Hunt for Red October…

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Me again! First of all I must warn you it is very hot here… so don’t read this if you are in a fragile state due to the cold weather in the UK.

We had a brilliant time with the in-laws. After a lovely cruise along the Nile we flew to the far North of Uganda and had 3 nights in Kidepo National Park. This was a planned safari trip as a little treat for completing the first two months of our stay. The lodge was amazing - each room was an individual log cabin with a balcony and private outside bathtub overlooking the game park. Once we arrived and unpacked of course (Ness’s favourite thing about going away?!?) we went for a swim in the infinity pool that had views of the park and the mountainous South Sudan border. We had a safari drive in the evening and enjoyed a lovely sunset with a good old gin and tonic.

The following day was a big day for Uganda and can only be described as a comedy of errors for the Coxes. Before I explain, I should say we went on this trip for Ness to relax and recharge her batteries, so she could continue her amazing work in the hospital. So the big event for Uganda was a total eclipse of the sun which was advertised as the 9^th ever since Jesus was born (think they mean only in Uganda?!?). We were slightly north of the total darkness line but excited none the less to hopefully witness the reaction of the animals during this event. After our early morning game drive of seeing elephants, buffalo and zebras (but annoyingly no big cats), we had a swim while we waited for the eclipse. I was reading on a sun lounger when Ness came from the room in her towel and said “Dai can you come here please?” I grabbed the camera thinking there was an animal near our cabin and she said “It’s not a camera moment, just come quickly”. After asking what was wrong, Ness replied a little disturbed “There is a snake in our shower”. So with the camera in hand, followed by Roger (Ness’s Father) and two Danish girls who where the only other guests in the Lodge and happened to be by the pool, we went to see the snake. The shower was a big walk-in shower and the snake had climbed up onto the ledge. We asked one of the staff to get rid of it but he seemed to only force it between the bamboo and the outside canvas. He assured us it would go and was harmless, being only a housesnake. So it was me and another person (who shall remain nameless) to the rescue. I want to say the snake left through the open door in the bathroom as I banged on the canvas from the outside, but we can’t be sure as the person in the bathroom didn’t hang around when the snake came out rather quickly and slid towards him. I must say I have not laughed that much in such a long time…!

So having been told the eclipse was at 2:20pm it was actually around 5:30pm during our evening game drive. We drove in search of animals (mainly cats) and ended up near a small area of water where crocodiles inhabited. At this point, we witnessed semi darkness from the eclipse and noticed the birds and frogs go quiet. As we turned to drive from the water there was a strange noise from the engine and we broke down. The two guides got out to look at the engine then Roger decided to help and, me being me, thought I’d follow. It was funny to see Ness and her Mum quickly stand up and go on guard for any approaching animals. I’m happy to say no inquisitive animals came to see us but we had to be towed back to the lodge. It was an amazing sunset, but could only be viewed through black smoke from the exhaust as we struggled to tow our vehicle.

We arrived back to find our outside bath had been filled for us. It took Ness and I a while to get in as it was so hot. We go months with cold showers and then the only bath we have is too hot. We enjoyed a lovely gin and tonic looking up at the amazing stars… and wondering where the snake was?!? Afterwards I started to feel a little dizzy and sat on the side of the bath, waiting for the bat to leave the cabin (don’t ask). I said to Ness “I really don’t feel right” and she suggested I should lie down to cool down. Picking up on the cooling down part I decided to have a cold shower. It was lovely and refreshing, next thing I knew, I woke up on the floor of the shower and could hear Ness shouting to her Dad in the next cabin to come and help. My forehead was hurting and I quickly realised I had fainted and didn’t want my in-laws to see my naked. I got up and tried to find Ness to say I was OK. I was ordered to lie on the floor to rest, it was at this point I decided to start listening to the medically trained person I married, only to have the 2 night guards with torches enter the room quickly followed by my father-in-law and then my mother-in-law in a dressing gown. I felt very embarrassed and wanted everyone to leave. On reflection it was funny listening to Ness and Roger thanking the very confused Ugandan guards and ushering them out as I lay on the floor in the middle of the cabin with only a towel around me. It turned out Ness saw me fall and tried to support my head, I banged it good and proper as I had a big lump on it for a couple of days and a scratch down my chin. Not the most relaxing of days for Ness?!?

The following day we drove North to South Sudan for our breakfast pack up. On route we stopped in the dry river bed and had a walk around. The river fills each year during the long rainy season. We also drove through an area known for Tsetse flies so we were all covered from head to toe to try to prevent any bites. It was amazing to go in to South Sudan, even though we were only a hundred yards over the border. On the way back we saw many ostriches and passed another safari vehicle who told us they had spotted lions resting under a tree that morning. We spent a couple of hours trying to find the lions, but the elephants had scared them off. The following morning we dropped Roger and Sue off as they did a safari walk and Ness and I went in search of the lions. As we were drove I said to our guide Phillips, “It’s like the search for Red October.” He looked confused so I explained it was a film about searching for a submarine. Phillips looked even more confused, then Ness and I realised neither he nor the driver David know what a submarine is. I had the feeling of déjà vu from previously trying to explain what a pizza is to a rural Ugandan!

Anyway we found lion footprints in the road and after scanning the savannah, David said he could see 2 lions watching a herd of buffalo. They were waiting until dusk to catch their dinner so we sped across the game park to the lions. David parked within two metres of them and I actually slid across the seat terrified at first as the one seemed to look at me and wonder who we were. It was amazing and there turned out to be 4 lions (3 male and a lioness). We sat and watched until David realised we had to go and pick up the others. As we drove, we started to see the buffalo stampede towards the lions, whose presence they must have felt. We took the long way back to the lodge allowing our parents to see the lions. They had retreated and were now in the long grass still watching the buffalo. It was brilliant to see the lions watching their prey, I do wonder if they managed to catch their dinner that night or did we help the buffalo out?!?

We arrived back in Jinja on the 5^th November and I had a treat for everyone when it went dark… do you really think I’d forget about Bonfire Night?!? Knowing Ness had the rest of week off, we decided to hitch a ride with her parents on their trip west the following day. We passed through the equator and stayed in Mbarara, where Ness’s colleague lives who is on the same sort of placement. Anna gave us a nice tour of the hospital; it was interesting to see how things are done there. In the evening we had a lovely potluck dinner with Anna and her friends and someone brought lasagne so I was happy!!! We had a final night in Entebbe before the in-laws flew home and arrived back to Jinja with a bump. We have been trying to gain a little normality again after a wonderful break.

I’ve seen some classic Boda Boda sights this week but unfortunately have been slow to get my camera out. This week we have a treat – I was amazed to see what was being loaded on top of a matatu (if you don’t know what a matatu is, read the blog post entitled ‘Happy Independence Day Uganda!).

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