Travel is like an excellent book. It gives you a fresh perspective on reality, refreshes your soul, gives you a sense of being in touch with yourself again and leaves you with a feeling of catharsis.
Your passions and aspirations start regenerating and you are left wondering why you do not do this more often. More than anything else, travel tends to offer a powerful spiritual experience, like the day you first believed. And like in the case of a good book, you never forget a single detail of a good trip.
Memorable experiences
You never forget the morning you travelled to Matemwe beach on the northern shores of Zanzibar, where you watched in awe, village women seated in those shallow salty waters of the Indian Ocean, farming seaweed or the dhow race that took place later that day.
You never forget your first experience on a German autobahn, a speedway with no speed limit, when you rode a motorcycle from Hamburg to Frankfurt and back. Sheer adrenaline. It is this newness you encounter so far away from home that truly brings you so close to home. It captures your imagination and quenches your natural thirst for adventure.
The allure of the forest
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is one such place. It is one of the most prized tourist destinations in Uganda. The high-altitude rain forest is home to the largest population of mountain gorillas in the world, at over 400 of these endangered giant primates.
The forest has an aura like no other. It is cold and dark, (the word Bwindi means darkness), yet these very gloomy qualities make it exceptionally inviting. The intensity of the smells from the forest, a mixture of moth, mushroom, aging tree bark and all sorts of herbs are all soothing to the soul.
The air is so thin, your lungs skip a beat. Because of the high-altitude, you get the sense that you are approaching the cusp of the unknown. Your city-dwelling body is not used to this alien environment. It is glorious.
The slow, two-hour climb into the National Park from Kabale Town is a separate thrill on its own. The drive up the forested ranges is punctuated by the constant popping of your ears as you go higher and higher into the ranges.
The ferns and the bamboo reeds and the general shrubbery on the forest floor are as menacing and mysterious as the giant trees that have never seen an axe since the creation story.
Credit: Daily Monitor
Subscribe our Email News Letter to get Instant Update at anytime
