Hashing “the drinking club with a running problem”runs every Monday at 6 pm – Red Dress Run for the Valentine’s Hash, Kampala
But move over Muzungu, Uganda has some awesome running talent: Ugandan long-distance runner Stephen Kiprotich is the reigning World and Olympic marathon champion, having won gold at both the 2012 London Summer Olympics and the 2013 World Championships in Athletics.
Uganda International Marathon Masaka logo
Whether you’re a serious Marathon runner, or just fancy exploring somewhere new for the weekend, the Uganda International Marathon in Masaka may be just what you’re looking for!
Lizzie, from the Uganda International Marathon organising committee writes:
Having already gained support from mainstream media in the UK, the Uganda International Marathon hopes to engage visiting British runners with this beautiful country and simultaneously raise funds for NGOs who work to support the most vulnerable within it.
The inaugural Uganda International Marathon is being held on 24th May 2015. The event will see 100 International runners join 800 Ugandan nationals and expats to run a beautiful course through the rural villages and farmland of Masaka, three hours drive west of the capital of Kampala.
The Uganda International Marathon offers full (42km), half (21km) or 10km routes and participants receive a race number, medal, headscarf and water around the whole course. After the race there will be a party in Masaka’s Liberation Square, open to all, with food and drinks available as well as music and dancing. The brilliant Weaverbird Arts and Sculpture camp will play host to the Athletes Village.
Uganda International Marathon Masaka runners
Our International runners are using the Marathon as a chance to fundraise, an option we strongly encourage expat and local entrants to do too. All money raised will be split between the local community and a charity or cause of your choice, anywhere in the world. This allows people to not only contribute to the local community of Masaka that will be welcoming them, but also to contribute to a cause that’s already close to their heart.
The team behind the Marathon include CHEDRA, an NGO based in Masaka, and several Londoners who have all come together to create the race, which will hopefully become an annual feature in the region.
UK news coverage of Uganda International Marathon Masaka international runners
We hope you can join us for the inaugural Uganda International Marathon, which promises to be ‘a race like no other’.
To register for the Uganda International Marathon, expats and foreign volunteers should buy tickets online here. For details on where / how Ugandan nationals can register (Kampala / Masaka or via Mobile Money) go to my Diary of a Muzungu Facebook page.
View from Weaverbird Arts and Sculpture camp, Masaka, host to the Uganda Marathon’s Athletes Village
Hope to see you all in Masaka!
If you have any friends who you think would be interested in this event, please send them this link and follow the updates on Twitter and Facebook.
Lakeside Adventure Park is unique: there is nowhere quite like it in Uganda. The park offers state-of-the-art adventure and climbing activities, with a highly professional support team in a peaceful setting next to the lake. It’s brilliant fun too – as Kampala House Harriers were to discover …
Flying Hashers! High wire fun at Lakeside Adventure Park, a great day out from Kampala
Activities available at Lakeside Adventure Park include an assault course, crate-building exercise for team building fun, high wire – rope course – activities on two different levels, volleyball on the beach and Uganda’s highest climbing wall. It’s perfect for a day out from Kampala. It caters very well for groups.
Recently, twenty of us took the Lakeside Adventure Park boat across from Ggaba. The boat can take you directly from Ggaba’s KK Beach to Lakeside (45 minute boat journey). We opted to take the shorter boat crossing to Bole, from Beach House Event Gardens (a nice little local bar behind Ggaba).
Twenty Hash House Harriers jumped on the boat from Ggaba.’Nagawa’s Birthday Hash’ was sponsored by Diary of a Muzungu
We then jumped on boda bodas for a ten minute journey through the Bush to Lakeside. Either way, it’s a very easy journey to Lakeside. (You can even drive there via Mukono)). Once you’re over on the other side, you feel like you’re on an island – you can hardly imagine Kampala is so close.
On a boda boda from Bole to Lakeside Adventure Park – just one of the ways to get there
After a quick look around Lakeside’s facilities, it was time for our reason for being there: the Hash run! What a beautiful part of the world. Ahhhh… I feel so relaxed just remembering the place. I don’t remember passing even one car on our hour-long run. Even boda bodas are few and far between.
There was one very important boda boda on our run, of course: the one carrying the beer for the three beer stops! My favourite beer stop: guess who was waiting for Nagawa? Up in the trees were three Nkima! (Red-tailed Monkeys – the totem for the Nkima clan that Nagawa belongs to).
The Muzungu Nagawa and Nkima, the Red Tailed Monkey. Me and my totem, as painted by the artist Taga www.mytotem.co.ug
I enjoyed my moments watching the monkeys while I waited for the (FRBs) Front Running Bastards to appear from the bushes…
I was quite happy when Kenyan Hasher ‘Golddigga’ took my place on the beer-stop boda – it wasn’t the comfiest of rides!
Boda driver + de Muzungu + beer crate on one boda boda driving over bumpy marram tracks isn’t the most comfortable ride. I was quite happy when Kenyan Hasher ‘Golddigga’ decided that her injured leg needed a rest and she took my place on the beer-stop boda.
Back at Lakeside Adventure Park, the ‘high wire’ ropes course activity operates on two levels.
Our instructor was JB. Feet still firmly on the ground, JB instructed everyone on how to use the safety equipment. No time for fooling around; everyone had to listen in carefully. The health and safety briefing is very important. Used properly, everyone was safe using the equipment. Spectators aren’t allowed to stand underneath any of the high wire activities, either. It was very tempting to stand right underneath someone to take a photo, but I resisted. I didn’t want JB to shout at me!
Unusually attentive Hashers! JB gave everyone a a good safety briefing
The high wire activities combine ropes and pulleys, climbing walls, sections that you sit on and navigate using your upper body. It requires coordination, balance and concentration.
Taking a break between sections of the high wire ropes course at Lakeside Adventure Park
Some of the Hashers opted to continue to the second higher level. The whole activity is quite intense. After a few initial giggles, everyone quietened down. I could sense how people were concentrating.
Machinery hauls himself across a section of the ropes course
Only a couple of people managed the last section; to concentrate hard and maintain that muscle control for a whole hour has to be very demanding. (Note: de Muzungu was too busy taking photos – and recovering from the night before’s birthday celebrations – to participate!)
Imagine organising your colleagues into two teams and racing each other over an assault course? This is what we did on Sunday morning.
We cheered each other on as we scrambled over wooden poles, jumped, climbed, run, swung and raced on our hands and knees over, under and around various wooden obstacles. Brilliant!
Check out more photos of the Lakeside Adventure Park week-end on the Diary of a Muzungu Facebook page.
Assault course at Lakeside Adventure Park. Note de Muzungu‘s full concentration!
As a last bit of fun to end the day, JB split us up into teams and gave us a scenario in which we had to build a temporary shelter from the rain. He gave us 15 minutes.
Fourteen minutes later, feeling proud of our tipi tent of branches and leaves, our team of five sat inside it.
“But will it be rainproof?” He asked us. “Yeah, yeah”” we all shouted, confidently.
“Are you sure?”
A bucket of water appeared from nowhere, permeating the branches and soaking everyone in our shelter.
“Okay, JB, you win!” We laughed, jumping up from the ground.
Clare and I outside our hastily built tipi – before we had the bucket of water chucked at us!
A lot of fun and just one of the teambuilding exercises put together for corporates, schools or just a private party like ours.
We had a brilliant time at Lakeside Adventure Park, from start to finish. The booking process was easy and the team made sure we had everything we wanted. Twenty is quite a small group number; Lakeside can accommodate 55 people (or a few more, with tents) and is a popular venue for corporate and teambuilding events. The whole facility is very well organized. A new kitchen and conference room are being constructed as I write. The dormitory accommodation is excellent. There are two big modern dormitories, one male and one female, each with their own hot showers and toilets. Everyone in our group said what a fantastic time they had.
You don’t actually have to be fit for a lot of these activities, you just have to be up for an adventure! Don’t be too concerned if people laugh at your expense. You will soon be laughing at them too!
For more information, visit Lakeside Adventure Park’s website or contact the Muzungu. We can’t wait to revisit next year. So many Hashers are complaining that they missed out on this unique weekend – let’s hope Lakeside will have us again!
Operation Shoebill: first-hand experience of Uganda’s Big Birding Day annual 24 hour bird race at Mabamba Bay
So why precisely have I got up well before dawn – on a Saturday – to drive for three hours in a cramped minibus to sit in an old boat?
Reason enough to get up very early indeed on a Saturday – what a bird: the Shoebill. Big Birding Day Uganda. PHOTO Ronan Donovan and Wild Frontiers Uganda www.wildfrontiers.co.ug
It’s that time of year again: Uganda’s annual Big Birding Day, a 24-hour contest in which birders compete to see who can rack up the score for the highest number of bird species. The early bird catches the worm… or so they say. (This silly early bird didn’t even remember to catch breakfast, and now I’m sitting hungry in the middle of a huge swamp, miles from anywhere … oh damn you and your insatiable Muzungu appetite for cappuccino…)
On the shores of Lake Victoria about 50 km west of Kampala lie the vast swamps of Mabamba, one of Uganda’s few remaining swamps that are protected by the local communities.
Classified as an Important Bird Area, Mabamba Bay is home to Uganda’s most famous bird: the iconic Shoebill.
Operation Shoebill: first-hand experience of Uganda’s Big Birding Day 24 hour race at Mabamba Bay. PHOTO Charlotte Beauvoisin
Would our Big Birding Day team get lucky and see a Shoebill at Mabamba Bay?
A couple of rickety-looking boats greet us on the edge of Mabamba Swamp. With giggles of excitement, the team’s boats head off into the Papyrus.
Pair of Grey Crowned Cranes. Uganda’s Big Birding Day 24 hour race
A pair of Grey Crowned Cranes (referred to locally in Uganda as Crested Cranes) fly overhead. It’s like a statement: you have officially landed in Uganda’s wetlands. The fabulous Crested Crane adorns Uganda’s national coat of arms and makes its home in the wetlands (or what is left of them).
Our boats are surrounded by vibrant green, dotted with shimmering, purple water lilies, the cool morning mist rising from the crystal-clear waters.
A vibrant blue and orange Malachite Kingfisher poses delicately on a Papyrus stem as our boat pushes through the vegetation.
I spot a Northern Brown-throated Weaver (pale brown with an orange beak) at the base of some reeds. (I can’t say I know exactly what it is, but I’m the first to spot it! You don’t need to be an expert to take part in Big Birding Day; just quickly point out the moving blocks of colour to your more knowledgeable teammates).
The narrow waterways cutting through the swamp allow one, maximum two, narrow boats to pass. Travelling in a low-lying boat means you are at eye-level with so many of the birds at the water’s edge. It’s magic.
Purple Waterlillies contrast beautifully with the abundant lush greenery of the swamp. Uganda’s Big Birding Day. PHOTO Kaj Ostergaard
The narrow labyrinth of channels opens out into a wide freshwater lagoon.
We spot a Yellow-billed Duck in flight, a Squacco Heron amongst the reeds, and several Long-toed Lapwings, just a number of the iconic wetland birds you can see at Mabamba.
As our Shoebill comes into sight, everyone in the boat stands up (precariously tipping the boat to one side of course!)
Shoebill Stork, Mabamba Swamp. Big Birding Day. PHOTO Nick Sausen
The dark grey, funny-looking character stands an impressive five feet tall and stares back at us. A cross between a Stork and a Pelican, this prehistoric-looking bird dines on a menu of lungfish and frogs. Oh yum!(Mabamba is one of many places in Uganda you can see the Shoebill, but arguably the most accessible since it’s a short hop from Entebbe or Kampala. The excellent, mid-range Nkima Forest Lodge is just a few minutes from Mabamba Bay).
A pair of magnificent Blue-breasted Bee-eaters entertain us, while the Shoebill looks on, seriously, just ten or so metres from our boat. The Shoebill moves his head from side to side as our Mabamba guide educates us about this fascinating bird. There are just two or three pairs of Shoebills breeding in Mabamba, all under the watchful eye of the local community.
We look in vain for the Lesser Jacana, to the disappointment of our guide, who has a mental checklist of the birds he has hoped to record for Big Birding Day. Mabamba birds we do spot include Pink-backed Pelican, Saddle-billed Stork, African Fish Eagle, Purple Swamphen, Giant Kingfisher, Swamp Flycatcher and Weynn’s Weaver.
Pied Kingfisher poses on Papyrus, Mabamba Swamp. Big Birding Day
There is no protection from the sun when you are out on the open water. Cue: return to land, for a soda and a chapatti from the local snack stall. Refreshed, and with the Big Birding Day clock ticking, the competitive streak kicks in and the Big Birding Day team marches uphill towards some tall trees. En route we add a Fan-tailed Widowbird to our list.
Leaving Mabamba is a series of smaller Papyrus Swamps where we see locally occurring ‘endemic species’ such as the striking Papyrus Gonolek, White-winged Warbler and Carruther’s Cisticcola.
Our tiny country is home to over 1000 bird species, almost 50% of Africa’s bird species. In addition to the 1000+ resident species, millions of birds migrate across Ugandan skies en route to summer alternately in South Africa and Europe.
Every year families, conservationists and the tourism industry come together to celebrate Uganda’s Big Birding Day, a series of fun conservation events celebrating birds. Young or old, an amateur or a professional ‘twitcher,’ Big Birding Day has something for everyone.
With a score of 114 species identified by the end of Big Birding Day 2013, our Mabamba team ranked a decent 9th out of 73 teams participating nationwide.
Be part of something BIG – Big Birding Day Uganda: a 24 hour birding contest across the country
How can you take part in Big Birding Day?
Expert bird guides from NatureUganda, Uganda Wildlife Authority staff and Uganda Bird Guides Club lead participants in the main event, a 24-hour bird watching contest. Big Birding Day includes free guided nature walks at dozens of sites across Uganda. Uganda Wildlife Authority provide free entry to the country’s National Parks, Wildlife and Forest Reserves on Big Birding Day (provided you register in advance).
Welcome to Diary of a Muzungu! This week’s guest post is by Angela Dempsey, who was so captivated by her first impressions of Uganda that she contacted me to ask if she could share her experience. Here it is.
I felt a tension, a feeling of foreboding, when I saw a hundred-or-so young Ugandan soldiers lining up in the airport to board a bus in the night. I couldn’t help but wonder where the bus would take these young men next and if they would ever return. Perhaps it was just a routine training expedition but in this part of Africa it was hard for me not to jump to the conclusion that it was war.
Clothes drying on the line
Ugandans and their neighboring countries have wrestled against war for decades. Since the 1980s, Ugandans have endured tragic losses caused by the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). In the Acholi region of northern Uganda, where most of the ladies of Aggie’s Arts were born, more than a million people were forced to flee their homes. A large number of those refugees found their way to the south and ended up living in the slums of the capital city of Kampala.
One person I know has likened Kampala to a post-apocalyptic city—like some scene from a sci-fi movie. The roads are paved but there are potholes everywhere. There exists what I term “half-buildings”, abandoned mid-construction, everywhere you turn. The dust of the stripped land of red clay permeates the air and mixes with the pollution of cars and motorcycles to create a hovering cloud over the city. Many of the restaurants, hotels, private residences, schools and churches are surrounded by a 10-foot cement block wall with barbed wire along the top perimeter and have one single-gated entry point with armed guards to ensure no weapons are brought inside. All of this contributes to this surreal sense that you have entered a place that intuitively knows that safety is only a mirage and peace is still a dream.
Woman eating a traditional Ugandan lunch. Aggie’s Arts Uganda
“There is an air of quiet perseverance, kindness and timidity in the Ugandan people that one can only attribute to those who have suffered and survived. This attitude makes you want to help them all the more.”
What really amazed me was the contrast between these surroundings and the people. I observed them as they walked everywhere in their nicely pressed outfits—men in buttoned down shirts and slacks and women in nice dresses with children strapped to their backs. They smile. They work hard. I found Ugandans to be friendly to outsiders when one might expect there to be distrust.
I saw this same attitude in many of our Aggie’s Arts ladies as we visited them in their homes in Banda, a slum outside Kampala.
I was fortunate to be in Banda with the ladies on a Saturday, which is laundry day. There is something about the universal chore of laundry that made me feel immediately connected with their community. They hand washed their few clothes and hung them out in the sun like my grandmother used to do. There was no denying as I walked through this area of the world that life is very, very hard here.
Ugandan kids have the best smiles!
Children are everywhere I walk.
They gaze at me with dark, curious eyes. Many of them called out “Muzungu!” (the name of anyone who has white skin) and they want to shake my hand and say “good morning.” I see a small group of children playing soccer (football) and I think of my nine-year old daughter who would love to join them. Smiling faces in the midst of such poverty is disarmingly beautiful and poignant at the same time. Sadly, for many of these impoverished children, working at the rock quarry or having a child in their early teens will soon truncate any opportunity for education or play time.
A child helping with the clothes washing
Most of the homes I observe are small, 10 foot by 12 foot dwellings about the size of my front porch at home in the U.S. That space is then divided by a thin curtain to keep the living space separated from the sleeping space. The kitchen consists of a small charcoal pit with a pan for cooking and is located just outside. There is no indoor plumbing; no toilets other than a shared hole in the ground surrounded by walls, nearby. If they are lucky, they have a spigot (water tap) nearby and can pay someone for water so that they don’t have to walk miles carrying heavy water from the main spout near the road. Unfortunately, the cost of this water is so high they end up walking anyway. Food is made up of greens, a cornmeal mixture made into “porridge” and rice or beans. The ladies said they usually eat one meal a day.
There is an undeniable desire to help that pierces your heart when you see these ladies, their families, and their hardships. As I boarded the plane to go back home, I knew that I had learned much during my interviews with the ladies and my experience in Uganda. I walked away having seen the transformation that can happen when people are given the opportunity to provide for themselves and their loved ones through the work of their own hands. I am convinced more than ever that Aggie’s Arts is working. I also realized that Aggie’s Arts, here in the U.S., is a vital part of that transformation.
People have asked me if I’d like to go back. Knowing there is still much work to be done, I give a wistful reply of “Someday.” Hopefully, it won’t be too long.
The ladies of Aggie’s Arts Uganda pose for a group photo. First impressions of Uganda
About Angela Dempsey
Angela Dempsey has been a youth mentor, a missionary, a mechanical engineer, and a leadership trainer. She has lived in the U.S. and France. She is a lover of people, travel, and family. She is also a great admirer of coffee, chocolate, and classic literature. She lives in Alabama with her husband, Robb, their two beautiful girls, and a tuxedo cat named Shadow. She is currently the President of the Board of Directors for Aggie’s Arts, Inc. Her trip to Uganda took place in March 2014. Ms. Dempsey may be contacted at adempseywork[at]gmail.com
The Muzungu: thanks Angela for sharing your story. It’s always interesting to see the world through someone else’s eyes. Here is one of my very first blogs about Uganda: Touchdown Africa – a letter home.
Do you have a story you’d like to share? Please read my Guests Posts page for guidelines on the kinds of stories I feature on Diary of a Muzungu.
At boarding school, I wrote long letters home. When I was a teenager, I kept a secret diary (well, I thought I did, until – horror of horrors – my mum revealed some years later that she had read it!)
When I traveled, I wrote long letters home. When my relationship was going nowhere, I kept a secret diary.
and so many other life-affirming East African experiences.
Some people spend a lifetime searching – but I Have Found My Niche and it is here in Uganda.
The five year evolution of my blog – from crappy updates on Blogger to self-hosted WordPress Wow!ness – reflects the development of my own aspirations and my professionalism as a blogger.
Diary of a Muzungu charts my progress. It shows me that if you really want something…
12. … JUST DO IT.
NEVER NEVER NEVER Give Up, said Winston Churchill. By Jove, he was spot on.
You don’t even need to put on those fake trainers 😉
Just Do It trainer heels
Do you write a blog?
What does blogging mean to you? I’d love to read your experiences!
“Unmapped” – Who are the unheard voices of our cities? KLA ART 014, Kampala Contemporary Art Festival
Now you’ve seen it all! ‘Cow on a boda boda’ on display at the launch of KLA ART 014 at Kampala Railway Station
This year Kampala residents are being treated to a wide range of original African art: August’s Kampala Art Biennale has been a highlight of 2014, and KLA ART 014, Kampala Contemporary Art Festival, this October is set to be equally enlightening.
Kampala Contemporary Art Festival KLA ART 014 official poster
Two years ago, my friend Robert announced that, rather than come drink beer with yours truly, he planned to give up his Saturday to visit some old shipping container in downtown Namuwongo. (The Muzungu has been stood up for less I suppose, but I digress…)
In fact, Robert was taking part in the inaugural KLA ART event, in which a number of old shipping containers were converted into art installations. It was their placement in and around various Kampala ‘no go areas’ that really caught my attention: here was art physically ‘going to the people’.
Inviting someone to a gallery is in a sense ‘preaching to the converted.’ A gallery visitor is someone who already ‘gets’ art, already appreciates art, who perhaps even already creates art.
A contemporary art festival, such as KLA ART 014, takes art to the next level: inviting Ugandans to think and talk about art, to express themselves through art – something they may have never done before.
Participating Ugandan artist Helen Nabukenya at press launch for KLA ART 014 Kampala Contemporary Art Festival
KLA ART 014 is Kampala’s contemporary art festival.
Throughout the month of October, the festival is unveiling new artworks from 30 artists from Uganda, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Congo and Rwanda, asking the question:
‘Who are the unheard voices of our cities?’
According to Violet Nantume, Curatorial Committee, KLA ART 014:
“The bicycle knife sharpener; the express fashion designer; the mobile nail salon: they fill every corner of the city. ‘Unmapped’ will attempt to artistically showcase how people from every stratum of society adapt creatively to survive.”
Have you ever been inside Kampala Railway Station? Now’s your chance!
This free-to-attend Festival Exhibition features ten artists displaying their interpretation of Kampala’s “Unmapped.” (The Muzungu admitted to being very keen to have a nose around this iconic Kampala landmark and was delighted to be invited to the VIP preview).
At Kampala Railway Station the public has a chance to meet and discuss the artworks with the artists themselves.
Selected artists work on a variety of media, from paintings to sculpture, and fabrics to music.
Unusually, many VIP guests arrived before the 6 pm opening time – so keen were we all to be the first inside Kampala Railway Station!
Thanks to KLA ART, Rift Valley Railways, KCCA and Umeme, Kampala Railway Station is open to the public for first time since 1994
Kampala Railway Station is open to the public for first time since 1994. All the original features are in place
A brilliant exhibition space! KLA ART 014 Kampala Railway Station Exhibition main hall
Rocca Gutteridge, Project Director, KLA ART 014 says “KLA ART 014 offers a platform to showcase new and emerging ideas by contemporary Ugandan artists. KLA ART is a two-year process of thought, production and experimentation resulting in a unique festival, which directly links artists, artworks and audiences.”
The Boda Boda Project
At the VIP launch, we had a chance to meet the artists behind the Boda Boda Project who have transformed 20 boda boda (motorbikes)into public artworks. The Boda Boda project is all about giving Ugandans access to contemporary art and these 20 bodas will be ‘mapping’ the streets of Kampala throughout October, driving north, south, east and west to engage with the community and chat about contemporary art.
‘Cow on a boda boda’ – a statement on the mistreatment of transporting animals – on display at the launch of KLA ART 014 at Kampala Railway Station. Creation of artist Grace Sarah (pictured) with inquisitive soldier!
How would Uganda manage without boda boda transport?
Reagan Kandole, from the Waste Management Education Project, WaMeP, watering the plants growing in the recycled boots decorating his boda boda. Every item on his boda boda had a purpose – I love it!
Kampala Railway Station is such an inspiring venue for the exhibition – here an artist discusses his work on the Boda Boda Project
The KLA ART artists and their boda boda creations are creating temporary exhibitions in a variety of locations across the capital. An interactive recording studio and a travelling cinema are just two of the innovations that will be touring the streets of Kampala on boda bodas.
I can’t wait to see how the streets of Kampala are transformed by this mobile exhibition!
I wonder too what the first-time art visitor will make of some of the ‘weird and wonderful’ boda boda creations on display?
KLA ART comes at a time when Ugandans have been discussing this year’s census: when people have been asking themselves quite a fundamental question: “if I don’t register, then do I exist?” Will the “Unmapped” recognise themselves or their situation in these pieces of contemporary art? It will be interesting to hear the feedback.
Here is the KLA ART free programme of events showing where the 20 boda bodas will travel to each day between 4th and 31st October.
What’s more, the KLA ART 014 free programme of events includes:
The Festival Exhibition – open every day at Kampala Railway Station from 10 am – 6 pm.
The Boda Boda Project – launching every day from the Railway Station and driving from there to a different location in Kampala
Have you noticed that the more Safaris you go on, the smaller the animal that catches your eye? It could be the butterflies or the reptiles; for some it’s even the insects! But, increasingly, with a pair of binoculars and a professional guide, it’s our feathered friends that are causing the excitement.
African Fish Eagles. PHOTO Sherry McElvie Wildlife Photography
Few areas of the world can boast over 600 bird species; Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park – one of the world’s most biodiverse Protected Areas – is one.
Queen Elizabeth, an area covering 1978 km², owes its rich biodiversity to its variety of habitats: Savannah, freshwater lakes, grasslands, swamps, Acacia and Euphorbia bush, salty crater lakes, moist tropical forest and more. It contains a Ramsar site (protected wetlands of international importance) and an IBA (Important Bird Area). Thus a trip to Queen Elizabeth is a trip to many different habitats with many different types of birds, some of them endemic – that’s to say unique to that particular place. The time of year will also affect which birdlife you will see, as many non-native species migrate over the country en route between Europe and summer nesting sites in South Africa.
Euphorbia cactus, Mweya Peninsula, Queen Elizabeth National Park Uganda. In the far distance is the DR Congo
Birdlife in Queen Elizabeth shows biodiversity at its best. Nature has adapted birds to fit every variety of habitat: it’s all about survival, and each bird’s characteristics have evolved to suit its particular ecological niche. Did you know… Queen Elizabeth National Park has more bird species than any other of Uganda’s National Parks?
Where is the best place to see birds in Queen Elizabeth?
From the enormous Goliath Heron, a statuesque 1 metre high, to the tiny jewel-like Malachite Kingfisher, Queen Elizabeth’s bird life offers something for everyone to admire.
Blue breasted Bee eater. PHOTO Kaj Ostergaard
As our boat slowly meandered along the Kazinga Channel towards Lake Edward, our excellent Uganda Wildlife Authority guide Bernard listed the different bird species we passed.
Highlights included: Common Squacco Heron, Greenshank, Wood Sandpiper, Common Godwit, and a Water Thick-knee (a Wader with big eyes) feeding on the shore; and a lone African Spoonbill (its bill really does look like a spoon!) behind them.
We admired the gorgeous monochrome Sacred Ibis with its elegant curved beak; handsome Egyptian Geese and a Eurasian Marsh Harrier and an African Fish Eagle looking down at us from a tall tree.
Flocks of loud, luminous Glossy Starlings flitted from bush to bush; vibrant Madagascar Bee-eaters and beautiful little, water-loving Blue Breasted Bee-eaters hovered in and around the burrows they’ve excavated out of the earth banks.
Pied (black and white) Kingfishers are a common sight, hovering in the air before plunging beak first into the water – an incredible 1,900 were recorded one July – and Yellow-billed Oxpeckers perch on the backs of Buffalo, removing their ticks (an arrangement that suits both parties well!)
Uganda’s famous scrawny old men of the bird world, the famous Marabou Stork, are residents of the Kazinga Channel too. These ugly birds are surprisingly elegant – just see them glide atop the thermals.
Marabou Stork outside UWA’s Tembo Canteen on Mweya Peninsula, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Kazinga Channel in the background
As we approached the lake, flocks of thousands of birds flew off in a circle above our heads alighting again on the sandbars at the water’s edge : White-winged Terns, Great and Long-tailed Cormorants, African Skimmers (Queen Elizabeth is the easiest place to see these large birds), Great White and Pink-backed Pelicans, the psychedelic Saddle billed Stork, and Great White Egrets.
Back on the Mweya Peninsula, look out for the enormous nest of the “King birds”, the Hammerkop, the biggest nest of its type (also home to the occasional snake!) and a favourite vantage point for Eagle Owls. With more time, a visit to Munyanyange Crater Lake north of Katwe is an absolute must – over 2,000 Lesser Flamingos were counted there one February.
As for the famous yet elusive Shoebill? Well, you’ll just have to ask your guide nicely if he’ll venture into the dense papyrus beds of Lake Kikorongo to spot one!
This is my dad! Looking for birds but actually spotting buffalo and hippo on Lake Nyamunuka crater lake, north of Mweya, Queen Elizabeth National Park
Is bird watching in Queen Elizabeth on your itinerary?
It certainly should be!
Birding is just one of the many different wildlife experiences Queen Elizabeth has to offer.
Sometimes you don’t need a telephoto lens! This gorgeous pair just strolled right past our car… early morning lions in Queen Elizabeth National Park,Uganda
Have you been bird watching in Queen Elizabeth National Park?
Where is your favourite place to watch birds in Uganda?
Uganda’s National Anthem – A plea to Ugandans from Meronie Agaba
Uganda Conservation Foundation’s Map of Uganda. Anti-poaching and human wildlife conflict projects with the Uganda Wildlife Authority in Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls National Parks
In recent weeks, Uganda has been alive with talk about the perceived need to ‘jazz-up’ the country’s National Anthem. “Oh Uganda, Land of Beauty” was adopted in 1962 with words and music composed by George Wilberforce Kakoma.
Coincidentally, Meronie Agaba recently sent me her “Love letter to Motherland Uganda” – her interpretation of the National Anthem’s meaning and a plea to Ugandans to reconnect with their common heritage.
Background to Uganda’s National Anthem debate
Tourism Minister Maria Mutagamba announced that Ugandan playwright Alex Mukulu was in charge of a project worth about 180 m Uganda shillings ($75,000). The Minister explained that the objective was not to change the anthem but to portray its message in drama as a tool for promoting Uganda and to help an increasingly-indifferent Ugandan public identify with their mother country.
This project has polarised debate, with many Ugandans totally against any messing around with what they consider a sacred song. According to Uganda’s Observer newspaper“This whole obsession with aesthetics seems to speak to the hankerings of more impressionable youth that prize form over substance. Uganda’s national anthem is not terribly wanting, and the country has more pressing needs on which it could spend Shs 180 m.”
Meronie Agaba: “This tribute is my love letter to motherland Uganda.”
Pair of Cape Buffalo in Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda. Spot the Oxpeckers on their backs, cleaning the animals of ticks!
Oh Uganda my motherland
May God uphold thee
As we lay our future into thy hands
Through prayer and repentance, staying on our knees,
With our hands lifted up to the king of kings, God almighty
Committing ourselves, our nation, to you
A handsome Uganda Kob poses for the camera in Murchison Falls National Park
That you oh God shall give us a Vision
To acknowledge that blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.
For Unity, Freedom, and Liberty we stand
Together as one, committed to serve our Motherland
Crested Crane, the emblem of Uganda. PHOTO Andy Gooch
Interview with Meronie Agaba
The Muzungu: What made you decide to write this poem?
Meronie Agaba: I have a deep passion for my country and humanity at large. If I was a singer I could compose love songs for Uganda!
The spark to write this poem came when the late Kakoma, composer of the Uganda National Anthem, passed on. Others wrote eulogies to him in the newspapers, but I had no access to that audience so I went back to the National Anthem and read it again and again, trying to find out what message he actually wanted to put forward for Ugandans. As I did this, I got a deeper sense and understanding of the anthem and came to appreciate it almost as a living piece of writing since its messages actually portray what Uganda is today. I got my pen and paper and wrote the poem, which I would say came out as a deeper interpretation of the National Anthem.
The Muzungu: So what is your view on the current debate about changing Uganda’s National Anthem?
Meronie: I am against changing the National Anthem. I would rather the National Anthem is interpreted to the people so that Ugandans can relate with it more. The intention of the poem is to reveal the message underlying the Uganda National anthem.
The Muzungu: What are you hoping to achieve with this poem?
Meronie Agaba: I believe that for any relationship to develop and grow, deliberate efforts have to be taken. I want this poem to be a tool that I and others who believe in it can use to inspire, and develop attitudes of young Ugandans to appreciate their country, their role in upholding its pride, conserving nature and more. I want this poem to be a “Love song that every Ugandan can passionately sing for our Motherland.”
The Muzungu: What would you like people to think about when they read your poem?
Meronie Agaba: “Do not take my Motherland for granted! One time she conceived me, she nurtured me in her womb, I fed on her blood, and behold she delivered me. She was still young, green and energetic; she was fertile. Despite the many children, she fed them all, on the green plantain, the milk and the honey. The lakes and rivers that fed her were still fresh and clean. The tree canopies towered above my head; the scent of nature was still abundant, the soils were not yet sick. The wild fruit was still at large, foraging children returned to their homes satisfied, fed by none other but the plentiful Motherland. Now Mother Land is old and faded, the rivers are drying up, the swamps have become people’s living rooms, the tree canopies are bare stumps and the clean breath of nature is gone.
But I cry for a remedy, I say it’s not all over my children. Let’s amend our relationship, let’s reason together, stop killing your lifeline, I am Mother Land, do not hurt me, do not plot against me, do not strip me naked, respect my God-given Status, I am Mother Land!
When I cry you will cry along with me, when I smile you smile along with me! You are educated yes, I do appreciate that, but get some learning I say; I am your Motherland. Be united; you share a common heritage, Conserve nature and environment; without it you will die,
I am your Motherland, without you I would be a forest, but without me you would be homeless!
I am your Motherland, I am your hope, I am your future: I am Uganda!
Meronie on a boat trip on the River Nile in Murchison Falls National Park enjoying Uganda’s natural beauty
Namara Meronie B. Agaba mnagaba gmail dot com is a Business Development Manager based in Kampala. She is married with children. (No doubt Meron has been talking conservation with her husband Patrick, who I worked with at the Uganda Conservation Foundation for nearly 3 years.
Meronie’s love letter to motherland Uganda was first published in the February 2013 edition of “Tarehe Sita Magazine.”
So what do you think of Meronie’s poem Love letter to Motherland Uganda? Please put your comments below.
If you like her poem please share it on Facebook and elsewhere!
Do you have a story or some advice you’d like to share? Please read the Muzungu’s Guests Posts page for guidelines on the kinds of stories I feature on Diary of a Muzungu.
Kampala is a dynamic city, bursting with talent. I love this city.
Throughout August this year, Kampala Art Biennale is a showcase of contemporary art from Africa with the goal to expose, educate and create debate about the value of art in society. The Biennale consists of an exhibition of 100 artworks including paintings and photographs, showcasing 45 artists from 13 African countries working under the theme of PROGRESSIVE AFRICA and featuring panel discussions on the relation between art, culture and tourism.
The Muzungu: It’s always great to hear of new initiatives for channeling people’s creativity and giving them a stage and I’m sure the Kampala Art Biennale 2014 marks an important step in putting Kampala’s art scene on the tourist route. I’m really excited to have been asked to help promote this event.
EVERYONE IS INVITED – and that means you! Inaugural Kampala Art Biennale ” an international art event to promote Kampala and Uganda as an art tourism destination”
Kampala Art Biennale was established by the Kampala Arts Trust a collective of visual and performance art practitioners living and working in public and private spaces within Uganda’s capital.
Daudi Karungi on the newly painted zebra crossing at Aga Khan School in Kampala this week “Educating Kampala society about the value and importance of contemporary art”
Kampala Art Biennale is afro-centric in nature and seeks to promote only artists (foreign or native) working on the African continent. It was established to recognize and integrate African contemporary art that is being created on the peripherals of the mainstream.
The Kampala Art Biennale is an opportunity to see visual arts in various venues across the city. Much more than that, it is an opportunity for debate and discussion on how Africa can transform itself and how creative industries can help generate economic growth. Promoting Kampala as a destination for art lovers is just one way the tourism industry can benefit and in turn help develop Kampala and Uganda.
Paul Ndema, wings spread-38cm x 55cm-acrylics and ink on water colour paper
Kampala Art Biennale: Theme
PROGRESSIVE AFRICA is a theme derived from the current Pan African – and increasingly global – discussion of AFRICA IS NOW versus AFRICA IS THE FUTURE.
Today in Africa, there are divergent views about the status of Africa in the global village. Some say the world is moving to Africa for opportunities while others say African economies are becoming global markets. These conversations discuss which strategies are the best to accelerate Africa’s progress. All these dialogues suggest one thing; that something is happening on the African continent whether right now – or as it moves into the future.
Under the theme PROGRESSIVE AFRICA, the Kampala Art Biennale 2014 is part of this discussion. African painters, photographers, illustrators, cartoonists, writers and all 2D media artists have been invited to present their perception of the current status of Africa through visual art.
Viewers and visitors will then join in the discussion – pro or against the purported progress – with the help of the invited artists’ resulting 100 images, the aim being a questioning of African political, social and economic practices.
According to Kampala Art Biennale 2014: “The Biennale will serve as a conduit through which to start a debate that we so desperately need right now about a modern and progressive Africa starting right here in Kampala. There is a need to generate discussions centered on looking beyond aid to the financial resources Africa needs to enable transformative growth.”
Zerihun Seyoum – Adoption-oil on canvas-2013
Kampala Art Biennale: dates to remember
1st August 2014
Art, Culture and Tourism panel discussion with experts from the art, culture and tourism sectors. Uganda Museum, 16:00 hrs. On invitation, live on social media
1st August 2014
Official opening of the Kampala Art Biennale 2014 PROGRESSIVE AFRICA exhibition. Uganda Museum, 17:30 hrs.
2nd – 31st August 2014
Kampala Art Biennale 2014 PROGRESSIVE AFRICA exhibition. Open to the public at various venues across Kampala.
Georges Senga, UNE VIE APRES LA MORT, SIZE DYPTIQUES, 140Cm X 84Cm PRINT Inkjet on barité paper
The Biennale exhibition will be on throughout the month of August 2014 at various venues.
Kampala Art Biennale: Venues
The inaugural Kampala Art Biennale will take place across Kampala at traditional art venues such as Nommo, Afriart and Makerere Art Galleries and the Uganda Museum;
in community venues in heavily populated parts of Kampala, such as offices and hotels (to put art in people’s everyday lives);
and in ‘non-traditional art venues (such as factory, unoccupied buildings and Kingdom Mall building site opposite Oasis Mall).
Florine Demosthene, Bitta Disappointment,72cm x 91.44cm, Ink, charcoal, graphite and oil bar on polypropylene
Kampala Art Biennale: side events
Kampala Art Biennale 2014 is partnering with other art and cultural organizations to run a series of side events. More details of these can be found on the Kampala Art Biennale website.
Launch of the Kampala Art Biennale at the Uganda Tourism Board with artists Daudi Karungi and Henry Mujunga and Simon Kaheru, Afriart Gallery. Oh yeah and some Muzungu chick 😉
What is a Biennale?
Biennale [pronounced bee-en-ar-lay] comes from the Italian word for “biennial” or “every other year.” It is most commonly used within the art world to describe large-scale international contemporary art exhibitions.
A Biennale usually has an official theme, spotlights artists of the same nationality as its host city, and is held all over the host city in a number of venues simultaneously. Additionally, Biennales are non-commercial, meaning artists are invited or selected to take part, but don’t sell their art at the Biennale.
The Venice Biennale is the originator of them all, established in 1895. Around the world, there are now over 60 art Biennales.
“Born as a vehicle for national propaganda, the art biennial today has become an outsize phenomenon mobilizing not only artists, curators and gallerists but sponsors, celebrities and politicians, commanding huge press attention and deciding the careers of artists worldwide. For a city to host a biennial today has colossal ramifications.”
Kampala Art Biennale: contacts
Elizabeth Mbabazi, Afriart Gallery, info@kampalabiennale.org +256 772 662 575
Daudi Karungi, Kampala Arts Trust, daudi@afriartgallery.org +256 712 455 555
Launch of the Kampala Art Biennale at the Uganda Tourism Board: “Using art to rebuild the creative, jubilant and celebratory spirit of Kampala”
The Kampala Art Biennale initiative is part of a strategic partnership between Kampala Arts Trust and Uganda Tourism Board. Encourage everyone you know to attend at least one of the galleries or venues in Kampala during August.
Save the Nile. Help us Save Adventure Tourism in Uganda
Access denied. If the Isimba Dam is constructed at its current proposed height, the rapids will be flooded and Uganda’s world class Grade 5 white water rafting will be consigned to history forever. Please help us get this decision changed! Photo Nile River Explorers.
The situation regarding the Isimba Hydro Power Project on the River Nile below Jinja has reached a critical stage!
In the next few weeks The World Bank, and Uganda’s National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) will decide on the final size and scale of the Hydro Power Project. Will they authorize a smaller version of the dam? Or will they break an international agreement between the World Bank and the Government of Uganda to conserve this beautiful stretch of white water, and protect the booming adventure tourism industry and thousands of local jobs?
This decision is going on largely behind closed doors but we need to let the World Bank know that protecting the river and the Ugandan tourism industry is IMPORTANT TO YOU!
Background to the project
The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development is planning to construct a hydro dam on the Nile at Isimba Falls, 50 km downstream from Jinja. The new dam will create a large reservoir of around 28 km² submerging the white water rapids on this section of the River Nile.
When the Bujagali Dam (hydroelectric power plant) was constructed, the World Bank and the Government of Uganda signed the Kalangala Offset Agreement. This binding agreement is supposed to protect specific, downstream sections of the River Nile free of construction of new dams and also protect the integrity of Mabira Forest.
Back in the day… posing for photos at Bujagali Falls, Jinja, 2010 #SavetheNile
According to Professor Wolfgang Thome, “any change of heart by the World Bank would amount to a fundamental breach of confidence and trust between the Bank and Uganda’s tourism fraternity.”
After the rapids at Bujagali were flooded, the rafting and kayaking companies moved activities downstream – below the dam – at significant expense. What will happen this time?
What impact will a new dam have?
This exceptional stretch of white water is famous worldwide. It is safe and warm; its consistent flows allow access to the river activities throughout the year, bringing tens of thousands of people to Uganda annually. A booming industry has been built around the white water and Jinja is regarded as the ‘adventure capital of East Africa.’ A large number of thriving businesses have grown around the central river adventure tourism activities: hotels, restaurants, taxi companies, boda boda drivers and shops.
An estimated 50,000 people take part in adventure activities every year around Jinja; many of whom would not travel to Uganda were it not for the amazing rapids.
If the Isimba Falls Project goes ahead in its current form, it will be a MASSIVE economic blow to Jinja. An independent study on the impact of the Isimba Hydro Project lists over 200 tourism related companies that will be affected. The vast majority are owned and run by Ugandans; collectively they employ thousands of Ugandans in long term, well-paid jobs.
Although “Isimba dam to create 3,000 jobs” – apparently – these are only temporary: constructing the dam.
Although different options for the size and scale of the Isimba dam were proposed, the decision has already been made to go with the largest scale option, the one that will destroy tourism.
The smaller dam option offers a balance of: much needed extra power for Uganda, while allowing adventure tourism to continue to flourish and expand, driving development forwards in the Jinja region.
You can also help by sharing this post and information – thank you! #conservation #Uganda #Nile #savetheNile#saveadventuretourisminUganda
Save the Nile. You can help!
Please email and/or write to your local World Bank representative, wherever you are in the world, and let them know that you are concerned about this issue!
Please send them a letter and write them an email expressing your concerns. A template for the email/letter is below, which we suggest you modify to make it more personal:
Dear (ENTER REPRESENTATIVE’S NAME),
Representative for the World Bank in (ENTER YOUR HOME COUNTRY / REGION).
I am writing as a concerned citizen of (ENTER YOUR COUNTRY) about a serious issue in Uganda, which directly concerns The World Bank.
As a mitigation measure for the (World Bank backed) Bujagali Hydro Power Project, a conservation agreement called the Kalagala Offset Agreement was formed. The agreement between the World Bank and the Government of Uganda was put in place to protect the remaining stretch of rapids and river banks in the same region, for the sake of minimizing impact on the environment, the local people and eco tourism which flourishes in the area. Now, the Isimba Hydro Power Project will flood a significant portion of this conservation area – thus breaking this agreement.
Isimba HPP is funded by the Chinese government, and due to be constructed by a Chinese construction firm, both of whom seem unconcerned that a conservation area is due to be flooded. I am urging The World Bank to act on behalf of the thousands of Ugandans due to be negatively effected, as well as the environment, and the tourism that generates large amounts of income in an otherwise under developed region. Fifteen thousand people, including 12,000 Ugandans from the immediate area, have signed a petition demanding the agreement be upheld and a smaller version of the Isimba HPP to be constructed (which would leave the conservation area unaffected).
Please stand up to China and the Ugandan government and uphold the agreement that is laid out by The World Bank to protect the stretch of river due to be flooded.
Thank you for your support and understanding.
(ENTER NAME)
How else can I help #SavetheNile?
Like and share the ‘Save Adventure Tourism in Uganda’ Facebook page
Forward this message to anyone that can help raise awareness.
Please write to your World Bank representative TODAY about the Isimba Falls hydro power (dam) project – this is the most constructive way you can help.
You can also help by sharing this post and information – thank you!
Similar in size to Great Britain, Uganda’s unique geographical positioning in the Great Rift Valley makes the country home for an astonishing 50% of Africa’s birds. Diverse habitats such as open savannah, montane and Equatorial rainforests, rivers, marshlands, fresh water and crater lakes combine to give Uganda an enviable bird list of over 1,060 species!
Uganda boasts an incredible 34 Important Bird Areas (IBAs), sites of global conservation importance, not just for birds but for mammals, fish, reptiles and insects. 22 IBAs are within the national protected areas and all twelve of Uganda’s Ramsar sites (internationally protected wetlands) are IBAs.
If you like birds – like I do! – then you will just LOVE Uganda! I’ve met many people who had never really noticed birds until they came here – and returned to Europe ‘birding converts.’
Birdwatching Uganda. Identifying a Sunbird – not always easy, even when an expert has a bird guidebook!
Here are a few of my favourite birding moments:
A forest wakes up (AKA birdwatching my way through lockdown on the edge of Kibale Forest) is dedicated to the hornbills, turacos, barbets, starlings and monkeys I see from my wooden house on the edge of the forest.
Shoebill, Murchison Falls National Park Uganda. Photo Ronan Donovan
A day in the life … species by species. Uganda may not have the same change of seasons as Europe (but the insects don’t know that). I watch the seaons change in Uganda through the medium of entymology.
A bird’s eye view of Uganda – Big Birding Day Up before dawn to take part in the Big Birding Day, a 24 hour birding race covering 33 sites across Uganda. Our team recorded 606 species! And the best bit? Our team won!
For three years I was part of the volunteer team helping make Big Birding Day even BIGGER! To tie in with this event and the country’s 50 years of independence, Africa on the Blog published my article on how birding tourism can be used to help develop Uganda and support poor rural communities. Read “Birding@50” – Save Uganda’s Beautiful Crested Crane.
Dillon eyes up a spectacular Klaas’ Cuckoo, Kibale Forest bird ringing, Sunbird Hill
Incredibly rich in animal life, Kibale Forest is a place of many firsts for me. Even after three years working in conservation, Mother Nature had still been holding back on me: this particular Kibale Forest trip I saw my first wild chimp, my first Red Colobus Monkey, my first Green Mamba! But these were all unexpected bonuses – we’d actually traveled to Kibale Forest to ring birds.
Look up! Urban birding Kampala-style is the Muzungu’s view from Long Crested Towers – my home in Bukasa. Kampala is a dusty, polluted city of 2 million inhabitants. Yet, with over 300 bird species, the city is still a birder’s dream …
Populations of the 11 species of African vulture have declined considerably. In A disgusting day out I took part in NatureUganda’s annual vulture count – and a gory tour of the very smelly outdoor Busega fish factory and the formidable Kalerwe Abattoir, on the look-out for Hooded Vultures, Pied Crows, Brown Kites and Marabou Storks.
Hammerkop and large numbers of Marabou Storks overseeing the fish processing near Nateete, Kampala
Birdwatching Uganda. A birding muzungu at Sipi Falls, eastern Uganda
A birding Safari here in my backyard is one of my favourite birding walks, from Namuwongo in Kampala down to Port Bell on Lake Victoria. Baldrick was so tired, we had to drag him home! It was a great day for my growing bird list though so do check it out!
Roger and Nathan bird watching on Entebbe Peninsula. Big Birding Day 2010 – the year our team won!
I’m part of the volunteer team helping make Big Birding Day even Bigger!
These are just a few of my many Uganda birding stories.
Do you like birdwatching? If you’re planning a trip to Uganda, check out the tour operators in my Travel Directory or drop me a line for some personal recommendations.
Uganda bike tour. An interview with Ron Rutland ‘Fat Kid on a Bike’
“I’m no David Attenborough, but trekking with the gorillas has been the greatest wildlife experience of my life,” said Ron Rutland, the ‘Fat Kid on a Bike’ who cycled through Uganda en route from Cape Town to London.
Ron is planning to travel through every African country and is a total rugby fanatic! He aims to arrive in London for the Rugby World Cup in August 2015. I organised Fat Kid’s Uganda gorilla trekking permits for him and we caught up when he was in Kampala. It was without doubt my #HumanSpirit moment of the week.
Diary of a Muzungu meets fat Kid on a Bike at Kampala’s Protea Hotel – one of Ron’s sponsors
Diary of a Muzungu: What has your journey been like so far?
Fat Kid: I’m now 160 days into it and without sounding corny, it’s getting better and better each day. I’ve spent so much time organising, planning and sorting out visas for places like Eritrea and Somaliland, that I can’t wait to get there now.
I’m loving it, I’m absolutely loving it.
Diary of a Muzungu: What do you think of Uganda?
Fat Kid: I can honestly say that in 160 days cycling, the stretch from the Rwandese border and Kisoro, around Lake Mutanda, with views of the Virunga Volcanoes and on through Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, has been the most beautifully scenic part of my trip so far. It’s a truly unforgettable part of the world – but nobody knows about Uganda as a tourist destination!
“A truly unforgettable part of the world.” View of the Virunga Volcanoes from Nkuringo Gorilla Camp. Photo Robert Brierley
Uganda has been one of the highlights of my trip, from start to finish.
Diary of a Muzungu: Have you tasted Ugandan food?
Ron and I discussed the Rolex – Uganda’s most famous street food.
Man making the muzungu a rolex in Nakawa market, Kampala
Fat Kid: Rolex are a good nutritional balance; they’re particularly good for me because of all the carbohydrates.
Diary of a Muzungu: Can you beat my friend’s record of consuming six rolex in a 24 hour period?
(He may be called the Fat Kid, but no, that rolex record remains unbeaten!)
I had assumed – wrongly! – that Ron was at the peak of physical fitness before he embarked on his mammoth tour.
Fat Kid: Quite the opposite, I’d just recovered from an injury that needed surgery; with little training, the cycling was very tough going for the first two or three weeks. Everything became easier after that.
Diary of a Muzungu: What is the most useful thing you travel with?
Fat Kid: I have a very simply written letter saying that I am South African and explaining the purpose of my journey and the route. In the letter, I apologise for not speaking every language and say I have few needs apart from buying food, and thanking them for their hospitality. I have a copy of this letter in French, Arabic, Swahili and a few other key other languages.
Fat Kid: To be honest, there’s nothing I would rather be doing than this. I am living the dream! How exciting is that?
I’m a social person but also very happy in my own company. So far I have had about 30 days (out of 160) riding with people, but it’s very rare to be on my own. You are always surrounded by people. I haven’t yet got to the point where I felt lonely. I’m quite looking forward to those solitary moments in the desert.
One of my real frustrations, however, is people’s curiosity. You get stared at when you are eating, when you are putting up your tent, or cooking your food. You do feel like a circus freak. In Angola, 60 or 70 people watched me. The next morning I asked the local chief why everyone was staring at me. “They have never seen a white guy on a bike, and neither have I.” They might have seen the odd white person drive past in a UN vehicle, but they had never seen a white guy on a bike, put up a tent, or cook for himself.
I understand it, but the “Muzungu how are you?” does get a bit overwhelming. When you are cycling uphill and you get these constant questions, I think “I don’t want to be rude but actually I am completely shattered…”
Diary of a Muzungu: Your journey is called Lettie’s Ride. Who is Lettie?
Fat Kid: Lettie is a friend of mine who has breast cancer. She’s 36 and she has three kids. She has lived her life to the full; no-one could appreciate their health more than her. There are frequent sporting events, celebrating life for Lettie, like people running up Cape Town’s Table Mountain barefoot.
When I first planned this trip, it was just a selfish journey to watch the Springboks play rugby. I know how hard it is to do fundraising, so I didn’t want to commit to it when I knew how hard it was going to be just to cycle from Cape Town to London.
It was when Lettie’s husband sent an email saying that Lettie’s cancer had come back more aggressively that I decided to dedicate my ride to her. There have been days – like when I was pushing my bike through the sands of the Mozambique parks – when it’s flipping tough and you’re feeling crappy. Then you have to ask yourself, is it really that bad? I’ve been able to do this, I’ve chosen to do this, I’m not fighting a deadly disease.
The bike is bright pink and has the word Lettie written all over it. I think about Lettie every day.
I’m dedicating this ride to Lettie and I am also living this adventure. I want her to get the positive message; that’s what I get goosebumps about.
Diary of a Muzungu: So you’re a rugby fanatic! Tell me more.
Fat Kid: The Rugby World Cup in London 2015 gives me a date to work to, otherwise you could spend five years cycling through the whole of Africa.
After uni I played rugby in Australia for six months and then in Hong Kong. Four or five years ago, I set up a rugby tournament in South Africa. It’s an annual social rugby event that now has 100 teams competing.
I got to know Francois Pienaar through mutual friends. He is probably one of the most famous rugby players in South Africa. (He was captain of the Springboks rugby team at the 1995 World Cup, the famous rugby match that united the post-apartheid nation, made famous in the Clint Eastwood-directed film Invictus). Francois is my ambassador and Founding Chairman of the Mad ‘Make a Difference’ Foundation, who are doing a fundraising campaign around my trip.
Francois Pienaar and Nelson Mandela 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa
Whatever route I take, I am going to cycle through Paris. On my last four or five days, Francois Pinard is going to cycle with me from Paris to London to the World Cup. There are many rugby lovers and South Africans in the UK, who I think will want to do the journey with us.
Hopefully, in my own little way, I can help to give Lettie strength. If I get to London and the Mad Foundation has raised 1 million rand as well, then I couldn’t be happier.
Diary of a Muzungu: How did you feel about being in Uganda when Mandela died?
I noticed the flags were at half-mast at the Ugandan parliament.
In some ways I wish I’d been in South Africa. From what people back home said, it was a mixture of feelings: sadness, but also a celebration of everything that was good about Mandela. Yes the country is mourning, but mourning together.
Like he did in ’95, and other times, Mandela has transcended everything, all the political crap and segregation that still exists in our society; not just black and white, but rich and poor. People talk about corruption in Uganda, but it is endemic in South Africa.
I wish Mandela had run the country longer. He was one of the only African leaders of that generation who gave up power voluntarily; that makes him unique too.
The week Mandela died, my African #HumanSpirit moment of the week was this: “Everyone I’ve met who has expressed their sympathy at the death of “Africa’s Father” or “Our Father”…it’s quite incredible the sheer number of times this happens a day.”
Diary of a Muzungu: How long did it take you to plan this trip?
In a sense, I’ve been planning this trip my whole life.
It took me six or seven months to actually plan this trip. I have put everything into this, literally. I’ve never been one to own a lot of stuff, so what I couldn’t sell, I gave to charity. I wasn’t going to pay money to put all my stuff in storage for two years.
The biggest decision was what kind of bike to buy. Now I’m on the road, I’m planning approximately 3 months ahead. Most of my planning is ‘visa driven’ that is to say it depends on getting visas to enter each country. For that I rely on a visa services company.
New Chad friends. Chad was African country number 23 for the Fat Kid on a Bike
So, for example, while I am in Uganda, DHL will send my passport for South Sudan to Gulu. Once I’m out of Uganda I can send my second passport back to Cape Town to get the visa for the next countries: Eritrea and Sudan. I spent a few months planning the route and visas in advance. This is probably the best practical thing I did before I left, and no delays so far….
Diary of a Muzungu: How have you funded your trip?
Although cycling is a free way to travel, I spent all my savings buying the bike and setting it up for the trip. Whatever happened, I was leaving anyway. I’ve heard so many stories about people not having money and picking up sponsors along the way.
Once you are on the road, it really isn’t an expensive way of travelling. My budget is R200 or $20 a day. This covers visas and everything, including food, and accommodation, when I need it. Africa is not the cheapest place to travel by any means, but it’s a lot cheaper than just sitting on my couch in Cape Town. You know what I mean?
I have friends who have done well in business who helped me out. They said we can’t sell our businesses and put our wives on ice for two years. We can live our dream through you.
ABSA are my main sponsor. They sponsor the #HumanSpirit. [For them, what is a better example of the human spirit than someone cycling through every country in Africa to watch their rugby team – the Springboks – play in London?]
Diary of a Muzungu: What did you do before you embarked on this trip?
I’ve always been a bit of a restless soul.
I spent most of my career working in banking, in London. Next I set up a business and lived in Thailand for three years. Living in south-east Asia was a wonderful experience. Out of necessity, I then went back to banking, this time in Hong Kong for 3 years. Four or five years ago, I felt ready for a change so I went back to South Africa and set up the rugby tournament. It was fun but I wasn’t building anything for the future so I thought now is the ideal time for me to go and do what I want and to get it out of my system.
Diary of a Muzungu: Get it out of your system? Or ignite an even bigger flame? I asked.
The Fat Kid laughed.
Diary of a Muzungu: How do you keep in contact with everyone back home?
A GPS device records my location every day and this can be tracked on my website. I’m not a great writer, but I do record a few minutes about my experiences a few days of the week. Phone coverage has been surprisingly good. In fact, my family say they hear more from me than they ever thought they would.
Fat Kid off his bike and sheltering from the rain to drink tea, in Cameroon
After Diary of a Muzungu’s interview with Fat Kid on a Bike in Kampala
A few days after our interview, Ron cycled East to Jinja for some white water rafting with Nile River Explorers, and then North, passing through Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary at Nakasangola “my goodness was the rhino tracking another memorable wildlife experience!”
I told Ron he simply couldn’t miss Wild Frontiers’ breath-taking boat ride to the bottom of the falls in Murchison Falls National Park.
Ron Rutland, Fat Kid on a bike, enjoying an ice cold Nile Special – on the River Nile, Murchison Falls National Park with Wild Frontiers Uganda
“The Murchison Falls boat ride will certainly go down as a highlight of not only my time in Uganda, but of my entire 5 and a half months on the road so far!”
We last spoke when Ron was in Gulu, planning to cycle into South Sudan. He sounded a little bit uncertain about what was happening next. I’m not surprised: leaving the Pearl of Africa and going into a war zone!
At the border, he commented on “the warm welcome, hospitality, and help received from the Ugandan soldiers based on the South Sudan border.”
Ron’s route was due to take him through Juba:
“I had to accept the very insistent advice of the UN, 50 km inside South Sudan, that to continue any further would be ‘completely reckless’, and I made the decision to back track to Uganda. Seeing for myself the human tragedy unfolding in South Sudan put a little cycle trip into real perspective.”
As a rule, Ron’s transcontinental route sees him exit a country using a different border to the one he enters the country; South Sudan was the first country – and let’s hope only country – where he failed to achieve this.
Ron sounded quite philosophical though:
“This is Africa, after all. I’m aware that things can change at any time.”
Of this experience, he said:
What I will try never take for granted again: the freedom of travel within and between countries. After having to make an abrupt UN enforced U-turn in South Sudan, to having to re-route through Ethiopia and Sudan to get to Eritrea from Djibouti, to the headaches I’m now having in plotting a way across Sudan through Darfur to Chad, it has made me realise the incredible privilege it is to be able to travel and cycle freely across and (even with the hassle of visas sometimes) between most countries.
If you’d like to keep up with Ron’s trip on the remaining year of his journey, visit the Fat Kid on a Bike website or Facebook page. He writes weekly updates and you can follow him on the map.
As Kingsley Holgate reminded me during a long liquid meeting before I left, this expedition ‘isn’t about the bike’, but rather ‘an epic African adventure which you happen to be doing on a bicycle’ – a huge difference!
As we said goodbye, Ron invited me to accompany him on a leg of his trip. How I would LOVE to! (I wonder if I can make it to West Africa in time to meet him?)
If not West Africa, we might have to wait until London 2015… my dad is a rugby fan(atic) too and I have a feeling he will be enjoying the #HumanSpirit watching the Springboks play at Twickenham rugby grounds in August 2015!
so do check it out!
