Two Goals

I really have two main objectives with this blog. The first is to tell you I have updated the "Photos" link on the left hand side of this blog. Ok, that was easy enough.

Goal number two is to convey to everyone back in the US what a Ugandan pothole is. It seems most people, including myself, get frustrated when MoDOT is resurfacing Interstate 44 or repairing potholes on Highway 40 near 141. I hope to never again be ungrateful for the US highway system. See Exhibit A:


I took this photo in downtown Kampala, the Washington DC of Uganda. This monster wouldn't have been that noticeable were it not for the Land Rover driving through it on three wheels. That I hadn't seen yet. It's common to hear scrapes and bumps as cars try to navigate the roads, but for a Land Rover to have difficulty is somewhat momentous.

There are two basic roads in Uganda, paved and dirt. Some of the dirt roads are actually quite nice because they can be regraded every couple of years once they become heavily rutted. Paved roads are nice for a while but deteriorate within a couple of years I am told. I'm guessing the reason they go bad so quickly is because the pavement is about 2-3 cm thick. Seriously. A road is being paved within walking distance from our house. And let's just say there isn't really a strong rock base under the pavement layer. So, after a couple of years of cars, SUVs, livestock, and petrol tankers, the roads eventually give way. Unfortunately, because the road is paved, the pothole has much steeper sides than a regular, unpaved ditch/pothole, which makes them more difficult to navigate.

Brent, if you want a job over here when you finish your masters, there's plenty of opportunity!