Annual VSO Conference - Entebbe

Note: I've been nearly incommunicado recently due to our internet connection being @#!&%#!!

The annual VSO conference was held in Entebbe February 15-17. Danny and I and a few other volunteers arrived on the 14th and returned home on the 18th. Kampala is fantastic for shopping--you can purchase most things that you will find in Western malls.

The conference hotel was the Imperial Botanical Beach Hotel http://www.imperialhotels.co.ug/impbotbeach_overview.htm
which was posh and comfortable, although we noticed a few things that needed upgrading or repairs. The staff was incredibly friendly and helpful. The location was on Lake Victoria next to the Botanical Gardens and zoo. The hotel had a swimming pool, sauna, bars, gardens, and lots of Vervet Monkeys roaming the grounds. Unfortunately, I did not get any pics of the monkeys.

Food and non-alcoholic drinks were provided and the buffets were really quite good. Some of the prices were quite steep - the normal 3,000 shs for a beer at the outdoor bar and 4,000 at the indoor bar which had DSTV and large, flatscreen tv. After one of our meals I asked for another bottle of water - 1/2 litre - and was told that the second drink could be purchased for 2,000 shs! Emmm.... no.

The double room we had normally costs $170 per night. Of course they were discounted for the conference and paid for by VSO. Clinton stayed in this hotel while he was president. The Clinton Suite costs over $500 per night.

We enjoyed meeting volunteers from all over Uganda -many of whom we'd never met. I believe the current number of VSO volunteers in Uganda is 60. I even met someone who is from Michigan, where I'm originally from. She joined through VSO Canada.