua" is rice that is cooked with the meat forming a brown, sticky rice)

Nine speakers blaring. (In Uganda, loud speakers playing music help celebrate big events)

Ten sodas bubbling. (Soda/Pop is also common during celebrations, especially Christmas)

Eleven children dancing. (Dancing to the music from the nine blaring speakers! Dancing is a big part of Ugandan culture)

12,000 shillings. (Ugandan money)