Volume

Maria Flo, the hotel we stayed at for our first two weeks in Uganda, exposed us nicely to the culture of Masaka.  Each morning, we were provided a delicious breakfast by the hotel staff.  This is where we were first exposed to matooke, and we can all agree that the hotel prepares matooke the best.  Pale omelets were also a part of the breakfast line at Maria Flo, the eggs here do not render such yellow finished results as eggs back home.  Breakfast at the hotel also included French toasted (I’m pretty sure that is deep fried French toast…oh yeahh) as well as fresh fruit, mostly pineapple, watermelon, and small bananas.  Usually a nice glass of passion fruit juice (with four spoonsful of sugar) would accompany our meal, and even, on occasion, a steaming mug of drinking chocolate. 

Another way Maria Flo eased us into Ugandan life was the hospitality of the staff.  Sylvia and her sister, the front desk girls, were always very friendly and welcoming, and always had smiles on their faces.  There were always many girls around, cleaning and preparing food.  They would always greet us in Luganda (the language of Uganda), and try to teach us words. 

Our favorite hotel staff was the director.  We’re not sure of his name, but he always called us his sons and daughters.  He liked to take us to town, especially when we needed to go to the bank to get money to pay him.  He would always come and join us, and ask us “Are you okay?”  His voice and laugh were booming, and you could hear him throughout the day.

Our friends Ivan and Deos, managers at the Maria Flo, took us to Masaka’s finest—Ambiance.  Club Ambiance is a night club located very near the hotel.  When we arrived, all of us were stunned.  In the middle of Africa is this nightclub.  Now, I’m no judge of nightclubs by any means, but this place was nice, way nicer than anything else we had seen here.  There were huge TVs with music videos playing, loud music (even American music), pool tables, flashing lights, and more security than the Egypt airport.  It was intense.  The only part that looks slightly…ghetto was the bowling alley carpet.  You know the type, black with neon prints of bowling balls, pins, and rockets.  But hey, even that is nice, because it’s literally the only carpet I have seen on this continent. 

But perhaps the best way Maria Flo introduced us to Uganda was the volume of the place.  Many things here are extremely loud.  There are large vehicles that drive through the street with the loudest music blaring out the huge speakers they carry.  When Club Ambiance is going (every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night from 10:00 p.m. until I’m not exactly sure when, but it was going strong until at least 4:00 a.m.) you can hear music loud and clear.  Our own hotel, Maria Flo, frequently hosts all sorts of events, from weddings, to concerts, to conferences.  And even though things are going late into the night, for some reason, everyone is back up again at 7:00 a.m., being loud.  It is always loud.

Our last night at Maria Flo was the night of the big concert, the one we’d been seeing and hearing advertisements about this concert since we arrived.  There were so many people, and so much security, they almost didn’t let us back onto the hotel grounds.  There were cops everywhere, with sticks and guns, but that’s not too unusual for here.  We actually attended the concert for a while, it was fun.  They set up lawn chairs and even though we couldn’t understand the music, it was quite nice.  Some people were getting drunk and out of hand, so we went in around 11:00.  It was the best way to end our stay at Maria Flo—a very late, and very loud, evening.