Sunday, June 30, 2002
Interesting Notes Part II
1. Wearing light colours combined with travelling on dirt roads outside the city is a very, very bad idea. I am absolutely filthy right now having just gotten back from whitewater rafting in Jinja, about an hour and a half away from Kampala. Will have to buy more dark coloured pants so that they hide the dirt.
2. Ugandans are generally known for a very clean and pressed appearance. This is actually for a health reason rather than an aesthetic one...since we live in a hot climate everyone dries their laundry outdoors. However, mango flies like to land on clothes and lay their eggs, so when you wear your new clean clothes the eggs rub off onto your skin, and maggots start to grow under your skin! To prevent this from happening, you have to iron all your clothes, even your socks and underwear (especially underwear!), as the heat from the iron will destroy the eggs. I am thoroughly put out by the whole idea, a) because it's gross and b) I HATE IRONING. I cannot wait until I get to Kihihi and I can hire someone to do my laundry and pressing.
3. There are 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night every single day of the year. The sun rises at 7:00 am and sets at 7:00 pm every night. It's quite hard to get used to, esp. since I know right now in Canada you are getting at least 14-16 hours of sun in the summer months. You have to adjust your whole lifestyle, and start planning your days based on how much sun is left. We don't like to go into town after the sun has set, as it gets very dark and can be dangerous traffic-wise and criminal-wise. The only thing to do at night is to go to the bar and drink! (I think I'm going to get a Frosh 15 from all the beer I've been drinking!)
Newest Member of the Nile High Club
As I just mentioned, I've just returned from whitewater rafting on the Nile. There's a great package with Equator Rafting, one of 3 rafting companies here in Uganda, where you pay $65 US and they pick you up in Kampala, shuttle you to Jinja, you raft for a full-day, and they provide you with lunch, bbq and comp. beer/drinks, and dormitory accomodation for the night. Fantastic bargain, esp. because Adrift (another company) does the same for $95 US. I also got a voucher that lets me pay only $30 US if I come back in the next 3 months, which I definitely will. It was quite an incredible experience. We went over at least 4 Grade 5 rapids (for those who don't know, all rapids are graded 1-6: you can swim over grade 1s, and you will die on grade 6s) and the scenery was gorgeous. Best part was jumping out of the raft and just floating down the Nile for several kilometres, letting the current push us along. I can't wait to see the pictures - the rafting company has a professional take lots and you can choose to buy as many as you like, they should be ready in a few days. I went ww rafting last summer on the Ottawa River, but this time it was about 100 times better (rapids-wise).....but I would have preferred doing it with my own friends!
Oh yeah, in case you didn't know, the town of Jinja is famous because it is the source of the Nile. Drove past the source and it's actually quite ugly - they've built a dam to harvest electricity which kind of takes the magic away.
1. Wearing light colours combined with travelling on dirt roads outside the city is a very, very bad idea. I am absolutely filthy right now having just gotten back from whitewater rafting in Jinja, about an hour and a half away from Kampala. Will have to buy more dark coloured pants so that they hide the dirt.
2. Ugandans are generally known for a very clean and pressed appearance. This is actually for a health reason rather than an aesthetic one...since we live in a hot climate everyone dries their laundry outdoors. However, mango flies like to land on clothes and lay their eggs, so when you wear your new clean clothes the eggs rub off onto your skin, and maggots start to grow under your skin! To prevent this from happening, you have to iron all your clothes, even your socks and underwear (especially underwear!), as the heat from the iron will destroy the eggs. I am thoroughly put out by the whole idea, a) because it's gross and b) I HATE IRONING. I cannot wait until I get to Kihihi and I can hire someone to do my laundry and pressing.
3. There are 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night every single day of the year. The sun rises at 7:00 am and sets at 7:00 pm every night. It's quite hard to get used to, esp. since I know right now in Canada you are getting at least 14-16 hours of sun in the summer months. You have to adjust your whole lifestyle, and start planning your days based on how much sun is left. We don't like to go into town after the sun has set, as it gets very dark and can be dangerous traffic-wise and criminal-wise. The only thing to do at night is to go to the bar and drink! (I think I'm going to get a Frosh 15 from all the beer I've been drinking!)
Newest Member of the Nile High Club
As I just mentioned, I've just returned from whitewater rafting on the Nile. There's a great package with Equator Rafting, one of 3 rafting companies here in Uganda, where you pay $65 US and they pick you up in Kampala, shuttle you to Jinja, you raft for a full-day, and they provide you with lunch, bbq and comp. beer/drinks, and dormitory accomodation for the night. Fantastic bargain, esp. because Adrift (another company) does the same for $95 US. I also got a voucher that lets me pay only $30 US if I come back in the next 3 months, which I definitely will. It was quite an incredible experience. We went over at least 4 Grade 5 rapids (for those who don't know, all rapids are graded 1-6: you can swim over grade 1s, and you will die on grade 6s) and the scenery was gorgeous. Best part was jumping out of the raft and just floating down the Nile for several kilometres, letting the current push us along. I can't wait to see the pictures - the rafting company has a professional take lots and you can choose to buy as many as you like, they should be ready in a few days. I went ww rafting last summer on the Ottawa River, but this time it was about 100 times better (rapids-wise).....but I would have preferred doing it with my own friends!
Oh yeah, in case you didn't know, the town of Jinja is famous because it is the source of the Nile. Drove past the source and it's actually quite ugly - they've built a dam to harvest electricity which kind of takes the magic away.
