I’m now home after what has been an amazing week and a bit visiting the Ekisa Orphanage in Jinja, Uganda. The visit was definitely what I needed to get a break from things and I feel it has helped me grow as a person.
The journey back took quite a while, however. I left Ekisa at 6pm yesterday – thinking this would be more than enough time to get to Entebbe Airport in time for my flight. Unfortunately we got stuck in traffic going through Kampala which meant check-in for my flight had already opened by the time we arrived at the airport. Job, the driver, did really well at getting through the traffic in typical Ugandan style to make sure I got my flight on time.
While I was in the airport I was approached by somebody doing a travel survey, which is ironic as that’s my job in the UK at the moment. It was for on behalf of the tourism studies department at a Hong Kong University and they wanted to know about peoples travel experiences in Uganda and I was more than happy to oblige. It helped kill some time between arriving at the airport and getting on the plane.
The flight from Entebbe to Brussels went smoothly and, with the air of my priority ticket, I was able to skip past the security line and transfer straight over to the other terminal to connect with my flight to London. The flight back to London went really smoothly and I arrived back home on time.
This was probably one of the most worthwhile trips I have been on. I had a great time interacting with the kids – memories I have taken home with me and will keep with me for life. Emily and Emily do a great job helping these kids and I hope to be able to continue supporting them for some time to come – and I encourage you all to help out as well. I hope one day to return to Uganda – this trip has secured the country at the top of my favourite destinations list.
CLICK HERE to visit the Ekisa website and read more about the great work they’re doing.
Ps: Thank you to Emily, Aaron, Simon, Bridget, Stacey, Kelsey, Caroline, all of the Mama’s, all of the kids, and anybody I forgot to list at Ekisa – I had a great time visiting and I miss you all already.