Page 132 - Oct-Dec 2024 Edition

History and Background ● Nile Brewery: take a tour to taste one of
Uganda’s most popular beers.
Before the founding of the town by the Brit-
ish colonial government in 1907, Jinja was a ● Kyabazinga Royal Palace, Bugembe: histor-
small fishing village on a key long-distance ical seat of the Busoga Kingdom.
trade route.
● Railway Museum at Jinja Railway Muse-
The area near Ripon Falls was called the um: showcasing the history of Uganda’s
“Place of (Flat) Rocks” referring to the large railway with original artefacts.
rocks on both riverbanks, from where small
boats could safely launch and cross the river. ● Swaminarayan Temple: a colourful build-
These natural rock formations moderated ing and important cultural site.
the flow of water from Lake Victoria, making
it a strategic crossing point. Simply put, “Jin-
ja” means “rock,” derived from the word Ejjin- Out and About
ja / Amayinja for in Luganda, the language Jinja is renowned for its adventure activities.
of the Baganda; and Edinda in Lusoga, the Visitors can choose from:
dialect of the Basoga people on the eastern
bank of the Nile. The British administration ● white water rafting, kayaking, canoeing
adopted the local name “Jinja” for the town. and Stand-Up Paddle boarding (SUP) on
the Nile
From 2010, Indian traders moved into Jinja.
The Uganda Railway linked Kisumu, a Ken- ● bungee jumping over the Nile
yan town on Lake Victoria, with Mombasa. ● quad biking and mountain biking
Between 1954 and the late 1970s, Jinja was
the industrial heart of Uganda, thanks to the ● horse riding along the riverbank
Nalubaale Power Station at the Owen Falls
Dam. In 1972, all Asians were expelled from ● sunset boat cruises
Uganda by Idi Amin and the abandoned local ● 9-hole golf course
industries and much of Jinja’s architecture
fell into ruins as a direct result. ● sports fishing on Lake Victoria
Attractions ● bird watching with expert guides and
zip-lining through the canopy in Mabira
● Opened in 2018, the Source of the Nile or Forest
New Jinja Bridge, is an impressive addition
to the city’s infrastructure. ● guided walking and biking tours of the
town
● The Owen Falls Dam is the first in a series
of dams across the River Nile that gen- Most activities take place in Bujagali and
erate electricity for Uganda and neigh- Kalagala. But don’t worry about staying on
bouring Kenya. (It’s illegal to photograph “the wrong side of the river,” boats and boda
infrastructure such as bridges). bodas make it easy to move between the
two riverbanks and its wealth of activities.
● Source of the Nile: take a boat ride to see
the source of the world’s longest river. A How to get to Jinja
viewing platform and visitor centre are Avoid the heavily congested Jinja Road
under construction at the site’s gardens. through Mukono and take the longer (but
See the monument dedicated to Mahatma more relaxing) routes via Gayaza Road (ideal
Gandhi, some of whose ashes were scat-
tered in the Nile “for peace to flow along for Kalagala and Kayunga) or Nyenga Road
to the south.
its length.”
For more detailed information, refer to
● Main Street craft shops: some of the coun- the pages on Jinja in The Eye Magazine.
try’s best priced souvenir shops.
Text credit: Charlotte Beauvoisin
(Diary of a Muzungu blog)
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