In Search of Gorillas. Chapter 1: Travel Guide to Kigali, Rwanda
Trekking gorillas is a dream to anyone who is enthusiastic about wildlife and it was on my personal bucket list for a long time. The reason is simple, it’s an encounter that other safaris do not match. You meet our giant relatives without cages or fences accompanying these intelligent creatures on their homeland. Luckily, at the end of the pandemic I had the time and money saved to go for the adventure!
There are two areas to trek gorillas. Western Lowland Gorillas live in Congo, while the triangle of DRC, Rwanda and Uganda is the home of the furrier Mountain Gorillas, living in the volcanic Virunga Mountains. DRC also home of the Eastern Lowland Gorillas.
As DRC has the cheapest and most rural options, offering both lowland and mountain gorilla trekking, it was my original target destination. I organized with a local tour guide, Aaron, a 10 day trip. I planned to land and leave from the capital of Rwanda, Kigali and drive to DRC. I had my visa and tour details organised, but things turned to the worst…
“a Congolese soldier with an AK 47 crossed the border and started to shoot security personnel and civilians”
What happened is a day before my arrival a Congolese soldier with an AK 47 crossed the border and started to shoot security personnel and civilians, leaving 2 policemen injured and the solder was shot dead. I did not like the sound of it. And after my arrival I met Aaron to rediscussed what to do next. As I did not feel comfortable with the safety conditions, he offered me an alternative itinerary to Uganda. I did not know yet, but it was the best idea, and I would do this trip again. Aaron was originally from Uganda that helped a lot to organize a smooth trip with additional awesome activates, like Chimpanzee trekking. My new route was the following:
Safest City in Africa - Kigali, Rwanda
After we agreed on the new itinerary I had 1 day to discover Kigali. If Rwanda is the Switzerland of Africa, then Kigali is Zurich. It’s the financial center and the biggest city in the country.
While conflicts were happening at the border, Rwanda was supposed to be very safe. Based on my research you are ok to walk alone during night. Big promise in Africa for a blond guy. I also learned that Rwanda is putting a big effort on sustainability, as an example it banned the use of plastic bags since 2008 (!) and the country is organising community cleaning day once a month. This all sounds very promising!
After landing I was very surprised. The roads were perfect and the city was very clean. While it felt modern, it still had authentic African vibe. Everyone was riding motorbikes as public transportation, offering cheap service for 1-2 dollars. I was hesitant first, but it was proven to be safe and easy way to get around.
My first stop was to go to eat something and have a coffee. Talking of coffee… Rwanda has high quality coffee beans, described as the following:
Rwandan coffee is known for its sweetness, bright acidity, and complex flavor profile. The country's unique terroir—a combination of high altitude, volcanic soil, and abundant rainfall—gives Rwandan coffee its distinctive character. source
Of course I wanted to try it!
The restaurant and the coffee were very modern. I met a few travellers and expats. A girl sitting next to me was from LA working for a consulting company and studying smart cities, including Kigal to implement policies in the US. This blew my mind. I learned Rwanda invests a lot in digitalization, and over 40% of administrative services were available online already in 2022. Great!
Kimironko Market, Kigali
I love local markets in developing countries. It’s the place of commerce, not the big supermarkets, and bargaining is still the way to go, brining vibrant and sometimes heated vibe. So my next stop was the Kigali market (Kimironko Market).
It was closing soon, but it was busy. Being the only tourist, I was in the center of attention. People were friendly and not more aggressive than any healthy salesman. The prices were extremely cheap. I bought a few things, thinking I will find easily similar prices later. Now, I regret that I did not buy more clothes as I did not find anything comparable.
Convention Center, Kigali
Next, I went to the modern Kigali Convention Center. The building looked impressive, but I could not enter, as there was a Convention inside. The name makes total sense.
I met some cool local people in a bar who worked in the IT department of the government. They further proved my story of the IT investment from the state. They showed me their office that based on it’s look could easily belong to Google,
The nightlife was great and I felt safe all the time,
Next morning, I met Aaron very early. He was introducing his amazing crew: two young guys who were on training to become guides as well. Before the trip I expected we will go with a large 4x4, but we had a tiny Toyota Passo that the 4 of us filled up completely. Later Aaron managed to drive it off-road for safaris, between lions and hippos. I will tell the story later. Aaron explain me, that he had a different vehicle before, but lack of tourism during COVID made him to sell his car temporarily. Makes sense.
Our last stop in Kigali was the Genocide Museum.
The Rwandan genocide, also known as the genocide against the Tutsi, occurred from 7 April to 19 July 1994 during the Rwandan Civil War. Over a span of around 100 days according to the Rwandan Constitution over 1 million people were killed. The genocide was marked by extreme violence, with victims often murdered by neighbours, and widespread sexual violence. The museum explains this sad story and how they could rebuild the country.
A message from a woman whose family was murdered by her neighbour stayed with me. She knew she needs to move on as revenge will only repeat history. This extremely difficult mindset would help in other parts of the world too.
Genocide Museum, Kigali
From here we were heading to the boarder of Uganda. As we were leaving the capital, the environment changed rapidly. The modern buildings were quickly substituted by rural and agricultural environment. The roads were nice surrounded by mountains, rivers and green vegetation. It looked great!
Countryside
The boarder crossing was simple. Our next stop was Kibale in Uganda, home of one of the biggest Chimpanzee population.
Boarder of Uganda and Rwanda
We will continue the next article from here. If you want to learn more please click and watch our video about the trip:
