Walking the streets of Kampala

My plan for Saturday morning was to head to the gym for a little cardio before diving into some of my projects. It was such a beautiful day I decided to hit the streets for a good power walk. Kampala is a city of hills… think San Francisco, but on a smaller scale. The streets are very clean. I’m amazed at the number of street sweepers and sign cleaners. My walk started around 8am. It was wonderful to see the city come to life. I love the street hawkers. In addition to your traditional newspaper hawkers, you’ll find a variety of products that can be purchased while driving or walking along the street. Take for instance… shoes. I came across a young man caring around 15 pair of shoes in a variety of sizes and styles. The shoes were displayed on a carrying rack designed with this form of sales in mind. Cars stopped at a red light would be provided with the opportunity to browse his selection from the comfort of their car… talk about convenience. While observing his sales technique, he smiles at me. He gives me a nod towards his shoes and asks if I would like to have a look. I politely decline. He smiles and says, “Have a good day, Madame”. Selling along side of him are others with displays of toys, cleaning supplies, socks, nuts, jeans and my personal favorite bootleg DVDs. I find myself buying “Nine” and “The Bounty Hunter” for 10,000 schillings… the equivalent of $5 or $2.50 each. No one is overly aggressive in their sales pitch. In fact, no one even tries to sell me anything… except for the newspaper hawkers. While walking the streets I come across Small Street stands offering specialty services such as watch repair and shoe shines. As the morning sun continues to rise, I can feel the hot, equator sun growing more intense. My decision to walk the streets of Kampala instead of exercising in the gym was a good one. It’s going to be another beautiful day.