What is it about Uganda?

Did anybody watch The Snail and the Whale at Christmas time in the UK?  It’s a great tale about a snail seeking adventure and the hump back whale that helps make her journey happen.

Well, I am the snail with the itchy foot. I just love adventure travel and all the freedom and thrills it brings.  

To me, adventure in Africa is the best of all and, either through fate or design, I have landed up somehow in Uganda where I am now working (partly there and partly here in the UK) with some amazing people on life changing projects and sustainable tourism activities and lodges. This is where I am now sending, or even better taking, those seeking a completely unique and different travel experience, a journey that stays with you for a lifetime and hopefully shapes life’s path, even if only a little. 

Africa and Uganda are all about the sensory experience – if you allow it to touch you - beyond what you simply see you will experience a piece of magic that will be just yours to keep.

So, I want to capture the flavour of the country through the senses in order that I can attempt to bring to life just a hint of that magic for you to enjoy and think about.  Each and every one of these mentions below warrants its own wee story but this is just to get a flavour.

The Sights

Simply too many to count so I am going to mention just a few gems here to whet the appetite…

The surprise of 7 hyenas sneaking out of the bush unexpectedly… their smiles and snarls and spooky prowling all around the truck.

Kidepo Valley… vast open savannah with the mountains of Kenya and South Sudan in the distance. Large herds of game, an elephant chase… the vibrant Karamoja people and the smile of my friend Moses – Chief of Lorokul village. Climbing to the top of Mount Morongole to meet and give salt to the IK tribe and the delight on the gorgeous grubby faces of the children. Sunsets here are something else. This place is wild.  Untamed. Go there.

A Mountain Gorilla family… All senses are sharpened with anticipation in this moment. The presence and dominance of the silverback, the ambition of the black back, the protectiveness of the females and cuteness of the babies. Among the tangle and mist of the rainforest.  Remember to breathe!

The sharp and beautiful contrast of red roads and lush green surrounds as you drive across the country.

The fabric of the landscape – from the patchwork of pineapple, banana, cassava and yam crops to the vibrant green of vast tea plantations and the white fields of cotton, ready to pick.

The thunderous raging Nile at the top of Murchison Falls – standing right on the edge watching the white-water froth and rush, fold and flow before squeezing through a 6-metre gorge to fall 40 metres down. Immense.

The boda-boda – Uganda’s favoured mode of day to day transport (the motorbike) and the variety of crazy things you seen being transported on them… from large, roped up squealing hogs to complete bedrooms, bed-frames and all, to any number of people… I think a whole family of 5 including baby balanced on handle-bars is the most I have seen so far.

Of Evelyn Habasa, who in my mind is the mother of Buhoma, and her team of talented Bakiga dance performers.

But most of all the smiles on the faces of the friends, family and clients I am lucky enough travel with – different from those shared back home; these are smiles that come straight from the heart as they thank you for the moments they have just had.  And the beautiful smile of my lovely friend Elizabeth, headteacher at Bwindi-Plus Primary School; an inspiration.

The Sounds

Of Birdsong… the Hadada Ibis, Blue Turaco and the call of the Fish Eagle.

Of the house cockerel when you stay with friends... 4am start… right outside your door.  Wakey wakey!

Of chimps as they call to each other in the rainforest treetops, or rap on enormous buttress roots.

Of the ‘Monster’ – our favourite truck – as the engine starts.

Of great tunes playing out as you drive through all of the different landscapes that Uganda offers… red muddy roads, open savannah, buzzing trading towns, rainforest tracks.

Of laughter at countless funny moments travelling among friends and enjoying the charm of authentic east Africa on its own progressive journey – so keen to understand and meet the needs of its visitors.

The grunt of the hippos in front of you as the sun goes down over Lake Mburo.

The crackle of the fire-pit in the evening, as you sit together sharing the day’s adventures

The Tastes

Of the best fresh ananas (pineapple) you will EVER experience… cut by hand on the side of the road with views over the Butiaba escarpment.

Of G-nut sauce over cooked matoke and posho.

Of African tea spiced and Rolex at breakfast.

Of Mount Elgon coffee – made with beans from the hills that you are sitting among as you drink it.

Of Bushella – the local brew made from Sorghum wheat… just add sugar to ferment and the experience gets a little more interesting too.

Of a Waragi and Stoneys (Gin and ginger fizz) as you sit next to Lake Mburo watching the sun go down and listening to the hippos grunting.

Of slow cooked goat… can be nice, but can be chewy!

The Feel

The stickiness of raw matoke (green bananas) as you prepare them to cook over the charcoal fire.

Of large ripe avocados in your hands.

Of sticky mud between your toes as you dig out stuck vehicles on rain damaged roads through the rainforest or around the parks, laughing among the locals as you accept you are not going anywhere for a while.

The sun on your skin as you sit by the hippo pool on the Nile at Murchison Falls or on the deck of Savannah Lodge Kidepo, glass of wine in hand.

The rain on your skin as you hike long and hard through the rainforest in search of the Mountain Gorillas.

The Smells

Of arrival in Entebbe and the people of Uganda, airplane fuel, sweat, second-hand goods, perfume… all warm and heady and bizarrely welcoming.

Of beef, onion, tomatoes and of Irish potatoes and matoke cooking over wood fires and charcoal stoves.

Of Grasshoppers frying in onions… they are delicious, honestly!

Of intense wood-smoke in tiny blackened village kitchens, eyes watering from smoke and laughter as you cook.

Of street-food (road-side chapati and meat kebabs), fruit and vegetable markets and trading towns as you pass through, stopping for treats to enjoy on the road.

Sweet bananas, strong alcohol, fresh ananas, red African earth after rain, cheap fuel, stapled newspapers (read the Sunday Pepper for shear entertainment value…) and the combination of the milkiness and spice of African tea.

The experience is intoxicating allowing a kind of freedom in simplicity and leaving you feeling deeply moved, exhilarated, alive, energised, humbled, peaceful, joyful, wonderous, satisfied and fulfilled… free.

Welcome to Uganda.