by Joseph B
Hello family and friends!
Nkula here again with another blog update. Our journey to Ziwa to study animal conservation began with a walk through downtown Kampala. Jonathan called the city the most chaotic city he has been to ( and he has lived in Mumbai and Cairo to give some perspective). As we walked through each bus terminal, we were pulled in different directions by people trying their best to get us on their bus. However, we were finally able to find the right bus to Ziwa. When we arrived, we were taken to Amuka lodge (the nicer of the two lodges in the reserve), and there we were met with a “snack” that was the size of a full dinner. David, the chef, was an amazing cook. We were all well satisfied in the food category for most of our stay.
Our first full day at Ziwa began with observations of the juvenile rhinos of Obama, Augusto, and Donna. Our friend Obama received his name because, just like Barak Obama, his mother was American and his father was Kenyan. It was interesting as we were able to get within 15 feet of the rhinos! It was during this observation session that we met one of our first friends in Uganda, Martine. Martine was a ranger from the the Northeast, near the border with Kenya. He always had a smile on his face and soon became a good friend of the group. After our observations of the rhinos, we painted a local school building, and most of us ended up with clothes carrying a new color. The school was fun, and as soon as we arrived, we were engulfed by children, of which little Gloria was everyone’s favorite, having the personality of a fun loving 80-year-old trapped in a three year old’s body. We returned to the school twice more to paint a mural on one of the buildings.
Additional highlights of our stay at Ziwa included: more Martine, Gerald the barman (who fed my Fanta Obsession), and Oman, another friendly ranger. On the last night, Duan, the son of the CEO of Ziwa, set out a scavenger hunt for us that ended with the group throwing eggs at each other in a mock battle! Just before our final dinner, we were able to have a Q&A session with Angie, Duan’s mother and head of Rhino Fund Uganda. It was very interesting listening to the struggles conservationists in Uganda encounter. Simply transporting a rhino to the sanctuary costs $30,000, which is a challenge Ziwa faces as they still need 6 more female rhinos to reach a sustainable breeding population. It is amazing the plans and vision that Angie still has for Ziwa and the rhinos!
We miss you all! Until next week,
Joseph
PS, please check out Rhino Fund Uganda’s Website