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Uganda
  • Aneesa Glines
February 2023

Uganda

A 15-day adventure by Aneesa Read more
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  • Trip start
    February 5, 2023
  • Aneesa GlinesUgandaTraveler

    Checked In!

    February 5, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ -1 °C

    ✅ Uganda Visa
    ✅ Yellow Fever Shot Card
    ✅ Covid Vaccine Card
    ✅ Passport
    Ready to go ✈️

  • Aneesa GlinesUgandaTraveler

    Take off to Amsterdam ✈️

    February 5, 2023 in the United States

    My dear friend who is a sleep doctor (shout out to https://www.thinksleep.org ❤️) helped create a sleep plan for us to avoid jet lag! So although my bedtime is normally midnight (or later 😬) we are winding down now to sleep on this flight to get adjusted! We were lucky the row in front of us was empty so Lisa and I both have a row to ourselves 🙏🏽 I came prepared with a blanket (thank you Bethany!), my inflatable beach pillow, noise cancelling air phones, and sleep mask. Wish us luck!!Read more

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    1

    Arrived Safely!

    February 7, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌩️ 19 °C

    For a 27 hour travel day, the trip truly couldn’t have been smoother!
    Raleigh ➡️ NYC
    NYC ➡️ Amsterdam
    Amsterdam ➡️ Rwanda (stayed on the flight)
    Rwanda ➡️ Uganda 🎉

    We watched movies, played games, read, ate many meals and followed our sleep plan (including drinking lots of water). Our kind driver Issac picked us up from the airport and taught us about the geography, culture, food and even some basic words our whole drive. It’s now 1am here and we have checked into our beautiful hotel and are off to bed!Read more

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    4

    Breakfast!

    February 7, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We successfully avoided the jet lag and made it up in time for the breakfast! Lisa woke up at 7am to the sound of the birds and I got a few more hours of sleep 😉 We made our way down and got to see our beautiful hotel in the day light! The staff is exceptionally hospitable and their smiles are so bright. They had a delicious breakfast buffet filled with fresh juices, fruits, made to order omelets and delicious Indian and Ugandan food. Our favorites were the potatoes and fresh passion fruit juice. We both feel grateful for our seamless travel and ideal travel companion ❤️Read more

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    Meeting Godfrey

    February 7, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    We connected with our wonderful driver and tour guide, Godfrey! He asked us all about our hopes for the trip, the animals we wanted to see, any concerns we had and put us right at ease. I am most excited to see monkeys, chimpanzees, and elephants! Lisa is most excited to see birds and a baby elephant :) We depart tomorrow at 7am to head to the top of Murchison Falls!Read more

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    2

    Baha’i House of Worship

    February 7, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌩️ 19 °C

    One of the main reasons we picked Uganda for this trip was for the opportunity to visit the Baha’i House of Worship in Kampala! We are both members of the Baha’i faith and share a dream of visiting all 8 Houses of Worship (1 on every continent + 1 in Samoa for the Pacific). Today we had the JOY of visiting it (for the first time) and pictures didn’t (and can’t!) do it justice. The highlight though was meeting the sweet Baha’i youth volunteering who welcomed us. They were thrilled to hear we were Baha’is from America and even taught us a proper Ugandan handshake, my favorite photo so far. ❤️ We said prayers for every single one of you in the Temple and at the resting site of some very special Ugandan Baha’is, including Enoch Olinga. Although the House of Worship was closed indoors for renovations (should be open for our visit next week) they still allowed us inside which was extra special as we had it all to ourselves!! Richard was our tour guide and a favorite moment was showing him a sweet photo of himself laughing! We came back to Kabria Country Club (our hotel), Lisa did some laps in the pool (while I stayed warm under the towels lol), we did a quick steam, and then attempted to get to-go food but they refused to let me carry it to my room by myself. 😂Read more

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    Leaving Kampala

    February 8, 2023 in Uganda

    The days keep getting fuller and fuller. It’s 10pm here and this morning literally feels like 3 days ago 😂 Breaking the day into multiple parts so you don’t have too long of an essay to read!

    We woke up early to begin our journey out of Kampala to our first National Park, Murchison Falls. Words can’t express the kindness of the Ugandan people. It’s truly unlike anything we have ever experienced and we witnessed it in big and small ways all day long. The first was our waiter Mohammad who we told we had an early morning the day before and already had a to-go breakfast packed with 2 cups of our favorite juice, passion fruit juice! We had a few minutes to enjoy some hot items from the buffet and we loved the fresh made omelets as well as the Indian offerings since the owner of the hotel was Indian!

    We began the drive and it was our first time truly seeing the beauty of Uganda! We drove for hours in almost silence, soaking in the lush vegetation, rolling hillsides, animals, but most of all, the people. A few observations:
    - Every village/community we drove through had a main market area where the community members could locally purchase the supplies to meet all their basic needs- water, fresh fruit, eggs, meat, clothing, even bed frames and mattresses. We witnessed thousands of small businesses run by families in just a few hours.
    - The children!! Children always have our hearts but these cutie pies are next level. We watched them not only joyfully playing together but also as an integral part of their families and community. From running the family business, to helping to carry groceries. And if they were too little to help, they were strapped to moms back in a beautiful fabric taking a nap.
    - The clothing! The women dress in long gowns equivalent only to the way we dress for weddings. Definitely not how we dress for day to day activities and absolutely not for heavy labor in the heat. They looked simply stunning, the fabrics and colors were to die for and I am in awe of their ability to look so stunning while working tirelessly.
    - Work Ethic: Don’t even know how to sum this up but wow did my image of what “hard work” can look like take on new meaning. From pushing a Boda boda (motorbike) up a steep hill while balancing at least 10 dozen eggs on the back to hand tending their farms in the heat of the day. The photo of the truck was at least 20 people and all their supplies loaded in the massive truck bed (?) to drive their items to market. As soon as I snapped the photo they began smiling and waving at us :)
    - Sense of Community: It’s immediately apparent that they way Ugandans view being part of a community is how we wish the world did!! We saw countless acts of selflessness and community members supporting friends and strangers alike. When our driver needed directions, he stepped out of the car, flagged down a civilian on a Boda Boda, asked for help and he then drove in front of us and lead us to where we needed to go. When a women dropped a large bag of coffee beans in the road, community members instantly all got on their hands and knees to pick up every last bean.

    I’m running on just a few hours of sleep so sorry this isn’t as eloquent as I wish and I can’t find the right words. But overall, we are deeply moved by the hearts of the Ugandan people and the way they treat everyone who crosses their path.

    Photo Disclaimer: I didn’t get as many good photos of the drive because a) things were flying by fast and b) I was soaking it all in! But in general whenever you see a closeup of a person we have asked their permission and they have joyfully accepted. They have told us that Ugandans love their photo being taken and almost every person has asked me to text the photo to them. ❤️    Read more

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    1

    Arriving in Murchison

    February 8, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    After over 4 hours of driving, we finally reached the National Park! We checked in and began looking out for animals despite being in the part of the park with too thick of vegetation to see through 😂 #eagerbeavers

    Not too long in, we spotted our first animal- a family of baboons!! We were ecstatic!

    Not shortly after, our driver’s car began to have issues and eventually the engine stopped working. We pulled over on the side of the road, he assessed the situation, and we remained calm and used it as an opportunity to practice using our binoculars for birds lol. Unfortunately due to our location, he was struggling to get good reception and find a mechanic close by. Godfrey was so committed to our safety and experience that he began flagging cars down trying to find us a safe ride (we were just 20 min from our lodge) and immediately found us the perfect pair! It was two gentlemen who worked for the Uganda Wildlife Organization (the National Park) who happened to be in between meetings in the park. When we got in their response to our gratitude was “oh we wouldn’t dream of not helping you, we can’t allow that!” 😭 We became quick friends, got some great tips about the park, saw a Kob (like a prettier deer) and arrived at our lodge safely. We were greeted by a monkey (my favorite animal) in the tree right next to our car and a cold cup of delicious passion fruit juice from our new friend, Immaculate. The kind gentlemen carried our suitcases (on their heads) up the road to our home for the next 3 nights. We instantly fell in love with Murchison River Lodge, as we knew we would!! We headed to a *delicious* lunch overlooking the Nile, surrounded by all sorts lizards, birds, and could hear the hippos in the water.

    !!Update to the Story!!: We later learned that he person who gave us a ride was the warden of the park, a very high up position. He texted us every day to ensure we were ok and we sent rave reviews about our safari ranger, Issac. The next day when he got in the car he was grinning from ear to ear and said “I can’t tell you how much it meant you sent a glowing review to my boss!”. At the time, we still didn’t know it was his boss but were thrilled to know what an impact it made on him.    Read more

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    Visting the Community

    February 8, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

    We selected Murchison River Lodge as our accommodations for many reasons- their glowing reviews, their location, the beautiful accommodations. But the thing that stood out to us the most was their mission behind the business. A quick excerpt from the website: “Sustainable conservation combined with the empowerment of the local community is something Murchison River Lodge has, in recent years, spent time focusing on. We offer staff training programs, host a women’s group, work closely with the Ugandan Wildlife Authority and the Ugandan Conservation Foundation and promote local businesses. Never has it been more important to be aware of our impact on the world than now.” They also offer the option to visit the local community and efforts to guests staying at the lodge and you KNOW we said yes!

    We specifically requested to join the women’s group whose purpose struck a chord with us. It is a program for young mothers who have not be afforded the opportunity to go to school. They focus on learning English (reading and writing), math and practical skills (such as sewing) that would open so many doors for them. We quickly ate lunch and rushed off to meet them! When we arrived they stood and began singing a welcoming song and Lisa and I were instantly in tears. We spent almost an hour practicing English together- the months, days of the week, sight reading words, basic greetings (which Lisa acted out with them) and each participant even sang the alphabet song and we all applauded them. Talk about a music teacher and a speech pathologists dream day?!

    Then our friend Immaculate who leads the program asked them each to share their motivation for being a part of the group/learning and translated their answers for us. We all were in tears as they opened up and shared the most moving and inspiration reasons they want to learn. We then got to share words of encouragement that were translated back to them. English is the official language of Uganda it is comprised of over 20 different tribes, each with their own language, so learning English for these women can truly transform their lives and the lives of their children. Just a few examples:
    - In order to advocate for themselves and their children at a hospital.
    - In order to know what their child’s teacher is saying to them.
    - In order to make a living to support her 8 children after their husband past away.
    - In order to run a business and not be taken advantage of.
    - In order to support their extended family and their community.

    What an experience this was. We were deeply inspired by their desire to learn, resilience in the face of hardship and their support of one another. It reoriented my own thoughts around the opportunities for education I and so many Americans have been fortunate to have.

    As we closed, they expressed their gratitude that we came to join them and for the encouragement with many rounds of applause, hugs and their radiant faces. Lisa brought a box of Girl Scout cookies to share and we closed with a group photo ❤️ It was an experience we will never forget.    Read more

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    Ended the Day in Paradise!

    February 8, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌙 28 °C

    We were already on cloud 9 and then the day came to the PERFECT end!! As you know, my favorite animals are monkeys. We came to cool down in the pool and one of the guests says “did you see the monkey?!” to which I feel out and start recording the monkey. Then I saw a 2nd… 3rd… 4th… and before I knew it I was surrounded by 20 monkeys! Lisa enjoyed them but from a safe(r) distance 😂 We swam in the pool with the monkeys all around us while watching the sun set. What a DREAM! We made our way up to the watch tower to catch the full sunset just in time. As beautiful as the photos are, they don’t even begin to do it justice!

    Our driver was able to get the car fixed and joined us for a delicious dinner 🙏🏽. We don’t have much wifi here so if we don’t respond to messages or calls during the day, don’t be alarmed! Off to bed now to wake up early for our first day of Safari 🎉🎉🎉    Read more

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    Our First Safari!

    February 9, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    There is no way to write a short summary of this so I just have to give you the play by play 😂 I was taking all the best photos on my camera but these are just my phone photos. Will share the real ones when I get back!

    - 6:00am We left the hotel to begin! The morning is the best time since it’s still cool and the animals are waking up and on the move :)
    - 6:30 First spotting a rabbit who served as our good luck charm because seconds later we spotted a giraffe walking right next to us!
    - 6:45 As we approached the park we picked up our ranger guide Savior (pronounced Sevia) who despite the time was already filled with joy and his passion for the animals was immediately apparent. The reasons for having a ranger in your car are: the knowledge of the park (driving directions and popular animal locations), your safety (they carry a gun that they would fire into the sky to scare the animal if ever you were unsafe) and their communications with all the other rangers (when someone spots something good, they alert the others).
    - 7:00 We reached the start of the game drive and as the sun began to rise, saw our first field of kobs, oribi and buffalo
    - 7:20 Our guide told the driver to stop because he spotted one of the kobs “producing”. We didn’t understand what we meant until we looked over and saw she was in labor! We could see the head was already out and stayed and watched the entire delivery with dad nearby protecting them from predators. It was a surreal way to begin the day and we came back later to check on them and saw the baby taking it’s first steps and nursing. One thing that made it even more significant was after Savior working there for 8 years it was his first time seeing a kob give birth.
    - 7:36 Savior got a text and we started driving quickly, not knowing where we were headed. We arrived at the spot and saw the 2 hardest animals to find- a lion and a leopard. They were far so we couldn’t get a good photo but we were so excited and completely content thinking that was as close as we get. Only to drive a few more feet forward and find 4 lionesses lying 10 feet from our car.
    - 8:00 We began driving again and pulled out our breakfast to enjoy along the way. Our favorite was the Spanish omelet rolled in a chapati. The lodge so thoughtfully packs you breakfast and coffee to go since people leave so early to catch the animals before it’s too hot! We witnessed our first graiffe in full day light cross the road right in front of us.
    - 8:40 Savior knew where a lion cub may be based on their location the night before and he was right!! All on our own (no other cars around) we got to witness a baby cub and his older cousin. We learned that during the night the lions separate for hunting and his older cousin was keeping him safe until he reunited with his mom.
    - 9:30 We enjoyed a peaceful drive spitting some smaller animals and birds and arrived at the spot on the delta of the Nile where you can get out to stretch your legs and use the restroom. We poured some coffee and got to enjoy it with the warthogs, something we never dreamed of 😂 Lisa (who loves birds) and Savior spotted a stunning Madagascar Bee-eater bird in the tree! I purchased the “Wildlife of East Africa” book and we enjoyed checking the animals off as we saw them!
    - 10:15 Back on the road, we began seeing tens of giraffe at a time. It was magnificent. Pretty much at all times you can see the Uganda Kob’s and oribi. So even though rangers describe that as “nothing”, it’s really something!
    - 11:15 Lisa and I both adore elephants and coming across our first elephant we were in awe. The first few were far away at the edge of the Nile but within minutes, we had one right outside our window! We began counting out of excitement she quickly went from seeing our first to seeing 36!!
    - 12:00 Game drives are supposed to be 3-4 hours, we were lucky to stay out for 5! We rushed back to the hotel for a quick lunch, changed and got ready for our next activity :)    Read more

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    Safari Boat Cruise!

    February 9, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    At 2pm we went on a River Safari down the Nile! It was slow paced and incredibly relaxing. We rode 1.5 hours to the base of the Falls (our first view of the Falls) and then 1.5 hours back. Over the course we saw over 100 elephants, 100 hippos (the “rocks of the Nile lol), 2 Nile Crocodiles, and a gazillion birds. Lisa stood at the front of the boat using her amazing binoculars to get a good look at all the birds and even helping fellow passengers get a look as well :) Her favorites were the red throated Bee-eater, 3 varieties of King Fishers and the majestic African Fish Eagle. It was a blessing the wifi wasn’t working as it got us to bed by ten. We were extremely grateful but exhausted from our full, glorious day and got some good rest in order to be in the car by 6am once again.Read more

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    Chimpanzee Trekking!!!

    February 10, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌩️ 24 °C

    Despite not being a morning person, it took me no time at all to hop out of bed for my dream come true “birthday adventure”- chimpanzee trekking in the Budongo forest!! For every activity we assumed we would be with others but continued to be gleefully surprised that we had a guide (and the animals!) all to ourselves. We headed out to the trail at 8am and by 8:40 saw our first chimp! He was right in front of us on the path and began walking towards us. Instantly my eyes filled with tears as chimps and monkeys of all kind have forever held a special place in my heart. My elementary school self who wrote papers on Jane Goodall and dressed up as her for “wax museum day” couldn’t have believed that one day I would be in one of the exact forests that Jane was! Over the course of the 3 hours we saw 20 chimps, our guide was so pleased as that’s not always the case. One of the most moving parts was seeing the rangers love for the chimps. James was so committed to giving us the best experience possible, and that he did! He knew everyone by name, could tell us their story and even predict/explain their behavior. Some highlights:
    - The variety of settings we saw them in: seated on the ground, walking on the ground, seated in the trees, swinging in the trees, eating, calling to one another to meet up, scaring another male away, grooming one another- even mating!
    - Our favorite 3 who we spent a lot of time with were Jan, Jacko and Brave. Jan (named after his birth month January) lost his mother at a young age and was raised by Jacko. Jacko is older and feels especially comfortable around humans so would allow us to get close. At one point I was filming him and he started walking right towards me. James could see my fear but said “keep filming, don’t move, you are safe” and Jacko walked right around the other side of the tree I was behind. What a thrill!! Video attached :)
    - At one time Jacko and one named Brave were grooming each other and we got to just sit and watch, it was magical! Brave got his name because a while back he was caught in a snare trap and was able to escape but the trap was still on his arm. They are working tirelessly to prevent poachers/those trying to harm the animals but a few still get through. Brave hid from the rangers out of fear but they knew he would continue to be in pain as long as it was on him. They were able to soon find him, tranquilize him, the doctor (who they have on staff) removed the snare and wrapped his hand. They placed him leaning against a tree and when he woke up he looked at his bandaged arm, leaned it against the ground to test that he was no longer in pain, looked at the rangers and nodded his head in appreciation towards them. Woof, I tear up just thinking of it! So now even though he prefers his distance from humans (understandably!) they named him Brave for his courage.
    - When we asked James (our guide) how he got into this career he shared that when he was a young child his dad worked for the forestry clearing trails and he and his siblings would help his father. He said that he often wouldn’t do a good job because he would get distracted looking at the butterflies and birds, begging to learn their calls. Then when he was 12 years old he joined his school “Wildlife Club” where they would explore nature. When he learned Lisa’s love of birds, his eyes were bright and he made sure to include them as part of the walk. Within minutes of starting the trek, he was making bird calls with his mouth and using an app on his phone, even telling us to wait on the path while he went into the woods to encourage them to move towards our path.    Read more

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    2

    Top of the Falls

    February 10, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌩️ 36 °C

    Murchison Falls is known for the spectacular falls! It is the most powerful waterfall in Uganda and second largest in Africa. From the boat cruise we saw it from the bottom but this time we saw the top it begins from! At every viewing point there is a stunning rainbow made by the reflection of the light in the water droplets as they spray up against the rocks. It even gave us a nice shower to cool down from our trek!

    The entire day I was also on the hunt for the Black and White Colobus Monkey (another one of my favs) and our driver Godfrey knew how much it meant to me! He was searching for it all day long and spotted it from the road!! I could have watched them swinging through the trees for hours. I was on cloud 9 :)

    We made our way back to lodge, had an hour to eat and refresh (Lisa says thank God for Yoga Nidra 😂) and headed back out for our last game drive in Murchison Falls!    Read more

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    2

    Colobus Swinging in the Trees!

    February 10, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌩️ 28 °C

    Sound off if you don’t like high pitch noises… not the monkeys, it’s me 😂

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    Evening Game Drive- Lions!!

    February 10, 2023 in Uganda ⋅ 🌩️ 29 °C

    As we drove across the bridge to pick up Savior (our ranger/guide), we saw elephants on the Nile with 2 adorable babies- Lisa’s favorite! Savior hopped in the car and it felt like we were reunited with an old friend. It’s been so refreshing to be surrounded entirely by people who are filled with passion and joy for what they do! You can’t help but love every minute of every day. We made our way to a different part of the expansive Savannah grasslands, which was filled with Giraffe, Oribi, Uganda Kob, Antelopes, Warthogs, Water Bucks, Buffalo, Birds and more. But this time since we had already seen the hard to find animals (lions, leopards) we were driving slowly, standing on the seats with our heads out of the sunroof soaking in the warm breeze and sunset. Suddenly, Savior got a call from Sarah (another ranger) that she had spotted. We were at least 20 minutes away she and her car of tourists kindly waited for us to point them out. There is no way we would have seen them in the tall grass! We pulled right up (uncomfortably close) and in front of us were 2 mothers who had brought back a fresh kill for their 3 lion cubs (only 1 year old). You wouldn’t have thought they were cubs by how large they were but our ranger was thrilled to see how healthy they were, thanks to their moms being incredible hunters. We got so close I was almost frozen in fear and asked Godfrey (our driver) to please close all the windows. But he and Savior laughed, assured me there was no way they would attack us and encouraged
    me to stand up, be confident and start taking photos!! This was a once in a lifetime opportunity! I (sweatily) did as I was told and with my heart pounding, snapped away! And boy am I glad I did :) We spent at least 30 minutes with them, what a treat. The Sun had set and it started getting dark so we began our journey home to the lodge. On the way out, we saw our third Hyena! Lisa is officially the ambassador of changing the reputation of hyenas because they are actually quite beautiful in person, especially the spotted fur! We enjoyed our final dinner at Murchison River Lodge with beautiful live music from some local musicians in the background. Just another way MRL is continually supporting the local community! We can’t recommend staying at MRL enough :)    Read more

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    Final Breakfast at Murchison River Lodge

    February 11, 2023 in Uganda

    We attempted to sleep in but the excitement for another day couldn’t keep us in bed long! We enjoyed our first (since we always took it to go) and final delicious breakfast at the lodge. We were lucky to be joined by the hotel manager! We expressed our gratitude, learned more about her story (she has spent decades as an international tour guide) and connected in our shared belief about the oneness of mankind. Saying goodbye to the hotel staff felt like leaving lifelong friends, it’s hard to believe we only met each other just 3 days ago.

    We promised every person we met (guides, rangers, hotel staff, community members) we would encourage everyone we know to come and visit!!    Read more

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    Rhinos!!

    February 11, 2023 in Uganda

    On the way back to Kampala from Murchison Falls (pronounced mock-shin the locals have taught us) we made a very special stop! Sadly, rhinos became extinct in Uganda in 1983. In 2005, concerned citizens and advocates came together to create the Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary. They were gifted 4 rhinos from Kenya in 2005 to begin the reintroduction process. In 2006, Disney gifted 2 rhinos from Animal Kingdom and “out of the love” (as our guide told us 😂) of 1 of the rhinos from Kenya and 1 from Animal Kingdom, the first baby rhino was born in 2009! It was named… Barack Obama ❤️ Through their efforts, the sanctuary is now home to 37 rhinos! In the next years once they reach 45-50, they will transport 15-20 of them back into Murchison Falls National Park! Rhinos will officially be back where they belong in Uganda 🎉

    While at the sanctuary, we got to walk around the grounds with our sweet guide James in the hopes of seeing a rhino on the large acreage. Not even 5 minutes in, we spotted our first 2. A few steps later, 2 more! Then a few steps later… the ultimate gift. A baby rhino who was just born 1 week ago!! She wasn’t even named yet so I put in a vote for “Aneesa”, which also happened to be the mother of James so we felt it was the perfect choice lol.

    The guides and rangers work so hard to keep the rhinos safe and healthy! There is an armed guard with every group of rhinos at all times to ensure to citizen harms them. They know their names, ages, relationships, and preferences. The ones we met were:

    1. Sonic back, 7.5 year oldboy (named after the electronic company who donated)
    2. Zawadi, 7 year old boy
    3. Laloyo, mom to Madam
    4. Rhoda, young rhino
    5. Madam, mom to baby rhino, also Laloya’s daughter.
    6. New baby! So the new baby is Madam’s daughter and Laloya’s first grandchild baby    Read more

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    Time with Friends!

    February 12, 2023 in Uganda

    One of the many reasons we chose to visit Uganda was to visit my dear friends Sally, Vesall and their 3 precious boys. Sally and Vesall lived in my NC Baha’i community from a very young age and Sally especially was a huge part of my middle and high school years. She served as a mentor and tutor to myself and I group of friends as we progressed through a program for intellectual and spiritual development! She moved from the Triangle about a decade ago and I literally cried when she left. It was amazing to finally be reunited and get a week of quality time together.

    After a week of Lisa and I traveling on our own, the plan was to spend a week traveling with Sally and the boys. The first night we came to stay with them before heading out the next morning on our first leg of the trip to Jinga where they lived before they moved to Kampala. Unfortunately, they had come down with something and our week together was in question! Sadly, they stayed back the first night so missed Jinga but recovered in time to join us for the rest of the week!

    On Sunday morning, we woke up to their oldest son Faizi, (who is 9 years old) cooking us breakfast!! We also got time to catch up with Vesall since he was (funnily enough) going to be traveling to the US while we were on our adventures. Sally and the 2 youngest boys were still a bit under the weather so Vesall and Faizi took us to the Baha’i House of Worship for their Sunday morning devotional program!

    Beautiful prayers by children and adults were recited and sung in 5+ languages. They had a beautiful choir as well as a large group of youth progressing through the Institute who also sang in moving harmonies directed by a conductor. We were warmly welcomed community and institution members alike- by members of the National and Local Spiritual Assemblies, the Auxiliary Board Member and even one of their Counselors, Nancy Oloro Robarts. It was a special morning and wonderful start to our 2nd week!

    We returned home to a delicious Ugandan meal made by their friend Ruth of homemade beef stew, posho (corn grits) and greens fresh from their garden!    Read more

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    To Jinga with Sam!

    February 12, 2023 in Uganda

    When Sally and the boys were no longer able to join us for our 2 day/1 night trip to Jinga, we had to make an alternative plan. Thankfully our dear friend Paige had already connected us to Sam! Sam owns a travel agency and within just a few hour notice, graciously rearranged his schedule to be able to take us. When we met him it felt like we were meeting an old friend. He took so much care to ensure we were getting the full Ugandan experience from learning phrases to trying new foods to understanding our surroundings. Just a few of our favorite moments and memories:
    - Laughing continuously for morning till evening 😂
    - Learned the phrase TIA “This is Africa” that refers to funny, outrageous things that would only happen. From people using their hands out the windows as blinkers (even where their real one works) to bird watching by toilet!
    - Trying Stoney (a ginger soda), chicken on a stick and roasted plantains which all were delicious!
    - The gorgeous drive through the country side and Mabira Tropical Rainforest. We went through fields of tea, sugar cane and banana trees on either side of us the whole drive!
    - We arrived at our Air BnB that was so remote they had to drop a pin as their wasn’t an address. They even had a guide hop in the car with us to direct us. When he asked us where we from and we said American he responded “beautiful country… from what I see on google!” ❤️ We of course told him how much we loved HIS country!
    - We all agreed the air bnb was one of the most stunning places we had ever been to! It was on a hilltop, overlooking the rapids in the Nile.
    - We made our way to see the source of the Nile, where is begins! Our guide taught us all about how goes from Lake Victoria (where we were) the water then makes its way to the Mediterranean Sea through central and northern Uganda, Sudan and Egypt. It takes the water 3 months to complete this journey of 4,000 miles. The local name is Omugga Kiyiira.
    - A special moment was Lisa teaching Sam how to use binoculars for the first time!
    - One of the prettiest parts of the view was watching the fisherman wade in the water as the sun set.
    - We had dinner at one of Sally’s favorite restaurants, Igar Cafe in the town of Jinga. We shared tasty chicken stew, hot chipati (bread) and a mango smoothie.
    - We ended the night with my first visit to a grocery kiosk. We simply walked in, requested our breakfast supplies and they pulled them from high shelves behind the counter.    Read more

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