Queen Elizabeth National Park

On Friday, June 13th, The Rakai Six headed to Western Uganda to visit Queen Elizabeth National Park. The park covers almost 2,000 square kilometers and has the highest number of mammal species in all of Uganda. Apparently, the wildlife suffered greatly during Amin’s rule, but the numbers are recovering. (It is almost impossible for me to imagine it better than what it is now!)

We spent nearly all day Friday traveling to the Park. When we finally arrived we were greeted by an upside-down van that looked as if it had been plowed by an elephant. A couple of hundred meters later we were stopped in our tracks.

Whoa! Welcome to the Park.

Part I: The Game Drive
On Saturday, we started the day with a 6:30am game drive.

Beautiful sunrise - my second with Yen this year!

The little balls all over the tree above are nests of the yellow-backed weaver. The males build a nest, then sing to attract females. When the females come, they enter the nest and inspect it. If it is made well, they will stay and the birds mate. If is unsatisfactory, the female will leave and the male will tear down the nest and start over.

one of the many craters

As Yen pointed out, game drives and scuba diving seem to have a lot in common – it seems I have found another ridiculously expensive hobby. Basically – I was freaking out the entire time over the amazing wildlife! Within five minutes, we saw lions mating. Unfortunately, it was too dark to really capture it (well) on film. Then we saw yet another elephant!

After that, the course of events is too difficult to remember. But we saw more elephants . . .

… and two types of antelopes …

the Ugandan Kob

Waterbuck

… and buffaloes (with great white egrets) …

… and ELEVEN lions!!! (seeing one on a drive isn’t guaranteed – we were ridiculously lucky & had a great guide!)

pregnant lioness resting after a meal

cub chewing on dinner's face

During all the excitement I could barely contain myself and I spent most of the drive hanging out of the window or crawling on top of the vehicle. After all this, I scrubbed the dirt off my face and went to the canteen for some lunch where I was greeted by Mary.


Apparently, Mary was found as a baby, with no mom in sight. Other herds would not accept her, so a researcher began to care for her. Unfortunately, he passed away recently, and 18-year-old Mary keeps returning to the hostel area searching for him (that is where he used to live) … so sad.


Part II: The Boat Ride

Ashley, Michelle, Amos (our driver and wildlife-spotter), Yen

After a much-needed nap, I went on a boat ride to see some more wildlife, including crocodiles …

… more elephants …

… more buffaloes, and – my favorite from the boat ride - hippos!!!




The biggest surprise for me was how much I love hippo noises.


Part III: The Gorge

Sunday morning we went for our final bit of the trip – a walk in the gorge. We had hoped to see some primates, but I guess our luck ran out. Nonetheless, it was a gorgeous hike.

chimpanzee nest

We then piled back in the car for the long drive back to Kalisizo town. When we were nearly home, our amazing driver Amos, while driving 100+ km/hr and dodging potholes, spotted some zebras (ELEVEN to be exact)!!!!




All in all, an amazing trip. I only wish I had had more time there and that Dan could have been there to enjoy it with me!

Meet “The Rakai Six”

We landed in Kampala, Uganda on the 27th of May to embark on our summer adventure with the primary purpose of completing our practica with the Rakai Health Sciences Program. We began our trip with a one-week orientation in Kampala coordinated by Susan, an extremely competent and friendly Program Officer from Makerere University’s School of Public Health.
From left: Yen, Christina, Maggie, Susan, Michelle Ashley, Becky

During our week in Kampala, Susan kept us quite busy. We visited the Kasubi Tombs.

Later we headed to the source of the Nile River . . .
From left: Becky, Maggie, Emma (our very funny driver), Ashley, Michelle, Christina, Yen

. . . where we ate whole, fried, delicious tilapia.

We enjoyed the moves of Ndere Troupe.
(VIDEO TO COME WHEN OUR INTERNET CONNECTION IMPROVES)


We also spent time learning about the regional language, Luganda, Uganda’s history and cultures, as well as receiving an overview of the socioeconomic situation of Uganda from the Director of Makerere’s School of Public Health – David Serwadda. He and his colleague were the first to investigate an outbreak of “slimming disease” in Rakai, making them the first to recognize AIDS in East Africa, which “sowed the seeds of what would, in 1987, become the internationally recognized Rakai Health Sciences Program, which has made major contributions to the epidemiology, basic science and clinical science needed for the control of HIV in sub-Saharan Africa.”

On the 4th of June, “play time” was nearly over and we headed south to Kalisizo, Rakai District to begin our work. Six gals, one driver, TONS of luggage – all squeezed in to what, at one time, seemed like a spacious Pajero.


Our last stop with Emma was the equator. Out of the 26 countries I’ve visited, this is my first time south of the Equator!
From left: Becky, Ashley, Yen, Michelle, Christina, Maggie

We finally arrived to our new home for the summer where we were welcomed with warm hugs by our “house mom,” Saoda.