UGANDA: MURCHISON FALLS AND PAKUBA SAFARI LODGE

 July 21, 2025

We drove from the women's Booma Co-op to pick up Bob from his boatride, which was a drive of about an hour and ten minutes.  The distances are actually not that long in the park, but the primitive dirt roads slow things down a lot. From the dock we drove to Murchison Falls, the site for which the park is named. 

We were told that Murchison Falls is the most powerful waterfall in the world if measuring pressure. It is located on what is known as the White Nile, which is one of the two tributaries of the Nile (along with the larger Blue Nile). In Uganda, it is known as the Victoria Nile from where it begins at the northern end of Lake Victoria and until it reaches Lake Albert, and then after than it is called the Albert Nile until it reaches the border with South Sudan. 

Just before it reaches Lake Albert, the river is compressed dramatically by a gorge that at one time was only seven meters wide, but that has significantly expanded over time due to erosion. At that point it plunges 140 feet to the river below, where it quickly flattens out. It makes for a very dramatic display of drenching spray and thunderous roaring.

The first Europeans to see the falls, Samuel and Florence Baker, named them after Roderick Murchison, the President of the Royal Geographical Society.

When we first arrived, were competing for a good view with a group of students from what first appeared to be an all-girl high school on a field trip. We did see some boys, however. I think they were just letting the girls go to the viewing platform first. I loved their dresses and found it interesting that they all had shaved heads.

UGANDA 2025: NGAMBA ISLAND CHIMPANZEE SANCTUARY

 July 19, 2025

After our trip to Mabamba Swamp, we returned to the lodge for lunch and then split up for our afternoon activities. Bob's plan was to spend the rest of the day birding on the property with Wilson as his guide, and Ella and I had booked a trip to Chimpanzee Island. To get there, we had to drive all the way back to Lake Victoria, take the motorized canoe across the finger of the lake to Entebbe, take another drive through Entebbe to another part of the lake, then take a 45-minute speedboat ride to the island. 

For what it looks like to drive through Entebbe, see this video I took from the back seat of the car. It is almost as interesting to watch the driver's video screen as it is to watch the street!

Before our final segment (the speedboat ride to the island), we had to wait over an hour for another large group of 19 people to arrive, which made all the rushing we had done to get to the dock pointless. However, we were at least waiting in a nice resort. Ella spotted a red-headed Finch's agama basking on one of the concrete squares. It looks like it had an unpleasant encounter with someone or something and lost part of its tail:

Photo by Ella

The group of 19 that joined us was an American mission group that was in Uganda doing spine surgeries. They were friendly and fun, and on our way over to the island we were all singing along to Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" and other songs from the 70s. I included a map of Lake Victoria just to show how large the lake is. Uganda is the upper left portion, Kenya to its right, and Tanzania below.

MALTA: DAY 2, PART 1 - WALKING AROUND VALLETTA, ST. PAUL'S SHIPWRECK CHURCH AND CHAPEL, AND MORE

 March 19, 2024

We began our second day in Malta with breakfast in our hotel. I love Eggs Benedict, and I would give these a 6 or 7 out of 10--better than most, but not great. 

Julia joined us in the hotel lobby and led us on a walking tour of Valletta, the capital city. Valletta is set on a hill, and the streets are positioned to maximize cool breezes from the Mediterranean Sea. What are those round things in the street on the right?

They are restaurant tables. and how do you set up tables on a hill? You make wedges to go under the downhill legs. Do they do this for the chairs too? I don't know.

INDONESIA - DAY 1 IN KOMODO NATIONAL PARK: LOH BUAYA PARK ON RINCA ISLAND

 July 11, 2023

Komodo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, comprises three major islands--Rinca, Komodo, and Padar--and a number of smaller islands. The park covers about 542,000 acres, or 847 square miles.

Rinca (pronounced REEN-cha) Island, one of the three largest islands but with fewer tourists than Komodo Island, is famous for its Komodo dragons. Just over 70 square miles, the island has a population of about 1,800 people and 1,300 Komodo dragons. I believe that is the biggest population of Komodo dragons on a single island in the park (and therefore in the world as Komodo dragons are endemic to this area). And yes, occasionally someone is killed by one of the dragons. Our guides told us that Komodo dragons are not venomous, but have dozens of fatal bacteria in their bite.  Some scientists insist, however, that there is also venom in the dragon's saliva. A human who is bitten by a Komodo dragon at the very least may lose the limb that was bitten, and may even die. Go here to see Smithsonian magazine's list of the most infamous Komodo dragon attacks on humans. 

After being ferried onshore at Rinca Island by Elfrid in his motorboat . . . 

. . . we were greeted by this very large statue of fighting dragons--something we would have loved to see played out in real life.

Bob was about to live the dream he had as a little boy--to see a Komodo dragon in the wild.