Rwanda
Often I try to avoid conversation on airplanes, but when turbulence is throwing every passenger into a nervous collective laughter, talking to someone helps calm your nerves. Lucky for me, the man next to me not only worked for a Medair partner, but really nice and headed to Kigali the next day with an extra seat in the cab. I met their group at their hotel and we took their Heal Africa car to the boarder.
Congolese and Americans currently don’t need a visa to get into Rwanda, so the boarder crossing was pretty straightforward. They had a great taxi driver, Deo, waiting for us on the other side of the boarder. The drive is 100$, but not so bad when it is shared, and even better when their travel allowance is already covering it.
It is amazing, the moment you cross the boarder, the streets are paved, the people are smiling, Lake Kivu is shining… might have well just crossed a boarder into another world. Two police checks on the road stopped us, but waved us through with little hassle, though my adrenal glands still reacted as if I was at a Congolese checkpoint.
The 5 hour drive was windy and my abs got a workout trying not to lean too far into the men on either side of me. The land is non-stop hills, green, covered in crops of tea, bananas, carrots, gourds and countless other foods. I thought it was cheesy that the Rwandan government’s tag-line was “Land of a thousand hills and a million smiles”, however, the majority of people we passed on the road were talking and smiling amongst themselves. This was a stark contrast to the general scowl carried on the faces in the Congo that does, turn quickly to a smile when you greet with a smile… it is just different here.
I have wondered what is different, why. Rwanda was coupled with the term genocide (and still, often is) less than 15 years ago. The country is much smaller than the DRC, so easier to govern, but both countries are rich in resources, water, forests, and intelligent people. I can’t help but wonder at the vast differences and the whys that lie between them.
The houses made of earth glitter. No, seriously, they are sparkling like someone has blasted them with flecks of gold. Mud huts that shine in the sun. It must have something to do with the volcanic residue in the soil.
I arrive to Discover Rwanda Youth Hostel to an extraordinary number of American students. The place is really nice, the 6 bed shared dorms are 15$ a night, clean and safe. There is basically no staff, the bar is on a serve-yourself honor system that everyone seems to respect. The internet is painfully slow, not even worth it, there are a few hammocks in trees overlooking a beautiful valley. This is near all the embassies and also a 30 second walk to Magda Café, where I am currently indulging in a mocha, fruit and yoghurt, Al Jazeera and pretty speedy Internet. The staff here is also very friendly.
Today I have a list of errands to run that include Burundi visa, bus tickets, find a local sim card, sandals, buy a SD card, get cash, visit genocide memorial museum and I have no idea how to go about any of these. I will most likely hop a moto taxi (by law they are numbered, have fixed prices, wear helmets and carry one for their passenger – a stark contrast to bodabodas in Uganda), its an assumption that those guys will know how to get everything I need.
And P.S. Rwanda is a combination of every beautiful place I have ever been. This will not be my last time here.
Often I try to avoid conversation on airplanes, but when turbulence is throwing every passenger into a nervous collective laughter, talking to someone helps calm your nerves. Lucky for me, the man next to me not only worked for a Medair partner, but really nice and headed to Kigali the next day with an extra seat in the cab. I met their group at their hotel and we took their Heal Africa car to the boarder.
Congolese and Americans currently don’t need a visa to get into Rwanda, so the boarder crossing was pretty straightforward. They had a great taxi driver, Deo, waiting for us on the other side of the boarder. The drive is 100$, but not so bad when it is shared, and even better when their travel allowance is already covering it.
It is amazing, the moment you cross the boarder, the streets are paved, the people are smiling, Lake Kivu is shining… might have well just crossed a boarder into another world. Two police checks on the road stopped us, but waved us through with little hassle, though my adrenal glands still reacted as if I was at a Congolese checkpoint.
The 5 hour drive was windy and my abs got a workout trying not to lean too far into the men on either side of me. The land is non-stop hills, green, covered in crops of tea, bananas, carrots, gourds and countless other foods. I thought it was cheesy that the Rwandan government’s tag-line was “Land of a thousand hills and a million smiles”, however, the majority of people we passed on the road were talking and smiling amongst themselves. This was a stark contrast to the general scowl carried on the faces in the Congo that does, turn quickly to a smile when you greet with a smile… it is just different here.
I have wondered what is different, why. Rwanda was coupled with the term genocide (and still, often is) less than 15 years ago. The country is much smaller than the DRC, so easier to govern, but both countries are rich in resources, water, forests, and intelligent people. I can’t help but wonder at the vast differences and the whys that lie between them.
The houses made of earth glitter. No, seriously, they are sparkling like someone has blasted them with flecks of gold. Mud huts that shine in the sun. It must have something to do with the volcanic residue in the soil.
I arrive to Discover Rwanda Youth Hostel to an extraordinary number of American students. The place is really nice, the 6 bed shared dorms are 15$ a night, clean and safe. There is basically no staff, the bar is on a serve-yourself honor system that everyone seems to respect. The internet is painfully slow, not even worth it, there are a few hammocks in trees overlooking a beautiful valley. This is near all the embassies and also a 30 second walk to Magda Café, where I am currently indulging in a mocha, fruit and yoghurt, Al Jazeera and pretty speedy Internet. The staff here is also very friendly.
Today I have a list of errands to run that include Burundi visa, bus tickets, find a local sim card, sandals, buy a SD card, get cash, visit genocide memorial museum and I have no idea how to go about any of these. I will most likely hop a moto taxi (by law they are numbered, have fixed prices, wear helmets and carry one for their passenger – a stark contrast to bodabodas in Uganda), its an assumption that those guys will know how to get everything I need.
And P.S. Rwanda is a combination of every beautiful place I have ever been. This will not be my last time here.
2 comments:
To achieve defined abs you should perform specific abdominal exercise that work all the abdominal muscles. The secret to faster results would be to trick your muscles into working harder inside your body although your workout feels less complicated.
Dear Montanna,
I have a natural six-pack. But thanks anyway.
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