Welcome to my escapades in Kalangala Islands. One of the pics on the left is the cruise ship to our dream-land. On the right is one of our friends enjoying the beaches of Kalangala. But that is just the beginning of a mouth-watering adventure of nature. Uganda,oh my! 
This is day one of my trip to Kalangala Islands sitting right on L.Victoria. I love these things with a passion. The dense tropical forests are awesome. The freshness of the water, the strong breeze of untampered air is simply a dream come true to those anxious visitors. Yes, my travel to Ghana sometime in 2004 gave me an insight of something similar to Uganda.Ghana is a West African tropical country covered by the think tropical belt. Accra's sits at the bank of the Atlantic ocean. Her Akosombo Dam, with a fresh water man-made L.Volta in Mid-North is equally a sight. I had a cruise ride on L.Volta and you will always find the amazing nature of water. On the contrary,Kampala the Capital of Uganda has close proximity with L.Vitoria from the bay at Port Bell. Accra's Ghana's gate-way to the world. There was something so similar about the two countries. The calmness of the people, the slow pace of things and that greenery so rare. Uganda to the contrary is land-locked. L.Victoria is a large fresh water lake with awesome aquatic diversity spanning three East-Africa Countries, Kenya,Uganda and Tanzania.
Kalangala Island, seated right on L.Victoria is an enigma for that roving eye. From Entebbe, at Nakiwogo, you will catch that 3 hour cruise to Kalangala docking at Pearl Beach Gardens. 
There are many hotels in close proximity with cottages for excellnet accommodation. The hotels offer a variety of services including indoor games such table-tennis , pool in addition to outside games such as beach volley ball, boat racing etc. The Islands span a huge stretch of a land-mass with islands such as Banda. The group of tourists above were at Banda, one of the Islands, specifically looking for aligators in their hide-out in the rocks. I saw one of the biggest spiders I have seen in my whole life at Banda Island. It was an adventure of my time. The excitement was compounded by the freedom of movement. Boat rides with hands in water, sometimes waves picking up an expectedly made the whole trip,wow!. As the girls panicked over the growing waves while canoeing, the boys played the macho cards. Ofcourse, the girls tried to get close for comfort and the boys were promising to swim across the pacific to save the flowers. It was nice!!!! At Banda Island we had very nice lunch of fries, chapati,fresh beans, beef, fish-fillet and plenty of drinks. Banda Island is owned by a Kenyan of British ancestry and what surprised me was the sheer number of visitors to this camp. Ever heard of green-tea? It was there on the menu. All was affordable and to maximum satisfaction. It was complete adventure.We were in a group of six workmates and friends on this fabulous trip. You should have been there. You simply just have to go there. On the cruise ship I met my old high school friends I had not met in a decade. The world had moved us in different directions of our career dreams but it was all refereshing. We met some of our superiors on the ship and we were all surprised about our common quest to discover the magic Islands by our ownselves.
I know many will ask quietly whether I mean a real cruise ship or a canoe. Umh! "Are you sure?" This is a common expression by many Ugandans.Our international friends who have heard a tour of Uganda over the years will attest, sometimes we do not give accurate information. As for me, a ship is a ship like a boat is. Food at the Pearl Beach Gardens is the delicious buffet with local dishes in high supply. You can have french fries, chapati with deep friend fish straight from the lake. Accommodation is very affordable which in most instances would make it very attractive for one to stay longer. Ours was a whole week of wildness. We watched the girls like a typical human carnivore would.
That can't be a canoe or boat. The girls were in hip-hop mood. The ship ride is 3 hours from Nakiwogo in Entebbe at 2.00pm. There are snacks supplied on the ship and of course like in any society are classes. First class and Economy class with varrying sources of comfort. It 's all a choice for you my friend. At 5.00pm sharp, the ship docks at Pearl Beach Gardens where it will rest for yet another day for returnees and those coming to see the magic of nature at work. I have grown up in Uganda and my love for Uganda is rooted in the food, the calmness and hospitality of the people, and last but not least the visible power and beauty of nature. I still believe this is the most beautiful country in the world. Do not say it, I have been privilidged to travel around the world and I tell you, this country has what the world needs most. 
My humble opinion is that we need to upgrade our domestic agenda to reflect that we know our treasure. Kampala the capital of Uganda needs to be a visible capital with a good infrastructure. Accra is a well planned city which is still growing but on plan. The road infrastructure must be kept mantained. The hospitality industry must also be supported with the object of supporting the growing number of both local and international tourists who demand quality service in exchange for money. How about conflicts? We need to appreciate our diversity and also to understand the right for everyone to have an opinion which often will differ. But our methods of resolving divergency must reflect a growing civil order among both the political elite as well as the citizenry. 
I don't know about you but camping is one very wonderful thing for me. You go with friends in the wild-not too wild though. You walk away from the crowd of the city, the sound pollution, the dusty air, the strain and stress due to our daily interactions as we pursue our life's dreams. Camping if long enough can turn out like a perfect vacation. When we returned back for work everyone wondered why that warm hearted smile, the magic is all in nature's beauty. My hope is re-enforced by efforts by many stake-holders initiating projects like Gifted by Nature on international media houses such as CNN.If not politically motivated, not in a short term tactic to win political good will from international friends, if it is a long term effort aimed at re-constructing and marketing our national Brand, it will go a long way to help build the economy of this country.
Now that was at Bukakata where the ferry from the other side of Masaka docks. The route through Bukakata requires travel from Kampala to Masaka about 2 hours drive then 45 minutes ride by ferry to Bukakata then another two hours to Kalangala. I think it is adventurous if you're physically fit and can be resilient for that long. The cruise has that comfort and on-board service. The journey is less cumbersome and gives that additional sense of safety onboard. I am sorry I have not used the ferry before but I can imagine what it means to have all equipment tied by ropes. The cruise ship is surely the way to go for that quick ride to Kalangala Island. We timed the ferry as it was heading for Bukakata to dock and it was amazing.
