Murchison Falls and Safaris
Trip Start
Jun 22, 2008
1
34
36
Trip End
Jul 31, 2008
Gulu,
Uganda
Sunday, July 27, 2008
We woke up before sunrise. Fumbling my way through the dark I found a change of clothes and toiletries. After brushing up I found a warm, freshly cooked meal awaiting me on the other side of camp. Breakfast included eggs, toast, milk and African Tea. Yummy!
Breakfast was rushed since the Safari became more plausible at the break of dawn. I had never been on a Safari, therefore I had few expectations. If we saw only a bluebird perched on a high branch I would be satisfied. Instead we saw EVERY animal ever documented on the National Geographic special of Africa. O.k. so this may be a bit of an exaggeration, but here's what we saw: Giraffes, water buffalo, elephants (yes, they really exist), exotic birds, warthogs, antelopes, hippopotamus's, and baboons. You will see the photos. What you won't really understand is HOW close I got to some of these animals. The giraffes were literally RIGHT next to the road. A brief aside: The age of a giraffe was based on the coloration of its body. The older the giraffe, the darker its spots. After learning this we saw what must have been the oldest giraffe in all of Uganda. Instead of the traditional orange spots you generally see on a giraffe, he had spots that were brownish- black. Staring us deep in the eyes he must have ascertained what our objective was in entering his domain. This was the look I captured on film. Although I'm sure we did not make an actual "connection" I felt like we understood each other. We shared mutual respect.
Until now, I thought elephants were creatures isolated and constructed in zoos. There was no way they actually existed. To my chagrin, I was proved wrong. Herds of elephants appeared and re- appeared every 100 km. Their ears were definitely the selling point of their luster. Thin, massive and all encompassing they advertised them the way a flamingo displays his colors before mating. Unable to zoom in on them the way I did with the rhinos, the picture was limited in its range. It sounds very "Lion Kingish" of me, but I felt like singing Akuna Matata. And if I feel like doing something, it was just a matter of time before I followed through. Pretty soon the whole back row joined in chorus. This was Africa. The only difference was that with the locals, the singing would have started several hours ago.
The Safari was the highlight of the day. In fact, the events that followed would have made housework seem desirable. You see, we were up against a monster. That monster was the road to Kampala. While the road from Kampala to Gulu was rough, it paled in comparison to the ride back. The government carried out road construction literally every 2-3 miles. This was not normal road construction. After an unpleasant wait, usually you were directed on by men in orange suits and signs. Not here. Instead, speed bumps took the place of construction workers. ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY OF THEM! That's right. Watch out Wal- Mart, here comes Uganda! In fact, you could take all the Wal- Mart parking lots in America, add up their speed bumps, and they would still not equal the plethora of speed bumps we encountered here. I actually considered at one point wearing the loin cloth Tricia made and running beside the van. This would of course represent tradition out pacing advancement. What if the Ugandan government spent as much on the actual road as they did on the speed bumps? Perhaps pot holes would become a thing of the past.
Amidst Ipod listens, sleeping sessions, brief discussions, and quiet reflection, we inched our way closer to our destination. We finally arrived to Back Packer's at 7 p.m. This left us with only 30 minutes before the van left yet again for dinner at Sam's. YELLLL!!! The few moments of sanity I got today came somewhere between dropping my luggage off in the room and changing clothes for evening festivities. Oh wait; I take that back- it was my Nile Special. Nile Special has a way of making even the most dismal days feel hopeful and promising. Perhaps it's because it boasts 5.6% alcohol content. Add that to a famished stomach, and you have a significantly altered attitude. I was ready for Sam's.
This restaurant made better Indian food than the best restaurant in India. Sure, I've never been there, but I am certain that no eatery compared to Sam's. Our meal started out with an assortment of Naan. This delicacy was the staple starter for any authentic Indian meal. I contemplated dividing the Naan evenly between everyone, but after my fourth piece, I realized that I had I done this, I would be well over my limit.
It is very seldom that I order from the vegetarian menu. I appreciate meat as much as an Acholi does posho. However, when there's a dish like Vegetarian Kadai on the menu, rules of diet were meant to be broken. They brought my vegetables out over a self- sustaining lamp. The rice soon followed. These two dishes go together better than Mac and Cheese. The spices were just poignant enough to highlight the meal without detracting from its inherent appeal.
I left feeling fully satisfied, as did the others. The wine also helped. If we had only discovered the meal prior to embarking upon our 14 hour trek. Oh well.
Backpacker's became a déjà vu experience of when I first arrived 5 weeks prior. Freddie, the talented guitarist from England was happy to accompany me in our 2nd encore. We soon grew an even larger crowd than before. Throwing all caution to the wind, on parts typically sung in Acapella, we elected to belt them out in full voice. It was musical brilliance. There were even times when I synced the drum beat to changing vocal inflections and arpeggios. Freddie and I had attained musical Nirvana. Apparently so too did Allison, John and Matt. Leaning back deep into their chairs they puffed cigarettes and sipped on beers. They were content to both accompany us on this musical voyage and re- convene on the other side.
I stumbled back to my room around 2 am. Crashing under the mosquito net I wondered if my experience in Uganda could get any better.
