Uganda Perspective

Gorillas Earn Uganda Top International Tourist Spot by Lonely Planet

Of all the places in the world, Lonely Planet chose Uganda as THE top tourist destination for 2012. 

It was mainly the attraction of seeing mountain gorillas in their native forests that caused the choice.  CHECK OUT THIS AMAZING VIDEO OF AN ENCOUNTER WITH WILD GORILLAS. But there were the other things as well – the national parks full of wildlife, the good hotels, improved roads, white water rafting on the Nile, climbing to the snowy peaks of the Rwenzori, the safe environment for trekkers and backpackers and the stability of the nation.  This is a major milestone for Uganda which was one of the world’s top tourist destinations before independence in 1960, a status that caused Winston Churchill to call Uganda “The Pearl of Africa.”

Most people following Lonely Planet will most likely spend their time in Uganda with professional tour companies or guides who are highly personable and knowledgeable.  The net experience will be good since the pros understand what it takes to give a pleasing tourist experience. People met along the way will enhance the experience because of course the Ugandan people are naturally welcoming and pleasant. 

But outside of the professional tours, eco-lodges and large urban hotels, I have to say there remains a huge void in hospitality service.  In the last three weeks, frequenting restaurants at all levels, I’ve regularly encountered laziness, resentment and downright stupidity among servers.  One restaurant owner argued with me that I needed to pay in full with my order because the place was often crowded and they couldn’t control people running away without paying.  We were the only people in the place.  One waitress showed me to a table and then pulled out a wet rag to wipe it down, flipping it my way.  While I waited for my table to dry, she came around and draped a table cloth over it and into my lap.  Eventually the coffee came.  Once it did, a guy came around swabbing the floor on his hands and knees, all of which contributed to a delightful breakfast experience.  Like, they couldn’t have been ready for clientele BEFORE the doors opened?

Everyone agrees there needs to be training of hospitality workers but who is to do it if even restaurant owners don’t understand the concept of service?  The owners are often foreign-born Middle-Eastern or Asian who treat their help like cattle and hide behind their cash drawers.  I find it ignorant and deplorable and, even with the immense leeway I give people in Uganda because it’s Uganda, how can people operate with such an innate lack of common sense about service?  Can’t they treat people as they would like to be treated?  A friendly smile, a warm welcome, someone who understands English in this English-speaking country and wishes me a good day… is it too much to ask?  Ask me next trip.

PS:  The next best locations named were Myanmar (Burma), the Ukraine and Jordan.

 

Mak U Unveils Electric Car

For anyone who thinks Uganda is some kind of backward African place, check this out. 

Makerere University has successfully tested an electronic vehicle, Kiira EV, manufactured by students of the College of Engineering, Design, Art and Technology.

Makerere Vice Chancellor, Prof. Venansius Baryamureeba who flagged off the car at the college premises described the technological innovation as a historic moment. “It goes on to confirm that Makerere is a top institution,” an all smiles Byaramureeba commented. “When we say Makerere is a great university, you say, ‘are you sure?’ The level of development at Makerere will blow you away. If we keep this up, Makerere will be ranked among the top five universities of the world,” he added.

At the demo, Project Manager Paul Musasizi took to the driver’s seat to embark on the test drive the 1000kg, green two-seater car. The car powered by a 40-amps 64-cells Lithium ion battery snaked out of the college parking yard drove around the university campus, a distance of about four kilometres.

Journalists who gave a chase on foot could not keep up with its pace while those who used their personal cars conceded it was a first runner. “I did perhaps 60kmh,” Musasizi commented afterwards. It’s built to cruise at a speed of 100kmh. The battery can last for a distance of 80km before recharging for 3-4 hours with electric power.

The official explained that choice of the car’s colour, green, was to illustrate the university’s commitment to good environmental practices which include, going green and reducing emissions. The car has zero noise and fumes emissions. “Apart from the stone and iron age, Uganda has been left out. Now we want to have a seat on the electric car bench in the world,” Musasizi remarked.

“I hope I will witness that day when half of Ugandans are driving a car made at Makerere. I hope it will we cost effective. We shall keep improving it. When you look at the benz of 1960 and the one of today, there’s a difference,” Baryamureeba commented. 

And now Uganda has joined Japan, Korea and the U.S. as a leading provider of green technology.  Thanks to New Vision Uganda for the details.

Traveling to Uganda? Make it Easier with Yotel

It used to be traveling to Uganda through London required an overnight stay on the return trip.  Until recently, the only accommodations near Heathrow Airport were the Park Hotel or the Holiday Inn.  Those choices cost $300-400 / night plus about $50 in taxis, and though it was a delight to find hot water showers and soft sheets, the price was steep.  Connections through Amsterdam were not much better in a recliner chair in the airport – cheaper but not very comfortable.

Two years ago in Amsterdam I discovered an in-airport hotel called Yotel.  While I was reading hotel literature, I got to talking to a guy who seemed to know what he was doing.  It turned out he was it was Simon Woodroffe, the founder of the enterprise, a former Hyatt Hotels executive, who just had this idea – hotel compartments built inside the airport – and rentable by the hour.  I checked in.

The hotel looks like railroad compartments off a hallway.  Inside a single, there is not a lot of floor space but there is a hot shower, clean facilities, a deliciously comfortable bed with TV and WIFI.  What more could one want?  I got eight hours sleep during my layover, showered, shaved and walked to my flight refreshed.  The cost?  About $60.00.

This year I led a team to Uganda and planned the return trip to include Yotel.  At Heathrow there were accommodations for traveling singles, roommates and couples. It took some effort to find the Yotel in Terminal 4 but it was next to a delightful pub-style restaurant that served meals in the evening and the following morning as well.  I have to tell you the team raved about Yotel.   Just opened in New York as well.

Being in Uganda is great.  Now getting there is easier.  Go Yotel!

One Man's Safari into Brightest Africa - Read All About It

After more than seven years hard labor (well, three years hard labor and four years wondering how to put it together) I’ve just received copies of my new book on Uganda called They Call Me Mzee: One Man’s Safari into Brightest Africa.

Called “a remarkable story of discovery,” the book charts the cultural and spiritual ife of present-day Uganda.  Part memoir, part travelogue and part investigative report, the reader will learn about how the AIDS epidemic started in Uganda and spread throughout Africa.  And, how Uganda is still the only nation in Africa to have arrested the disease.  The report talks about the huge faith life of Ugandans, where it came from and what it means.  There is much discussion from a personal perspective about the plight of orphans and how ministries, the government and the church are dealing with the ever-growing problem.

Most importantly, it is my personal story of discovering a place where faith underlies all.  The people I meet, the visitors I take to Uganda and the lessons we have for each other are insightful, surprising.

Anyone who has been to Uganda, who is planning to go to Uganda or who supports the work in Uganda should read this book.  You will laugh, you will cry and you will learn something of Africa you have never seen anywhere.

Click here to order the book in paperback.  The Kindle version is due out in about 10 days.  $1.00 of ever sale goes to support the work of Juna Amagara Ministries in Uganda.

After you’ve read it, let me know what you think.  I answer all emails.  Enjoy.

Why is Food in Uganda So Bloody Expensive?

Uganda is an agriculturally blessed nation with millions of farmers.  Why then is the skyrocketing price of food one of the major factors in the country’s current 21% inflation?  The answer, in one word, is: supply.

There are currently serious famines in Somalia and Northern Kenya due to drought.  Millions of people are starving and the world’s aid agencies are responding as fast as they can.  But it is simply not possible to ship in enough food to sustain these people through the drought.  The shortfall in staples – rice, beans, bananas, potatoes – is purchased from Uganda.  Less supply for the Ugandans results in higher prices.

To the north, the new nation of South Sudan which has enough arable land to feed itself but no infrastructure to do so is flush with cash from the world’s aid agencies.  They are buying everything they can get their hands on from Uganda, their  neighbor to the south.  These are boom times for Ugandans in the north.  The price of a goat has tripled in the last two years.  Potatoes, bananas, rice, beans, tea and building materials – lumber, poles, cement and animal stock – beef and chickens – are all going for premium prices.  This is good news for the economy of Uganda but it also cuts down the supply of these things to Ugandans.   

Throw in the high cost of fuel which has tripled over the last five years and it is easy to realize that simply bringing food products to market must contribute to high prices.

Yet demand in country remains high.  More and more people are moving to urban centers which means they are not feeding themselves from the family plots and they must buy food.

There is opportunity here.  If the millions of subsistence farmers could set aside just ten percent of their harvest for sale and then work together through co-ops to sell those foodstuffs on the open market, the food shortage could be less and the farmers could share in the boom times of high prices.  Because farmers time their planting so there is always something ready for harvest, the cash flow could be constant year round.  This is money that could be used to send more kids to school.

So here’s the challenge: with every crisis there is opportunity.  Where are the people or the indigenous organizations that are willing and able put together a regional co-op plan?  Where are the visionaries that can be the food saviors of the nation?  I know you are there.  We need you now.    

Riding Motorcycles from Cape Town to Jerusalem: Are They Nuts?

On September 4, 2011, two young, well-educated California men will begin a journey in Cape Town South Africa that will take them more than 8,000 miles up the spine of Africa to Cairo and then on to  Jerusalem.   They’re doing it for the adventure.  They’re doing it on Honda XR 400 dirt bikes. They’re also doing it to raise funds to build the Juna Amagara New Times Primary School in Kishanje, Uganda.  The event is called RideAmagara: Africa 2011.  And you can learn more if you click HERE.

The riders are Nolan Gallagher, a small-town big-sky boy turned professional baseball player for the Seattle Mariners.  A graduate of Stanford University, Nolan has given up baseball and when he returns from Africa, he’ll be studying for a degree in physical therapy.  Stephen “Brownie” Brown is a missionary kid who’s lived all  over the world.  Also a graduate of Stanford, Stephen worked in corporate America after graduation but has decided, upon his return from Africa, to enter medical school.

Over approximately four months, the adventurers will cross borders into 12 countries: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopa, Sudan, Egypt and Israel.  Their only plan is to make it before Christmas.  There is no detailed road map.  Accommodations are the tents on their backs.  There is no support van.  I don’t think there’s room for extra fuel.  But they are equipped with Bibles.  And immortal youth.

What, are they nuts?

There are no Interstate highways on this route.  What about breakdowns?  What about spare parts?  What about hostile territory?  What about pirates?  What about those long lonely stretches of savannah where there are no people, only warthogs?  What about all the different languages?  What about the Sept/Oct rainy season?  What will they eat?  How will they protect themselves at night in a tent in the middle of nowhere?  What about border crossings with surly and professionally uncooperative bureaucrats? Did we mention men with spears?  Roaming bands of Arabic slavers?  Tsetse flies, boa constrictors, thorny bushes, roads rutted like canyons?

Only the riders know the answers to these questions.  And certainly they have thought about all of these things, right?

 Meanwhile, Nolan and Brownie are asking for people to support the humanitarian reason for this ride.  The goal?  Raise $200,000 to finish a primary school and dormitory that will serve the needs of more than 500 children.  As you’ll see on their website, the riders are seeking corporate sponsors, but also individuals who can pledge $ per mile traveled – or support for a rider – or just a donation.  This is a worthy goal, as children in Uganda crave education and need it to survive.  The best kept secret in Africa is… the solution to overpopulation AND poverty is education.  This school will play a major part in all those roles.  Currently operating in rented buildings, New Times students regularly rank in the top percentile of all students in   Uganda.  With improved facilities and dormitories, these Juna Amagara orphan children will blossom into outstandingly productive adults.

Nolan and Brownie are carrying a PocketFinder GPS locator so we can all follow them in real time.  They promise to post frequently on Facebook (assuming they can find a computer).  And hopefully they'll smile if they are on CNN.  They request prayers for the journey.  God willing, they'll make it to Jerusalem by Christmas.

 

Living To 100 – No Big Deal Up Country

Want to live a long life? 

Work hard, walk barefoot everywhere trudging up and down steep hills, carry your loads on your head,  eat organic vegetables, go to bed at sundown and rise at dawn, and laugh a lot.  That, at least would be the advice of people in Kishanje Village, Southeast Uganda where it is not unusual for people to live well into their nineties and often over 100 years of age.   

Modern westerners would think that living in a faraway, remote village in Africa would be detrimental to one’s health, but in fact, it is exactly the natural lifestyle that seems to be the secret to good health and long life.  Where we in the west are obsessed with health care – the latest drugs, regular visits to the doctor, vitamins and food supplements all designed to keep people feeling good and living long – the population in Kishanje, known here as "up country," does not think about health care.  Here, if you get sick, you’ll either get better or you don’t.  With a life of rigorous exercise – slinging a hoe in the garden for 12 hours a day – bodies are strong and in tone.  Working the earth to grow food is tonic for the soul.  Eating only fresh vegetables just taken from the earth and seldom accompanied by meat is the natural diet.   Thanking God for His blessings each and every day yields serenity.  Living in a village swirling with children keeps a vision of life around all day; the elders sharing village lore, history and life lessons with the young keeps the senior citizens vital.

This lesson from Uganda seems to be: simple life = long life; complex life = ???

Emergency Sex

No doubt about it, being a white NGO or embassy worker or expat in a third world country can be stressful.  I’ve seen the Mzungus with tense faces riding through Kampala on Vespas or trying mightily to navigate the eddys of traffic roundabouts. I’ve watched them wander the halls of bureaucracy or deal with endless requests at the embassy.  And I’ve always wondered how they cope. 

It turns out there’s a bar, an Irish Pub over by Embassy Row in Kampala that is the unofficial watering hole for frustrated (mostly youngish) white Westerners.  It is a good place to ask people how they cope. 

“I clear my mind by blogging,” says a girl code-named JackFruity.  “There is just so much crazy about this place, I have to write it down.  There are quite a few bloggers here; we all read each other’s stuff.  It’s like cyber-therapy and it doesn’t make any difference if anybody on the outside reads it.  They wouldn’t understand anyway.”

“I find it helpful to numb my mind with alcohol,” says a young man in a white shirt, a tie and a Long Island Iced Tea in his hand.  “Most Ugandans don’t drink which makes me wonder how they cope but after a day of shoveling against the tide of paperwork, only the fruit of the vine seems to make the day worthwhile.”

The next one perked my interest.  “I come here for emergency sex,” said a UN worker named Pam.  Tell me more, I said… would you like a drink?  “Drink, yes.  Well, you know, the days and nights get long and dealing with this culture, the stress is huge – there’s only one thing that does it for me, a good aerobic romp in the hay.  About once a month I come here looking for an exercise partner.  There is no shortage of candidates; some are repeaters which makes it all easy – a text message and a rendezvous and bam, it’s done,” she added.

“But you’re here at Ground Zero for HIV/AIDS, aren’t you worried?”

“Nah,” she said.  “We take precautions.  It’s just sex.”  She glanced to the back of the pub.  “And nobody blogs about it.”  Then pointed to the bar.  “I’m suddenly feeling like a Long Island Iced Tea.” 

I had a sudden urge to become a professional humanitarian.

Queen Elizabeth Park – What a hoot

  If you want to see animals in Uganda, you should probably go to Queen Elizabeth National Park near Kamwenge about two hours from Mbarara.  You’ll love Mweya Lodge, a multi-star resort with open-air dining.  Riding the roads early in the morning you may see lions.   Baboons and warthogs and kobs are everywhere.  We came around a bend in the road to find two elephants having lunch, about 15 feet away.  You can rent a guide or you can drive yourself. 

In July 2011, we were there on a beautiful day.  There was a raggedy lion wandering in the distance.  Hippos bobbed around off a small fishing village where we nearly got stuck in the mud.  But the most outrageous part of the day was Jerry who insisted on riding through the park on the roof rack.  He also had a minor run-in with an elephant. 

The greatest thing about QE Park is the quiet.  Out on the savannah you can shut off the car and step outside and just listen to the silence.  It is delicious, a rare treat indeed.

 In 2006 we had been out riding around and decided to stay the night at Mweya.  Sitting on the terrace as twilight turned to night, we noticed to our surprise to our left was a large wet hippo about the size of a Honda Civic that had apparently scaled the 40-foot river bank and came to visit.  He munched on grass for awhile but then made his way around to the front of the terrace.  He backed up to the terrace and proceeded to crap all over the building.  I was close enough – too close really – to notice when a hippo craps it rapidly switches its tail back and forth literally like shit hitting the fan.  When he was done, he wandered away.  One of our party, picking up her wine glass with a gob of poop stuck to it said simply, “I believe I’ll get another glass.”

Go to QE Park.  Hippo revenge aside, it’s worth it.