Heading to Bungoma

From Jinja we would travel to Bungoma, Kenya. I was really excited to take Jenn and Sky to the Western Kenyan town we call home. Well at least that is where we keep our belongings.  I had only really been in Bungoma for 5 weeks so far this year but none the less it is our African home base. 

The drive from Jinja to Bungoma is about 2 to 3 hours depending on how long it takes to cross the Ugandan/ Kenyan border.  The border crossing and process is quite the ordeal and honestly I would have had no idea on where to go had we been on our own. Upon reaching the Ugandan border our driver zigzagged through the maze of trucks and cars trying to move forward. Often going down the wrong side of the road to try and get around the idling trucks. A few times we had to back up to get out of the way of semis going in the opposite direction. Then we would charge forward again trying to wind our way to the Uganda passport office. Once the car was parked we jumped out in attempt to beat the lineup of truck drivers we had just passed queuing up at the passport clearance office. Uganda has a brand new building and the sole clerk processed the lineup of people trying to enter or leave Uganda fairly quickly.

Once we were all cleared to leave Uganda, we hopped back into the car and headed over the border to the Kenya office. A rough old kiosk was the check-in counter for Kenya. After some time Jenn and Skylar were granted visas we were back in the car heading to Bungoma.  On both sides of the border are miles and miles of semi-trucks lined up on both sides of the road attempting to cross the border. We were told it can take days for them to get through. Thank goodness as a car we were able to maneuver through the line and clear customs in a few hours. I simply can't imagine what the ordeal/frustration must be like for men trying to make a living as truck drivers. Although it just seems to be accepted as part of the job.

Once through both borders, it should be easy sailing to Bungoma.  However at one point the road was under construction and for a while we were able to drive on the new tarmac, but that quickly came to an end and we needed to get down to the old road. The median between the two roads was a good sized ditch, but everyone thought we should be able to drive through. Rodgers would need to maneuver the car just right to get across without getting stuck. Unfortunately, as careful as he was the nose of the car hit the ground at such an angle that it was unable to drive through and we were stuck.  Not to worry though, Kenyans are very resourceful people. 10 men from other vehicles on the road, jumped out and together they lifted the front of the car up, out of the ditch and onto the road. Less than 5 minutes later we were all back in the car and heading for Bungoma. As crazy as the whole ordeal was; it was so cool.

Next stop- Marell compound, Bungoma.

We would spend the next three and a half days exploring the sites of Bungoma.