Amy Law

Photos

Amy is a professor and mother of two from the US.

Why did you choose this program?

We partnered with Off Season Adventures and the Africa Sustainable Tourism Care Foundation to plan our time in Uganda. We were drawn to the focus on cultural immersion, sustainable contributions to communities, and time spent with local people.

Our hope was to come away with a real sense of the place, its people, and the culture, rather than a whirlwind tour of sights and attractions.

What did your program provider (or university) assist you with, and what did you have to organize on your own?

We did not have to organize anything ourselves. Once we discussed what kinds of experiences were most meaningful to us as a family, Tanner (Off Season Adventures) and James (ASTCF) did the rest! It felt like a gift to not have to organize logistics while moving through the country. It allowed us to enjoy what was happening rather than worrying about the next steps.

What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone going on your program?

Be ready for a life-changing experience. We were and are deeply moved by the time we spent in Uganda. Traveling in Uganda is a captivating experience - the traffic moves like a fluid dance, very different from the US, and so we recommend having a local driver who knows the steps. It was fascinating to us!

What does an average day/week look like as a participant of this program?

Every day was so different. Some featured hikes in remote areas and visits to villages to spend time with families there. Others involved visits to specialized markets and coops near the capital. Still, others involved traveling through lakes to visit village schools and historical sites. No two days were the same!

All of it was beautiful.

Going into your experience abroad, what was your biggest fear, and how did you overcome it? How did your views on the issue change?

We feared that there might be too much novelty to get our feet under us, but that was totally unfounded. From the first day to the last, we dove right into the food, the surroundings, interacting with everyone we met and were sorry to have to leave at the end of our stay.

The novelty I'd feared was instead a source of great memories and growth.

What should people know about Uganda?

We were stunned by how green and fertile Uganda is. The food basket of Africa, it seems as though you could drop seeds literally anywhere and have a healthy garden in days. The way that this richness supports the food needs of the country is powerful and opened our eyes to a totally different way of sourcing and preparing food.