KALONGO

Sport and culture are on the agenda if you set course for Kalongo, a town of 20,000 inhabitants located 70 km from Kitgum by road (access via Kitgum Matidi and Wol). When it comes to sport, rock-climbing and hiking are the main activities in this remote country, with its mountains, ledges and rocky mamelons. Kalongo, for example, was founded at the foot of Mount Oret, an imposing peak that rises to 1,600 m and dominates the plain five hundred metres below. Experienced climbers will be able to tackle this granite wall. So far, only two climbing routes have been opened, and only a handful of climbers have attempted them... For more detailed information on the above-mentioned spots , please visit The Crag (www.thecrag.com). For visitors with little or no interest in carabiners, you can take a walk in the Parabongo heights to the north of town, or in the local champagne. If you approach the Green Oasis Guesthouse team, you should be able to find a guide. On the cultural front, a hospital (for once) is in the spotlight. The Dr Ambrosoli Memorial Hospital is a must-see institution in Kalongo. The Comboni missionaries, who built St. Joseph's Cathedral in Gulu and converted Daudi Okelo and Jildo Irwa, were also behind what began as a simple dispensary before becoming a full-fledged hospital, following the arrival of Father Giuseppe Ambrosoli in 1956. Ambrosoli, who worked as a surgeon, radiologist and midwife, opened a midwifery school and treated lepers, who until then had been confined to leprosaria, on the premises. In February 1987, to prevent the LRA rebels from taking over the hospital, the Ugandan army evacuated it and burnt down all its medicines and medical equipment. Dr. Ambrosoli, who died a few weeks later and is in the process of being beatified, was the demiurge of the Kalongo hospital, which in 2020 welcomed some 38,000 patients from the region. Unless you're a nosophobe, a visit here is a must! You can sleep in Kalongo, in the very modest Lim Welo Guesthouse (20,000 Ush per night) or in the Green Oasis Guest House (www.greenoasisagago.com), which is quieter (3 km from the center) and more pleasant (at the foot of the northern slopes of Mount Oret), but also more expensive (15 to 30 US$). It is also possible to withdraw cash and refuel.