Touch Down

We arrived safely last night, and stepped out onto the tarmac where blustery winds and 70-degree weather greeted us. The air smelled wonderful. Very GREEN. Entebbe Airport (pronounced In-teb-eh) sits right on Lake Victoria.

As we walked toward the metal shelter suspended with poles (along with 200 other passengers) all of the power in the airport went off. It was pitch black, with only the sound the locals in the air laughing...one lady in front of us said "welcome home..."

Power outages are common here.

When illumination returned a few minutes later, we noticed the thousands of mosquitoes hovering around the overhead lighting. Indeed, welcome to Uganda.

Our visas were purchased promptly and our names written in a great book for receipts, and our luggage came out on a mini-turnstile. A driver we had arranged was waiting for us outside the unloading area with a sign that said "Seattle"--his name was Peter, and he was a wonderful sight for weary travelers hauling big bags.

His car deftly navigated the parking lot, an unorganized area inside a fence with pitted asphalt with potholes and the matatu (minibuses) competing for space in the driveways. Then onto the main paved road we shot--driving in the dark, forget about a speed limit, on the left side of the road.

By the time we reached the lighted valley where Kampala sits, it was close to 11pm and we were ready for the "Holiday Express Hotel" a nondescript building made of concrete and plaster ceilings, with an eatery downstairs and clean sheets.

Peter unloaded our bags and gave us a smile. "Is it safe here?" we asked.
"Yes, relatively--it's Kampala, and it's Friday night." he said still grinning.
We took that as 'better hang out around your hotel, you nutty Americans."

So we did.

This morning the sun rose warm through the hotel windows. The city below was bustling and noisy. Our Uganda hosts Becka and Michael had left us bottled water in the room, with a warning note about brushing our teeth with it. They met us for breakfast at 9am--well, most of us. With the leg lag, I suppose we were all (he hhem...) a tad late...

We have spent the morning in Kampala changing money and hiring a car to take us to Fort Portal. Fresh bananas (peeled) from the market across the street, fried eggs from local chickens, and warm toast was today's breakfast...It helps to know someone locally with the car hire. Americans get a very different rate on things than locals if we are not careful. (More expensive)

Overall, we are finding that everyone here is very friendly and helpful, that some people want to speak to us just to practice their English! By this afternoon we should be getting acquainted with the Research Station that will be home, and by tonight--the Irish among us will celebrate St. Patrick's Day together. The children here are amazing, and if you ask permission, local mothers are happy to have you take their picture.

All the best to everyone at home. Everything here is colorful and vibrant--fabrics, people, sound and noise. We are looking forward to a good trip.

We will be in touch as soon as possible--with pictures if we can.

Monkeychatters