Sipi Falls - Uganda

Kings' African Rifles

Uganda - the Nile River and the town of Jinja

Brother can you spare a Shilling

I have yet to meet a rich Kenyan. I know that they exist because I have read about them in the newspapers. In addition, I’ve seen some very impressive homes on my runs through mlimani, the wealthy neighborhood in Kisumu. However, for the most part it seems that people are either dirt poor or just-getting-by poor. I find it interesting to note what the “average” Kenyan is able to afford and what his limitations are. The following, based mostly on people I know working at TICH, are a few examples:

- Very few people own cars. Those with cars surely must include them in their prayers as many have a precarious life expectancy and would certainly struggle to pass AirCare. Interestingly, I do see a number of new SUV-type vehicles on the road, driven mostly by NGOs (non-governmental organizations).

- I’ve yet to see someone actually fill their gas tank when buying fuel. Gas costs in Kenya are slightly higher than in Canada and people tend to put in the equivalent of $3 to $5 at a time. Twice when taking evening taxi rides with Julius (my regular driver; I have his cell number recorded in my phone) I’ve had to pay my fare while we were in-progress so that he could buy gas to get me home (I only live about one mile from the town centre).

- About 10% of TICH’s employees are paid in cash because they don’t have bank accounts. The bank service charges are high and the employees don’t earn enough to save.

- Many employers, including TICH, provide salary advances and short-term loans to their employees. This is because there are few borrowing alternatives available to individuals. Bank interest rates are high (TICH is paying 19% on a secured loan) and credit cards are rare. The loan amounts are not large (I’ve seen it range from the equivalent of $15 to $500) and are required for a variety of reasons, i.e. to travel to a relative’s funeral, to pay for a child’s school fees, or to cover home move costs. My co-worker Bernard tells me that some of the best employers even provide loan facilities for vehicles and houses.

Despite the many problems faced by people here, they seem to be happier than people in western countries. It seems like the philosophy here is to enjoy today and not worry about tomorrow. This philosophy helps in understanding their good spirits and also provides some insight into why they are challenged in overcoming their problems.

Holidays approaching

Readers of my web-log (Mom & Dad and the other two of you) should note that this will likely be my last update until I return from holidays (wildlife safari to three national parks and a Mount Kenya hike) in early July. It will be great to explore some different parts of Kenya and it will hopefully provide me with some fresh material for future stories.

The source of the Nile. Jinja, Uganda 

White Water Rafting on the Nile

So now I have something in common with Mahatma Gandhi. Who could have imagined? However, following a five-day jaunt to Uganda last week I can now make this claim. It took place when I visited the town of Jinja to see Lake Victoria feeding into the Nile River. There I learned that on Gandhi’s death in 1948 his ashes were divided up and sent to many locations around the world to be scattered. One of these places was the source of the Nile. So when I spent a day white-water rafting I was dumped and drifted down the Nile, just like Gandhi.

I had previously been on the Nile in 1987, or more specifically on the Egyptian section. This included three days on a small boat (called a faluka) with Russ Klein and some English and Irish girls. The river was filthy, the scenery was mostly uninspired desert, the girls were a bit of a drag and I was really sick. All in all, a fairly typical outing with Russ.

The Ugandan adventure on the Nile was a great experience and a lot of fun. Although the rafting company charged western prices, they also followed western safety practices. We had a large party of over forty people, not counting the guides, consisting mostly of American church types on a two-week holiday to see what missionary life was like. Presumably, missionary work includes white water rafting. They were nice enough people and provided no competition at the end of the day for the complimentary beer.

The Nile was beautiful, clean and warm. During some of the calm sections on the river we were able to jump in and drift along in our lifejackets. The valley was lovely and green and we would come across locals on the shoreline waving greetings to us. It was pretty cool to be on this historic river that flows 4,000 miles from beginning to end. Apparently, it takes three months for the water to complete its journey to the Mediterranean Sea.

The rafting had a few moments of being a bit more exciting than I had anticipated. I’ve come to the realization that I’m not quite the thrill seeker I once was; or at least believe that I was. It seems that when I reached the age of 30 I discovered my mortality and at the age of 40 I had lost my need for speed. Consequently, I approached the Class 5 rapids with a bit more trepidation then my youthful raft-mates. While contemplating the final rapids, known as “The Bad Place,” one of them cheerily said “Look on the bright side; if we die we’ll go to heaven.” As I’m not so convinced about my after-life destination these words did not give me great comfort.

Obviously, we all survived. However, there were a few uncomfortable moments while trying to gasp for air after being thrown from the raft and being met by additional waves of water or trying to surface and bumping against the bottom of the raft. We hit “The Bad Place” with such force that it took me a few moments to regain my composure in the water and I was relieved to see that my nose was not bleeding.

I didn’t discover until later that my Ironman watch had been lost during this final collision in the rapids. Although I’ll miss the watch I will take pleasure from the knowledge that like Gandhi it too has been left to rest in the Nile. Perhaps it’s symbolic of the ending of my Ironman career. Or maybe it just means that I need to get a new watch. We will see.