The name of Uganda’s capital city, Kampala, comes from the Luganda phrase “Kasozi ka Impala” or “Hills of Antelopes”.  It was named thus because in the 19th century, impala belonging to the Buganda kings used to graze on the slopes of a hill near today’s city centre.  It was on this (Old Kampala) hill that the British colonial officer, Captain Fredrick Lugard, established a fort in December 1890.  People were attracted by the security afforded by the fort and a small township quickly developed.  Today this “township” has grown dramatically into the city of Kampala with an estimated population of close to 1.2 million inhabitants.

Like the legendary city of Rome, Kampala originally extended over seven hills and, since March 2000, the Kampala Hash House Harriers has honoured this legacy each year by organising the twenty-one kilometres 7-Hills R*n!

Standing on any of the seven hills, which are at an altitude of approximately 1,200 metres, one is disarmed by the unexpected greenness of the city, interrupted by red-tiled villas, green-roofed bungalows with their white walls and modern tall buildings in the central business district.  Since the return of peace and stability in 1986, Kampala has grown fast and now sprawls over more than 20 small hills covering more than 300 km, that stretch towards Entebbe in the south, Jinja to the east, Masaka to the west and Bombo to the north.

Kampala has an excellent range of hotels in or close to the city centre – from the luxurious international Serena and Sheraton to more basic but clean rest houses and serviced apartments. There are many restaurants serving the cuisine of, among others, Japan, India, China, the USA and South Africa, while delicious Ugandan food is served in many places in the city. 

There are several cafés serving steaming Arabica coffee, picked and processed on the slopes of two of Uganda’s mountain areas – Elgon and Rwenzori (the Mountains of the Moon), locally-grown team and juices made from fresh local pineapples, mangoes, paw-paws and passion fruit.  A couple of the cafes in central Kampala now have Broadband connection, which is reliable. 

There are also two shopping malls containing supermarkets, book-shops, more cafés, clothes shops, a cinema and banks.  The city has many good bars and night-clubs, particularly in the Kabalagala suburb, although there are some excellent ones in the central business district as well.

Only the top international hotels accept credit cards, with cash payment preferred for almost all services and goods.  The international banks are well represented and money can be withdrawn from their cash machines using credit/debit cards.  Foreign exchange dealers can be found throughout the city and give better rates than the commercial banks.  A note of caution: pre-2000 US$ 100 notes are not accepted anywhere, including by the Immigration Service; and low rates of exchange are given for low denomination notes.

The country has a pleasant climate – although it lies close to the equator, Kampala’s altitude means that temperatures rarely rise above 30°C or fall below 18°C.  Rainfall is high and well-distributed throughout the year, hence the dark green colour of the landscape!  However, most of it falls in short, violent storms and it dries quickly.

Reputable safari operators and car-rental firms based in Kampala, offer a wealth of local experience and specialist know-how to international visitors.  Good web-sites include that of Tourism Uganda (www.visituganda.com) which is regularly updated with links to many related sites and that of the Uganda Wildlife Authority (www.uwa.or.ug) – useful for updates on the availability of gorilla-tracking permits and information on all the country’s national parks.  An excellent guide to Kampala for visitors (and residents!) is the bi-monthly “The Eye” magazine, obtainable for free from many hotels, cafés and tourist shops; it contains reputedly the best comprehensive map of the city.