Gorillas in the Mist!

4th September, Kampala, Uganda.

What an incredible few days! Having arrived in Kisoro (the 'Gateway to the Gorillas') in the early afternoon, we were all thouroughly taken aback by what happened that night.

About 30 children from the local orpahnage who's parents had died in the rwandan genocide and from epidemics such as Aids and Malaria came to our camp to put on a show.

I've seena lot of these dancing performances in Africa before, but none of those came close to this. The enrgy and enthusiasm with which they danced, enticed everyone to join in, and told us of both their sadness of the past and hope for the future that the orphanage has given them, was humbling to say the least.

It left the whole audience in awe- so much so that many of us have promised ourselves to sponsor an orphan when we get home- and left everyone's eyes brimming, and consciences touched.

The morning after we woke before dawn to drive to the Uganda/ Congo border to trek for Mountain Gorillas. After a relatively short trek of just over an hour through dense forest, we encountered a family of wild Gorillas for the first time.

At first, it felt surreal- as if you had to keep reminding yourself that this wasn't a zoo with perspex glass, but rather 12 of the 600 or so wild Gorillas left in the world. Once past the initial shock, the experience was extraordinary and worth every penny. they scaled trees, fed on roots, played, and watched us with curiosity without a care in the world.

The experience was unique and unforgetable, but before we knew it our hour with the Gorillas was over. I caught myself trying to remember every last detail of the encounter before those memories were lost forever.

The road back to Kampala was rough, but spectacular. All around us the Ugandan hills rose and towered before giving way to lush valleys. The truck, however, didn't enjoy the ride quite so much. We've managed to break three of the four suspension springs in under a week- after Mark our tour leader had gone two years without doing one! Each has meant lengthy repairs and delays, and plenty of hard graft.

Hopefully we'll make it back to Nairobi in one piece!