Cepha'S Inn Kabale

... in the bar drinking and playing more Pub Quiz. We also went for a paddle in a dugout canoe on the lake which was almost a hopeless effort as the canoe’s proved difficult to steer so we ended up just going round and round in circles. It was fun all the same though and the lake was beautiful and warm so one of the girls in our group, Millie, went for a swim too.

Helen spent a good while ...

... met the trackers on the road next to a well worn trail and we followed the guides into the jungle. We only gone about 200 metres when Christopher stopped us and informed us the gorillas were not far. We were told to leave our walking sticks, which the Gorillas recognise as spears from the days that they were frequently hunted and so they can still scare them now.

After about another 100 metres walk not 10 metres from the trail was a silverback sitting ...

... faces all around as it meant we had to stay in Kabale in a guest house. We upgraded to a room which was fairly average but we guess better than being in a tent. The rooms were very damp and smelt - there were lots of mosquitos and the sheets felt damp. Worst of all, the beer at the guest house is warm! Not very nice and not what we had planned after such a long drive.

... go into rooms with photos of children and how they were so horrifically killed, and another room with photo after photo after photo of those who were killed and videos of those who survived.

And you finish off in a series of rooms identifying cases of genocide elsewhere in the world and here is where the gurgle of wrath boiled over the top as my ignorance as to the repeated and truly cross global “let’s turn a blind eye and apologise with big words of regret ...

... and they proceeded to do a few songs for us and a dance show. A few of us were even pulled up front and danced. Including myself which didn’t help the case that white guys have no rhythm. But it was all in good fun! Then the elder(58 yrs old) of the village came over and gave a talk about their people. Then we walked around the village a bit and saw what they were growing and where they got some of their resources. Afterward, a lot of the kids ...

Stopped for lunch in the 5th largest town in Uganda - two dirt streets with the odd herd of goats or cows wandering down them. What a lovely place it was though, particularly aided by a bakery that sold chocolate cake!

It was only 9km but a very bumpy road over a mountain pass to our campsite beside Lake Bunyonyi, a very lovely spot to relax in or, if you ...

... vehicle the occupants noticed and raced back to retrieve everything, including Lindsay's expensive Mac laptop! Could have been a disaster, but everything was recovered and seems to be in working order.

The countryside gets more and more dramatic as we approach Rwanda, and finally the chain of volcanoes comes into view. The road twists and turns over dramatic hillsides with ...

So we’ve just had what has to be the most amazing experience ever... but more about that later.

Arriving in Nairobi at 4am we were pretty happy our driver was waiting for us (even though he was there the night before as well – as there was a communication break down). We had arrived in Africa finally after such a long wait.

We didn’t do too much in Nairobi as we were coming back later in the overland trip. So after hooking up ...

... has only just arrived so we wolf it down and leg it back to the truck only to find that half of the people are still missing so we had not needed to rush. Annoying!! We then set off for our campsite and arrive within about half an hour. It's the same campsite that I stayed at last year on my Intrepid trip and so I'm pleased as it is a nice campsite. Most people upgrade to the cottages, but we get a room where we have communal showers and toilets.

... an experience would be a slight understatement. Kristelle seemed to get the knack of it with our Kiwi friend Michelle, however Chantelle and Sarah had a little difficulty in working out which way to paddle. We're looking forward to having a sleep in tomorrow before packing up and heading to the Uganda/|Rwanda border for the start of our ...