Kampala: Haunting specters, charming smiles

The specter of Idi Amin’s dictatorial regime kept looming as Sue and I alighted at the Entebbe Airport, the site of a dramatic hostage rescue operation by Israeli forces so many years ago. I half-shuddered as I made my way to the taxi stand to get to Kampala from Entebbe. Sue, who was silent up to this point, must have been mulling over the same things. By and by, however, we began to lose our edginess as the warmth of the place; the people reached out and clinched us with calming reassurance. We were propositioned by several motorcycle taxi drivers. These motorcycle taxis are called boda bodas and look extremely dangerous. So we simply shook our heads in polite refusal.

We finally booked a taxi to take us to the hotel Sheena had booked for us, the Kampala Sheraton Hotel. As the towers of the hotel loomed up in the horizon both Sue and I felt immediately reassured. Set in a sultry, seductive tropical background it is an oasis – mainly owing to its magnificent gardens – inside a bustling city. The hotel has cafes, bars, a beauty salon, in fact the works.

We had a late lunch and being a tad too tired, went off to sleep. In the evening Sue and I went across to the Rock Garden, a rather cool night club in the midst of the city. We weren’t charged anything to be admitted and had some great Tusker beer while listening to some rollicking numbers mostly from Uganda and India. We were also treated to a lot of ABBA hits, a thing that bombards your senses wherever you, we realized. The country appears to be quite ABBA-struck.

The next morning we woke up early and stepped out of the hotel and could help marveling at the landscape that Kampala offers. Set out on seven hills, it is the site of the verdant and resplendent views I have seen during my travels. We took a stroll up to the Naksero Market with a zesty medley of shops and restaurants. Such brilliant colors and such bright smiles! I felt sorry when it was time to leave.

Eco Friendly Luxury Hotels

Let's face it, luxury hotels put a lot of strain on our already deteriorating environment. The heat or air is left on continuously, even when the room is unoccupied. Filling pools, hot tubs, laundering sheets daily, you get the idea? The water and energy usage from one establishment can be incredible. Luckily , some luxury hotels have recognized the problem and are taking steps to become more Eco friendly.

The Hotel Metro in Milwaukee, Wisconsin is taking steps to conserve energy without compromising the level of comfort that they offer. Recently the hotel had the Telkonet SmartEnergy management system installed. Upon arrival to their suite guests will see a red arrow on the thermostat that indicates that the heating system can be set to the preference of the guest.

The blue arrow is for cooling. The system will remember the specific settings and detect when the room is unoccupied and allow the setting s to drift within a specific range. Once the guests return to their suite the heating or cooling will return to the setting that had been selected previously within 10 minutes. This helps to decrease energy usage and most guests don't even realize the difference.

Hyatt Regency is another luxury hotel chain that is striving to be more environmentally friendly. Energy efficient light bulbs have replaced ordinary bulbs through out the hotel. Paper recycling bins have been placed in strategic locations with emphasis being placed on the meeting areas. Water preservation is also important to Hyatt Regency. Water conserving shower heads and low flow toilets have decreased the amount of water the establishment is using.

Several other hotels in the industry are also taking steps to conserve our resources, such as encouraging guests to reuse towels, and giving them the option of not having the sheets changed daily. All of these things are helping to ensure that we impacting the environment as little as possible.