bus to Kampala

After six weekends in Mbarara, it was time for a change of scenery this weekend so I boarded a bus yesterday for the 5 hour trip to Kampala. My guidebook and Ugandan contacts told me that I should use one of two bus companies, but after locating where they board (which is by the side of a road instead of my first two guesses- the two bus yards in town) I found out it would be hours before they left. So with some trepidation I got on a different bus that was heading to Kampala. Other companies have reputations for frequent stops, drivers who drive fast and pass frequently on the narrow roads, long delays as the bus waits to fill-and overfill- completely before moving, and frequent breakdowns. I did get a seat (after the driver called out "Omuzungo!"-(white person) and led me to it) and, although the bus stopped about 30 times on the way, we got to Kampala safely and without breakdown. In Kampala, the bus ride ends on a jampacked street that has a bus yard, two minibus yards (which my guidebook calls the two most chaotic taxi parks in Africa- which I suspect is saying something), and markets shoehorned in every vacant lot and alley. I was completely disoriented, but after declining rides from at least 10 boda-boda drivers dangling keys in front of me, I asked for directions to the city center. A crowd gathered to discuss the best way to get there and a man eventually told me to follow him as he led me briskly through alleys and markets to a main street leading to my hotel (thankfully he was wearing a bright green hat, shirt, and pants which allowed me to keep him in view as people inevitably pushed between us). The stay in Kampala itself was somewhat less exciting than the trip there but I started exploring the city, went to the National Museum, and had my first great cup of coffee since arriving. I can vouch that Kampala is a city that never sleeps (at least the street that my hotel faced; I learned too late that the inside rooms are the best bet). The pictures are of the gridlock at the bus yard (a still photo doesn't capture that fact that vehicles are supposed to be moving but aren't) and one of the many roadside stops (like an outdoor rest stop with long lines of grills and people rushing up to and onto the bus with grilled meat and maize, samosas, sodas, and gum).