Made a quick trip in Feb. to Kigali, Rawanda with Catherine Lumasia to make a short presentation at an NGO conference about some educational software. It was an adventure!
Monday, 13, we travelled the couple of hours to Busia and crossed into Uganda, no problem, hoppped a motor cycle to take us to the Nissan vans so we could travel the 4 hours or so into Kampala (capitol city). We got there and hopped a motorcycle to get to Akamba bus - rush hour so my driver got up on the sidewalk a couple of times to get around vehicles. The 9:30 pm bus to Kigali cancelled. Why? It had been rented out for a special occasion! We were told to try Kampala bus line, so off we go.
There's a bus leaving 2:30 am and there is a 24 hour restaurant on their compound (now 6 pm), sounds good so they take us the few miles to the bus compound. The restaurant didn't look as good as it sounded so we had to find somewhere else to eat and get back before dark - we did.
There was a bus coming in at 10 and heading for Kilgili so we were changed to that one. It pulled out at 11:30. At 12:30 I woke up, realized the bus had stopped and heard the driver say, that the lights weren't working. We were pulled off the road at a closed gas station so there was a station light. I thought someone would soon arrive to fix things - dreamer!! At 6:30 am we snuck onto the highway and crept along only to be stopped by police!! Yeh, within an hour there was someone there to fix it and I had managed to find a spot for a 'short call' and my muzungu (white) bottom wasn't too conspicuous!
Took 10 mnutes to fix lights and we we started hurling across Uganda - only 11 more hours by bus to Kilgili - fortunately I had packed food. One stop to change a tire and then the border. I did not have a visa so I was made to wait and had to prove I was invited to this conference. Canadians need a visa ahead of time. The bus left. Catherine stayed with me. Eventually I got the visa and we found a taxi to take us to Kilgili and got a hotel. Catherine's computer had crashed, mine still working. Had a bit to do. Told Catherine I needed one more hour to get ready. Then I said that I always seem to be saying that and when it came my turn to die I would probably say, "Just give me one more hour to finish up!"
time zone - it was only 6 am - I got my hour!
All went well at the conference and Thursday we started the gruelling journey back. This time on the Jaquar line - over 100 people and no assigned seats.When I managed to squeeze on board an employee said, "Muzungu (white) you can't go back there, you sit here and he gave me his seat at the front." He squeezed up by the driver.
The trip reminded me of hitchhiking around Europe with Clara Penner about 1962. Just heading for a place on the map, never been there, don't know what adventure awaits, but our thumbs are out and we're on theway!!
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| Ready to leave Mumias and head to the Ugandan border |
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| At rhe border |
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| This Nissan will take us to Kampala |
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| Inside looking out |
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| Hawkers selling chicken |
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| Raced by piki piki to bus station only to find bus had been cancelled |
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| The soon to break down bus arrives to load us |
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| Fello passenger getting ready to sleep |
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| Catherine trying to sleep |
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| On the road again at dawn! |
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| I'm afraid to buy food off the street |
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| It's meat - could my stomach handle it? Won't try. |
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| Another stop - flat tire this time. |
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| Heading for market |
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| Still speeding across Uganda |
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| At the NGO conference in Rwanda |
