Enjojo

Today, we're heading further into Queen Elizabeth National Park. Before we go, it's time to pay Peter for the previous night's camping. We expect to pay 17,000 Ugandan Shillings, but he charges us 18,000. It's no big deal- 1000 shilling is about 25 Euro cents, so I add a tip on top to make it an even 20,000. As we pack away our tents, I speak to Bas who tells me that he was asked to pay 17,000, but gave 18,000 to include a tip. It seems that Peter might be inflating his prices. I feel slightly annoyed, but looking round at the dilapidated, half-built lodge, I figure they need all the help they can get.

Onwards! Today we're heading to Enjojo Lodge, which comes highly recommended by the guide book. Being a western-owned lodge, the prices are much higher- whack an extra zero onto the Kisenyi price and you'll get close to what we paid. And that's for camping. Still, the lodge is nice, with a pleasant bar area overlooking a small section of the park with a waterhole a hundred metres away. Once again, we're promised elephants.

Unfortunately, it turns out that we can't enjoy the bar, as they need to do renovations, so we're ushered away. We explain that we'd like to do our laundry- we're getting pretty smelly and this is a fancy place- and we're invited to the staff quarters, tucked away out of sight from the main lodge.

After hanging up the laundry, it's time for us to make a big decision: to gorilla or not to gorilla. The main issue we have is our budget- we're on a $50 p/d backpacking budget, and the gorilla permits are $600. EACH. On the other hand, when else will we see gorillas? We're unlikely to return to Uganda, and even if we do, the permits increase in price every year. We decide to go for it, justifying it as a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Finding a number for the Ugandan Wildlife Authority, we call it. Honestly, we're expecting them to say that they've run out of permits, since the guidebooks all tell you to book months in advance. However, the man on the phone tells us that we can get permits! But- only in Kampala, about 2 days drive from here. We only have the car for a few more days, so it just isn't possible. Dejected, we take it as a sign that it's not meant to be, and opt against the gorillas.

That evening, we settle down for a nice lodge meal. It always feels a bit decadent eating western food, especially since Ugandan food is generally good and cheap (Rolexes are still Chris' favourite food). But, sometimes it's nice to treat ourselves. We enjoy the meal, unlike an older Kiwi woman next to us. When the waiter comes to take away her mostly-untouched plate- he asks if everything was alright. She explains to him that she "wasn't particularly excited by it". We wince, and make an extra effort to tell the staff how mcuh we enjoyed our food.

Our post-dinner drinks are cut short by a huge swarm of bugs that descends upon in an instant. From nowhere, the air turns thick with flying insects, so dense that it's impossible to bat them away from your face, as more will just take their place. It's taken as a queue for bedtime, and the staff call the guests' escorts in. They are Ugandan military, armed with AK-47s and dressed in camouflage. It's a little strange to be taken back to our tent by machine-gun-wielding soldiers, whilst trying to keep our mouths (and noses, and eyes, and ears) free of bugs.Read more