Kampala X-treme

Despite the fact that my 3.5-ton impulse buy sat stubbornly in one driveway or another 78% of the time that my guests were here, we still managed to squeeze in a quadrillion and four activities.

Example A: Incident-free boda-boda rides. After taking bodas without reservation for over 2 years, I think I actually wiped the sweat off my brow every time we made it safely to our next destination. Turns out it's a much different story when the lives of loved ones are in your friendly neighborhood boda guys' hands! Excellent form, you two. And thank you for not embarrassing me by clutching your drivers around the waist.

"I love you boda-boda" - Matthew J. Normandeau

"Weeeeeeee!" - Kaylan Orkis

(Ok, she didn't actually say that, but she may as well have.)

My apologies to Becca for not capturing her boda travels on camera. As my most accident-prone friend, she's the one I'm most proud of for not falling off ;-)

We hit up the usual haunts...Khana Khazana (best place in town for Indian food), Bubbles O'Leary's (best place in town for a beer and a boogie), the Lawns (best place in town for a game meat sampler), Cafe Java's (best place in town for brunch), Cafe Pap (best place in town to have your coffee foam decorated with syrup), 1,000 Cups (best place in town to buy coffee beans), the Buganda Road craft shops (best place in town to bargain for any souvenir under the sun), Garden City Fitness Center (best place in town to kick Kay and Matt's butts in a spin class while the latter looks longingly out at the golf course), Danny and Halle's (best place in town for an overcast pool day), Scott and Sarah's (best place in town to see a baby)...as well as some of the less usual haunts...Fasika (one of many places in town to stuff yourself on Ethiopian food) and Capital Pub (one of the uncountable number of places in town to be approached by a commercial sex worker - Matt's lucky day).  

I'd venture a guess that everyone's most memorable endeavor, however, would be the morning I tricked them into a walk around town. Kampala X-treme, if you will. It's one of the meanest things you can do to a visitor (or three), but the fastest way to get a feel for the hustle and bustle of daily life in city center. Fast was the name of our game, since Kay and Matt were only in town for three nights. We checked the Old Taxi Park, Owino Market and Nakesero Market off the list...then they were ready to check me off their list.

Shell-shocked and sweaty, I took them immediately from town to the plush couches, posh menu and general extravagance of the Emin Pasha for some pampering and a drink.

Note: If you order a mojito in an American accent, you're likely to get a Novida...East Africa's newest non-alcoholic beverage. They took it in stride.

Or maybe in seat.  

Epilogue: Nearly three months after the trip to town, I just sent the three of them an email asking them what comes to mind when I say "downtown Kampala." Responses included "chaotic and dirty," busy/lively, "Holy smokes there's a lot of cars, people and smog," as well as the memory of Kaylan's response when Becca asked if she felt she was more likely to die while climbing Kili or walking in downtown Kampala.

It wasn't Kili.