Rafting the Nile

This weekend ending up being a last-minute trip to Kampala and Jinja – and a great one at that.

Mbarara to Kampala is a 4 to 5 hr bus ride (depending on which bus driver you end up with) and is usually filled with maxed-capacity passengers, bumpy roads, and endless vendors – both on and off the bus – hoping to sell you anything. We didn’t get there ‘til 10PM and immediately went to the Red Chili Hideaway outside the city. It ended up being a really cute place, obviously designed for Peace Corps volunteers and other muzungus who happen to be passing through. I finally had the delicious breakfast I had been itching for – a veggie and cheese omelet with exquisite African coffee.

We spent Friday in Kampala, wandering the streets of the crowded city. We found the mother load of craft shops, filled with infinite beautiful crafts that owners would stop at nothing to sell to you. I bought a couple irresistible items before deciding to wait and buy everything right before my departure to avoid lugging it back to Mbarara; I can’t wait to go crazy in there…

On Saturday, we were picked up at 7:30 AM by Nile River Explorers – our rafting company – and headed out to Jinja. We trekked down to Bujagali Falls to see what we’d be up against the next day; after the muddiest experience ever, it was back to our lodging for drinks and relaxation. The Explorers Campsite is set on a steep hill, overlooking a postcard section of the Nile; amazingly, you get one night free just for rafting and the rate for a shared 4-person room is only $7 each. The restaurant and bar are open almost all day long and you can conveniently throw everything on your entire stay tab. I can see how people passing through easily might end up extending their stay.

On Sunday morning, it was straight down to the NRE headquarters for breakfast and rafting equipment. We couldn’t have picked a more beautiful day to hit the Nile; sunny, blue skies stayed with us the entire trip. Our guide, Peter, was a Jinja local and a big jokester (“This is my first time rafting”) so we had a lot of fun. I’ve only been white-water rafting once in 7th grade, so it’s hard to compare this experience, but I will say that this seemed monumentally bigger, wilder, and thrilling than what I had done before. I was continuously smiling and thought about going again the next day (you can raft again within 3 months for half the price). That evening, there was a hearty barbeque and video viewing of our trip. One of the guides puts one together for every rafting trip and I ended up buying it :-D

Monday ended up being a long day of commuting back to Mbarara – first a taxi to Jinja, then a shared taxi to Kampala, and finally a bus back to Mbarara, caught from the most hectic bus station/place in general I’ve ever been; this took from 11am-8pm. It’s nice to be back! Although, now that I’m feeling much braver about travelling, I’ve already planned another trip – 5 days in Rwanda, with stops in Kigali, Gisenyi at Lake Kivu, and Parc Nacional des Volcans. I'm hopefully going to be going within the next couple weeks. My trip is now halfway over so I have to hurry!

The project is going well - getting the database filled up. We should be sending off what we have so far to U-M this weekend.

Life is pretty swell here. I just need a couple things I'm missing.