After our incredible experience on Ngamba Island, Michelle, Chris, Aidan, and Michael packed up the van and headed north to Masindi for workshop #1. Courtney and I quickly got to work planning our itinerary for our week off, and then headed to a nearby Chinese restaurant to experience the World Cup final a la African style. Wednesday saw us passing through the historically important Masindi as well, on our way up to Murchison Falls, where we dined with our former teammates and got the scoop on electronics set-up, the workshop schedule, and any other tips and tricks Michelle and Chris could offer. From the animated discussion it seemed as though the first workshop was proving to be very successful, and the hints we gleaned made us feel more confident about the workshop we would be leading the following week.
Our first holiday-week excursion led us to the Budongo forest for a wild chimp trek (we had seen these guys in action on Ngamba, and wanted more!). Our guide promised us a three hour walk; however, warned us that because the chimps were wild there was no guarantee we would come across them. The flora and fauna in the forest were beautiful and well worth the walk, though the absence of any chimpanzees was becoming more and more apparent as the hours ticked by. Finally, after two hours and fifty-eight minutes in the bush we came across another guide who had just returned from leading a group to the chimps. We quickly found the location they had chosen for their nesting and spent the next hour necks-craned watching their antics high up in the trees. Watching them in their natural habitat was astounding and definitely a highlight of the week!
On Friday we were picked up from Travellers Corner and made our way down a long and bumpy road before arriving at Paraa for two days of safari. Our four hour game drive in the morning was filled with exciting glimpses of the Big 5 (we managed to see all but the elusive leopard), and the highlight was definitely the chance to watch a lioness and her two young cubs tussle and tumble in the reeds on the banks of the Nile. In the afternoon we took a boat ride down the Nile, passing by bloats of hippos and crocodiles lying stealthily in wait mouths agape. Our guides pointed out the location where Hemingway’s plane crashed and showed us the forest where he and his wife were obliged to spend the night. Once at Murchison Falls we climbed out onto the rocks for some photo ops before returning down the river for our final night at camp.
Sunday morning saw us driving back up to the falls in a van filled with unrelenting tsetse flies, overpowering Deet fumes, and our fellow travelling companions. We had a lovely hike to the top of the falls and then climbed down into a shower of mist on the rocks before scrambling back up to the van and heading to our new home for the week in Masindi, the Hotel Aribas. The workshop countdown had begun!
Melanie
