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The changing face of the Kwanjula posted on April 25, 2010 - 12:06pm

I attended the Kwanjula of a close relative a few weeks ago and the social changes our lives are undergoing hits me in the face like a brick. Gone was the close knit family gathering organised and planned to receive and host the in-laws to be on our ‘turf’. This was replaced by an organising committee that fundraised from family and friends, the budget would easily outdo any church wedding and the ‘program’ would have given my dearly departed grand parents an ulcer.The cows were replaced with cold cash, the DJ took the place of traditional musicians in fake animal skins, there was a cake to be cut, the bride to be gave gifts to the groom to be……. Transgressions galore, the master of ceremony was thoroughly confused and could not tell what would happen next. And you could almost here the old timers clicking their tongues in disapproval.

Last of the green patches posted on April 25, 2010 - 12:05pm

Spending a weekend in Kampala the other day I still marvel at the speed with which sky scrapers pop up all over the place, The even the Hilton is finally showing its ‘head”, but I have to spare a thought for Windsor crescent.This the little patch of green is found at the junction of Acacia Avenue and Kiira Road at Kisementi. And therein lies the problem, there is now a huge building site that will soon emerge as a petrol station and …………a ‘childrens play park’. The green cover that kampala used to have is fast disappearing: Bat valley, Lugogo, kitante green belt. The list is endless. We are well on our way to becoming a bonafide concrete jungle, Lagos is not pretty, so why on earth do we want to look like it?

A bleak future? posted on April 1, 2010 - 2:47pm

(copyright Karsten71)I look at the picture of this child and wonder whether there will be anything for him to inherit when he comes of age. Everytime I open the newspaper the CHOGM scandal burns my eyes, how much worse can it get.

Its Official: India.Arie and I posted on October 1, 2009 - 5:37pm

With great embarrasment, I have to admit that until 6 weeks ago I had only known of India.Arie by name. She always generated rave reviews whenever her name was mentioned and I just played along, not daring to admit that i had never really listened to her music.

What does it mean to be Ugandan? posted on September 27, 2009 - 11:55am

After a long hiatus from blogging I must ask my fellow citizens: what does it mean to be Ugandan, is there really anything holding us together or are we staring the inevitable in the face, things will fall apart sooner or later. Allan Tacca's article in today's sunday monitor says it all, we simply do not build things to last, we have the incessant need to tear down all our institutions and rebuild all over again, every few decades.

Makerere's greed will be its undoing! posted on May 22, 2009 - 4:30pm

I came across the headline story in the New Vision newspaper to day that just leaves me dumb founded. Apparetnly makerere university is to admit 5,000 more students this academic year.

Photo for a new year: Only in Uganda posted on January 6, 2009 - 1:00pm

A haunting photo from the past and an ethical debate posted on December 10, 2008 - 12:13pm

This is a picture that has haunted me for a decade. It was taken by a South African photographer called Keith Carter during a famine, in a sudanese refugee camp in 1993.The story is told that as he watched this child crawl towards the feeding centre a vulture landed and showed great interest in the dying child. The photographer watched the unfolding scene for twenty minutes, having positioned himself in a way that would not disturb the bird, hoping it would spread its wings!He later claimed that he chased the bird away.

Conquering the wild waters of the NIle...... and my fears posted on November 26, 2008 - 12:47pm

Last week I finally got to do something I have always wanted to do, that is white water raft the Nile. Another of my life goals conquered.Over the last 8 years I have tried often to get a group of friends to ‘do’ the Nile with me, but everyone seemed to drop off the list as the date grew closer. So I gave up until this year. The fact that Bujagali dam grows bigger by the day and will one day block off a great section of the rapids played a big part in my ‘do it now’ mentality.

Can we imagine an 'Obama' in Uganda? posted on November 4, 2008 - 5:15pm

Scenario: A 47 year old man who was born in Kampala, has lived all his life in Uganda, his mother is Ugandan and he holds Ugandan citizenship. His father is Congolese and he uses his father's Congolese surname.