Bye Bye Dubai
Entering Entebbe
Manali and Manav chanted this continuous on our next leg of travel. From Dubai in the UAE to Entebbe, an
We left an oasis in a desert to a country that is all oasis- like. Skyprobing buildings gave way to lanky coconut trees. The golden brown scape morphed into a verdant green. Beautiful women draped in fashionable black chiffon abayas switched to beautiful women in wraps of multi-hued kitenge fabric of East Africa.
The fragrance of attar gave way to earthy petrichor. In Dubai, our eyes awed at the symbols of human ingenuity, engineering, precise mathematical calculations, furistic glory and risk.
Upon landing in Entebbe, our eyes marveled at the beauty of all things non-linear. The windy roads, the randomly occurring market places, pedestrians creating their own zebra crossings.
Suddenly, all my senses felt ‘at home’. The chaos was not just familiar but believe it or not, very comforting!
I noticed people reciprocating the kids’ smiles easily. When we offered our driver, Daniel a mint, he accepted it without hesitation. Few other things I noticed right away- women skillfully balancing baskets of bananas on their heads, while an infant is soothed on their backs to the rhythmic sashaying of their hips. Music blaring out of loud speakers. Red clay sidewalks. And men atop of decked out lorries. I felt very much like I was back in my ecosystem.
We had just travelled across 3 continents in one day. Kids showed no signs of jet lag and I was excited to meet my college friend after almost 23 years, especially her lovely family with two little ones.
Uganda...you are already very impressive!
More soon...
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