Kajie Safaris - Uganda (where I was born)

Kajie Safaris – Uganda

Day 1:  28th Nov 2018

Below is the map of the days travel.

Our arrival into Entebbe was about an hour late but our private guide Ronald was waiting for us, and we were both happy to see Ronald

Unfortunately, because of the flight delay one of the planned activities, a boat cruise at Lake Mburo National Park was cancelled.

We stopped at the equator for Lunch and a couple of photographs, it’s a must do.

On the way to Lake Mburo we passed lots of swamps filled with Papyrus. The Papyrus reeds are like the filtration system for the Nile & Uganda’s waterways. As we were driving we saw 2 Game drive vehicles parked up, which is always a good sign for wildlife spotting. Turns out there was a Shoebilled Stork fishing in one of the swamps filled with Papyrus reeds.

That was a first for Lisa & me.

We then did our first game drive of the trip at Lake Mburo National Park.

 It was a short game drive because of the late flight, however we did get to see some animals and learn a little about the history of Lake Mburo National Park. Unfortunately there are no Elephants or Rhinos there because of poaching, aside from the obvious downside the other problem is that the woodlands become overgrown which makes it hard for the smaller animals to live there.

Now I have to say I really liked this Greater Blue eared Starling, but of course it took flight just as I was about to take its photo.

Zebras

Topi

Impala (or McDonalds)

 Old Buffalo's wallowing in the mud.

Warthog

 

Ugandan Crane

 Female Water Buck

Male Water Buck 

Vervet Monkey (famous for their blue balls)

Second thing we learned was that the because of the farmers and their cows the National Park is shrinking. having said that the cows have really impressive horns.

We headed for our first nights accommodation at Eagle’s Nest which is a mid-range tented camp located just outside Lake Mburo NP. It’s a really impressive view from Eagles Nest looking over the lake.

Unfortunately, we forgot to take a photo of our tented accommodation, but trust me when I say it was more like Glamping.

Lisa also discovered that she lost her tablet (almost brand new)

Perth To Africa

Perth To Africa

27^th to 28^th of November 2018.

The best laid plans don’t always work out as you envisage, but they still work out okay. I guess that’s why we call it an adventure.

So for those of you who don’t know I’m a really cranky flier, it is by far least favourite thing is flying and everything you have to go through to get on what is effectively just a big bus. So when things don’t work out like I plan I get even crankier…

So we finally got out of the house after much faffing about… Jumped in our Uber, went to the wrong terminal, (crankiness level rising) finally arrived at the Qantas International (T4) only to see that there was a massive traffic jam for the drop off area. Its at about this point I start getting concerned that we were going to miss our check in time, so we headed into the short term parking area near the terminal, (crankiness level almost at head exploding levels) problem solved.

Once we were inside the terminal, we discovered that there are no bag wrapping facilities, which when you’re heading to Africa with a backpack is a problem. Next the Qantas check in and bag drop wasn’t working so off to the counter we go. Turns out we also jumped in the domestic que not the international que, but the lady was kind enough to check us in etc. At the departure gate I left Lisa in the peasant que whilst I went the business que. From there it was pretty uneventful.

We had to transferred from Qantas to Ethiopian Air, which meant we had to go from Terminal 1 to Terminal 2 and show the staff at the Ethiopian Air our luggage receipt so they could go collect our luggage from the good folks at Qantas. To say I was slightly concerned that we would lose or luggage was an understatement.

The layover in Singapore was an 8-hour layover, so Lisa booked the airport hotel which charges in 6 hours time slots. It’s a pretty good setup if you have a 6+ hour delay. We got a meal (included in the price), went up to the rooftop pool for a drink, watched some planes take off and land then went and had a nap.

Our flight from Singapore to Addis Ababa left at 2am and was about 9 hours and I have to say was pleasantly surprised. Whilst the plane was full, I had plenty of leg and elbow room (more than the Qantas flight). Apparently, there was a baby that was a little upset during the flight, I say apparently because my noise cancelling headphones work a treat. The food was edible but the highlight of the flight for me was a toss up between watching Deadpool 2 and seeing Lisa crying when they saved Matt Damon in the Martian.

Going through the airport at Addis Ababa we had to walk past the heat sensing camera, they have a sign attached to the camera basically saying that its for the detection of the Ebola virus.

Next Addis Ababa to Entebee, Uganda. Its about a 2 hour flight and we got second breakfast. Again lots of leg and elbow room. Winning.

And at the new Entebbe Airport they had the same camera setup screening for Ebola but this time we had to fill out a form, paid for our East Africa visa which covers Uganda & Kenya (it costs $100USD each).

But the really big news is our bags arrived, truly Winning.

Most importantly Lisa has finally figured out its best to follow me when there’s a que.