Nyungwe

Nyungwe is a mountainous rain forest in the southwestern corner of Rwanda (that also contains the most distant source of the Nile! fun fact). I tend to get disproportionately excited about anything rain-foresty, so this was… indeed very exciting. Compared to rain forests in Belize, Puerto Rico, and Costa Rica, Nyungwe feels less tropical, more untouched–roads have only been developed to access it since 2004 or so.

chilly green

The elevation shrouds everything in a layer of mist, and the topsy turvy topography means you can see layers of forest floors and canopies at the same time.

Unfortunately, Nyungwe is also price-gouging at its best. Foreigners pay $40-$50 per TRAIL for the privilege of a basic jungly stroll, and $90-$100 to potentially encounter creatures of the monkey/chimpanzee variety. To enforce this, it is forbidden to wander anywhere in the park without a guide, even along the main road.

playing with a 300mm zoom

I understand that tourism contributes pivotally towards Rwanda’s economic development, but it’s depressing that such a primeval natural area has been  ruthlessly zoned, regulated, and closed to personal exploration. (Would it not be better to have visitors pay a larger park entrance fee and give free reign throughout the park?)

monkey tracking...

unhabituated colobus monkey

Also–would recommend coming to Nyungwe with a car/driver and lots of snacks. Traffic is very scanty on the road through the forest, and it was a while before we managed to flag down random vehicles to take us back to Kigali.

worldcup by moonlight

Once every few days, the power here snuffs out, usually briefly. It’s happened a few times while we’re teaching, which can be annoying, and last night it happened in a crowded local eatery / world cup watching venue, as we were waiting for the USA-Ghana game to start.

raucous-world-cup-bar-turned-romantic-candlelit-restaurant

To cope, the staff lit candles in the open-air restaurant. Besides that and the full moon, there was absolute darkness all around, and parties yelling wildly to each other just moments ago suddenly spoke in hushed tones.

This was all fairly distressing to the die-hard game watchers, but I thought it created a wonderful-surreal-ambiance  (kind of reminiscent of Blue Bayou in Disneyland, which I sadly still have never called early enough to get reservations for) that was far lovelier than what it had been before.

I want to start a chain of “power-free” restaurants and cafes in the states — it would be beautiful, nostalgic, and fit with the eco-bug that’s been going around.

Lac Kivu

Matt, Austin and I hopped on a $6 bus out of the city last weekend to Lake Kivu, a giant volcanic lake on the eastern border of Rwanda and the DRC. My plan to peacefully snooze during the ride there was happily interrupted by the beautiful landscapes of small towns and sloping farmlands along the Kigali-Ruhengeri road. The villages we passed through were simple, nestling harmoniously into the surrounding countryside (these people are living on dollars a day, but gosh what a view).

Few vehicles and even fewer roads in this part of the country means there are lots of people traveling on foot along the main road.

We arrived in Gisenye, the largest of the three towns on Lake Kivu, and took a gorgeous moto-trip along the lake out to the smaller fishing village of Rubona to enjoy the water in a more intimate setting.

Lunch was at the adorable/honeymooney Paradis Malahide Hotel, the top-rated hotel in Rwanda on TripAdvisor. Travel tip: STAY HERE

Fishing pirogues

After a very leisurely stroll around the lake + village, we hiked to the border to cross into Congo (what happens in Congo must stay in Congo). Everything in this area is elevation 8,000 feet or higher, which made strenuous physical activity a bit harder..or more likely I’m just really out of shape.

Lakeside serenity

DRC border

All three of us had lugged our SLRs along and were salivating for photo opps, so the next morning we did it Japanese-tourist-style and, for the price of a cab to Logan, commandeered a small private bus to take us the 100km to Rushengiri. This freed us to stop anywhere along the road to shutter away, talk to people, or just linger longer in places that we found particularly lovely.

Our photo-bus

Lake Karago...is not the most beautiful of lakes..

Seas of lush Rwandan teafields on the way to Ruhengiri

Traveling around Rwanda is fairly laid back and non-touristy feeling, probably because there actually aren’t too many tourists. This is definitely nice, but it also means that entire streets stop to stare as we walk by, and  troupes of children are constantly following us around everywhere. Lots of them try to touch my hair and attempt communication in creative french/english phrases (or even /cringe/ asian-y sounding things), sometimes asking for photos, sometimes asking for money.

Austin/Austin's camera being smothered by curious village children

Very different from traveling around rural China, where kids seem to be equally fascinated by foreigners but are usually not bold enough to go up to them or say anything in English, even though they study it diligently in school.

moto-taxi-ing around

Mototaxis in Gisenye

There are lots of ways to get around Kigali, but if you’re into stunning views, ridiculous fun, and willing to entertain the slight possibility of coming to a fiery demise, nothing beats taking motorcycle taxis everywhere. This has quickly become the preferred mode of transportation for our team whenever we don’t have a ton of stuff to carry.  A typical ride for me involves hurling through windy, hilly roads (the topography of Kigali is somewhat similar to San Francisco) with endless greenery and a wonderful sense of terror and abandon. As an extra perk, motos are also nimble enough to weave through rush hour traffic, though this definitely improves your chances of having a near-death experience.

hello there

Some tips:

• Rates are negotiable. Most places in the city can be moto’d to for around $1 (~580 RWF), but the experience is always worth whatever you end up paying. As a comparison, buses are 180RWF per person, and car-taxis are 2000-3000 RWF (for up to four people).

• To ride like a local, keep your hands calmly in your lap–resist the urge to hold onto anything.
• To avoid scandal, wear pants or skirts of an appropriate length and swingy-ness.
• If you seem terrified, they will slow down…so keep that game face on.

In Rwanda

the sunrise from my apartment in kigali

I’m here for the next 6 weeks, teaching a class at the Kigali Institute of Science and Technology.  We are south of the equator, so it is technically winter — though still 80 degrees and beautiful every day.

You can follow my team’s official blog here, and my non-official thoughts on this blog.. I’m also keeping a written journal (ish). And sketchpad. Is there such a thing as too much reflection?