Julius Mugaga Tukacungurwa Flies To Kigali
pdated 25th/November/2023
From childhood I’ve dreamt of taking a flight as in my family, this has never happened but not seeing opportunities and my hope was seemingly buried, this kept on my head since childhood. Throughout school it was on my head even when i started work. However, along the way I started developing hope. This came after I had joined a community of believers where I felt my faith was comfortable. The environment convinced my faith to believe that everything is possible with God and was due to truthful teachings of Overseer and Senior Pastor of Karimero Souls Redemption Ministries (KSRM) Church, Brother Charles Mukundane.
Important to Note:
I joined KSRM Church on 6th/January/2023 after hearing some Godly melodies as I passed by from my ways, decided to pass by having been entangled with a critical challenged which I thought, I would find relief by the sitting amongst fellows during praising and worship. Where Bro. Charles came from to where I was seated, I don’t know, we had never met, neither had I approached him for counsel of the challenge I was battling. He said to me, ‘Young man, I see you becoming a great person with money in abundance, you’re going to get a job soon, just organize your academic documents but don’t apply, I don’t know from where but you will get it.’. In my heart I was like these ‘Barokole’ Pastors eishiiii (These born-again Pastors also), I have come to find comfort to my problems and he’s telling of being great, I gave it low treat.
My dear, by March of the same year, I was called from Makerere University School of Public Health and with effect from 2nd/April/2023 I started working as a communications officer, this manifestation, rekindled my hope as I believed that even a flight is possible. I remembered a scripture in Haggai 2:8 that says, “The silver and gold belong to Me. Because, I had started growing in faith, this was only enough to confirm me that Everything is possible before God.
Genesis of My Flight To Kigali
I got an opportunity to meet the Nigerian High Commissioner to Uganda His Excellency Ismail Ayobami Alatise. I have been working with him, not knowing that he can be a step to realization of My Dream. So one day, I sought his appointment, he accepted. I met him at High Commission Headquarters along Nakasero Road, Kampala-Uganda early July, 2023.
I told him about my issue of how I have grew up with a dream of flying in an aeroplane out of Uganda. I begged him to grant me an opportunity to travel to Lagos. By then, there was to be a Trade Fair running for 10 days, from 3rd to 12th of November 2023 in Lagos State, Nigeria. He said, oh, you’ll go but asked me to acquire a passport if I don’t have one, and Institutionalize my website, Umoja Standard, which of course I would be representing in Nigeria.
I got the passport, I registered my Umoja Standard with URSB, and I was okay to go, so I waited, When time reached, I reminded him and he (High Commissioner) said, “Unfortunately I’m retiring the very month of November, so I may not be able to fully fund your trip, but asked me to look for a country near where I can go, so I chose Kigali, Rwanda.
H.E Ismail A. Alatise contributed to my ticket to Kigali, Rwanda, when I shared with my workmates at the School of Public Health Communications Office, one Amoit Judith Grace, the Communications Officer of Digital Health Payment Initiatives & Research In Africa donated to me $100 as a up-kip on the flight. I booked a ticket, ready to fly.
The Flight Day
In the morning of 25th, November 2023 is when my maiden flight in life happened. To shock you, I did not sleep that night, the night of 24th crossing to 25th, I did not sleep, I didn’t sleep at all.
I organized my house throughout the night till morning at 4:00Am, when someone picked me. Remember, my flight was at 10.50Am EAT, by 5.30Am, I was at Entebbe International Airport, So I went to the checkpoint, they told me, your flight is at 10.50Am, so you should wait. I entered a waiting room, I sat, it came to 6:00Am, sleep starts to soften me, I said no, I have to fly, I shouldn’t miss my maiden flight.
Remember when sleep approaches, you really have to sleep, I battled with sleep, but I made sure that I sat near the airport window such that I am able to see whatever plane lands. For some time, I would see Uganda’s carrier (Uganda Airlines), I therefore hoped that mine will also come. In that space, other flights would come, the AirArabia, the Canadian Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines, Kenyan Airways. So, I waited for mine and when the time reached, oh, I stood up quickly, I matched seriously and curious to the check point. There I found a wonderful lady from Tesoland called Josephine, she asked me, where are you going? I told her to Kigali, Rwanda, to do what? I’m going to tour and she was like, ‘wow oh, that’s wonderful for you,’ She eased my process to make matters to make matters wonderful, she didn’t check my bag, actually, she just said, get your bag again with me I had a bottle of millet porridge that was gifted to me by one of KSRM Church members.
When I was about to complete the entire checking process, some people said to me that, hey, ‘they can’t allow you with this porridge have’, In my heart, I was like, I have to be with my ‘Bushera’ on flight as I sip up to Kigali but to my surprise they did not ask me anything about it, I just sailed through the check point.
To take you back, I was still seated in the waiting room, there was a Munyarwanda lady, we agreed when I enter the RwandAir plane, she should take my photo. So I entered the plane and she not only a photo, but a video of mine too, it was an amazing moment, It was a moment I had been waiting for long. I entered, sat in front. It is initially called economy but to me I call it in front because I was near the pilot.
While seated, flight attendants came, gave us instructions how to tie the bellots in case of anything how to use the parachute, it was amazing, i had my phone well charged not to miss any moment aboard.
The Plane Hits The Runway
It hit the runway it moved the temperatures and everything in my body changed but because I was curious of seeing whatever happens, I did not feel it so much, it took off to the air. We hit the atmosphere, my brother, what I saw, hooo, I didn’t know that the world is full of water, probably, water covers two-thirds of the earth. I would see only water. I remember when we usually moved at a low level, like 500 meters above sea level, I would see only water, and the plane used to tilt a bit above a water body, I would think maybe it is going to fall there then after it would takes off.
The clouds were passing by my window. I did everything onboard, I took photos of the water bodies, took aerial shots, took those of the crowds that were coming across, anyway, i took photos of everything I saw. However, at a certain level, and our networks went in flight mode, No one could call, you could not send WhatsApp messages, no nothing. I was about to ask a friend what was happening, only to be told that at a certain point, they really put phones in flight mode, not to disrupt pilot’s communication. Higher in the skies, I started to see houses look like flies, My dear, I enjoyed, I can tell you.
Crossing The Boarder To Rwanda
So when we crossed the border of Uganda to Rwanda, time zone changed immediately. Remember, Rwanda is one hour behind Uganda. We had left Entebbe International Airport at 10.50Am and we reached Kigali International Airport at 10.50Am. I was wonderful what the problem was, You mean we have not spent any hour in the way, yet we were supposed to reach at 11.50Am but because it is behind us by one hour, it became again 10.50Am.
The mistake I did, I did not have airtime on my phone rather I had just subscribed minute. I thought I would reach there and start calling people in Uganda, my friend it was a different thing. When I attempted to call, I would here, you don’t have enough airtime on your phone, I was wondering why it would be so with all the minutes I had?. I was not briefed about that, so I suffered for all the two days I spent in Kigali without making any phone call back home in Uganda. I could not access my WhatsApp, it would only be possible when I would reach Wi-Fi.
Landing at Kigali International Airport.
I started feeling the plane lowering, we hit the runway, my Lord, it was beautiful. When the plane was in like 200 meters about to land at Kigali International Airport, I would see linear kind of settlement in Kigali City, beautiful road markings, I would see beautiful water bodies, Farmlands, surely everything was organized, I said, wow
So, we land at Kigali International Airport at that time at 10.50, I went through the checkpoint, the guy asked me, what have you come to do?, I responded, I’ve come to tour Kigali City, so I moved on, Unfortunately, it started raining, I began to wonder how I am going to deal with the mud brought about by rain? But guess what? I moved from the Airport to the hotel where I slept in rain, after covering a quarter of the journey on foot and it was raining, I could rarely see my shoe attract any mud, it instead became cleaner. The other city is clean my brother.
Movements Around The City
I called a boda boda guy (Taxi Moto), he said no, that he cannot come in rain, I waited for it to stop, so the guy gave me a helmet, I said, oh, I won’t put on a helmet, I will put on my weaved cap that is on my head, He said, I cannot take you without wearing his helmet.
I had to swallow my design and put on his helmet. He took me to Remera, a township within Kigali City near Amahoro Stadium, the National Stadium of Rwanda. I ordered for food and slept that night, so in the morning, I woke up very early and decided to take a tour, my dear, it was very amazing. Very amazing. I toured Amahoro Stadium, it was still under re-innovation, so they did not allow me to enter, I toured BK Stadium, a basketball stadium near Amahoro, I took photos there. From there, I toured the city, saw clean roads (black and white), with green grass.
What surprised me was, unlike in Uganda, in Rwanda the law works seriously, the nationals of Rwanda are law abiding citizens, No boda boda guy can put you on his motorcycle without you putting on a helmet. Secondly, he cannot just pick you from any point, you have to find them at gazetted points, even if you are on the way, he has to stop at that point.
While at the airport, I had UGX.100,000/=, I exchanged it into money, Rwandan Francs and they gave me only FRC25,000/=.
Transport In Kigali City
Taxis are very few in Kigali, there are small buses (Coaster) and they use electronic card called TAP & GO, so there is no money exchange for transport.
You put some money on the card, insert it on the door of the bus & enter. I toured the Conventional Center, the Ministry of Defense of Rwanda, I went through Kigali city, toured the white city.
The most amazing moment is when I went to Parliament, it was a Sunday, I reached the gate, I found soldiers, they asked what I was going to do, they said unfortunately the parliament does not sit on Sunday, so maybe there’s a museum if you could go there, they checked me, I entered, took photos of the road to Parliament. When I reached the museum, I asked them to tour, so I toured, the guy told me about the genocide, how it started & how it was executed, later I took photos of some of the sculptures of the fighters in the Rwanda genocide. So I went back, I slept, and in the evening I had prepare to leave the country.
For transporters in the City, the moment you do a mistake, they charge you money, which is FRC100,000/= equivalent to UGX. 400,000/= On top of sleeping in jail for two days, that’s why they are so cautious. ‘I like the country, it has very clean roads, well paved, there are no potholes, people are hospitable, by the way things of theirs are original, Rwanda is a very good country.
The only challenge I noticed there was food scarcity, this is due to the limited land there, they don’t have enough land generally. You find like 100 people are doing farming in the same field.
Leaving Kigali For Uganda
I headed to the bus park in Nyabugogo and I was late by five minutes, shocking the bus had left.I took a boda, actually for Rwandans call it taxi moto. I asked him to ride very fast but he would be balancing around 50 kilometers per hour, I pestered him to ride quickly but he said, ‘I don’t want to be in prison because I cannot ride you beyond 60 km per hour, its by law.’, We chased the bus but could not find the bus because our speed was too low.
Later, the idea came, I decided to call the bus drive to park and wait for me because I had paid the ticket in advance so the bus waited and I found it somewhere. When I entered, I found many people, most of them were from Rwanda, coming to Uganda for their first time. I connected immediately with one girl who is currently pursuing studies at University of Kigali who we interacted till when she left the bus at Kagitumba, part of Rwanda.
Moment At Kagitumba Boarder Post.
We used Kagitumba Boarder Post to come into Uganda. We spent a lot of time at the post. There, I found a Rwandan man and a woman, they were asking what I had gone to do in Kigali. ‘I said to them that I had gone to tour, they asked my experience in Rwanda?. I responded, It is hospitable. Where did you sleep? I told them. How much do you think you have used while I Rwanda? I told them what I had approximately used. In all, they were promoting tourism, So they took all my data for their tourism ministry to ministry to have that data. So, now we entered.
When we entered Uganda, there was a man eating maize by the road and one of the Rwandans onboard, said, oh, wait, how can this happen?, this is unacceptable, just after a few kilometers, she another one preparing food by the road and they were all wondering at how someone can eat and cook by the road. From here, sleep took me, only to see, I was in Kampala.
This is my story of my maiden flight
PHOTOS
While at Entebbe International Airport.
Inside The Plane
While In Kigali City
