Welcome to Jinja, the adrenilin capital of Uganda. This is the Nile High bungee tower that reaches out over the river and is about 50 meters from water to platform. After having my ankles tightly wrapped I slowly inched my way to the edge of the launch point. Perhaps the scariest moment for me was simply standing there looking down at the water´s surface waiting for the instructor to give me the green light. Just as I was leaping off the thought rushed through my mind, "What the hell am I doing!" Of course by that time it´s too late, the insane speed of freefall has begun. Four seconds later after dipping my hands in the river I was rocketing skyward just as fast. It was awesome. However, a few thrilling moments pale in comparison to the all day adventure of whitewater rafting and challenging some of the biggest rapids in the world. Thirty kilometers of river, twelve major rapids and the scenery along the way was enough to make this my most enjoyable day in East Africa. The three rafting photos were at Bujugali Falls a technical class 5 rapid and, once you´ve finished, the fruit bats greet you in the hundreds.

On the last day of my stay in Kisoro I hiked to the top of the smallest of the volcanoes and the one for which the park is named, Mgahinga, which means "small pile of stones". At the top you can look down into the crater swamp. Coming out of the trees and into the bright sunshine and blue sky, I almost thought I was in heaven. The crater is surrounded by a fairyland of plants which are only found at the higher points on mountains in East Africa. I enjoyed my time in this corner of the country and for the five days I was there I was the only person in camp. When not in the national park, I spent my time relaxing in the municipal park in Kisoro or enjoying my time at dinner at one of the local guesthouses.

One of my more memorable experiences with the peoples of Africa was being a guest in the Pygmy village. On my arrival I was able to take a walk around the area and photograph the people and their habitations. Then the people from the village gathered for some music, singing, and dance. During the last number I was asked to join in and strut my stuff. Ha-Ha. It really was marvellous. Why are they so happy in such primitive surroundings? Well, a lot of reefer action helps I suppose. As part of their culture and customs they are allowed to grow cannibis in their garden plots and indeed I did see some on my tour. The chief was constantly toking on his pipe and after the last song the drummer lady put a marijuana cigar to her lips that would have done Cheech and Chong proud.

After trying and failing to reach the 4,129 meter summit of the tallest of Mgahinga National Park´s three volcanic peaks I spent most of the next two days on the forested lower slopes. I loved walking in the cool shade of the giant bamboo forest. It was quite unlike any trekking I had ever done. With bamboo leaves covering the path, you hear only a whisper from each step as you glide past.

Football, the European kind, truly is the most loved worldwide game. Little villages in Uganda even had a pitch. Most guys are mad about the Premier League which has all of England´s top flight clubs. The matches are regularly rebroadcast on local television so when I stayed in a hotel I was sometimes able to see one. Some taxi (again minivan) drivers decorate their vehicle in their teams favorite colors or paint the logo on the side or back. Other vehicles are completely dedicated to their favorite player, for instance I saw one in Kampala that must have belonged to Uganda´s biggest Tomas Rosicky (he´s the captain of the Czech national team) fan.

Well, I was now on my own. Ladka finished her ten-day trip after Murchison. This is a small national park tucked into the extreme southwest corner of Uganda and shares its border with Rwanda and Zaire (The Democratic Republic of Congo). The journey there was a long yet interesting one in which two confused goats were obliterated by our speeding bus and the taxi, really a mini-van built for an occupancy of 14, was crammed with 26 people as it rumbled over one hundred kilometers of hilly, teeth-rattling, unpaved roads. Looking at the photo, was it worth it? By George it was!

This is the Masindi market in the morning hours before it gets real busy. They were in the middle of the green banana (matoke) harvest so this was a common sight across the country. The people cook the bananas, mash them up, and serve them for almost every meal. Matoke is quite different from the sweet yellow banana that is found in the supermarkets of western countries. It has a similar taste to the potato and is quite good actually, although eating it for nearly every meal gets a bit tiring. Masindi is the entrance and exit town for Murchison National Park and one of the best urban places in the country. I took my torn rain-fly to a seamstress sitting in front of a shop with her, what seemed to me, 1940´s pedal-powered sewing machine. She was the center of attention as the white man (mazungu) needed some help. Unused to being in the spotlight, she was rather embarrassed at first,but once down to business she did a marvellous job. For the rest of my journey not a leak in the tent and believe me it was more than tested, especially in the deluge of the rainforest.

In the morning we found out why we had heard the roaring of lions during the night. About 250 meters from our camp were the remains of the impala they had killed--entrails and a bit of the legs and hooves. Driving a while longer we found them just off the track in the tall grass. The parents had their bellies full so it was now the baby´s turn. Mmmmm...I like it raw!

In the evening we set up camp in the bush about 500 meters from the river. An armed ranger accompanied us and kept the little fire going for most of the night. Nice and peaceful there with the flickering fireflies, the grunting hippos down by the water and the occasional lion roar (well, maybe that´s not so peaceful). I was bummed because I had to borrow the rain-fly for my tent because the day before some warthogs in camp had ripped mine up pretty good. They had also bent the poles so the tent was a little lopsided, though fortunately still functional. Also, the night before, a hippo had come into camp and was eating the grass right in front of the entrance to the tent. It was really cool but a bit disconcerting to know that a wild animal of such size was at most a few meters from your reclining head.

Towards the end of the day we were fortunate enough to find this gorgeous lion family resting in the lengthening shadows of the bush. A proud Papa, a satisfied Mama and two curious cubs. It was indeed a magical moment. I found that throughout my trip, whenever I went on safari, I looked forward to seeing the big cats. Truly King of the Jungle.

Ain´t he a handsome devil. Cruising in the bush and we happen to come across a vain giraffe. What are the odds?! A natural poser. In fact, we saw dozens of these beautiful creatures in close proximity, however, this one stopped for a nice profile shot. I´m too sexy for.....

What´re you lookin´ at Bub? Actually, it´s the Shoebill, which normally roams the plains in pairs. Not a very handsome bird, but what it lacks in looks in makes up for in attitude!

The second day in the park we crossed the Nile on the car ferry and went on a game drive. The low-growth trees and shrubs give way to lush grasslands and scattered palms. A variety of antelopes can be seen grazing across this sea of grass. The Ugandan Kob is in this photo. In addition to being the symbol of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, its image can be found on Ugandan coins and banknotes

Crocs are plentiful, but along this part of the river the Hippo is king. Water buffalo and waterbuck are a common sight as well. There are whole elephant herds that come out of the trees and down to the water´s edge in the afternoon to slake their thirst after foraging all day. Some of them even swim over to islands that are in the middle of the river. As you can see, the mama hippo keeps a close eye on her offspring. Isn´t she cute?

How about those snappers! Nile perch aren´t only sport for anglers, they´re a tasty treat for these crocs. Probably the most popular activity in the park is the boat ride along the Nile towards the base of Murchison Falls. The launch is only a few hundred meters from the Red Chili Rest Camp where we stayed. The crocodiles don´t care too much for the faster water and currents near the base of the falls, but in this quiet stretch there were more than thirty this size along a fifty meter stretch of the sandy bank. Don´t under any circumstances fall out of the boat.

One of the activities that is popular in the park is going chimp tracking. Their home forest is not too far from the main gate. We had a harder time finding them because, not having a reservation, we had to go after the two morning tour groups which was not the ideal time for observation. After an hour´s walk through the jungle we finally caught up with them as they were on the hunt for some Colobos monkies. It was quite an uproar as the Colobos shouted their warning cries and the chimps followed them through the lower reaches of the canopy. There is no guarantee that you´ll always find them, but the fact is that the walk through the jungle rainforest is just as interesting as the chimp tracking, which makes it worth your while.

There are two trails near Murchison Falls. One leads to the top of the falls where you can see the River Nile plunging into the Gorge. The other leads you down to what is called "Fishing Rock" on the left bank offering a good view below the falls. Professional anglers sometimes come here because if they´re lucky, they might be able to catch a record setting Nile Perch. Some of the photos of past catches on the walls of the safari lodge show them to be real monsters.

The next stop on our journey was to Murchison Falls National Park in the northern part of Uganda. In my opinion it is the most beautiful park in the country offering the most diversity. The Albert Nile runs through the park and the feature here in the photo is what gives the park its name--Murchison Falls. As you can imagine, the Nile is a huge river, but at this particular point the water builds up and then rushes through this gap in the escarpment which is only 7 meters wide. The volume of water which cascades through this space creates a deafening roar and the mist and spray it kicks up is incredible and quite refreshing on a warm day. It also generates a mass of foaming froth that can be found miles downriver. Near the falls it can look like the vanilla ice cream on top of a root beer float. Truly amazing!