Bunia, DRC and a visit with my aunt in Kampala, Uganda

After finishing up in Dungu, we landed in Bunia on February 24th for a nice weekend off. The next week was spent doing an inventory of the emergency preparedness stock, including things like jerrycans and tent poles…

Jerrycans stacked against a wall. Bunia, DR Congo
Tent poles. Bunia, DR Congo

On March 2nd, I flew to Kampala, Uganda. First, the plane took us to Entebbe International Airport to clear customs, then a very short seven minute flight from Entebbe to Kajjansi Airfield.

Leaving Bunia:

Bunia from above

The mountains just outside Bunia:

Mountains just outside Bunia, DR Congo

A mountain-top village just outside Bunia:

Mountain village just outside Bunia, DR Congo

Landing at Entebbe International Airport, Uganda:

Landing at Entebbe International Airport, Uganda

Looking back toward Entebbe as we flew to Kajjansi:

Flying from Entebbe to Kajjansi, Uganda

One of many opulent homes seen from above when flying from Entebbe to Kajjansi:

Rich person

Kajjansi Airfield from above:

Kajjansi Airfield, Uganda

Aside from the one night spent in transit in early January, I hadn’t been to Uganda since my three week visit over Christmas at the end of 2002. This time around I only had four days, but it was a welcome chance to spend a lot of time with my Aunty Jo and some of the other wonderful Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Kampala. We had a great time catching up and chatting about a million different topics, and they fed me really, really well!

Me and my aunt:

Me and Aunty Jo, Kampala, Uganda

Aunty Jo with sisters Ursula and Lynette, beside Lake Victoria:

Aunty Jo, Ursula, and Lynette in Kampala, Uganda

Despite being a huge city, Kampala still has a fair few animals, both domestic and wild, such as these Ankole-Watusi cattle (long-horned zebu):

Ankole-Watusi cattle in Kampala, Uganda

I also spotted a chipmunk eating a peanut, just like in a cartoon:

Chipmunk eating a peanut in Kampala, Uganda

In a tree, about six feet from the ground, I spotted a tiny little tree frog:

Tree frog in Kampala, Uganda
Tree frog in Kampala, Uganda

When I returned to the house on foot after having lunch with a friend in another part of the city, I found about fifteen or twenty banded mongooses running through the area and managed to catch a pair of the slower ones as they ran away:

Banded mongooses in Kampala, Uganda

Pretty soon my time in Uganda was up, and I was off to the airport once more…

Creatures of Juba, South Sudan

Following in my time-honoured tradition of posting photos of the creatures I see in the places I go, here are 49 photos of animals and critters from Juba, South Sudan. I won’t bother with any added captions, but if you don’t know what you’re looking at, then hold your mouse over the image.

Cattle in Juba, South Sudan
Cattle in Juba, South Sudan
Goats in Juba, South Sudan
Storks in Juba, South Sudan
A stork in Juba, South Sudan
Storks in Juba, South Sudan
Kites in Juba, South Sudan
A kite in Juba, South Sudan
Agama lizard in Juba, South Sudan
Agama lizard in Juba, South Sudan
Geckos in Juba, South Sudan
Gecko in Juba, South Sudan
Lizard in Juba, South Sudan
Blue-tailed lizard in Juba, South Sudan
Blue-tailed lizard in Juba, South Sudan
Toad in Juba, South Sudan
Toad in Juba, South Sudan
Toad in Juba, South Sudan
Toad in Juba, South Sudan
Tiny toad in Juba, South Sudan
Tiny toad in Juba, South Sudan
Fly in Juba, South Sudan
Fly in Juba, South Sudan
Fly in Juba, South Sudan
Fly in Juba, South Sudan
Mosquito in Juba, South Sudan
Dragonfly in Juba, South Sudan
Dragonfly in Juba, South Sudan
Strange fly in Juba, South Sudan
Strange fly in Juba, South Sudan
Strange fly in Juba, South Sudan
Grasshopper in Juba, South Sudan
Grasshopper in Juba, South Sudan
Grasshopper in Juba, South Sudan
Mantis in Juba, South Sudan
Mantis in Juba, South Sudan
Mantis in Juba, South Sudan
Mantis in Juba, South Sudan
Mantis in Juba, South Sudan
Caterpillar in Juba, South Sudan
Strange bug in Juba, South Sudan
Strange bug in Juba, South Sudan
Snail in Juba, South Sudan
Mothra in Juba, South Sudan

The final five photos are all of spiders, so if anyone who finds those unpleasant may not want to scroll down any further.

Spider in Juba, South Sudan
Spider in Juba, South Sudan
Spider in Juba, South Sudan
Spider in Juba, South Sudan
Spider in Juba, South Sudan

Frogs!

There are quite a few frogs in the Nabang/Laiza area. We were lucky enough to be graced with their presence in the compound on many occasions, and I managed to catch a few photos. First, we have Ping Pong Frog who kindly obliged and left when we wanted to start playing a match of night ping pong on ‘his’ table:

Next, we have Garbage Frog, who decided that the trash bin is the place to be on a warm rainy season evening, quite the model:

He’s smiling in this one:

Then, of course, we have Drainpipe Frog…

…and window frog:

Of course, not all frogs are created equal. Some aren’t even frogs at all, like Fat Toad who was trying to run into a wall for some reason:

And our friendly neighbourhood Spider Frog, who walked along the wall like a bug but with no bugs in site for dinner:

I also found a small frog in my room one evening (my door was always wide open to all wild creatures at night as it was the only room with a broken air conditioning unit). At first I thought he was dead, but luckily he was just sleeping or something.

He didn’t seem inclined to leave, so I took a cardboard box to encourage him outside gently, and once he got the hint boy did he jump!

There were other frogs, including one we coaxed into a friend’s bedroom at night, but I’ve got no photos of those ones.