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Kampala Capital City

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    • True North TravelsAfrican Adventure
      Day 20

      Kampala and Entebbe

      October 5, 2019 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      After our scary night bus, narrowly missing a huge crash, we safely arrive in Kampala. First impressions? It's much better than Nairobi or Mombasa, but it's still a large sprawling metropolis. We're staying at Five Horsemen, which sits on a steep hillside overlooking an army barracks. The views of the city are great, since the city broadly sits around a bowl-shaped series of hills, which allows for panoramic views from the rooftop bar.

      We head to the royal compound in the heart of Kampala, notorious for its connections to Idi Amin. Our guide tells us the fascinating history of Kampala and Uganda, a story of kingdoms which united to form Uganda, then turned against each other by a succession of tyrannical leaders. The morbid centrepiece of the compound is an underground bunker, ostensibly built by Idi Amin for an arsenal, but turned into a torture chamber. Strangely, since this is still a palace for the Bugandan king, the workers and families still live around the torture chambers.

      After exploring Kampala for a couple of days, we head to the nearby town of Entebbe. To get there, we need to take a minibus. In Uganda, these are simply called taxis, and most of them leave from the Old Taxi Station downtown. We try to get a taxi there, but due to the hustle and bustle, we can't get close enough, so we have to navigate the remaining block on foot. As we get closer to the heart of the taxi station, the lines of minibusses get thicker and thicker. There are thousands of them, parked in this huge open space. At one point, we are forced to take our bags off and squeeze through the narrow gaps between vehicles. It's claustrophobic, and it's amazing how anyone knows which bus to get. Eventually, with some help, we find the right minibus and make the short trip to Entebbe.

      Which turns out to be quite a boring town. It's the site of the airport, so most people just stay here on their way to and from catching a plane. We walk through the National Botanical Gardens, made famous by being featured in one of the earlier Tarzan films. It's easy to understand why such a location was chosen - It's magnificently green with the famous vines found throughout different areas of the garden. We spend as much time as possible here watching a family of monkeys play and soaking up the sun while having a beer overlooking Lake Victoria.

      We then head to the only other attraction in town- a beach on Lake Victoria called "Aero Beach" after all the old planes that are displayed there. It's bizarre- big jumbo jets and fighter planes just parked up next to a beach. We try to walk in and around the planes, but giant orb spiders stand guard, preventing access.

      That afternoon, we head to ViaVia, a hostel on the outskirts of town. It's a dream hostel- built around a small pond which attracts birds and bats, and with fantastic food and drink. We regret not staying here, but resolve to stay at any ViaVia that we find in future.

      Before we leave Entebbe, we stop off for an egg wrap at the Rolex Guy. Rolexes are basically omelettes wrapped in chapattis, but are perhaps one of the best street foods we've ever had. The Rolex Guy makes gourmet ones, adding different cheese or vegetables, and they are stunningly good.      Read more

    • TravelerUganda
      Day 8

      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

    • TravelerKenia 2024
      Day 22

      HE is risen

      March 31 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

      Ostersonntag in Kampala, der Hauptstadt Ugandas. Geplant war ein Ostergottesdienstbesuch bei der South-Sudanese International Christian Fellowship Uganda (warum gerade dorthin, folgt in einem anderen Footprint). Als wir kurz vor 10 Uhr dort waren, erfuhren wir dass es erst in zwei Stunden losgeht. Also rein in die Nachbarkirche, aus der bereits laute Lobpreismusik schallte. Beeindruckend, emotional bewegend - an einem Ostersonntag so Gottesdienst zu feiern: Modern, laut, emotional, herzlich aber auch tiefgehend und ehrlich - manchmal befremdlich, z.B. Zungenrede in wilden Sprachen oder Gestammel. Zwei Stunden, die einem nicht lange vorkamen. Es war ein modernes christliches Afrika, an dem wir teilhaben durften und das Osterwunder erleben durften. Danach noch gute Gespräche, so dass es schon halb eins war bis wir rauskamen.

      Wichtig war uns dann aber der 12:00 Uhr Gottesdienst bei den Südsudanesen. War wie erwartet nicht schlimm, dass wir erst nach halb eins kamen. Dass der zweite Gottesdienst, bei dem geschätzt 300 Menschen in teils traditionellen Gewändern waren, dann nochmals gute drei Stunden dauerte, war dann schon volles geistliches Osterprogramm. Immerhin wir wurden an die VIP-Tische gesetzt, wo immer wieder Trinken und Essen vorbeigebracht wurde. Am Ende durfte Elli sogar von der Mega-Geburtstagstorte was essen, weil sie im März Geburtstag hat.

      Der Ostersonntag heute war schon was ganz besonderes. Mehr dann in einem späteren Footprint. Frohe Ostern!      Read more

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    • TravelerTrans Africa 2019
      Day 27

      Day 27: Back to Kampala

      February 28, 2019 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

      We are now on our way back! This means my first overland truck tour is almost coming to an end 😱 I’m not ready for home AT ALL so any day that passes by scares me a bit.

      Today we went back to Kampala 🇺🇬 - another 10 hours drive. But we get to stay at the nice hotel with air conditioning and hair dryer again 🎉

      Tonight we also had to say goodbye to a few fellow travelers as not all of us are going back to Kenya. This is a bit sad as we have grown so close to each other within the past days. But we will keep in touch, I’m sure!

      You will find some photos I took on the way...      Read more

    • Hello Bike WorldHello Bike World - East Africa
      Day 59

      Soirée avec Norman

      February 5, 2022 in Uganda ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

      Le vrai Norman est super sympa ! Après lui avoir raconté l’histoire de notre arnaque avec son usurpeur d’identité, celui-ci nous a invité pour aller boire un verre en ville. Avant de le rejoindre, nous passons par notre café préféré, appelé Cafesserie (ça sonne moyen en français n’est-ce pas ?). Et nous voyons passer devant nous… Tobias et Mathias, nos bons amis allemands de Jinja ! Le hasard fait bien les choses. Nous finissons par prendre un verre puis nous allons ensemble rejoindre Norman, lui même accompagné de deux amis italo-indo-ougandais. Je teste d’abord l’identité de Norman (on se sait jamais). Une fois tout soupçon dissipé, la soirée peut commencer !

      Nous testons allègrement le « Uganda Waragi », le gin parfait pour les guerriers (c’est comme ça qu’ils le vendent). C’est intéressant les bars ougandais car la musique est tellement forte que personne ne peut s’entendre.

      Vers 1h du matin, nous décidons de changer d’ambiance. Norman a une voiture, nous établissons le record de 9 personnes dans l’équivalent d’une twingo. Heureusement, il ne s’agit que de 5 minutes jusqu’à notre destination. Nous arrivons dans un grand parking d’un Carrefour (oui, le meme qu’en France) et apparemment c’est là que ça se passe. Entre les rangées de voitures se trouve un bar/boîte de nuit extérieur. Nous dansons aussi bien/mal que nous pouvons mais évidemment sans pouvoir égaler le rythme et l’énergie des danseurs locaux, qui semblent inépuisables. Épuisés, nous le devenons aux alentours de 4h. Norman nous reconduit à la maison, lui doit se lever à 7h… Les ougandais semblent être des guerriers de la nuit.      Read more

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    • Vee LEast Africa
      1
      Day 58

      More of Kampala

      February 28, 2016 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      We've been taking it easy in this big ol' capital. We walked over to a place called 1000 cups of coffee yesterday since both Jack and I have been itching for a good latte. So, so rewarding. Along the way was a little craft village with all your typical and repetitive tourist aimed crafts like wooden giraffes, drums and bags. We've decided to keep our shopping for our last stop - Nairobi. Thats hoping we'll find what we want there... You find yourself weighing the pros and cons of having to carry things for another month or not finding them again later.

      Visiting the Mengo Palace and Bulange Royal building gave us a good bit of new knowledge of Ugandan history and their attachement to their tribal history. The monarchs reign over social and cultural issues here, and are incredibly respected by the people. As our guide from yesterday put it, in newspapers here you will find many caricatures of the president, mocking him, but you will never find anyone saying something negative or mocking the kings in Uganda. The Buganda King, based in Kampala, has the largest Kingdom, was given the crown at 16 years old. It is passed on to the son of the Royal families chosing, and can not be given to the first son, unlike your usual royal line.

      Each Ugandan identifies to a tribe and a clan. The clans are all represented by animals or insects and such. It's interesting to hear them introduce themselves - I'm from the Buganda tribe, and the elephant clan. To this day, even the youth, are proud of their clans and follow the tradition (mostly) of never marrying someone from your clan, yet marrying within your tribe. They ask about Canadian clans and tribes. It's hard to justify that I know so little about our First Nations that I can't really contribute to that conversation.

      The visit at Mengo Palace also led us to this old underground torture chamber used by Idi Amin during his time as general commander. They say in the 6 years he used it, over 15000 people were killed here, mostly by the use of electricity run through the body of water kept along the corridor... It was marking.

      We made our afternoon into an art gallery one, quite like in Kigali. Free art galleries, why not. Again, having the money and space for these things, my apartment would look so eclectic and wonderful...

      Topped the night off with a movie - DeadPool! I was so excited! I've been talking about seeing a movie for a while, it's a way of letting go and really relaxing. My mind, which never usually stops working throughout that day, can finally stop and enjoy the movie. I laughed the entire time, loved it. I was probably in an extra good mood since I got to chat my sister thanks to the great Wi-Fi in the mall. It's was therapy of its own to get to hear her voice.

      Last day in Kampala before heading to Jinja for some River rafting... Wish me luck!

      FYI - I didn't elaborate yesterday, but the national mosque was beautiful! It had contributors from around the world, chandeliers from Egypt, carvings from Marrocco, stained glass from Italy... We even got to climb the minaret and had incredible views of the city. Only down side is the coverings they give - made me feel incredibly awkward to have to cover up into a hijjab and skirt... Like Halloween.      Read more

    • Hello Bike WorldHello Bike World - East Africa
      1
      Day 58

      Découverte de Kampala

      February 4, 2022 in Uganda ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

      Quand nous avons passé du temps à Nairobi lors nos vacances en juillet, nous n’avons pas aimé cette ville pour diverses raisons (le trafic routier impossible, l’architecture inintéressante, l’aménagement inexistant et le manque cruel de verdure)

      Nous avions donc un fort à priori négatif sur Kampala, en pensant que cela allait être la même chose. Finalement, nous sommes surpris en bien.

      Nous ne retrouvons pas le caractère étouffant des grands axes en quadrillage de Nairobi. Ici, la ville est construite sur des collines, ce qui limite par nature l’urbanisme et crée de jolies courbes. La végétation est omniprésente. Nous avons même apprécié le bain de foule du grand marché Owino, où rien qu’à l’évocation de ce nom, une personne un tant soit peu agoraphobe ferait une sévère crise d’angoisse. Malgré le caractère grouillant, les gens sont calmes et personne ne nous saute dessus pour nous vendre la plus belle Rolex (la montre cette fois). Nous avons trouvé de bien belles chemises, une paire de lunette de soleil (des Ray-Ban évidemment) et de bien jolis fruits.      Read more

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    • Hello Bike WorldHello Bike World - East Africa
      Day 59

      Un café qui coûte cher

      February 5, 2022 in Uganda ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

      But de la journée : se balader au marché d’Owino pour trouver des petits fruits et légumes, une chemise pour Sarah et des lunettes de soleil pour Robin.

      Nous longeons d’abord l’avenue principale qui mène jusqu’au golf de Kampala. La route est assez agréable à pieds, il y a de larges trottoirs et des croisements avec des feux tricolores décoratifs. Nous croisons quelques ambassades et longeons le golf de Kampala à l’herbe impeccable où joue la haute société ougandaise. Nous arrivons à l’Oasis mall qui accueille un magasin Carrefour. Nous prenons le café.

      Nous payons, Sarah fait un tour aux toilettes, et profitant de son absence, un homme vient s’asseoir en face de moi. Il baragouine quelques mots en anglais et semble me reconnaître. Je lui demande alors si c’est Norman, notre hôte Airbnb qui nous accueille à Kampala que nous n’avons encore jamais vu. Il me répond que oui, Apparemment, il nous a vu rentrer dans le café et nous a reconnu.

      Ensuite il me demande mes premières impressions de Kampala. Je lui réponds que tout va bien, que son appartement nous convient, etc.
      Il enchaîne la discussion en me racontant que sa voiture est tombée en panne, est au garage et qu’il a besoin d’huile de moteur, ou du moins c’est ce que je comprends car il est très difficile à décoder. Je lui dis que je suis désolé pour lui.
      Un blanc dans la discussion…

      Sarah revient. Je lui présente l’homme qui est à notre table. Norman raconte alors à nouveau son histoire d’huile et de voiture. Puis je commence à comprendre qu’il a besoin d’argent.
      - Combien tu as besoin ?
      - 60’000 UGX (equivalent de 15$).
      C’est vraiment bizarre de la part de notre hôte Airbnb de demander de l’argent comme ça, mais je finis par lui donner.
      Il me dit qu’il a besoin de 2’000 UGX de plus pour rentrer à la maison en moto. Je lui donne. Il me dit qu’il me rendra l’argent le soir même. Bon, étrange mais pas la première chose étrange depuis qu’on est arrivé en Afrique de l’Est. Il part.

      La journée passe et la nuit arrive. Une fois arrivés à notre appartement, je recontacte notre cher Norman pour lui réclamer l’argent prêté plus tôt dans la journée. Il me répond qu’il n’est pas au courant de ça.

      Confirmation que Norman n’était pas vraiment Norman.

      Morale de cette histoire : j’aurai du prendre un smoothie à la mangue au lieu d’un milkshake vanille

      Ps : Voici une photo des belles chemises que nous avons trouvées au marché.      Read more

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    • TravelerTrans Africa 2019
      2
      Day 23

      Day 23: Back to Kampala

      February 24, 2019 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

      The day started off very nicely: We went to a rhino sanctuary 🦏🇺🇬. Rhinos were extinct in Uganda, thus, this place is trying to bring the rhinos back to the country...so far white rhinos only.

      We were walking through the sanctuary where the rhinos are running around freely. And we were able to stand right next to them...they are huge and it is an amazing feeling to stand this closely to these creatures 🦏 Again, we were also able to see lots of baby animals (as you know this makes me very happy 😊).

      Then, on our way to Kampala, we stopped to switch cars and quickly we were surrounded by several local children. They were asking for sweets so I gave them my cookies and afterwards we gave them pencils ✏️ and balloons 🎈 They were so happy ... incredibly happy ...

      I’m falling in love with this continent more and more every day ... before I left, some of you were telling me “I bet you are not coming back home after this trip”; well, let’s see 😉💛

      PS: Today I had air conditioning and a hair dryer for the first time in weeks ... heaven ... simply heaven 😂🙏🇺🇬      Read more

    • Jessica GerschwitzGreat Africa Expedition
      Day 6

      Red Chilli Camp

      June 14, 2017 in Uganda ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

      This camp is my favourite by far, it is absolutely beautiful! It has a bar inside as well as beside the pool and really nice facilities (flushing toilets and warm showers) which is a big tick! We all set our tents up, showered, had dinner and then sat at the bar talking until they closed.Read more

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    Kampala Capital City

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