I’ve just returned from a fabulous trip to Uganda. It was a bit of a spur of the moment idea based primarily on excellent reports from my housemate of their own trips to Uganda, combined with my sense of procrastination over doing real work. I set off for Lake Bunyonyi in southwestern Uganda after heading to Kigali to deal with my visa extension at Emigration. Lake Bunyonyi is about 2 hours north of Kigali, just over the Ugandan border. Lake Byunyoni is called the "place of many little birds”. It has an amazing diversity of birds on the lake. The depth of the lake is rumored to be 900 m, which makes it the second deepest in Africa. It is one of the few lakes in the region that is free of bilharzia and safe for swimming. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to do any swimming because it rained most of the time I was there. But it was still an amazing place to be. To get to the island camp where I stayed, I was taken by canoe to Bushara Island.
First, it was really nice to have some different food. The lake is popular for its abundant crayfish which they make in quiches, burritos, and with avocado salads. I also took a bird tour around the island and learned a lot of new bird species. It was a bit lonely being on the island alone without Okan, but it was relaxing and I finally had time to read a book for fun. It was a beautiful island. The accommodations were simple- just a tent with a cot inside. But at least there was a cover over the tent to protect against the rain.
I decided after a visit to Lake Bunyonyi that I would drive another 3 hours north to Queen Elizabeth National Park (QENP). I had heard from two friends about an incredible lodge that they stayed at with wonderful food and beautiful views. It looks out over the plains of the park and had a great pool.
I also wanted to do one last game safari before leaving Africa. So I used Okan’s android phone that he had left me to find QENP using the GPS feature on the phone. I spent two nights at a wonderful lodge and went on a great game drive where I finally saw two leopards only a few meters away from the car! It was a true highlight. Leopards are one of those species that most tourists want to see (much less, carnivore biologists!) but they are so elusive, it is very rare to get a glimpse of them. I can’t believe we stumbled on two!
For links to more animal pics go to:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2633188674108.153483.1387146989&type=1&l=e5f7005e9f
I also got my fill of elephants, including a baby elephant that couldn’t have been more than a meter high and probably only a few weeks old. He was adorable (but no pictures because mama shielded him away from us). We also visited several craters which were formed from a volcanic eruption some 8000 years ago. They were stunningly beautiful. Again, it was lonely without Okan and I felt guilty seeing this amazing park without him. However, the manager of the lodge (Pascal, a German who grew up in Kampala) was very nice to me and since I was the only visitor at the lodge, it was just the two of us on the safari. He was really nice and we had a good time talking and sharing experiences from living in Africa. He was equally excited that we stumbled on the two leopards.
I returned to Rwanda and was stopped at the Ugandan border for immigration. I thought I had done all the things I needed to do when I passed on my way from Rwanda to Uganda. But apparently, I did not. I was meant to declare my car with customs on the way through. It would have been nice if the Rwandan police, with whom I registered my car with on my way out, would have mentioned this. The men on the Ugandan side delighted in torturing me with a threat of a 1 million shilling penalty fee (~$500 USD). I lost my temper and scolded them for being so mean (they were laughing at me, being very aggressive about the error, even though I apologized). I knew that they didn’t have to fine me for not going through customs and that they were just enjoying rattling my cage with the threat and it was really infuriating. In the end, one of the guys must have felt bad for me as I was on the verge of tears and he let me go with a warning. Anyway, lesson learned.
Despite the border problems, it was an amazing trip and I’m glad I impulsively went to Uganda!
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