and on the third day, they drove and drove and drove...

...and drove some more.

on saturday we left the dust, ash, car exhaust, 

and congestion of kampala,

and headed for the lush green countryside of gulu.

we were bound for koro farm, an educational and training facility

that sports outreach created to serve the people in 

four different villages in gulu.  

we had a 5-hour drive ahead of us,

but because of traffic, road construction, a detour,

one of the vans over-heating,

and a few short-call stops (bathroom breaks),

this drive took a little over 7 hours.

you would think that being confined to a bus and a van

all day with 27 strangers in the equatorial heat would

be the worst part of our time in uganda.

but many people said this was one of the best days of the whole trip,

because for an entire day, all we could do

was spend time getting to know one another,

and take in the sights of driving through uganda. 

we crossed the nile river on our way to gulu,

and were given permission by the guards of the bridge

to take one group picture.

we were to take the picture before getting on the bridge,

and were not allowed to take pictures while 

crossing over the bridge

(the van and bus dropped us off, 

and waited for us at the top of the hill

on the other side of the bridge, so we crossed over on foot).

there may or may not have been a few of us 

who took a couple of pictures on the bridge.

and there may or may not have been a slight run-in

with the guards.

and we may or may not have been escorted off of said bridge. 

but that's neither here nor there.

we finally arrived at koro farm, and after meeting the staff

and hearing about the villages they're serving, 

we had a chance to tour the farm.

the farm is on 42 acres, and has only been in existence 

since 2005 - and it's amazing.

it is an agricultural and educational training center,

where villagers can come to work and learn first hand

how to raise crops and livestock. 

after going through the training program,

they are given plants and animals to take 

back to their own village, where they are to teach

others what they've learned.

this, my friends, is the fruit from coffee plants.

it's in a drying room, and when it's time

to plant the coffee crop for next year, the fruit is crushed open

and the seeds inside are dried and ready to be planted.

a big part of the training at koro farm is teaching

families how to keep a piggery.

by raising and selling just one pig, a family can afford 

to pay all of the school fees for one child for it's entire life.

who knew that just one pig could be so lucrative?

the people of northern uganda lost an 

entire generation during 20 years of war, 

so the basic knowledge of farming and raising

livestock disappeared. with the establishment 

of koro farm, the sports outreach staff  

helps to restore hope and knowledge back

into these communities.