Back home and blog finished

Yesterday I got back home to Sweden. Dad and Dog B picked me up at Arlanda. It is so strange to be back! Everything is quiet, the roads are so straight, the cars are so silent. Everywhere I look I only see old white people walking around, old white mzungu people looking comfortable and a little fat, having drinks and food in the summer sun. I tell you, things were definitely not at all like this in Tz or Ug!

Since the trip is now complete, this blog closes now. Hope you've enjoyed it!

Mini-tour around Entebbe with Charles

I am at Entebbe waiting for my flight.

Before going here I did a mini-journey around Entebbe with my special-hire driver Charles. 


This is how I got to know Charles: last Sunday, brother, Arnab were going out for dinner, our first evening in Kampala. Charles was stationed outside the Mediterranean (sp?) restaurant opposite Mish Mash, where we'd considered having dinner, and he drove the three of us to Garden City shopping mall. He gave us his business card and said that he could drive us again if we called him. But I threw the card away during the week. 


However, coincidentally, last night, Arnab and I went to the same restaurant and happened to again get a ride with Charles who was stationed outside. Charles again offered us his card and when I saw it I realised it was the same driver. I asked him if he could take me to the airport the next day and he said he could. 


Restless in Kampala, I left early. I had a vague idea of exploring the town of Entebbe on the way to the airport, maybe grabbing a bite to eat. So I asked Charles to take me to Entebbe town. On the way to the airport we began talking, about Ugandan people and Ugandan politics. I told Charles he had driven us last Sunday and he remembered us. So by the time we got to Entebbe wed decided hed drive me on a mini-tour around the town. He showed me the Botanical Gardens, the Zoo (we didnt go in though!), President Museveni's residence, the house of the first catholic missionary in Uganda, and two beaches of Lake Victoria, on which we took a stroll. 


Then we went to a restaurant (rather touristy) where it felt silly to eat alone so I offered to buy him lunch. We both had vegetable pilau, and Charles had a Mountain Dew and I had a Mirinda pineapple (sodas). 


I asked him loads of questions about Uganda. He was fed up with Musevenis 25-year rule and deplored the corrupt government officials. He said people would eventually get fed up but hoped that there would not be a revolution because revolutions are violent and innocent people lose their lives. I also found out that Charles has a wife and a daughter and a son. 


After food, we drove to the airport, both pleased with the unexpectedly pleasant afternoon. Anyway. Going to gate now!

Only sis still in Kampala

My little bro left in a taxi last night for the airport and Turkey.

Now hes somewhere between Cairo and Istanbul. Now I have a day and a bit in Uganda before heading off to Stockholm. I have started the day with a pot of "African tea" (milky tea) at Kawa café while waiting for the day to take shape and for my friends to wake up.

Ready to leave!

Bags are packed,  passports ready, brother has USD for travelling, taxi booked...ready for Turkey tonight! Now just enjoying the last hours in Kampala trying to make our remaining UGX last.

Having rather expensive chips at Mish Mash, Kampala, and using the Wi-fi. Ready to leave for Turkey.

Politics in Tanzania and Uganda

According to sister, when she was in Tanzania 6 years ago, no one really talked to her about politics. On this trip, however, a lot of people began telling us about Tanzania politics without us even asking.

Chadema, the opposition in Tanzania

Sam, our porter on Mt Meru, had strong political convictions. 'Tanzania has a lot things, we have gold, Tanzanite, Kilimanjaro and the Sarantetti, but the people, they don't see the benefit' (all quotes here are paraphrased). He blamed this on corruption, and was convinced that Chadema, the opposition to the ruling CCM would remedy that.

Doctors' strike in Tanzania

Sam also told us that the doctors were on strike and that the leader of 'the doctors own party' (doctors union, we assumed. Others called him 'the doctors strike ringleader') had been beaten almost to death by what everyone assumed was the government. Several other people brought up the same event with us. Our friend Gody told us that him and his wife Christina had been expecting a baby earlier this year, but due to the doctors strike they had been unable to get health care, and the baby had died. Still, Gody told us that he understood the doctors reasons for striking: wages not paid on time, wages too low, no resources in the hospitals. And he too believed that the government was obstructing the doctors union.

Same Chadema story

As we continued our travels in Tanzania we found that everyone we talked to about politics delivered an almost identical speech. Chadema has clearly been effective in delivering their message. We learnt to identify the flags for Chadema and they were quite abundant. You could also spot an occasional CCM flag, but they were a minority.

It was difficult to find out more specifically what Chadema wants, aside from the people seeing the benefit of Tanzanias resources. We asked everybody who talked to us about Chadema why they thought that the opposition would be less corrupt than CCM if they were voted into power. Our guide in Tengeru said he was convinced Chadema would not also be corrupt because 'If you really want something to be true, and you believe it will be true, it will be true'. Others said 'we have to be aware and stop it if they are'. Others seemed to not understand our question and just repeated the speech about Tanzanias many problems, as a country rich in resources but with a people living on poverty, and how Tanzania 'needs change'. We didn't feel find anyone who was critical of Chadema's politics.

Uganda: the story of the President

In Uganda, we have only had a chance to talk politics with one local, our guide Brian. He was very careful not to give any opinions of his own.

'I don't talk about politics, I just decide who is the best, and then I vote when it is time to vote. When people talk about politics, always they are fighting. In Kampala last week, on the streets, they were fighting'.

Brian did mention problems with corruption and tribal favourotism in ugandan politics, and he gave us his take on the history of Ugandan politics:

'This president, he did not come into power by voting, it was by fighting. The reason for the fighting was that the previous leader (Idi Amin), he was very bad for the country, he killed a lot of people, and a lot of people were dying. But after the president now had power, the people said 'why we cannot vote for who we want as our leder?', so the president said 'ok, we will vote', and the president won the election. Then the people said 'why we cannot vote every 5 years who we want as our leader, and the president said 'OK, we will vote every 5 years. He has won every election and had ruled for 25 years, and now some people say for the next election, nobody should be allowed to be president for more than 25 years. The young people, they want change, but the older peopld they remember the old leader and they are afraid that with a new leader, it will be the same. So they say 'let the president rule until he say he is finished', and that is why they vote for him.'

The next election is in 2016, better start campaigning. 

Vote NRM, vote Museveni.