So we have now officially been in 4 countries in less than 3 weeks: USA, England, Kenya, and now Uganda. The director’s oldest daughter Liz, accompanied us, and she had never been to Uganda either.
We are right on the border, so it only took about an hour to get to the Ugandan border (Picture #1). While most Kenyan are friendly, we had a scary moment at the border, when our driver started making sketchy dealings. He demanded more money, and when we gave it to him, he handed it off to a man who ran off with it, and then demanded more. We didn’t want trouble, so we gave it to him, but when he insisted he drive us across the border, we got scared. “Get in. Get in now, they said,” too urgently, pulling at our bags. Walking past lines of guards with guns, we refused, and crossed the border by foot, telling our driver he would never get our business again.
The locals are used to it, and think it is perfectly safe, but all the guns everywhere put us on edge. We have gotten somewhat used to the checkpoints in Kenya, but Uganda was a whole different story. There seemed to be soldiers everywhere. However, what we saw of Uganda in a day was beautiful. The soil in Uganda seemed even redder than in Kenya, and the greens lusher. Everyone spoke very good English, and there was so much to see.
We took a ride on the Nile, and I touched it! We saw scampering little monkeys, giant birds, and although we didn’t see any, the driver told us the Nile was full of alligators! The boat driver took us to the source of the Nile, and we took lots of pictures. 30% of the water comes from bubbling underground sources, and the rest from Lake Victoria. We ate dinner and watched the sunset at a little American restaurant, full of European kayakers and a Navy Seal who had been to nearly every country in the world, been shot by the Taliban, helped the British hostages in Columbia. We listened to all sorts of fantastic stories, and then headed back to our hotel late.
The next day, we went to Bujagia Falls, a beautiful Nile waterfall (Pictures 2 -4).
We crossed back over to the Kenyan side, and went to a market. People directing us this way and that, women carrying parcels on their heads, and the general hustle and bustle was exciting, especially for those who hadn’t seen the market scene before. However, it was already getting dark when we started our journey home.
We seem to have bad luck with drivers, because on the way home we were scared out of our wits as the driver zoomed along the dark road, zipping around corners at speeds far too fast for our comfort. The other passangers seemed unphased, but we begged the driver to slow down, knowing that car accidents are among the highest causes of death in Kenya. The faith of the family we are living with is truly incredible, usually praying for over 4 hours a day. It is wonder at such belief, but when you are hurtling through the darkness at what feels like 90 miles per hour, all that is left to do is hold your friends hands and pray.
We are right on the border, so it only took about an hour to get to the Ugandan border (Picture #1). While most Kenyan are friendly, we had a scary moment at the border, when our driver started making sketchy dealings. He demanded more money, and when we gave it to him, he handed it off to a man who ran off with it, and then demanded more. We didn’t want trouble, so we gave it to him, but when he insisted he drive us across the border, we got scared. “Get in. Get in now, they said,” too urgently, pulling at our bags. Walking past lines of guards with guns, we refused, and crossed the border by foot, telling our driver he would never get our business again.
The locals are used to it, and think it is perfectly safe, but all the guns everywhere put us on edge. We have gotten somewhat used to the checkpoints in Kenya, but Uganda was a whole different story. There seemed to be soldiers everywhere. However, what we saw of Uganda in a day was beautiful. The soil in Uganda seemed even redder than in Kenya, and the greens lusher. Everyone spoke very good English, and there was so much to see.
We took a ride on the Nile, and I touched it! We saw scampering little monkeys, giant birds, and although we didn’t see any, the driver told us the Nile was full of alligators! The boat driver took us to the source of the Nile, and we took lots of pictures. 30% of the water comes from bubbling underground sources, and the rest from Lake Victoria. We ate dinner and watched the sunset at a little American restaurant, full of European kayakers and a Navy Seal who had been to nearly every country in the world, been shot by the Taliban, helped the British hostages in Columbia. We listened to all sorts of fantastic stories, and then headed back to our hotel late.
The next day, we went to Bujagia Falls, a beautiful Nile waterfall (Pictures 2 -4).
We crossed back over to the Kenyan side, and went to a market. People directing us this way and that, women carrying parcels on their heads, and the general hustle and bustle was exciting, especially for those who hadn’t seen the market scene before. However, it was already getting dark when we started our journey home.
We seem to have bad luck with drivers, because on the way home we were scared out of our wits as the driver zoomed along the dark road, zipping around corners at speeds far too fast for our comfort. The other passangers seemed unphased, but we begged the driver to slow down, knowing that car accidents are among the highest causes of death in Kenya. The faith of the family we are living with is truly incredible, usually praying for over 4 hours a day. It is wonder at such belief, but when you are hurtling through the darkness at what feels like 90 miles per hour, all that is left to do is hold your friends hands and pray.
We have never been so happy to get back to the orphanage. The kids all ran up to us and welcomed us back, and in the warm glow of the still working electricity we shook hand after hand ad looked up into beautifuk grinning faces.
We have 3 and a half days left and so much to do.
Love,
Laura
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