Having never been to Africa we had no idea what to expect. All we knew was what we had pictured in our heads.... Not the most reliable source of information. Besides, it being our first time in Africa, it was also our first time traveling for a lengthly period of time without our families. All that said, we managed to get through Entebbe airport surprisingly well, leaving with both a valid visa and all our luggage!
Stepping out of the airport it was apparent to our senses that we were definitely in a different country. The fact that it was 11pm and it was still pretty warm was not what we were used to, being from the UK. We spent our first night in Kampala, in a backpackers hostel where it didn't take long for us to doze off. In the morning with the sun shining in all it's glory, it really hit us that we were in Uganda. We took our malaria tablets and set off to breakfast, fried egg on some sweet bread. Unfortunately we didn't read the malaria instructions, which if we had, would have informed us not to have taken them on empty stomachs. It resulted in, as Rob most carefully put it, in doxypukes!
Once recovered, we set off to Masaka. As not all of the road had been resurfaced, at times it was a tad bumpy but all the more, fun. The tourists that we are however, meant an inevitable stop at the equator for a quick photo shoot and we were greeted with great smiles of the Ugandan people as they noted we were foreigners!
Having arrived at the River of Life Church, we were introduced to the staff and were welcomed with open arms. We shared a little bit about ourselves and now have a lot of names to learn... We think we're doing quite well! After the meeting, our friend Julius took us around town. This involved a very amusing taxi ride in which eight people squeezed into a five-seater car. Julius had the driver sitting on his knee, while we shared our seats with some friendly Ugandan people who were asking us about England. Definitely a Ugandan experience!
By this point we were starting to lag, but just before heading home a bunch of children who live next door to the church ran over to us affectionately shouting, "Mzungu", which means "white person." They gave us both massive hugs, fighting for our attention - never have we felt so loved by people we didn't know!
This is just the start of our unique six weeks in Masaka and we're definitely excited for what more is to come.
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