Uganda

So I am finally back from Uganda and able to write a blog entry about my trip. I can't even put into words how amazing Uganda is. It is so different from Rwanda... mainly because it is such a larger country and it isn't as condensed as Rwanda. There is so much more open space, and I could even hear crickets chirping at night. It was very peaceful. So we started off our trip good, and ended up getting in Kampala with plenty of time on Saturday. We did a little bit of exploring but took it easy that night. We were surprised at how big Kampala is... it had skyscrapers and everything! We were expecting a little city like Kigali... no no no. It was nice to be somewhere that had a variety and options. It honestly felt like being in New York City or something... they had big restaurants and we even saw parks and a moonbounce for kids... really strange that we saw all that in Africa.. it was great. It is a more dangerous country, but I was careful with my stuff, and had nothing stolen. The fast paced city had a lot of traffic too, and I feared for my life crossing the streets because the cars wouldn't stop. The second day we were there we were supposed to go whitewater rafting but didn't realize until it was too late that the time went forward an hour... because we weren't in Central Africa anymore.. we were now part of the East African community (Uganda). So we missed the free shuttle, and since it was 2 hours from Kampala to Jinja, we rescheduled for the next day... we were kinda sad we missed our rafting on the 21st though because the weather was AMAZING and so hot! We spent the rest of the day exploring Kampala. We visited the Kasubi Tombs (and the Tombs of the 4 previous Kings of Buganda). We also visited the current Buganda King's Palace. There we saw the former torture chamber used by Dictator Idi Amin during the 1970's and the man made Kings Lake. We also went to one of the markets and I got a pair of Converse
s for about $12.00. After that and having lunch in Kampala, we took a bus to Jinja. We arrived in Jinja and I had my first REAL hot shower. We met some friends and even ended up exploring Jinja a little bit that night (clubs). It was a blast. We then went to bed and woke up to a rainy day. We went rafting anyways though. The whitewater rafting on the Nile was AMAZING!! We tipped off the raft 3 times. The rapids were big at some times. It was worth it though. The last rapid was called the "Bad Place". We actually had to dock the raft and walk through the mud to skip out on the Class 6 Rapid. It was SO LARGE... I don't think we could have made it honestly. But we still got to do part of the Bad Place rapid.. just the Class 5 part though. We had a videographer, who kayaked with us the whole time and would stop to videotape the rafting from rocks. It was awesome. I should be receiving a video soon (I purchased one). We came back after rafting to the campsite and had an amazing meal. Then took the free shuttle back to Kampala and stayed at a hostel. We went out that night with some friends and went to a few clubs/restaurants. Lots of good fun in Kampala and people are a lot less shy. They are more free there than in Kigali. You would never see people making out in public in Kigali, but in Kampala I saw a lot of it... it was funny actually. You can really see how much the West has influenced Uganda... Uganda is very modern and forward thinking. They even have a Sheraton hotel and are building a Hilton one. They had Shell gas stations and Mercedes Benz stores. WOW. Interesting to compare and contrast the two cities. Anyways, so the next morning we woke up at 5 AM and jumped on a bus at 6 AM to come back to Kigali. The bus ride was BAD. Whereas normally it takes 10 hours from Kampala to Kigali, there were 2 accidents that added an additional 3 hours on our trip. I never want to hear ANYONE complain about traffic in the US again haha. The traffic in Uganda after an accident is unbearable. We were on a bumpy dirt road in stopped traffic. We didn't move AT ALL. It was soooo bad. But we made it home! At 8 PM I might add... but we made it. We basically passed out when we got home. All in all it was an amazing but short trip. We want to go back and explore more. It went by WAY too fast. I now have a new love in Africa... UGANDA!

Sonia and I in front of the Kasubi Tombs... the place of the 4 previous kings tombs

Traditional Ugandan art that I bought

Sonia and I after a day of rafting the Nile