A week in Kampala

Week 1 in Kampala I got to know the people in the house a bit better and explored Kololo, the area where I am staying.

Tuesday morning was a lovely late morning, made even better with the fact that I could make my own coffee and breakfast. I sat down to work for the day, and as the day progressed was introduced to many new things.

( I’ll be writing a post at some point detailing the amazing people I’ve met in Kampala, so for now their names will have to do. )

In the kitchen I spent a lot of time with Rachael, who was preparing the team’s lunch - we made a deal to have daily Luganda sessions, where she’ll help me learn some basic Luganda in my lunch breaks.

After day 1, I could count to 10 and I learnt some basic greetings and responses.

Rachael made some lunch for the team - so I tried some Matooke and beans - their staple meal in Uganda, both lacking much flavour.

Matooke is a type of Banana that they cook and mash here, but it really does not taste like anything - but paired with a good stew, it would be a nice potato mash replacement.

The late afternoon snack paired with coffee was a Kindazi -a type of Donut bun - which was tasty but quite heavy.

A day of newfoods ended in meeting Marlon - he works for the company and was also staying in the house for the night on his way to Jinja.

The next morning was an early one - waking to let Marlon out around 5am.

But what dreamy weather.

It was actually cold and rainy - I’d find out soon that this is the case most mornings.

Wednesday’s adventure was walking with Patience to the Acacia Mall, to start exploring the surroundings. I got to know her a bit better along the way, and she laughed as I freaked out about crossing the road.

With bikes and cars in all directions, finding a gap to make a run for it all the while not tripping over the potholes or slipping in the mud, it is a challenge.

She left me to explore the shops so I sat down for a lovely quick lunch at a place called Cafesserie. The food arrived super quickly, and was delicious.

I also tried my second local beer of the trip - a Nile Special.

There were a lot of foreigners around the Acacia Mall, and I sat people watching for a while playing the “are they visiting or do they live here” game in my head.

On my way home, after taking quite a while to muster the courage to cross the road by myself and seeing a lady make a poo on the side of the road, I stopped along the way at the roadside nurseries I wrote of earlier, and admired the plants close up.

SO TEMPTING.

That evening I sat in the garden and heard a nearby mosque for the first time.

Thursday was a really hard day at work, and I didn't do much more than stress, stress, stress.

Emmanuel made some deep-fried banana pancakes, which, if you like warm banana would be great.

I'm indifferent to warm banana - not my favourite but wouldn't decline it, so I tried them.

They were quite nice but like the Matooke, also very heavy - having a whole plate full was a bit of a challenge.

Rachael made some Matooke again bit this time with a bacon, tomato and mushroom stew - which had a lot more flavour and helped me power through the day.

I was mentally exhausted by the end of the day, so a Gin and Tonic on the balcony was the only way to end it off.

I sat listening to that mosque, thinking of Pringle Bay Sundowners with Abu Dhabi sounds, missing home just a little bit.