Rafting the Nile

This was in mid-November... I know I am a few months late… but later than never!
Imee, my classmate from SPH and dear friend, came to visit me in Uganda! My first visitor! She stayed for less than 48 hours, which was too short, but worth it! She and her colleague flew in to Entebbe from Dar es Salaam. As soon as we arrived in Kampala, I wanted to show them what Uganda's nightlife was like. We ventured into a busy food market on the street, where chicken legs and wings were roasting and Rolexes were being made. They are chipattis that have an omelet inside. This was our first time for a Rolex. SO YUMMY! We ate, we loved it, and then we moved to an outside/upstairs bar. We did not stay out late, as the next morning, we were heading to Jinga, where we would explore the Nile via white water rafting.





Rafting was unbelievable. It was exhilarating. But it was like a beast. A beast that could swallow you whole! And that it did! I have been rafting before- in Ecuador and in Zambia. And I have been grateful to those waters for never flipping me off the rafts. The Nile was not so nice. The river was wide, there were many stretches that were so calm, one could actually sleep. We jumped, swam, floated, and laughed in the Nile. But where the rapids were, we were in trouble. Some were Grade 5. For the first few, we made it. Didn’t flip. Stayed on board. Then one rapid, grade 5, got me. I was in the right-front, and after the first rapid, we flipped…. I was sucked under, and all I remembered under water that the instructor had warned us: if you do not know where the surface is, just hold on to your life-jacket. You will be under for a max of ten seconds. I felt like it was an eternity! I was thrashed around under water, pop back up, sailing down the Nile, sucked by more rapids, and finally saved by a kayaker. I was brought to another raft, out of breath, shaking in my swimsuit and lifejacket, and the guide of this boat asked me how the adventure was. To be honest, all that came to my mind and out of my mouth was “Holy shit balls!” A near death experience will do that to you. I found out the raft had not flipped; only I fell out! Jamie (in the front-left) ended up in my spot. They told me this rapid was the worst rapid to fall into, and I fell in at the most non-opportune spot. One man was kayaking and dislocated his shoulder. I am thankful I survived! But, I am not done. The story would not be complete until the last rapid was conquered…. Even though we all fell out this time. It was only Jamie, Imee, myself and the guide. The others decided not to attempt. So, I think we were already at a disadvantage with three others gone. We did not make it far at all. Jamie got caught under the raft while Imee and I flew down the river. I ended up backwards and I could see Imee coming towards me. I yelled, “Imeeeeeeeeee……” before I was hit by a tsunami of a wave. I wasn’t sucked under. I was in a gigantic wave pool and it was only seconds that I had to catch my breath before I was engulfed once again. Our bodies were sore from the wave force, our lungs struggling to catch its breath, and our minds wondered if the others made it too. Thankfully, our team was accounted for. We made it! I do love an adventure, but I am not sure I could handle the Nile again. The next on my list is bungee jumping in South America. Anyone want to go tandem?!


The Nile River... A devil of a river.