(this entry gets posted a little bit to late, due to the difficulty of acquiring a proper internet connection down here)
Thus far a great many experiences have befallen me in my journey westwards in the country. Now is the time to join hands with the remaining students coming from Norway to experience Uganda, this land gradually emerging to be full of contrast - from heaven to hell.
People have now started to arrive from the airport and a change of perspective will occur in the days to come, both for the few people that have arrived before everybody else, savouring what Uganda has to offer. However, most will come directly from Norway and will be thrown into the wholly different world that this country has proven to be through the last few days, in my own experience.
And now, let me share with you my own impressions, while sowing in some of my newfound friends' stories as well, as my solitary travel draws to a close - through the chaotic yet working life in Kampala to the hills covered in green rain forest, where the only sounds to be heard are not those of cars and people, but of apes and birds.
Coming out of the heavily congested city that Kampala has shown itself to be, Uganda rapidly revealed its beautiful landscapes that dominate the non-urban areas. The state of quirky movement in Kampala and the condition of the bad roads have been demonstrated many times, both to myself and many of my companions. Riding with my backpack and training bag on a boda-boda (taxi motorcycle) certainly was quite interesting!
Roads turned out to be even more `interesting` going out of the city. Infrastructure in Uganda is in general quite bad, an important fact to consider when taking into account that the country is land-locked. Access to the sea through the ports in neighbouring Kenya is essential for trading.
A common experience riding on buses, and mini-buses for that matter, is the presence of competing sellers of everything from sodas to meat sticks and shoe cream showing off their products, hoping to get a sell through the windows of whatever vehicle you find yourself in. A practical thing, I must say! Wandering kebab shops in the streets of Norwegian cities ought to be a successful business venture!
One experience in particular though, I feel compelled to share with a wider audience, one that is very distressing; an example of the ingrained conception of the superiority of white-coloured persons. In my world, i.e. the West, when riding a bus and an old lady, child, or a woman with children comes aboard, it is perfectly normal to give your seat away. Especially to the latter - a woman with her child. Well - in this particular instance something quite shocking happened. When getting on a bus, for a quite long ride (4-5 hours) I was asked to get in front. I looked upon one seat. On it sat - as implied - a woman with her child. And seeing me, she got up, defying my protest imploring her to keep her seat. Saddening me even more, people around her encouraged her to get up from her seat. In spite of my continued protest, she changed seats.
Taking this into the wider picture, the remains of British (i.e. white) colonialism up until Ugandan independence in 1962 seems to have left some traces in the population. And there are more examples, even though perhaps being somewhat more subtle and less extreme, but nonetheless there. From boda-bodas having less collisions when white persons ride them in traffic to clerks treating clients discriminatory. This image of the superior 'white man' is truly a sad fact to find.
All of these aspects were part of the long journey from and back to Kampala. However, the meat in-between yielded a lot of worthwhile experiences.
For my own part, I experienced two places: sleeping in a hut placed high above the ground, built around the trunk of a tree with wooden supports, as well as an other, almost serene setting at a campsite on a hill above a lake with lots of great views. The former was in Kibale National Park, a healthy ec0-tourism project where the basic principle is that profits go to the benefit of the park and its people. The latter was somewhat more humane and certainly very inspiring; the funds went to the funding of an orphanage for children, a center founded by a pastor. Cheery and lovable place, quite simply.
Other travelers savoured the Ssese islands, located on the Victoria Lake, at a place labeled a resort rather than anything else, arising from a reason the eludes me. This place is just one among many paradises in Uganda which are truly very very relaxing. Full of natural beauty and kind people these are the epitome within calm and non-luxurious tourism.
An amazing part of Uganda is wildlife. I will not speak about this at lengths, as pictures (which unfortunately are not possible to upload at the moment, but which we will do ASAP) are definitely worth a thousands words in this context!
Nonetheless, perhaps a few names will bring to mind a few pictures.
First off comes the mountain gorilla, quite clearly. Even though none of us have experienced trekking after these giants weighing over a ton, due to an exorbitant fee of over 500$ to do so, this is one of the most incredible experiences that Uganda has to offer.
After this comes the slightly less heavy primates :) chimpanzees, white and blue 'turacos' (I only heard the name orally), baboons and other members of the family. Some students from Norway were lucky to encounter chimps, just at about ten meters distance! What an experience. One even saw an ape dancing on the roof of our camp here in Kampala! For myself, the most intruiging primate-encounter was returning from a long 5-hour trip past crater lakes, dumping myself down in a chair, and immediately told to turn around; to my amazement, a family of about 8 white and blue turacos were eating up the leaves in a tree just 10 meters away. Wow. And not shy at all!
However, the entire group's upcoming safari to the Murchison Falls National Park tomorrow should surpass this. Rumours tell that lions, hippos, rhinos and other typically African animals will be greeting us there. Let's just hope it doesn't get too intimate... :)
The time to sum up this blog entry is coming close - people are waiting to use the computer here at Red Chili Hideaway, where we've stayed for three days now. The whole group of 60 students and some independents (people not studying econoooooomics) has experienced Kampala sight-seeing and several interesting lectures. And some slightly less interesting. But all of that, I'll save for another time. Now, time to get packing.
- Eric
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