Uganda - Hometown

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After lunch Kurt dropped me at Mvara ("Mmmh vara"), another mission station on the other side of town. This was where my father was based for five years. Another of his hand drawn maps showed me the site of his first home and the location of our first family home. Sadly for me there was no trace of the building here. I phoned Dad to tell him, I was sure he would be pleased to hear they were building a "cathedral" there in its place. Personally I was disappointed, this will be the fourth cathedral on the campus, the current one is still functional; it's just the "wrong" end of the site. This one is grand in size, concrete beams and tasteful brickwork. There'll even be a side chapel dedicated to Bishop Vollor, founder of the mission station.

Also on the campus is a teacher training college. I visited the college chapel, where I was baptised but sadly all paper records, like the baptism register, have been lost in the war years.

Tue 28 Oct
I returned to Mvara and found an old chap, who used to work with my father, he had happy memories. From my mother's diary I gathered I had a child minder called Salome. Remarkably this chap thought he know which Salome this was and went off to find her. Later he reported back that she was indeed still living locally but visiting a neighbouring town, so close.

I looked around some more and using Dad's map found the old print shop with dusty but complete "Jardine of Nottingham" offset litho printing press in the corner. The carpenters' workshop was still in use, as was my father's office.

My mother talked of teaching at the college and in the afternoon sometimes having lessons under the shady fig tree in the central quadrangle; pleased to report this is still happening today.


Uganda - Hometown

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