Both Kenya and Uganda have a plastic bag ban. In Kenya the ban is complete. In Uganda the bags must be a certain thickness. The practical upshot for tourists is that you aren't allowed to bring plastic bags into either country and you will face an unspecified penalty if you do. It also means that if you buy groceries they are likely to be packaged for in a cardboard box. Weirdly, milk is sold in plastic bags.
Shopping is not a recreational pursuit here. Most shops are small with a clerk and the merchandise behind a metal grid or plexiglass. You ask for what you want and it is retrieved for you. It is an admirably efficient system.
Traffic in Nairobi and Kampala is legendarily dense. Among the smog filled motorcycle infested spaces between cars several merchants stroll selling gum, beverages, snacks, housewares, party favors, board games and home decor items like paintings and objets d'art. My favorite was a wood and metal model sailing ship that was over four feet long.
No matter what the culture or country, one universal truth seems to apply: Motorcyclists are recklessly insane.
The weather when I was there was mild and pleasant.It was usually in the mid 70's to 80's (F). Nights in the highlands could be a little chilly (somewhere around 45-50 F). March marked the beginning of the rainy season which meant about an hour or two worth of steady rain a day followed by pleasant weather.
Laundry is all hand washed and line dried. Never send your laundry out during rainy season if you intend to leave the next day.
In Amboseli I went on an evening walk with a young Masai warrior. I encountered giraffes, eland Thomson's gazelle and plenty of birds. At one point we were looking at tracks. I was pleased with how many I could identify. The guide pointed out a dusty patch of ground. "Elephant" he said. Sure enough, there were a row of circular, garbage can lid sized impressions in the dust. These passed within twenty feet of the fence to my camp.
In Masai Mara, I technically crossed the border into Tanzania.
Excerpt from my journal in it's entirety:
Kampala: Day XX
I had too much to drink.
Bigodi Swamp is a lush and lovely jungle that is responsible for the vast majority of my monkey sightings, including my first encounter with black and white colobus, who spring from tree to tree like acrobats and look like cantankerous old men.The path is boardwalk in the muddier places and I was shown around by a young guide in gumboots with a tendency to read from an internal script and a sharp eye for the local wildlife. The papyrus was so thick that I needed to be told that I was in the center of the swamp.
The Rwenzori Mountains cradle western Uganda like a bowl. Any tour guide will tell you under the slightest provocation that they are also called "The Mountains of the Moon" To see them rise mist-like on the horizon, it is not hard to see why.
Upon arriving in the Chimpanzee Guest House, I was given a warm towel and a refreshing glass of juice. While they checked to see if my bungalow was prepared, I was left alone in a comfortable lounge area. As I sat sipping my juice, five or six lesser striped swallows perched chattering on the windowsill and peered in, evidently commenting on the new arrival. Someone came into the room and they flew off.
In Nairobi National Park we found a pair of male lions lazing under the shade of a palm. We drove closer to get a better view. My friend leaned out the car window to get a better shot. The lion stood up and started padding in our direction. You wouldn't think you can control the speed that automatic windows roll up, but it's apparently possible. The lions stood next to the vehicle about six feet from the door and looking in the other direction completely apathetic to the car and its contents. It was an exhilarating encounter.
Near the Ivory Burning Site, a solemn ecological monument consisting of a statue and plaque on a plinth and three staggeringly large piles of ash, I stopped to use the restroom. There a common bulbul was drinking out of the dripping spigot. He allowed me to approach quite close and take pictures, but try as I might, I could not take a photo of him drinking. The bird was content to refresh himself right up until the moment my finger touched the shutter.
Shopping is not a recreational pursuit here. Most shops are small with a clerk and the merchandise behind a metal grid or plexiglass. You ask for what you want and it is retrieved for you. It is an admirably efficient system.
Traffic in Nairobi and Kampala is legendarily dense. Among the smog filled motorcycle infested spaces between cars several merchants stroll selling gum, beverages, snacks, housewares, party favors, board games and home decor items like paintings and objets d'art. My favorite was a wood and metal model sailing ship that was over four feet long.
No matter what the culture or country, one universal truth seems to apply: Motorcyclists are recklessly insane.
The weather when I was there was mild and pleasant.It was usually in the mid 70's to 80's (F). Nights in the highlands could be a little chilly (somewhere around 45-50 F). March marked the beginning of the rainy season which meant about an hour or two worth of steady rain a day followed by pleasant weather.
Laundry is all hand washed and line dried. Never send your laundry out during rainy season if you intend to leave the next day.
In Amboseli I went on an evening walk with a young Masai warrior. I encountered giraffes, eland Thomson's gazelle and plenty of birds. At one point we were looking at tracks. I was pleased with how many I could identify. The guide pointed out a dusty patch of ground. "Elephant" he said. Sure enough, there were a row of circular, garbage can lid sized impressions in the dust. These passed within twenty feet of the fence to my camp.
In Masai Mara, I technically crossed the border into Tanzania.
Excerpt from my journal in it's entirety:
Kampala: Day XX
I had too much to drink.
Bigodi Swamp is a lush and lovely jungle that is responsible for the vast majority of my monkey sightings, including my first encounter with black and white colobus, who spring from tree to tree like acrobats and look like cantankerous old men.The path is boardwalk in the muddier places and I was shown around by a young guide in gumboots with a tendency to read from an internal script and a sharp eye for the local wildlife. The papyrus was so thick that I needed to be told that I was in the center of the swamp.
The Rwenzori Mountains cradle western Uganda like a bowl. Any tour guide will tell you under the slightest provocation that they are also called "The Mountains of the Moon" To see them rise mist-like on the horizon, it is not hard to see why.
Upon arriving in the Chimpanzee Guest House, I was given a warm towel and a refreshing glass of juice. While they checked to see if my bungalow was prepared, I was left alone in a comfortable lounge area. As I sat sipping my juice, five or six lesser striped swallows perched chattering on the windowsill and peered in, evidently commenting on the new arrival. Someone came into the room and they flew off.
In Nairobi National Park we found a pair of male lions lazing under the shade of a palm. We drove closer to get a better view. My friend leaned out the car window to get a better shot. The lion stood up and started padding in our direction. You wouldn't think you can control the speed that automatic windows roll up, but it's apparently possible. The lions stood next to the vehicle about six feet from the door and looking in the other direction completely apathetic to the car and its contents. It was an exhilarating encounter.
Near the Ivory Burning Site, a solemn ecological monument consisting of a statue and plaque on a plinth and three staggeringly large piles of ash, I stopped to use the restroom. There a common bulbul was drinking out of the dripping spigot. He allowed me to approach quite close and take pictures, but try as I might, I could not take a photo of him drinking. The bird was content to refresh himself right up until the moment my finger touched the shutter.
Comments
Post a Comment