What you need to know:
- Albert and Julie have been together for more than 10 years.
- During this time, they have learnt that one of the most important aspects of any relationship is communication.
- When they have a misunderstanding, they sit down and find a solution before doing anything else.
During a field study with an Italian anthropology professor in 2006, Albert Bisaso Ssempeke met Julie Namubiru in Namuwongo, Kampala. They met at the home of Fatuma Nabakyaala, which Namubiru frequented. Because he was smitten by her beauty, he asked Nabakyaala for Julie’s contact. The first time they met, Julie remebers, Albert was dressed to kill in white shorts and a red shirt.
“Even then, I had no desire to start a relationship with Albert. I knew most of his family members, many of whom had grown up in Namuwongo and worked in the nearby Kisugu Market, but I had never given a relationship much thought,” she says.
Albert is a folk musician and traditional music performer, and is currently a student at South Africa’s Rhodes University while Julie is a businesswoman. From the beginning, Albert says he was attracted to her because of the kindness she showed others.
“Her kindness towards others showed me that she would help me grow as a person and enable me to start and have a happy family,” he says.
However, when they first started dating, she learnt that he was already in a relationship so she did not see any reason to commit to someone who already had a wife.
“For our first date, he invited me for dinner. At first, I thought it was a joke until one day he invited my cousin Fiona and I for a concert at the National Theatre in Kampala. This time, he made his intentions known and I knew how serious he was,” Julie says.
“I had been through a number of relationships which had all ended in breakups. I was heartbroken and uninterested in relationships, believing that all women are the same. Instead, I engrossed myself in my music. However, when I first met Julie, I was taken aback by how effectively she was able to read me and understand who I was as a person. I considered her a true friend and knew that she would make the perfect partner,” he says. Click to read more…
