Gorillas in the mist

Been a while since my last update. My apologies to those very few people who are keeping up with my life in Uganda and thanks for reading my blog...

So I gave in and decided to head out to Bwindi, the impenetrable forest, to trek the endangered mountain gorillas. Few families of gorillas roam around the forests in Uganda, Rwanda, and Congo but are endangered due to poachers. In Uganda, it costs $500 for the permit to see the gorilla. The permit includes a guide but that is just ridiculously expesive. But it goes to conservation and I couldn't possibly leave Uganda saying I didn't go see the gorillas so I gave in and decided to go. Anshu from section 3 (I think...) also convinced me to go see them. She is traveling all the way from Kenya to see them so why couldn't I.
We decided to splurge and get a special hire for 3 days. Yes, another major expense (like $100 per person for the whole weekend). It was either that or a super bumpy bus ride for 10 hours or so.
The drive was really about 10 hours in total but it wasn't a bad one though. We passed by the equator, the forest, and Queen Elizabeth National Park where we saw elephants, Uganda coop (?), baboons (ofcourse!), and water buffalos. The elephant charged us like a mad man. It scared me a lil bit 'cause he was so cute but so dangerous at the same time.


Our lodge in Bwindi was amazing (below). let me tell you. Amazing!! Anshu, the Indian negotiator, got the price down to $20/ night instead of $23. Was super greatful for her. Katharine and I are such push-overs when it comes to these things. Anshu also managed to get discounts on all our meals too. It was amazing to see her at work. We never really hung out in Fuqua but it was so great to see a common Fuquan in East Africa, an immediate bond. So much fun.
It really only took us 1 hour each way to find the gorilla family, Habryama (?). I was really ready to sit down and rest by the time we found them though. It was really a tough trek. Up and down some super steep hills. At one time, we were walking in a pile of brush and the ground was about 1 meter down. The gorillas were quite shy but almost acted like they didn't notice the humans around. There was one blackback who was definitely not shy though. (his photo at the top of this blog post) He kept posing in front of us. A different pose about every 2 minutes. It was awesome. The babies were really fun to watch too. Even the smallest little boy gorillas pound their chest and stand up really tall to show that they are in charge. It was so cute. The gorillas are such gentle creatures and they literally eat & sleep all day long like pandas. You can never tell if the moms are pregnant or not because her belly's always full and big. It was really amazing to see them just a few meters away.




It was just a really incredible experience. I recommend to all whose going to Uganda to try this one.