Open Road Song-Eve 6

We picked up some sack lunches and then all 19 of us packed into a van and a pick up truck loaded with our luggage to drive to Uganda.

The Rwanda countryside is beautiful.  It is called Land of 1,000 hills and it definitely seemed that way.  The hillsides were covered in little patches of crops, everything is green, the air is full of smoke due to fires built to cook, and along the road are people walking-always ready with a wave, whistle, or smile as you pass by.

Hitching a ride on the way to get water

After about two hours, we reached the Rwanda/Uganda border.  Our initial stop at the Rwanda immigration window led us to believe we would have a smooth border crossing.  However, we ran into some trouble getting the vehicles and our Rwandan truck driver across the border.  We all walked across the border and had our passports tamped in Uganda but we ended up waiting a total of two hours before we were finally on our way.  First our driver needed one stamp, then he had to go to a different window for something else, then we needed some paperwork for the vehicles, then a fee must be paid.  After several rounds of “fees” and stamps, we were finally back on the road.

It is an interesting comparison to think about how complex our society is and the anxiety that breeds.  It makes one long for the simplicity of life in a developing country.  However, when you witness firsthand the complexity and inefficiency of bureaucratic agencies and how it’s part of daily life to use bribes and  charge extra fees, it almost makes you appreciate our own (also inefficient) but fair and impartial bureaucracy.

Once we were finally back on the road, we headed into Uganda on our way to Queen Elizabeth National Park for a few days on safari.  At first the countryside seemed to similar to Rwanda but as we drove the soil turned from a deep reddish-orange to tan, the crop covered hillsides began to be covered in more trees, and the hills became flatter grasslands.

We had a LOOOOONG drive in a 15 passenger van on some very rough roads.  You know there are a lot of potholes when there is a small dirt road next to the road.  After several hours, we finally arrived at our safari lodge around 10:30 at night.  Eager to accommodate us, our hosts got us settled into our Bandas and tents (we were escorted by a security guard with an AK-47 in case we ran into any hippos) and then hosted a four-course dinner.  We started with potato salad, then spinach soup, a traditional Ugandan meal of  rice and chicken stew, and chocolate cake for dessert.  As we ate in the outdoor tented area, bats flew in and out to catch a snack of mosquitoes.

Welcome to Uganda

By the time we were done eating, it was after midnight-who has time for jet lag anyway!?  Michael and I made our way back to our hut and as were finally getting ready for bed we could here animals walking and eating outside our hut.  We tried to see them but didn’t want to surprise them by peeking around the fence so we headed off to sleep with the sound of hippos grazing in the background.