On Saturday, the whole group of teachers along with John who works for IC went to Fort Portico. The Fort is about 45 minutes from Gulu, and was once a place where Arab Slave Traders held slaves before they were transferred up north. It was then taken over by Sir Samuel Baker, who eliminated the slave trade in Uganda. It is an amazing rock outcropping where large boulders, are precariously balanced on each other. Looking like they might fall any moment, but probably will stay that way for generations.
It was also part of a mountain range, where it was valued as a strategic location, by climbing up on the rocks, those who held the fort could see for many kilometers in all directions. We got a tour from a guide, and he showed us the place where many slaves without market value, the unhealthy, the old, the children, were slaughtered by beheading. You can still see the sword or hatchet marks in the rocks. He said the blood stains were still visible on these rocks all the way until the late 1960s. We also learned that Sir Samuel Baker bought (rescued) his wife from the slave traders (she was of Hungarian ancestry). Kyle asked if SSB had kept her as a slave at first, before they were married. A very interesting question, but the guide proud of Sir Samuel Baker dismissed it.
We then had an American Barbeque for our teachers on Sunday. I ended up manning the grill both times, which is weird, because I never do this in America. We forgot to bring forks to Ft. Portico, so I used bicycle spokes to turn the meat and veggies. Several large cows climbed up the steep rocks, and I thought we might be one big slip, from a nice beef dinner.
I promise I will finish this later, but the high school top fundraisers showed up yesterday, they are here for about a week, and the HEALS dancers put on quite a show at our house to welcome them. Gotta go to a teacher roundtable, so no time to finish, but 3 new pictures
John
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