In and out of Kampala
Trip Start
Apr 21, 2008
1
18
225
Trip End
Apr 20, 2009
Kampala,
Uganda
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
When we got to the Matatu station, Dan and I said goodbye to David and we jumped on a bus to Kampala. The bus ride was uneventful. The common sight outside the window was poverty. You become numb to it unfortunately.
The drive was 2.5 hours long. When we jumped off the matatu, a host of boda boda drivers gathered around us. We negotiated a price and off we went to our hostel. I like my hostel. It has a lot of character. When I arrived, a goat and a dog were fighting at the reception area. It was quite funny. You don't see that every day when you walk into the local Marriott hotel.
Once I checked in, I dropped off my bags on my dorm bed. The receptionist, who knew me for about 5 minutes, was dropping hints on possibly sponsoring her in getting a visa to get into Canada. I've already been asked by 2-3 people at this point. As soon as you say you are from Canada, some say "I would love to go to Canada. Can you please tell me about the Visa process?". This eventually leads to them saying how it's too bad that they don't have someone to sponsor them. Of course they are hoping they hit the jackpot and have you volunteer your services.
After I escaped the receptionist, I hailed down a boda boda driver and asked him to take me to Kampala Road, the main street in the city center. The city center is pretty crazy. Walking along Kampala Rd, there is traffic everywhere. Most cars and trucks work on diesel so the city just sticks of air pollution. On top of that, there seems to be a lot of red dirt on the paved roads. Walking along the road for 10 minutes, you find your clothes just covered in this red dirt.
I feel very safe walking in Kampala, unlike Nairobi. I walked everywhere. South of Kampala Rd, you have the poorer part of the neighborhood. This is the busiest part of town. There are matatus everywhere. People are seen carrying all kinds of items across or along the road. There is very little room to squeeze between people or cars. No one seems to give an inch. It was quite the experience walking around this part of town.
North of Kamapala Rd, it is quite different. This is where all the embassies and headquarters of many NGOs can be found. It could have easily been mistaken as a neighborhood in Ottawa.
One thing you notice in Kampala is the amount of United Nations vehicles. They are everywhere. The UN's presence can definitely be seen here.
Another thing worth noting - every bank and gas station has heavily armed security guards. No one will dare think to hold up a bank or gas station here.
After walking around for about 4-5 hrs and feeling like I was about to get heat exhaustion. I figured out which matatu to take back to my hostel. Matatus are the cheapest way to get around. I enjoy being in them as you are right there with the local people. There is always one or two who will start talking to you. I really enjoy that aspect.
To give you an understanding of cost, it is about 60 cents to get back to my hostel from the city center using a matatu compared to about 2 dollars to use a boda boda. Slowly, I am learning how things work (and how to save money) in East Africa.
When I returned to the hostel, I ran into the Aussie girl I met on my bus from Nairobi to Jinja. Small world. She asked what my plans were in terms of where I was visiting next. I was planning to go to Murchison Falls for a game drive the next day but the hostel (who organizes trips out there) did not have space until Saturday - 4 days from now. This kind of threw my plans off. So I decided to go to Bussi Island for a few days - an island 60 kms south of Kampala. She asked if she could join me and I said yes. I would return on Friday and head to Murchison the following day.
My next update will describe my time on Bussi Island.
