A promise to the stretch between Kisoro and Kabale

By Jerry Ssesanga

Take an air trip to Kigali and before you know, you are landing, even by the window the view is not that eye catching. Take a road trip or simply visit the south west of Uganda. All is regular, just like any other road trip, along the way are mountain ranges, game parks, lakes, beautiful towns and many eye catching places. But there is a place that is going to kill me. Hope my mother and all my loved ones do not read this.

The strectch between Kisoro and Kabale drives me crazy. If Vin Diesel knew of its existance, swear we would have a fast and furious movie shot along it. There is a road that madly runs atop a range of hills twisting and turning a million times like a mad furious snake. The way the stiring wheel sways and slays is amusement. The risk is so great but someone said where great risks exist, great amusement lays. The strectch unfolds the real hidden me, it says something about my ruthlessness and that wild spirit that seeks adventure and aspires to have it at whatever cost.

I remember that time back then, Christopher Martin’s song was in my ears saying
“This has nothing to do with money, or fame, or vanity
This one is all about self worth
So, big up your chest and stand proud and don’t matter ’bout nobody
No man nuh more than no man pon this earth
So whether you walk, or you a drive car
Nuh matter if you’re white, or black like tar
From you feel good inna yourself you a star

Push up unuh hand and tell all the haters, Am a big deal.” So my mind was kinda revved up, was thinking of shooting a baaad film on the road and how the drifting would be fan to our audiences. How interesting it would be to see chase cars slip off while our lead role fights like a pro to win in a do or die scene. Thats the character I want to bring to the Ugandan screen. Someone who doesn’t give a…

Now the coldness was eating me up, Kisoro was wild in terms of rain, fog was all over and for a person who loves the cold and mists, it was a heaven sent kind feeling on my stuborn soul. Trinity is my favourite bus on that route, so was seated infront with the wide road ahead of me. The bus is a wide car, the road is narrow, turning corners attimes makes all the bus occupy all the road.

Our driver, perhaps speaking either Rwandese or Rufumbira with friends was doing the job perfectly, there seemed feeling of passion in what he was doing. Man, real drifting and turning on corners as I read names of interesting villages from Kanaba. Remember we are atop the great Kigezi mountain range like hills and any slight mistake leads us miles down to our death.

In many places fog is so thick that we are not able to see much save for the reflectors besides the road. We turn left, then sharply to the right, then left, then left, right, right, left. The turns are endless and am now about to resign to my phone. I imagine is an hour and so while we are turning and twisting.

The Spoiler comes by, as we are having fun, one of the buses by passes us. Its slow but not willing to let us ahead. Guess what, racing has began. Ohh, am eagerly watching the stiring wheel, it is rotated this way and that way, our bus is really posh and grand therefore so beautiful. I am watching from the wide front and its like a giant screen broadcasting a motor rally.

The bus ahead will not let us bypass it, we try on harder, now real racing has began, for 30 minutes up there we are on war. We look for seat belts and tighten. I want to shout in support of my driver like I am a fan watching from the stands. We pass interesting villages like Nyaruhanga, Murore, Hakakondogoro, Ihanga, kebitakuri, Bubaare and along the pursuit, one passenger complains. One foolish passenger!!!!

Ehhhhh, the driver is angry, then he slows like we are just walking. He quarrels for long and gets more angry. Then the real drifting begins. This time I was getting terrified too. I saw as if we were soon rolling off, everyone kept quiet and let professor driver do his job. Then as we all began to enjoy, the stretch ended. We had overtaken all our opponents and headed on to Kabale.

I promised myself that I would, at one time of my career, return to film a racing film on this stretch. I really wish the world knows of the beauty that lies within this country.