Bumps in the Road

Just a quick update today…. Nothing profound.  And no photos - technical hitch....

After 18 hours of taxi-plane-bus-plane-taxi yesterday, and 8 hours driving today, we’re finally in our hotel in Soroti. My resolve to be relaxed hasn’t been tested too much yet, drivers arrived on time, nice bed last night and I confess I slept most of today (why didn’t I know about new improved neck pillows before? zzzzzzzz). Kampala driving hasn’t changed – one huge traffic jam for 2 hours with heavy-laden motorbikes weaving dangerously between several lanes of cars, all practically touching. Two cold showers so far – one a dribble, one pointing at the wall, and a hotel booking that was eventually found but we’d been downgraded as all the rooms were occupied (?!). Definitely not worth stressing about.  The hotel is new, and clean, and Tom’s snoozing on the bed so it must be OK…. The road was a bit grim in places – we were back to driving on the wrong side of the road and in ditches to avoid potholes and general gaps in the road surface, and there were some cracking speed bumps. Tom sat in the front!

The most striking thing about the journey was the absence of children.  Usually when you’re driving in Uganda there are children everywhere. Children walking to school, running to get out of the rain on their way to or from school, children playing in playgrounds at break times. But its the long school holiday here and today it was pouring most of the time. It was weirdly quiet without shouting children.  I have a question for you: What did you do in the holidays when you were at primary School?   

Today we saw children filling jerry cans at a water pump, 3 tiny children pushing a bicycle laden with jerry cans along the side of the main road as huge lorries thundered past. We saw small girls carrying babies, young children out shopping, hoeing in the fields, watching animals, hawking in the street – bananas, peanuts, tea, even one small boy covered in suitcases at a busy intersection. Many young children work in the holidays here. We saw children sitting playing together under shelters out of the rain, or watching the cars pass on the road, and when the rain stopped we saw a football game, a boy rolling an old bicycle tyre, and children using empty school playgrounds to play chase.  

Once we were north of Mbale we were in familiar territory, flat plains and swamps with clusters of grass-thatched mud huts spread across the scrubland.  We know when we’re approaching Soroti. We smiled as we drove down the red dust track into Pamba district.  We called in at the Global Care centre. Its always a treat to see our friends here and to feel so welcome. The children at the Ark disability centre were getting ready to be taken home so we popped our heads into the van to be greeted with smiles and shrieks. As we drove away from the Centre, children waved and shouted ‘Mzungu, Mzungu’. Ah that’s better! I feel more at home now.

When I said I wasn’t going to whinge, I’d forgotten about the noise…. Hens, planes (flying school in Soroti?), dogs, church singing, cars, phones, computer bleeps and a constant backdrop of voices and slapping flipflops. But I’m not complaining – just adjusting…..

Tomorrow is a public holiday so we’re taking it easy and meeting to plan for next week over coffee at 9.30 Uganda time.