Finding myself in Kampala

669. That was the number of kilometers I had traveled by bus overnight. Wrapped in a red Maasai shuka, I crossed over to the Perl of Africa with nothing but a backpack full of clothes and journal. Five days before, I had turned 24 with the conviction that I must see the world. Now I was in Uganda’s capital without a clue of where I would sleep.
103. That was the number of minutes that I chatted up the handsome stranger seated next to me on the 11 hour bus ride-so when he offered to buy me coffee for the company I graciously said yes. Over a hearty breakfast he gave me a verbal tour of Kampala and suggestions of where I could stay. Armed with his tips and Trip Advisor on my phone I went off to discover Kampala.
6 hours into my stay I had checked into a B&B, unpacked and made plans for the evening. On the back of a boda boda (motorcycle) weaving through Kampala narrow streets, I got my first taste of the city’s energy. People were animatedly conversing in the streets, others were rushing home exhausted and the night life was just starting.
4 hours later I had found my way to Cantina Mexicana where locals were dancing away to festive Latin tunes. I sipped my virgin mojito and sparked a conversation with the lady on the barstool next to me. She was an American expatriate working with Uganda’s poor. Before relocating to East Africa she had volunteered in Haiti, abandoning a white collar job for tiresome aid work. As she shared her life story, her words spoke to a hunger within me. I too wanted to make my life count - for something… Thirty minutes later we joined the dancing but her words echoed deep, even after I turned in for the night.
I followed my ambition to see all of Kampala’s attractions. From downtown flee market Owino to Garden City’s delights-I experienced it all. I indulged in matoke (cooked starchy bananas) and thick peanut sauce, snacked on roadside roast chicken and drank copious amounts of Mirinda. Day after day I went out of my comfort zone sparking conversations with new people.
8 days, 9 restaurants and 2 shopping sprees later, I was sipping on a latte in Garden City shopping mall as I waited for my bus home. My post-birthday adventure had given me more than I bargained for. Woven through the conversations with perfect strangers I found inspiration. Life was for the living, chances were for the taking and time was not for wasting. Most importantly I found myself in Kampala-the people-loving, adventure-seeking and travel-loving me.