Time to hit the road again and
head back down the mountain to the flat plains. We pass lots more crops
including miles of rice paddies before heading through the big town of Mbale. By
midday we reach the outskirts of Jinja and stop to look at the interesting
Railway Museum. Then on to the town itself and along the edge of Lake Victoria
until we reach the Source of the Nile. Here we find a lovely camping area right
beside the Nile. A tad pricey but very scenic.
We wake to rain so we head off
later than usual to tackle the huge city of Kampala. And we have found the
traffic. Trucks, mini buses, boda-bodas (motorbike taxis) and cars. Large
sections of the road are gridlocked. A bit of a shock as there has been so
little traffic in Uganda until now. And it is not orderly traffic – its crazy
stuff, especially the boda-bodas that buzz around seemingly in circles and so
close they nearly touch us! We have made a list of places we want to visit so
first head to Parliament. Hmmm the area is totally congested, both parking
spots and the road itself. A definite no go for us. So, onto the Gadaffi
Mosque. The police stop us using the route we have on the GPS – no trucks this
way, so a bit of fast talking to get out of a fine before taking a longer
route. Once there we find a huge carpark and head inside for a guided tour. I
have a head scarf, but that is not enough. I need a long skirt and scarf over
my shoulders! John must don a long tunic and cap (although the cap is optional.)
The Mosque is impressive, but the best thing is the view from the top of the
minaret with 360deg views of the city. Our next stop is the not so impressive
Namirembe Cathedral and our final visit is to Mengo Palace. The King was banned
by Idi Amin and has not returned. He cannot live where death has occurred – and
this is where Idi Amin set up his horrific torture chamber in an ugly concrete
bunker. We are glad to leave the bunker and head out of the city. Lots more
traffic snarls, one roundabout takes us about 30mins to navigate! Later we
navigate a long section of dirt track to the lovely Avocado Bay Resort right on
Lake Victoria. It is a pretty spot to relax after the chaos of the city.
Another storm in the night with lots more rain.
In the morning the track is not
too sticky and we head back out and join the main road to Entebbe, and from
there to the crazy Aero Beach Park. Here we wander around the collection of old
fighter jets, huge planes, and a ginormous helicopter. Our plan is to drive
over 100km to catch the ferry to the Ssese Islands in Lake Victoria, but at the
park we discover that there is a ferry here in Entebbe, so we head straight
there. Yes, the ferry leaves at 2pm for Buggala Island and we will fit on. A
bit of a wait, but we have lunch and talk to people (well John does!)
The ferry ride is over 3 hours
and we spend a lot of the time upstairs in the exclusive area, by special
invite. It is early evening when we drive off and head to Victoria Forest
Resort where we can camp right beside the lovely white sand beach. Magic.
We spend a lovely day getting
chores done and enjoying the lovely swimming pool. The resort is deserted, but
guests start arriving in the evening (it is Friday) and we join them at the
buffet. The boom boxes are set up beside the pool, but it is quiet by midnight.
In the morning we drive all the way across the island to catch the free ferry
back to the mainland. It is a short 30min ride. We want to reach Mityana by mid-afternoon
Saturday to visit 100% Hope Church, School & Orphanage run by the amazing
Trischelle Sayuuni who hails from the Gold Coast.
We make it in time, despite a
rather bumpy dirt road I detour us onto! One of the guards shows us around the
premises before we follow Trischelle to her home, a lovely rambling house on
the top of the hill overlooking Lake Mityana. We have a wonderful time with
Fred & Trischelle and their 6 children. Fred has cooked up a storm and we
all tuck into a lovely dinner. John of course fixes up the kid’s bikes, which
has the roll-on effect of quite a few crashes as the kids race around the yard.
In the morning we all head back
to the Church for Sunday services. The Youth are taking it today, so it is
action packed with dancing and singing. By early afternoon we say our goodbyes
and head off. Such an inspirational couple. Look them up on http://
www.100-hope-org We head towards the city and take the ring road. Traffic is OK
as it is Sunday. So far so good until we rejoin the main road and find the
traffic. Oh well it is always a bit amusing watching the mayhem! When we reach
the Nile, we decide to try a different campsite further up the river, but it is
down a dirt track and the last section is not good. If it rains again tonight
it will be sticky getting out, so we return to the Nile Camp at the Source. And
just as well as it rains heavily in the night.
It is time to leave Uganda for
our next country and by midday we are at the border town of Busia. It is
supposed to be a One Stop Shop like our last border. Not! We get there in the end with only some road
tax to pay. Welcome to Kenya! The border town is so chaotic we drive on to the
next town to get our new sim and some groceries. Another storm rolls through
with torrential rain, but finally we are off and head through more lovely
countryside to the city of Kisumu nestled beside Lake Victoria. We drive right through the centre of the city
to find our camp spot right beside the lake at Dunga Hill. There are picnic
tables overlooking the lake and we can watch the sun setting over another day.
We even spy a lonely hippo and then a few spider monkeys swinging in the trees.
Back in town the next morning we get
some urgent paperwork printed and scanned before finding an ATM and an
excellent supermarket. We are impressed with this modern clean city.
Mid-morning, we head out through fields of sugarcane. As we head into the
mountains to Kerico, we see tea plantations stretching for miles. Stunning as
always. Some of it looks as if it has been harvested by machines, but some is
still been picked by hand. Back on the main road we find the trucks. Many are
overloaded and incredibly slow, so lots of overtaking is required. A short stop
at a tyre shop to change the front tyre. John mentioned it might be the next to
go as there are a few cracks in it, so I suggest maybe we should just get it
changed before that happens! Later we head on to Lake Nakura and the gorgeous
camp at Kambi Amani that overlooks the lake.
The next morning, we chat to
the owner, and he recommends the best route to the Maasi Mara NP and he also suggests
visiting Nakura NP is not worth the cost. He also comments that next year the
NP fees will double! We check out his kitchen and get a few free samples to
try. His doughnuts are delicious! But time to move on, so we skip Nakura NP and
head straight to the Maasi Mara. A fabulous drive through miles of cropped
mountains and untidy villages. This is Maasi territory and they are all wearing
their signature wraps. Later we stop at the bustling town of Narok for a few
supplies before heading to the NP. We drive right up to the gate to work out
the costs and the best time to enter. All sorted (hopefully!) we head a few kms
down the road to the Oseki Maasai Mara Camp for the night. We enjoy a campfire
and a rain free night, followed by an early start to enter the Park. We can get
a transit pass through the first section of the park and then pay for entry at
the Maasi Bridge so we can spend most of our time in the lovelier Maasai
Triangle. It takes all the 2 transit
hours to drive through because of the corrugations. We pay our entry, camping
and vehicle fees and head in. Thank goodness the tracks in this section are not
corrugated! We can slow down, relax and animal spot. The lions sunning
themselves on a rock are a bonus and there are numerous giraffes, zebras, topis
and a population explosion of elephants. The wildebeest have already migrated south
to the Serengeti, but we stop beside one of their crossings on the Mara River
and see the crocs still lying in wait for food. Instead of watching wildebeest
cross we watch a family of elephants cross.
And of course, there are plenty of hippos.
Later we head to our expensive
campsite. It is simply a piece of land on the brow of a hill with a shed
containing 2 squat toilets. John lights a fire so we can sit outside, but the
rains come again and continue most of the night. It will be an interesting
driving back out! The road is not too bad, but we do not venture along any side
tracks. We spy another lion sound asleep on the grass and lots of balloons
floating across the plains, despite the drizzle. We then get another transit
pass to exit the park by 10am. On our way out we meet a truck with a 40ft container
stuck in the mud. Why would he be allowed to drive these muddy tracks in a
National Park!!
Out of the park we are accosted
by Maasi ladies selling their wares, and we spread our purchases out between
them. Then we head down the road to stop at the Maasi Cultural Village. We get
a welcome dance involving a lot of chanting and jumping, before a guided tour
of their village. Over 200 people live in a small ring of basic mud huts. Life
is very basic here and they still eat only milk, blood & meat from their
cows. Then a demonstration on fire lighting before the usual escort past a row
of stalls. Finally, we head back to Narok and then turn and head east to Mai
Mahiu and finally north to Lake Naivasha where we camp at the lovely Camp
Carnelley’s right beside the lake. It is a gorgeous spot on lovely green grass
with good facilities, an electric fence to keep the hippos out and a great
restaurant. Awesome!
More to come.
Well - everyone knows you need an electric fence to keep the hippos out! Be getting my own one soon....Fabulous story Lynda. Obviously a fascinating stretch you are on, very beautiful. Thank you for this wonderful update and amazing photos. Stay well and happy. Hugs and love from
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What a journey Lynda - a larger than life setting with the day realities of tyre problems and storms! Loving your descriptions!
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