Blogs from Kisoro, Western Region, Uganda, Africa

There are highlights I've got one my wishlist, and some I simply don't have on my wishlist. Few months ago, Uganda was nothing close to my radar of things to do. But than, after a drink with a friend, the idea of Jinja came...followed by a visit to the Gorillas. There are currently only 720 mountain gorillas left in the wild. The good news is that this is a serious increase from few years back. You can today find the gorillas in only two places. The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, fully in Uganda, and the Virunga Volcanoes National Park shared by Uganda, Rwanda and RD Congo. The Mountain Gorillas do not survive in captivity, so this is the only place to see these nice giants. They live in groups, of which there are a few, with ... read more

A belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of our readers! As we are quickly realising, Uganda is a fantastic country, full of things to see and friendly people. However, for most tourists it has one main draw-card, that of being home to more than half of the world’s 700 remaining Mountain Gorillas. The Ugandan Wildlife Authority have cottoned on to the fact that the chance to see such rare and fascinating creatures is extremely appealing to tourists. To their credit, gorilla tourism seems to be run in an sustainable way and the gorillas are certainly not exploited, with each day only eight people allowed to visit each of the four groups for one hour. Inevitably, the demand for permits to visit the gorillas far out-strips supply, which in turn leads to very ... read more

We spent yesterday trying to avoid the rain in our leaking tent after so many early mornings we needed a bit of a rest. Today the sun was out so we decided to go on a walk to a nearby lake with Danny and Kirsty. It was quite a difficult walk up a hill and it was very slippery due to all the rain. On the way to the lake we were followed by local children who kept asking for money or pens. We walked through a small village where the men were sitting outside drinking a home brew made from bananas. They offered us a drink which we accepted, the first one was called the soft beer it actually tasted OK next came the strong stuff it was completly clear and took your head off. ... read more

The Eye of the Gorilla We'd started in Nairobi, and we headed to the West Through Kenya and Uganda where the roads are not the best And we moved towards Rwanda, where it bords with DRC And the Congolese are fighting wars most devastatingly. But why were we approaching lands of war and Rebel Killers? For in these jungles live the world's remaining wild gorillas. Rwanda and the Congo and Uganda all are linked By a jungle where the mountains rise as populations shrink, And the next day we would trek to find some quite endangered creatures: The sultans of the jungle with the shaggy human features. The gorillas filled my thoughts that night, the sleep I had was fleeting They're the drummers of the jungle who keep Africa's heart beating. *** The next day, bright ... read more

Mzungus In The Mist So we left good old Delhi at 4 am in a Rickshaw and headed for the airport having had an awesome time in India overall. Our plane journey would take us back to Honkers and then on to Nairobi via Jo'burg over 27 hours. All good fun indeed Fawlty, particularly when your destination is affectionately known as Nairobbery and 1 in 3 people have been mugged or assaulted there! We pensively exited Nairobi airport (without a problem), headed to our new camp site to meet our new group for the next 3 weeks and spent the evening watching Brazil vs Australia - good effort boys. Overlanding on a big green Scania truck through Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania was the plan and Overland we did.... The Overland Experience - Heading Through Kenya A ... read more