August 27, 2015
to Ishaka: back up to tea country
Today we climbed out of the rift valley. "I really enjoyed the climbs today" Patrick says as Rachel remains silent. It was a good day with one difficult climb, beautiful scenery.
We cross the bridge over the Kazinga Channel at sunrise. The first bit of road is still part of the savannah of Queen Elizabeth National Park. After about 10 kms, we can see the road go up the escarpment. This part goes very well. Then we lose a bit of elevation to a crater lake, and the road gets steeper. Once over this ridge we cycle along with tea plantations. The leaves are not hand picked like in China. Instead, the leaves are cut with a combination type hedge cutter and vacuum collection in a bag.
The "By-ye, by-ye Muzungu" from kids is being tiresome, though their enthusiasm is hard to ignore. One village, Rachel spotted three kids hiding under blankets ready to pop up and call muzungu. Some kids say "give me money" or "give me your bike". We wonder where the kids learned this? We've never just given kids something, instead in 1994 we had pencils that we gave to the teachers to give to the kids who needed them. The adult boda boda (motorcycle) drivers are more annoying, particularly the whistles and shouts to Rachel.
We reach Ishaka and find a very nice guesthouse, Cielo Country Inn, a beautiful garden oasis and very professionally run. Dinner was excellent with chicken curry, vegetable curry and rice with a delightful dish of mixed fruit for dessert.
Life is good on the road.
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Today's ride: 56 km (35 miles)
Total: 6,255 km (3,884 miles)
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