Swanky Island cribs for the rich and famous on Bulago Island
Mar 15, 2007
IT is like a little piece of paradise,†extols Lyle Aitken, owner of a simple but classy grass-thatched house perched on an acre of land overlooking the lake. “It is quiet, clean, peaceful and unique. It is a good place for water sports like skiing, surfing, fishing and swimming. I do not know m
Raphael Okello
IT is like a little piece of paradise,†extols Lyle Aitken, owner of a simple but classy grass-thatched house perched on an acre of land overlooking the lake. “It is quiet, clean, peaceful and unique. It is a good place for water sports like skiing, surfing, fishing and swimming. I do not know many places quite like it (Bulago). It could easily be my favourite place in the world,†she says.
Lyle’s house, which took him nine to 10 months to construct and move in, is a modest rectangular hut with a triangular grass-thatched roof. The windows and doors are made of glass and the shade is alive with potted plants. The interior is an open space with a kitchen, dining area and bedroom.
There are two sleeping areas – one on the floor and the other, accessed by a ladder, is raised up. The only closed section is the bathroom. Not much consideration was given to privacy but Lyle says: “It was not a concern for my wife and myself.â€
The compound, tendered to by a resident house boy, is a well-manicured lawn gently rolling into the white sandy beach where squeaking and screeching Egyptian Geese, Cattle Egrets and African Wag Tails are frolicking. A grass-thatched shade has two raised beds. “When we invite friends for the weekend or during holidays, we use the two extra beds in the shade by the beach.
But sometimes, we host up to 20 friends so some camp,†explains Lyle. Lyle’s residence is one among other residences on the Island — Sylvia Awori, Judge Potter, Captain Roy, Captain Jeremy McKelvie of Kajansi and wife Sherry, Allison (Bulago Proprietor), Mahmood Somani (Rwenzori Mineral Water) and URA’s IK Kabanda all have homes on Bulago Island.
They range in style from round and square geometric forms synonymous with rural traditional grass-thatched designs to luxurious bungalows roofed with red or green tiles. It is the affluent Ugandans who mainly own the bungalows.
There are no perimeter walls. Houses close to eachother share gardens and the beach. It is a westernised neighbourhood setting.
Only isolated homes have private waterfronts. Island homes are the stuff dreams are made of and everyone had an idea of what their paradise should be. “My wife said, ‘I want to be able to wake up in the morning, open my eyes and look at the lake’. It is the first time I ever designed a house,†recalls Lyle.
He chose a simple beach living and the architecture reflects their desire. It is not a high maintenance cottage. “The architecture was entirely influenced by the surroundings, materials available on the island and lifestyle we wanted to live. We did not have to worry about security or climate,†he explains.
During my visit, the owners of most houses were not around. Allison Porteous, one of the three co-owners of the island, explained that since most owners use these homes as weekend retreats, they prefer to come around when it is dry. In fact, the ground was still soaking up the water from an early morning down pour.
However, Mackelvie and Sherry were at their residence. Sherry is a keen photography. Her husband, Mackelvie, is a Pilot at Kajansi.
Life on a tropical Island offers some unexpected delights and Sherry has captured Bulago’s wild beauty with her camera – two giant monitor lizards wrestling in the afternoon heat, a silhouette of birds flying across setting sun, tiny colourful bugs, a predatory spider lurking in its web, a cloud of bees and butterflies buzzing and wriggling over wild flowers.
She has also captured the beauty of the island from the sky — the crescent beach-front, private homes, an airstrip, forests and grasslands, pineapple, fruit and vegetable gardens. “My favourite pictures are those of the bugs. They are very unique and beautiful insects,†her tone suggesting she is determined to use the lens to preserve the island’s wild beauty and romance.
My mid-morning walk along a designated trail, weaving through the island’s shrubs, hills, valleys and residences, conjures an impression of wandering through the quiet streets and avenues in Kampala’s affluent suburbs, only it is quieter, more spacious, peaceful, refreshing and tamed wilderness.
With the exception of its beauty, Bulago was never remotely what it is today. The ‘aborigines’ were fishermen living on what was a forsaken island. They still live on the island but practice agriculture as well. It took the dream and industriousness of two British expatriates (Allison Porteous and Tim Cooper) for Bulago to become what it is today.
In 1999, the two felt the need to exploit the undeveloped tourism potential of Lake Victoria. It took them a year to get Bulago Island Resort up and running. Porteous went on to build a house of her own too. It hangs by a cliff and has a three-metre deep swimming pool curved into the cliff top.
“It took me three years to build the house but it is my dream-come-true,†says Porteous who made the bricks and blocks from the island. Since then, they have offered plots of land for sale.
Seven years ago an acre cost $6,000. Now, the same costs $40, 000 (about sh100m). According to Porteous, there is not much land left for sale. And Lyle believes it is worth every coin to own a piece of this paradise island. “The price of an acre is not unreasonable for what you get after.
If you had to do something similar anywhere else in the world, it would have to be very expensive,†he says. The grass, poles and all the bricks, for most of the houses, were moulded and backed on the island by the locals.
However, according to Allison, other materials like glass, tiles, and cement among others have to be transported and that adds to the cost. Lighting is either solar or generator powered for most of the homes.
A few use lamps for lighting but gas is used for cooking and in the fridge for cooling. Some own speed boats, others have private canoes and some use light crafts to get to the island.
IT is like a little piece of paradise,†extols Lyle Aitken, owner of a simple but classy grass-thatched house perched on an acre of land overlooking the lake. “It is quiet, clean, peaceful and unique. It is a good place for water sports like skiing, surfing, fishing and swimming. I do not know many places quite like it (Bulago). It could easily be my favourite place in the world,†she says.
Lyle’s house, which took him nine to 10 months to construct and move in, is a modest rectangular hut with a triangular grass-thatched roof. The windows and doors are made of glass and the shade is alive with potted plants. The interior is an open space with a kitchen, dining area and bedroom.
There are two sleeping areas – one on the floor and the other, accessed by a ladder, is raised up. The only closed section is the bathroom. Not much consideration was given to privacy but Lyle says: “It was not a concern for my wife and myself.â€
The compound, tendered to by a resident house boy, is a well-manicured lawn gently rolling into the white sandy beach where squeaking and screeching Egyptian Geese, Cattle Egrets and African Wag Tails are frolicking. A grass-thatched shade has two raised beds. “When we invite friends for the weekend or during holidays, we use the two extra beds in the shade by the beach.
But sometimes, we host up to 20 friends so some camp,†explains Lyle. Lyle’s residence is one among other residences on the Island — Sylvia Awori, Judge Potter, Captain Roy, Captain Jeremy McKelvie of Kajansi and wife Sherry, Allison (Bulago Proprietor), Mahmood Somani (Rwenzori Mineral Water) and URA’s IK Kabanda all have homes on Bulago Island.
They range in style from round and square geometric forms synonymous with rural traditional grass-thatched designs to luxurious bungalows roofed with red or green tiles. It is the affluent Ugandans who mainly own the bungalows.
There are no perimeter walls. Houses close to eachother share gardens and the beach. It is a westernised neighbourhood setting.
Only isolated homes have private waterfronts. Island homes are the stuff dreams are made of and everyone had an idea of what their paradise should be. “My wife said, ‘I want to be able to wake up in the morning, open my eyes and look at the lake’. It is the first time I ever designed a house,†recalls Lyle.
He chose a simple beach living and the architecture reflects their desire. It is not a high maintenance cottage. “The architecture was entirely influenced by the surroundings, materials available on the island and lifestyle we wanted to live. We did not have to worry about security or climate,†he explains.
During my visit, the owners of most houses were not around. Allison Porteous, one of the three co-owners of the island, explained that since most owners use these homes as weekend retreats, they prefer to come around when it is dry. In fact, the ground was still soaking up the water from an early morning down pour.
However, Mackelvie and Sherry were at their residence. Sherry is a keen photography. Her husband, Mackelvie, is a Pilot at Kajansi.
Life on a tropical Island offers some unexpected delights and Sherry has captured Bulago’s wild beauty with her camera – two giant monitor lizards wrestling in the afternoon heat, a silhouette of birds flying across setting sun, tiny colourful bugs, a predatory spider lurking in its web, a cloud of bees and butterflies buzzing and wriggling over wild flowers.
She has also captured the beauty of the island from the sky — the crescent beach-front, private homes, an airstrip, forests and grasslands, pineapple, fruit and vegetable gardens. “My favourite pictures are those of the bugs. They are very unique and beautiful insects,†her tone suggesting she is determined to use the lens to preserve the island’s wild beauty and romance.
My mid-morning walk along a designated trail, weaving through the island’s shrubs, hills, valleys and residences, conjures an impression of wandering through the quiet streets and avenues in Kampala’s affluent suburbs, only it is quieter, more spacious, peaceful, refreshing and tamed wilderness.
With the exception of its beauty, Bulago was never remotely what it is today. The ‘aborigines’ were fishermen living on what was a forsaken island. They still live on the island but practice agriculture as well. It took the dream and industriousness of two British expatriates (Allison Porteous and Tim Cooper) for Bulago to become what it is today.
In 1999, the two felt the need to exploit the undeveloped tourism potential of Lake Victoria. It took them a year to get Bulago Island Resort up and running. Porteous went on to build a house of her own too. It hangs by a cliff and has a three-metre deep swimming pool curved into the cliff top.
“It took me three years to build the house but it is my dream-come-true,†says Porteous who made the bricks and blocks from the island. Since then, they have offered plots of land for sale.
Seven years ago an acre cost $6,000. Now, the same costs $40, 000 (about sh100m). According to Porteous, there is not much land left for sale. And Lyle believes it is worth every coin to own a piece of this paradise island. “The price of an acre is not unreasonable for what you get after.
If you had to do something similar anywhere else in the world, it would have to be very expensive,†he says. The grass, poles and all the bricks, for most of the houses, were moulded and backed on the island by the locals.
However, according to Allison, other materials like glass, tiles, and cement among others have to be transported and that adds to the cost. Lighting is either solar or generator powered for most of the homes.
A few use lamps for lighting but gas is used for cooking and in the fridge for cooling. Some own speed boats, others have private canoes and some use light crafts to get to the island.