Back in August, I was in Jinja, on official duty with the SRHR Alliance of Uganda
And I was getting to the rendez-vous point of meeting up with Olly, my most immediate boss, on the boda-boda,
We ride past this nice-looking place bearing a huge signpost, “Nile Village Hotel, Jinja”!!!
Photo credit: SRHR Alliance Uganda
I look at it as my boda person slows down towards the huge hump ahead of us
And it catches my mind
I make a promise to myself that I must go to this place sometime
Either to have a meal from there, stay there as a guest or in the very least, make a tour of the place
Photo credit: nilevillagehotel.com
So, last week, at a social cause gathering, I happen to meet with Olly who informs me of the upcoming trip to Eastern Uganda that we are going to have
She specifically told me I should turn up on Thursday but I guess my mind had other plans off-head
I decided to tttuuurrrrnnnttttttt on Wednesday
Yyyeeaaahhhhhh!!!
So, I get to Jinja and call Olly to find out where she is exactly.
She says that she’s stepped out of Jinja briefly and that I should have my back only for tonight
Exactly that, is what I did
Photo credit: booking.com
I get to my room at Tourist Bay Hotel which is a little further away from the Nile Village Hotel
Check in, unpack my computer and decide to watch Ozark….i believe that was episode 6
I had lazily tried completing up to the hour but my sleep got the better of me, as usual, of late
And then, when I was done with that endeavor, my crazy idea of having my dinner from the Nile Village Hotel popped up in my head!
Photo credit: netflixlife.com
I entertained the thought of it, at first
I fancied my chances and luck that evening
My mind told me, “why not, mehn, why not”? My tummy said exactly the same thing
I knew it was a match made in heaven
Credit: giphy.com
So, I shut down my PC at 6:05 PM EAT
Pack my computer back into my bag
And headed out to the reception to declare my property for safe storage, till I was back from my “kimele”.
SHOWTIME
I begin taking my walk to the Nile Village, real slowly
Banging some Damian Marley chunes in my ears
By half past the hour, I strongly believe I was at the gate, for “checking in”!
Photo credit: genius.com
Security informed me that I had to leave my water-bottle with them, at the gate, for procedural purposes
I obliged diligently
Walked to the reception, right away
Where I met a very helpful person
Who assisted me out with 2 major issues….
- Being where the restaurant is and then
- Availing me with a copy of the hotel’s brochure
Yyyoooo….I was in things!!!!!
With my brochure in hand, I was on my way to my umbrella shade
Ready for the dinner
To show you that I was sooo ready for this evening, I didn’t ask for the password to the WiFi, something which I normally do when I step into a new place
Got myself seated and Justine, my waitress for the day, handed me the menus to make a choice or choices
I ordered boneless chicken with fries and a bowl of rice, accompanied by a Mountain Dew, my all-time fav soda
Somebody find me the missing emoji to this story
My order didn’t take forever as I had anticipated….more reason for carrying my earphones and reggae with me (big goal you scored there, Nile Village Hotel)
Swish swish….food is here, Ntemid
Keep calm….the food is ready for you!
I must admit….i had a problem with the kuku
It was quite too much for my teeth….a little hard than the versions of boneless chicken that I eat
The fries were marvelous….the share handed to me was more than enough, I admit
The rice…aaahhhhh….a bowl to die for
Same goes for the side-sauce….finger-licking and jaw-dropping!
All this went for a cool 36,000 Uganda shillings
In case you don’t dig this currency, you might want to do your math and visit the currency-exchange counter, at that
When Justine came to hand me my bill, I engaged her in talk about the cottages….I read about them in the brochure and I needed to know if they were the ones I was looking at, from across the lawn
She nodded in affirmation that they were the one and I liked them
Very unique concept, they are
If you’ve visited some hotels in Uganda, you’ll realize that the idea of cottages like this, isn’t such a common one
The ones we usually have here are a little not up to the standard, if you know what I mean
I promise you, you might read a blog post from me, very soon, from the time I spent in the cottages
Photo credit: booking.com
Nile Village Hotel, you guys rock
Keep going after the ceiling that’s after the blue sky that the naked eye sees
You lived up to my silent expectations and rose above them, as well
The dollars spent there, are sooo worth it!
Cheers