Safari Journal – Memories beyond pictures and videos of your African Safari
Keeping an African Safari Journal – Ernest Hemingway – Karen Blixen – Katherine Hepburn did.
They are keeping an African Safari Journal – Recording your time in Uganda. Journaling on an African Safari is no longer as popular as once was. The written journals have given way to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and the like. They have become caught up in the moment of the instant posts created to share pictures, often without thought, making one ask, “Is there still a place for the old-fashioned written journal?
Occasionally, one of our clients sends us an excerpt from their journal. It shows us that journaling still has a place with travelers as in times past.
African Travel Journals often became books that still delight us today, such as “My African Journey” by Winston Churchill, “Green Hills of Africa” by Ernest Hemingway, and “Out of Africa” by Karen Blixen. In recent times, there was the travel through Africa accounts by Paul Theroux in his “Black Star Safari,” which took a distinctive look at Africa’s Journey.
A Safari Journal keeps the time-honored traditions of explorers, discoverers, and adventurers alive.
Safari is a Swahili word that speaks of a journey, and I have observed over the years that there is an inner and an outer journey. When we come to Africa, the things we see, smell, experience, sights, the sounds leave lasting impressions within. A safari is more than noting how many lions, chimpanzees, mountain gorillas, birds, and butterflies and what specific species we see; it is the impressions of those experiences.
Visitors in Uganda have the rare chance to spend time with the Gentle Giants of the Forest, the Mountain Gorillas. Memories are not just about wildlife, primates, birds, plants, trees, and fantastic scenery. It is about the people you meet, the children you meet.
The people you meet along your Journey in the Pearl of Africa will most likely leave the greatest and often lasting impressions. At times, bonds of friendship are formed that remain for years to come, refreshed via email, Facebook, or letters.
Tips on Keeping an African Safari Journal of Your Time in Uganda
1. Why are you going to Uganda?
What motivated you to plan a Safari in the Pearl of Africa – Uganda? For many, the Primates of Uganda attracted their attention and fulfilled a lifelong dream of spending time with the Mountain Gorillas, Chimpanzees, and Golden Monkeys.
Others go on an unplugged Safari to East Africa’s most remote and unvisited Park – Kidepo Valley Park. Wherever you go, whatever Primate, Wildlife, Birds, or people you encounter, record your feelings and impressions.
2. Write while on the Plane
Write down your expectations while flying to Uganda. Your feelings, even the excitement about what you anticipate happening during your time in Uganda.
3. Write in your Safari Journal each Day
This way, what you write in your journal will be fresh. The feelings will be there of the Mountain Gorillas encounter, visiting the Rainforest with the Batwa Pygmies, or climbing an extinct Volcano to see the Ik People, where their only paths are goat trails.
4. Add pictures to your journal after the Safari
Write on one page and leave the opposite blank, adding images after you reach home. Pictures are worth a Thousand Words and will 
only add value to your writing.
5. Write about your African Safari after you leave.
- What was the experience like?
- What did you enjoy the most?
- What surprised you the most in Uganda?
Keeping an African Safari Journal has become a lot of fun and has been an ancient part of Safari Life for hundreds of years, especially by the early explorers such as John Speke and Samuel Baker.
In the 21st Century, as in the past, you are carrying a journal—a written account of the Encounters of your time in Africa.
Keeping an African Safari Journal helps you remember more about your Safari and learn more about Uganda’s culture, customs, and people. Plus, writing about your Safari in a journal will help you reflect more and relive experiences and encounters.
You are keeping a journal during your African Safari – recording the impressions and thoughts of each day on Safari in Africa.
