I am in Dubai (or at Dubai Airport to be more precise)! How I come to be here is a long story (which some of you already know). For the benefit of those who read this blog to learn more about the ways of the world, I will narrate the story again.
The easiest way to go from Kampala, Uganda to Brazzaville, Congo is to take Ethiopian Airlines. First you fly from Entebbe airport to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and from there you take the flight to Brazzaville. Although, the total flying time for the both flights is around 4 hours; the main problem is the connection. The flight from Uganda arrives Ethiopia in the evening, the fight for Congo does not leave for another 14 hours. While the Ethiopian airlines is happy to put you up in a hotel, our green passport does not qualify for a visa to get into Ethiopia (I hope you are suitably insulted). Thus you have to stay at the airport for the whole 14 hours.
The way around is to fly Emirates from Uganda to Ethiopia (because the Dubai flight stops at Addis Ababa for 1.5 hours) and then from Ethiopia to Dubai. You arrive in Dubai 30 minutes past midnight and stay at the airport for the next 4 hours. Then you take the Ethiopian Airlines flight back to Ethiopia which arrives there in time to catch the same flight from Addis Ababa to Brazzaville, Congo. So instead of sitting at Addis Ababa airport for 14 hours, you spend most of that time flying around. Below is a diagram which I made with Paint (as that is the only software available on this PC in the lounge) to explain the journey.
As enjoyable as it may sound, but it does play havoc with your internal clock. You change three time zone within 24 hours (GMT+3, GMT+4, GMT+1). And just like any flight through Dubai, you cannot sleep for 24 hours.
I am sure you would agree that Dubai has become the "Bus Terminal of the World". The whole airport is like a huge waiting area in which either people are queuing or waiting (or queuing outside their gates so they can wait inside). The duty free has so many people on checkouts that you would be forgiven for thinking that they are giving things away.
So busy is the airport that they have ran out of gates and planes are parked on tarmac from where the bus takes you to the airport. There are so many buses running around that we almost has a traffic jam at the airport. A glance at the screens in the Departure area showed 32 flights departing within 45 minutes (1.45am to 2.30am). That just over 1 a minute!
Having said that, if it was not for Dubai we would have to wait days to go anywhere. Since most of the international airlines have suspended services to our airports, Emirates is our only option which connects us to the rest of the world.
I am gonna go now and have a cup of tea (they have Earl Gray in the lounge), relax and try my best not to sleep as I have to get going in 45 minutes!
The easiest way to go from Kampala, Uganda to Brazzaville, Congo is to take Ethiopian Airlines. First you fly from Entebbe airport to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and from there you take the flight to Brazzaville. Although, the total flying time for the both flights is around 4 hours; the main problem is the connection. The flight from Uganda arrives Ethiopia in the evening, the fight for Congo does not leave for another 14 hours. While the Ethiopian airlines is happy to put you up in a hotel, our green passport does not qualify for a visa to get into Ethiopia (I hope you are suitably insulted). Thus you have to stay at the airport for the whole 14 hours.
The way around is to fly Emirates from Uganda to Ethiopia (because the Dubai flight stops at Addis Ababa for 1.5 hours) and then from Ethiopia to Dubai. You arrive in Dubai 30 minutes past midnight and stay at the airport for the next 4 hours. Then you take the Ethiopian Airlines flight back to Ethiopia which arrives there in time to catch the same flight from Addis Ababa to Brazzaville, Congo. So instead of sitting at Addis Ababa airport for 14 hours, you spend most of that time flying around. Below is a diagram which I made with Paint (as that is the only software available on this PC in the lounge) to explain the journey.
As enjoyable as it may sound, but it does play havoc with your internal clock. You change three time zone within 24 hours (GMT+3, GMT+4, GMT+1). And just like any flight through Dubai, you cannot sleep for 24 hours.
I am sure you would agree that Dubai has become the "Bus Terminal of the World". The whole airport is like a huge waiting area in which either people are queuing or waiting (or queuing outside their gates so they can wait inside). The duty free has so many people on checkouts that you would be forgiven for thinking that they are giving things away.
So busy is the airport that they have ran out of gates and planes are parked on tarmac from where the bus takes you to the airport. There are so many buses running around that we almost has a traffic jam at the airport. A glance at the screens in the Departure area showed 32 flights departing within 45 minutes (1.45am to 2.30am). That just over 1 a minute!
Having said that, if it was not for Dubai we would have to wait days to go anywhere. Since most of the international airlines have suspended services to our airports, Emirates is our only option which connects us to the rest of the world.
I am gonna go now and have a cup of tea (they have Earl Gray in the lounge), relax and try my best not to sleep as I have to get going in 45 minutes!
Labels: addis ababa, airport, dubai, emirates, Entebbe, ethiopia, ethiopian, kampala, uganda
On Sunday we had planned on getting up early and visiting a couple of places. Our ride was to first pick Irfan & Sajjad from their guesthouse in Kitintale and then come for Nasar and I around 9:45am. I was ready by 9:15 and decided to check-up on Nasar. I knocked his door - no response, I banged his door - no response, I kicked his door, no response! For a second I was worried. One of the housekeepers came up to check if everything was ok. I told him that I was trying to wake Nasar and there was no response. We went onto the joint balcony from my room and found that the window was open. I saw Nasar sleeping and shouted his name a dozen times to wake him up - NO RESPONSE!The housekeeper had an idea and went to get something long which could reach the bed and poke him. In the mean time I got three apples from the dinning room and threw them at him. Although two of them hit his shoulder, but I missed his head and he did not wake up.
The housekeeper brought back a wiper with expendable pipe. We got close enough to bang the headboard and poke the quilt... but nothing happened.
Somehow the housekeeper managed to open the balcony door to his room and I went into the room and shook the life (or sleep in this case) out of Nasar. After 25 mins of trying we finally managed to wake him up (but only because we got into the room). If you are planning to buy Nasar a birthday present (21st March), have a look at some of these alarm clocks which claim to wake everyone except the dead!
Labels: alarmclock, kampala, nasar, uganda
We went out for Friday prayers a earlier today in Kampala. The central mosque is named "New National Mosque" but usually called "Old Kampala Mosque" which is on top of Mengo hill in old Kampala. The mosque opened in June 2007, although it has been completed a year earlier. This delay was due to a dispute between the mufti and the Muslim community who accused him of selling mosque land for commercial use. The construction of the mosque was funded by Libyan President Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and he will also pay the annual utility bills of about US$200,000.
Unfortunately, we were did not get there on time and missed the prayers. Since the gates were jammed with people coming out we decided to find another mosque to say Dhuhr prayers. The one we found is called Wandegeya Mosque and had Indian dome type architecture and was more kinda old and a little run down.
Irfan Khalil, Sajjad Butt, Nasar Shakil, Faisal Nasim
Since I wont be around in Kampala for the next Friday prayers, I will have to go sometime during the week to offer prayers and see the mosque.
Unfortunately, we were did not get there on time and missed the prayers. Since the gates were jammed with people coming out we decided to find another mosque to say Dhuhr prayers. The one we found is called Wandegeya Mosque and had Indian dome type architecture and was more kinda old and a little run down.
Irfan Khalil, Sajjad Butt, Nasar Shakil, Faisal NasimSince I wont be around in Kampala for the next Friday prayers, I will have to go sometime during the week to offer prayers and see the mosque.
