Travel Photo of the Day: King’s Tomb in Kambala

Settling In and Sights by little haxby

Little Haxby spent most of this year on an extended roadtrip, seeing both famous and off the beaten path sights in the United States. Now she is off on a tour in Uganda and Rwanda that “introduces travelers to the world via the lenses of human rights and conservation.” She shares her experiences of visiting Uganda, including a trip to the Kings Tomb in Kampala:

“Our next stop was the King’s Tomb, which also happens to be the largest thatched hut in the world. UNESCO added the site to the World Heritage list in 2001. The Kabaka is the title of the kings in Uganda, or Buganda, the kingdom over which they preside. Around the tomb were houses, where wives live. The estate was bustling as women prepared for a celebration. Nothing special, the tour guide told us, they celebrate often.”

They headed inside the tomb:

“The tomb itself was massive, a great circle supported by fifty-two columns, for the fifty-two clans. The columns are wooden, and covered in the bark of the fig tree, which looks and feels similar to suede. We removed our shoes; the women wrapped themselves in cloth to give the appearance of a skirt, and entered the great room to the smell of dried thatch. A great stink, redolent of, I offer, toasted desert. It took me a while to think of that, and although I’ve never actually smelled a toasted desert, I also had never inhaled air wafting through that much dried thatch, and toasted desert sounded right. It was heady and old; warm even, from over a hundred years of sun exposure.” (more…)

Visit Little Haxby’s travel blog to hear more about her trip.

For more on Uganda, visit:
Uganda Travel Guide
Uganda Tourist Board
Tombs of Buganda Kings at Kasubi

Bookmark to: