Discovering Uganda

After escaping the city almost every weekend since we got here, we decided that a weekend to explore Kampala was long overdue. To our surprise, the westernized, crowded, diesel-fume-infused city contains a lot of history, culture, and peacefulness just waiting to be discovered. Another colleague who is also doing a practicum in Uganda in a village several hours away visited and joined us on our escapade. Overall, I learned a lot about Uganda’s development and its people. I am glad we took the time to get a taste of the deep history rooted within the Ugandan community. There is still so much to uncover about this amazing country but time is going by so fast!

Our first stop: The Uganda National Museum- Our guide took us on a journey through the ethnological and natural history of Uganda.It was very informative and interesting. We even got to learn about their traditional musical instruments and hear a few songs. The displays are very out-dated, however, and don't compare to the museums you will find in NY.. . 

Our Next stop: The Great Gaddafi Mosque- funded entirely by the President of Libya-Gaddafi

It is located on top of a hill so you can spot it from very far away. It is the largest mosque in Uganda.

We had to follow the religious customs and be covered in order to enter the mosque. Caitlin was unhappy when we were told that being covered up made us more beautiful.

My first time being veiled to enter a mosque.

We walked up all these stairs to go up a tower next to the mosque.

We got a great view of the city from the top.

The top of the mosque

The inside of the mosque (the bottom floor is reserved for the men and the second floor is reserved for women).

It was really gorgeous inside

We visited during Ramadan so our guide was fasting. It was my first time in a mosque and it was a fascinating experience.

Our next stop: The Bahai Temple- the only one in all of Africa

I had never heard of the Bahai religion before but it seems like it is based on solid principles.

The Bahai Temple soars above every other landscape and it's grounds are covered in lush green

A wedding party came to take pictures on the Bahai grounds. They were all so beautiful!

The next day: Sunday Mass at Kamwokya Catholic Church

Our last stop for the weekend: The Kasubi Tombs- the burial place of the Kings of Uganda (pictured at the bottom of the picture). These kings had multiple wives and many, many kids.

Inside the royal drum house where the royal palace drums are kept

The remains of the Kasubi Tomb which burned down in 2010 from an unknown cause. They are currently in the process of training people how to rebuild it.

There are "practice" tombs that are being built in preparation to rebuild the Kasubi Tomb.

The ceiling is intricately weaved in circular fashion.

The grave site for all the kings who have disappeared (they believe that kings "disappear" not die)

Trees with baby jack fruit

Paintings being sold nearby (they were way too expensive) but I thought they were gorgeous!

Our tour of Kampala taught me a lot about the many religions of the people in Uganda and our informative guides provided me with very interesting history lessons. I was glad we visited these monumental and historical sites because they were located away from the busyness of the city and I got a lot of time to relax and enjoy the scenery. Our cultural journey was mixed in with delicious meals at Endiro (our favorite cafe) and traditional Ugandan cuisine which I also enjoyed very much.

On another note, I am not sure if you are all aware, but there is currently an Ebola outbreak in Uganda. It is very scary and the number of victims are growing. At least 14 people have died. Eek.