From 2015 to the end of 2017, because of the work reasons became a member of the million non-drift, spent nearly three years in the East African country of Uganda, through most of the territory of Ukraine, after returning to China, always want to put their own experiences and experiences, through the way of writing to friends who have not been to Africa, let everyone follow my wentu to take a trip to Uganda.....
Located in eastern Africa, Uganda is known as the "pearl of the African plateau" by former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, with the equator running from west to east, and neighboring Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Congo and South Sudan. With a land area of 240,000 square kilometers, only half the size of Sichuan Province, it is divided into more than 110 districts of different sizes, with a population of about 35 million and many ethnic groups, mainly Catholic (45%), Protestant (40%) and Islamic (11%), as well as some Orthodox and indigenous primitive religions. The country is mainly divided into four kingdoms, Buganda, Buñolo, Toro, and Ancole, but of course there are tribal kingdoms of different sizes. The average altitude is 1200 meters, mainly hilly and mountainous, the climate is cool, the average temperature of the year is 22-25 °C, April-June and September-November are rainy seasons, the rest of the months are dry seasons, of course, there are differences between regions and years, especially in 2016, the rainy season is significantly shortened and postponed, and the rainy season in the Victoria Lake Area has little impact. There are many lakes in the territory, the main large lakes are Lake Victoria, the world's second largest freshwater lake after Lake Superior, uganda accounts for half of the water area of 67,000 square kilometers; The best bird watching spot is Lake Bunyonyi.
Nile scenery
Rich in tourism resources, mainly based on natural scenery and wildlife, Murchison National Park, the largest national park in Masindi in the west, Elizabeth National Park in Kasese in the north, mountain gorilla habitat bordering Rwanda, and Jadaipo River Valley National Park in the east.
Uganda currency
The source of the Nile in the eastern Jinja and the world's first Nile rafting, the islands on Lake Victoria, the Equatorial Circle, the Cassubi Mausoleum in Kampala, museums, the Grand Mosque, the Baha'i Church and much more.
The Nile is the largest river in Africa and the longest river in the world, and its source is located at the outlet of Lake Victoria, in the city of Jinja in Uganda.
Sign of the source of the Nile
Uganda's kidepo National Park is said to have 86 species of mammals and 460 species of birds, making it the second largest national park in East Africa, with the ubiquitous national bird of Uganda, the crown crane, wearing beautiful golden feathers and lifelong monogamy.
National bird - crown bird
Entebbe is the first stop of all flights into Uganda, with all international commercial flights arriving at Entebbe International Airport. The airport is located on a small peninsula on Lake Victoria, and Entebbe was briefly the capital of Uganda. Surrounded by lakes on three sides, the city cannot be expanded, more similar to the small fishing villages of domestic coastal cities. Due to its small size and surrounding the lake, everything looks exceptionally clean, and you can see beautiful scenery along the way off the plane into the city. Located in the African highlands, close to the equator, at an altitude of about 1000 meters, although the sunshine is very strong, the daytime temperature is always maintained between 25-30 ° C, so in any season to enter Uganda, it will feel particularly comfortable.
It is estimated that many military fans' impression of Entebbe stems from the famous hostage rescue incident in 1976, when Israeli commandos rushed thousands of miles to rescue more than 100 hostages taken by Palestinians with the smallest sacrifice, which is a classic example.
Entebbe has almost no industry, and occasionally there are a few small workshops of cement products that do not smoke or produce pollution on the side of the road. The small fishing village near the lake is full of fishermen who work at sunrise, go out of the lake in the early morning to fish, dock at noon, and sell the fruits of the day's work. The fish in the lake are mainly wild tilapia (African crucian carp), perch, and occasionally catch fish similar to the domestic yellow spicy ding or other fish species, and the locals mainly eat the first two fish.
Entebbe scenery
Entebbe is the most is the hotel, mainly conference or foreign tourists, each hotel is not far from the lake, regardless of the size of the hotel, hardware, greening is particularly beautiful and eye-catching, especially a hotel called Imperial golf hotel, the door face looks very ordinary, just like the domestic family hotel, but after going in is another Hidden Qiankun, hardware facilities are not as good as domestic hotels, but the decoration is still unique, the room is oversized, green estimates that many domestic four-star five-star hotels can not match. Behind the hotel is the golf course, the course is not big, but it is very orderly, surrounded by green trees, the lawn is particularly beautiful, lining the sunset, not playing but wandering in between is also a kind of enjoyment.
Ordinary sake store view
The Presidential Palace is also located on the top of Entebbe, overlooking the entire peninsula, and there are also live-loaded Presidential Guards patrolling at any time, if it is found to be photographed, not only the shooting equipment will be confiscated, but also may sit in a small black room. There are all kinds of small villas built on the mountainside, all of which are hundreds of square meters of large yards with a large house, and lawn greening is basically standard.
Uganda's only captive zoo is also in Entebbe, home to not only native Uganda but also from other African countries. If you don't want to go to the safari, this is also a good choice, you can see as many animals as you want to see in the safari park for a few tens of yuan, but if you don't go to Africa to see wild animals in national parks, it seems that it is not right not to go on this trip to Africa.
A corner of Entebbe
Uganda's first true highway ends here, and it's nearing completion. The expressway is built by the domestic central enterprise CCCC, which connects Entebbe Airport and the northwestern ring road of the capital Kampala. The capital Kampala to Entebbe Airport is more than 40 kilometers, and it takes 1 hour to 1 and a half hours without traffic jams, and most passengers' flights will be delayed if they encounter VIP visits and road traffic restrictions. Therefore, it is completely necessary to build a high-speed connection between the two places, but the road of just a few tens of kilometers has not been completed and opened to traffic for two or three years. This is Africa, land private ownership, whether it is national engineering or private construction, compensation has not been negotiated everything is only postponed, coupled with the government and non-governmental, work efficiency is low, let you be in a hurry, I do not move, the average life expectancy is short, it seems as if there is still a lot of time wasted, so that people who have just arrived in Africa look anxious. Rush is not urgent, this is their thousands of years to form a habit of life, you can not change, you can only slowly adapt to their rhythm. Most people who have spent a few years in Africa are very uncomfortable with the rhythm of the country when they return home.
Uganda's first highway, the Entebbe-Kampala Expressway
Kampala - the capital of Uganda, the political, economic, cultural and educational center of Uganda, and the capital of the Kingdom of Gubuganda, the largest kingdom in Uganda. With a population of nearly 2 million, the city is made up of large and small hills, and various buildings are distributed on different hills. The Parliament, Independence Square, the National Theatre, the Hilton Hotel, and the Grand Mosque of Gaddafi are all landmarks of the capital.
Kololo and Naguru are densely packed with houses on two hills, one yard connected to another, all of which are detached villa buildings, and on these two hills, you can't see that this is Africa. The road is lined with palm trees more than ten meters high, and under the palm trees are manicured lawns. Standing at the top of the hill, the red tile white walls on the buildings near and far stand out in the sunlight. Kololo Hill is the premises of embassies and office areas of large enterprises, and the Chinese embassies are also located in this area.
Buganda Palace
There are nearly 50,000 Chinese in Ukraine, most of whom live in the capital Kampala, and are the second largest foreign ethnic group after the Indians and Pakistanis. The Chinese I've seen in India and Pakistan in 5 years doesn't add up to as much as I've seen here in a month. Chinese-run hotels, restaurants, and factories are located around the capital. Located in Kololo Garden Hotel, Nanjing Express Hotel, Youth Hostel, Lugogo Road New Nanjing Hotel, Naguru Hill Home, Red Sun Inn, Mukano Arirang Hotel, 5th Street Chinese Business Hotel, Fangfang Hotel are all Chinese-run hotels or inns, prices range from 20 US dollars to 200 US dollars, Fengjian has a choice. In addition to the restaurants operated by their respective hotels, chinese restaurants for corporate banquets, friends gatherings or personal meals include New Nanjing, Garden, Arirang, Fangfang, Wenzhou Restaurant, Guangzhou Restaurant, Shanghai Restaurant, etc., which can be said to cover the major domestic cuisine varieties, and Chinese people can try a variety of different flavors of dishes.
A corner of the local mansion
In addition to entertainment K songs, you can also go to the casino to try your luck. Gaming industry in Uganda is a legal industry, high tax rates, the market is more standardized, not only there are local casinos, but also Indians, non-Chinese opened, if you see a big Casino sign on the street, that is the casino, in the country there is no opportunity to play in the serious casino, you can spend half a day or two hours to see a small try. Three or five friends small gathering K song, small ones have night swallows, large ones have Chinese business hotels and new Nanjing hotels, let you roar to the throat dumb.
If you want to taste local food, there are all kinds of food, from high-pressure Mediterranean restaurants, buffets in major hotels (prices range from 30,000 to 100,000 shillings), café Java throughout the city, and beef, chicken or lamb with rice for 5,000-15,000 shillings.
The food of the local people to matoki Matoki - rice banana a staple banana variety, first peeled and then cooked, then pounded into a mud steamed out, yellow glutinous, high-calorie eating is very anti-hunger, the state banquet will also be on the food, to this side have the opportunity to taste, I miss it after returning home. posho A white corn crushed and sifted fine powder similar to flour, mixed with water to form a paste-like clump after the cake. Casawa processed into powder with sorghum flour or millet flour mixed with water and stirred into a paste-like clump is the main cake-like object. Breakfast to matoki roast beef or tripe this breakfast for the first time to eat the taste is not bad, restaurants about 8-10 yuan, most of the rich people eat this way, once went to the Ministry of Agriculture a leader's home, twice saw him as breakfast, chapati Indians passed here a flour made of bread, but the taste is not as soft and mouthy as the local Indians. Most people who work early or small businesses make breakfast with a cup of hot tea or coffee, or a deluxe version – plus one or two egg flapjacks. Net cake 1 yuan a piece, plus an egg price doubled, of course, there is also a Western breakfast.
Local breakfast
The locals' meals are mainly rice plantains, accompanied by meat and beans boiled in soup, plus a bottle of drinks become the standard for lunch. We also eat out mainly with roast beef and rice, I have to say that the beef here is really delicious, the whole ecological natural grass grows, no feed is added. Dinner is the highlight, a busy day, only to idle in the evening, bars, restaurants have become a place for evening gatherings, of course, the party is indispensable to wine. In Uganda, where most people, both men and women, enjoy two drinks, beer is better than domestically, both locally produced and imported from neighbouring countries, with varieties such as Nile, Club, tusker, Bell and Guinness.
Chinese food intake
Local food intake
Traffic, more than 90% of the vehicles are used cars, as long as the rudder can turn around on the road is running (I have seen a Japanese car produced in 1970, older than my age is still in service), there are many cars, so Kampala is stuck at any time. It's perfectly normal to have a one- or two-hour commute, especially on Mondays and Fridays. We once received leaders from China, set dinner at 7 o'clock, and walked for more than two hours for 10 kilometers, and the leaders were hungry and starry.
Public transportation is mainly based on Toyota 9-seat minibuses, a minibus is often crowded with 17, 8, crowded that taste I have experienced many times, squeezing are small things, mainly more than a dozen people in a small space after the high temperature fermentation of the taste of that sour, more than the People of the Indian Peninsula. This kind of minibus is often the culprit of the blockage, drilling at the sight of the seam, originally most of the roads have only two lanes in both directions, and they are often blocked and unable to move due to non-compliance. On the contrary, the driver of the car should be much more polite, Kampala traffic lights are very few, if there is a traffic jam at the intersection, most drivers will leave a parking space for the steering lane to let the steering car pass, and unlike the domestic drivers, I can't pass and will never let you pass.
Minibus parking
No matter how much congestion, drivers drive very rarely honking their horns, there are pedestrians on the road who want to pass, drivers often slow down to signal pedestrians to pass, especially students, many times in our country will be a foot on the accelerator to pass, these places are really worth learning.
Macrae University is the highest university in Uganda and the earliest and most influential comprehensive university in East Africa, from which most of the local political or business communities have graduated. Kampala is also home to the International University of East Africa, the University of Kampala, the University of Victoria and other institutions of higher learning. It takes 11 years from elementary school to middle school, 7 years from elementary school to 2 years of middle school, 2 years of high school, and some school systems are different. There are many international schools in the city, for different groups of people, most of these international schools and European and American universities, after graduation selection into Europe and the United States university study, of course, the tuition fees of international schools are not cheap, generally 3 semesters a year, tuition fees from 2000-4000 US dollars. Two larger international schools, one is Kampala International School, which is mainly composed of Indian and Pakistani students, and the other is Cambridge International School, the most expensive school, teaching teachers in Europe and the United States, diplomats and white children.
Kampala's attractions are distributed on different hills, located on the top of the old Kampala urban area, the Qaddafi Mosque is the largest mosque in Ukraine, which was built by former President Amin's iron brother Gaddafi, on the minaret of the mosque can overlook the old city of Kampala, of course, there is a fee to enter the mosque, and take off your shoes and feet, if it is a woman's need to be masked to enter. This is incomparable with Muslim countries, I have never paid a fee for entering a number of mosques of all sizes in South Asia, but in Africa there are fees everywhere, you take a picture, you charge; Pass by a tea plantation to take a photo and pay for it; Passing through someone else's land, paying a fee; Passing by the golf course, paying fees..., living is the reason why they are poor, as long as they see people who are different from their colors, they all want money.
The Great Mosque of Gaddafi
The National Museum --- a place that could not be smaller, and it is estimated that it is not as large as a county-level museum in China. However, if you want to understand their history, you can also go to see, after all, it is the National Museum, two hours is enough.
Hindu temples, Hindu temples are also scattered throughout the city, even Sikhism, which is a relatively small group in India, also has Sikh temples in the city. This is also the most basic difference between Chinese and people in other countries, others not only work, but also have a place for their souls, at least to let their own culture take root in a foreign country. Our Chinese culture has no influence in the local area, and the geese are silent.
Hindu Temple
The Baha'i Shrine ---- only one on each continent, five in the world, Africa here, and Asia in Delhi, India. The church is located on the top of the hill, with nine gates, each extending from the church to the bottom of the mountain, each side is equipped with lawn greenery and trees, which is particularly secluded, suitable for families or friends to gather or hold a cold meal. It is a very inclusive religion that believes in the unity of mankind and the unity of the world, and any religious belief and anyone can go in and pray.
Baha'i Shrine of The Illuminati
Munyonyo, a beautiful Victorian lakeshore, is a large Indian-run hotel that pays a 3,000 shilling entrance fee and can visit all parts of the hotel. Large lawns near the lake, flowing palm trees, different flowers bloom in different seasons, and there are basically lawn weddings or parties on weekends. Spend half a day or a day here, tired can sit on the lawn, hungry in the restaurant to order a Western meal, while eating while enjoying the beauty of the lake. Of course, you can also go to the horse farm for horseback riding, or rent a boat to walk around the lake or go to the island in the middle of the lake to see a different scenery.
A corner of Muyonyo
The Kasubi Tomb, the tomb of the king of the Kingdom of Buganda, was also the seat of the kingdom's royal palace. This is the only World Heritage Site in Uganda, with a visit ticket of 10,000 shillings per person and a guided tour to introduce the tombs. It is located on the side of Kasubi Road and is about 20 hectares. Four kings were buried here, but the mausoleum was destroyed by a fire in 2010 and is now being rebuilt. Although it is a royal tomb, it is composed of several grass huts, which is incomparable with the emperors and generals of the domestic past, nor can it compare with the tombs of the monarchs or prophets of the South Asian continent. The inlet is a passage set up by a grass hut with wooden pillars in the middle to bear the load, and the rafters are made of grass or what wooden poles are coiled in a circle of objects, covered with hay. When the king reached the porch, he began to carry him into the palace by the guards without touching his feet. Through the corridor, on the left is a small grass hut containing magic utensils, the so-called magic tools are composed of large and small wooden drums, the tour guide introduced that different drums have different functions, some are the honor guards when the king travels, some are notified of the tribal king's arrival, some are notified of the tribe assembly to work, through different drums to express different meanings. The tall grass hut in the middle is the tomb of the late king, and the small grass huts around the mausoleum are where the widows of the late king lived, and in the kingdom of Buganda, after the king's death, all the living princesses lived around the mausoleum. It is also very sad to think about, just as the ancient poet wrote: the white-headed palace girl is here, sitting idly and talking about Xuanzong, which is extremely similar.
The Tomb of Kasubi in reconstruction
African style performance, near the top of the mountain in Ntinda, there is a farm called Dere, mainly based on African style performances, quite distinctive; Uganda's more well-known art groups, not only King Buganda, President Musevini, but also visiting international dignitaries have seen their performances. African drums, African dances, African mini-dramas, performances from 7 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., a full three and a half hours, plus the host's gags in the middle, very flavorful. Every Wednesday, Friday and seven nights, there are performances, tickets of 50,000 shillings, buffet 30,000 shillings, equivalent to less than 180 yuan, you can spend a pleasant night.
African-inspired performances
City life, of course, is inseparable from shopping, and there are several large commercial complexes in Kampala suitable for shopping, eating and leisure. Acacia mall, Garden City, Village mall, Forest mall, and domestic large commercial complexes have the same function, and now the more popular is Acacia mall, especially in the West. Life supermarkets are mainly based on Nukumut and Shoprit, as well as Gyme, daily necessities and fresh fruits can be purchased.
Local wet market
If you are a "family cooker" or can't do without fresh vegetables, Nakasero Market is a must-visit place, the market is mainly Chinese and Indian-Pakistani, the market vendors can not only speak Chinese but also understand the Sichuanese dialogue. Locals sell vegetables basically in piles, a bunch of money, only this market is facing Chinese and Indians and Pakistanis, so sell by weight. Of course, the wet market is not a calm place, all kinds of people and other fish and dragons are mixed, a little careless may lose money and things. If the first time to go to the vegetable market, do not be blinded by some enthusiastic black brothers, I went for the first time, suddenly stretched out a pair of enthusiastic hands to help me carry things, I also secretly thought to myself "This service is also too good, buy vegetables and someone to help carry", there is no free lunch in the world used in any corner of the world, help carry the car to open the mouth to 20,000 shillings, fortunately with the driver, the black brother was reprimanded by the driver, gave 2,000 shillings to get out. After buying vegetables, you need Chinese condiments, and there are Chinese supermarkets next to the market that target people with Chinese, and all kinds of Chinese goods Chinese operate can basically meet your homesickness taste buds.
Nakasero Wet Market
Not far from the wet market, William Street is where Chinese merchants gather, and all kinds of goods are wholesale, this market not only meets the local market in Uganda, but also radiates to Rwanda, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi in East Africa. Local businessmen and parliamentarians clamored to drive foreign traders out of Uganda, which would seriously affect local employment opportunities. If the foreign merchants are gone, will they have to go back to the days of tribes that eat grass roots and wear bark?
After touring Uganda, it is also essential to buy some local souvenirs and crafts to send to your family and friends. Some people say that the most distinctive feature of Africa is ivory, I advise you to come to Africa Chinese, do not buy such items, in the past two years because ivory has been caught Chinese has been a lot, must not be because of a small matter to damage the image of the People, or that sentence no sale, no killing.
Craft shop
Africa's indigenous products, the most prominent ones are mainly coffee, as well as the hot moringa seeds that were fried by Chinese in the past two years, the molondo that nourishes yin and aphrodisiac, the wild fish glue of Lake Victoria, and the sea cucumber of Tanzania. The local coffee is fragrant and authentic, although it is not as famous as Ethiopia, but it is also very distinctive, and it is also a good choice to bring a few bags to send to friends and family. Crafts are sold in general tourist attractions and hotels, such as the Equatorial Circle, the headwaters of the Nile, and Entebbe, but the most concentrated sales places are in the national theater and the market of Buganda Road, where you can basically buy various local souvenirs, such as black wood carvings, cowhide paintings, horn products, etc. Of course, there are slightly better souvenirs, such as Banana boats sold at a higher price than the market, but the quality is also better. Some Chinese hotels also have souvenirs for sale, all of which are relatively high prices and specifically aimed at Chinese, such as Tanzanite blue that can be passed down for 200--300 US dollars and 1 carat, and black wood carvings with better carving quality.
Africa is a magical land, worth coming here once in a lifetime, as long as people with good hearts will fall in love with her, both to enjoy the beautiful scenery, but also to appreciate different humanities, the experience of meeting the poorest people at the bottom in Africa, will help you transform the misery in life into a broad mind of compassion...