Safety Tips in Uganda

(work in progress)
What changes when you cross over the Rwanda/Uganda border? Quite a lot, actually. For one thing, the side of the road that you drive on, and in addition, the time.

Rwanda was a Belgian colony, and so drives on the right hand side of the road, whereas Uganda drives on the left hand of the road, as befits the British colonial influence.

Moreover, the two countries are in different time zones, with Uganda (being on East African Time, and GMT+3) being a hour ahead of Rwanda (Central African Time, and GMT+2). This works in your favour as you're crossing from Uganda into Rwanda (in which case you 'gain' an hour), but can be problematic going the other way, as you 'lose' an hour - this is particularly important if you're heading towards somewhere with a defined closing time.

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All this pictures were taken in the city of Kampala and its outskirts. What you see is what you can expect if driving in Uganda.
I rented car, on my ariving, but never left Kampala with it! The roads in Kampala and its outskirts, where I stayed, are in disastrous conditions. The very first picture indicates very clearly what is the main problem on the roads, such a huge pot holes, one after another, which normal driving render impossible. Trust me, it is worst than a nightmare and extremely dangerous. Besides pot holes, one have to watch the matatus and boda-bodas because they drive madly, violeting all driving rules, and respecting nothing and nobody.

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My friend from Kampala have book a house for me, it is in the outskirts of Kampala in small and peacefull place called Naalya. There excist a standards for the houses which could be rented to a foreigners, must have high walled fence with barded wire on top of it and very solid iron doorentrance.
Poor houses do not have fence around, probably because people cannot afford it, but even some houses which aren't looking poor do not have a fence. As I was told, most locals don't like fences around the house, especially not those walled, even if people can afford them. On the other hand, midle class and rich people are building kind of fortified walls around their houses in order to safe hidding themselves behind the walls.
There are residential block-houses in the close outskirts of Kampala which are guarded by the security guys, whom to me doesn't look alike trustfull security. I have noticed that they usually sleep on a doorways.

Facts are bitter but true. Despite Ugandas´ sucess story, as the one and only country that has undertaken the strongest campaign in controlling AIDS; you shouldn´t take chances.

STICK TO SAFE SEX IF AT ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

On any bus or shared taxi in UG on a journey of a reasonable distance you will inevitably stop for a quick break. Sometimes this will be a toilet break other times it will be for food. Even if you stop at a place that is not recognisable as a food stop hawkers will appear from nowhere to shove all manner of food into your face. Sometimes the hawkers will actually board the bus
to sell their goods only to scamper off as the bus begins to move.

I don't mind the odd piece of gonja but I am never keen to have a skewer with bits of liver shoved under my nose.

As well as the precooked food on offer in some of the remoter areas you will be offered fruit. I remeber between Lira and Soroti on a bus being offered a carrier bag full of oranges for 500 UGX.

Ah, electricity is great when it is there but Uganda can have a real dodgy electricity supply. Kampala these days has a pretty much 24 hour electricity supply but once you get out of the capital and hit the smaller towns the supply can be very erratic so it is best to charge phones and cameras as soon as you can as you never know how long you will have electricity for!

TVs are spreading across East Africa like a plague. They are cropping up everywhere they appear in bars, saunas, there is even a huge one by the side of Entebbe Road in Kampala just keep your eyes off the traffic. The last time I entered UG from Kenya there were two TVs in the immigration office one on the punters side and one on the officials side and the young lady who gave me a visa and stamped my passport found a need to keep up with a south American soap opera as she was processing my visa!

As in many other African countries Uganda has a very high rate of AIDS and other STDs. Organisiation such as soft power are involved in educating people. I loved this poster of Condom Man. If its not on its not on!!!!