I have a song of Africa...(I recommend that you click the song links by the same title as background music)

I was born in Uganda. And lived there for twelve years...

Africa is an entity unto itself. Especially East Africa... It is a part of me. It runs in my blood. I can feel it call out to me every now and then. I call that feeling a song of Africa. If you have ever been to East Africa you will understand instantly what I mean. If not, no words can do it justice. But I shall try to tell you... about my song of Africa.

Can you imagine freedom that is instinctive and primal... almost wild even... that fills your soul with a restlessness and peace at the same time... gives you wings to fly...

Imagine waking up to the music of the Serengeti, a soft rustle of the wind in the grasslands... the breath taking view of an orange and red flame tree in bloom... the sight of a zebra as it enters your field of vision...

It is a living thing, my song.... it speaks of breathtaking sunsets enjoyed while lying on my back in the warm, sun dried grass. It is like a glimpse of the sparkling beauty of Victoria falls...

It is a stolen look at the majesty of a lion in his element as king of the jungle... It is the slow loping stride of a herd of giraffe as they graze... or the mellow greenish/brown of the Nile as you paddle along in your canoe...

It is a moment of happy childhood gazing up at the stars around a warm and toasty campfire... a taste of stew made with rabbit that you have shot in the wild and then helped cook... It is the exhilarating feeling of feeding an elephant and giggling over the ticklish feeling of its trunk as it almost scoops up your fist!

It is the petrifying feeling that you get as you hang against a sheer cliff face (and hope to God that the knots your brother tied and the clasps that keep you secure will hold)... It is the joy of adventures had in an exotic and enchanting land...

It is the taste of "matoke and ground-nut sauce", of "nyama choma"... It is the dust storm raised by a thundering herd of wildebeest on the move... It is awe for the towering beauty of the snow capped peak of Kilimanjaro... It is lazy days at the beach at lake Victoria... and sipping "madafu" (raw coconut milk) by the ocean in Mombasa...

It is the lavish opulence of majestic homes... it is the humble beauty of thatched roof vacation cottages... it is waking up at dawn to see the sun rise over Tsavo... and holding your breath lest you make a sound and disturb the animals as they drink at the watering hole...

It is memories of fresh pineapple juice and passion fruit vines in my backyard... It is the comfort of a crackling fire in the living room as the temperature drops in the evening on the Kabale hills...

And the music... oh such music... the toe tapping sound of the Congo drums. The haunting melodies of the Masai and Kikuyu singers... the acapella tunes of the cook, Kasamajera belting out "malaika" as he blows into the "sigiri"(charcoal stove used to add smoke flavor)...

Yes.... only if you are truly African does your dad give you a leopard skin as a present! Only if you are truly African do you actually have a Crested Crane as a pet! Only if you are truly African have you done battle with a mugger on the street in broad daylight! (another tale entirely) But such is my song of Africa...

I have a song of Africa...

(None of the photos are by me... all of mine are back home in Uganda.)

(My all time favorite Swahili song is Malaika... There is a link for it on the right. It is sung here by one of my favorite singers Angelique Kidjo)