The End...

Johannes and I are saying good-bye to Rwanda today and heading off to Germany to celebrate the holidays. So now it is time to sign off from the blog forever - many thanks to all of you have read and commented on my posts over the past four months! Allow me to close with a couple top ten lists about what we'll miss from Rwanda and what we've missed from home:

Top 10 Things I’ll Miss About Rwanda When We Leave

1.      Long lunches with Johannes

2.      Long weekend trips with Johannes

3.      Warm, sunny weather day after day after day

4.      Friendly Rwandan colleagues

5.      Delicious avocados, mangoes, pineapple, passion fruit, and mini-bananas

6.      Shocking the locals by speaking a few phrases of Kinyarwanda

7.      Monkeys! Gorillas! Chimpanzees!

8.      Having a tennis coach

9.      Having a chauffeur (a.k.a. Johannes)

10.   Beautiful trees and flowers that grow everywhere

Top 10 Things I Miss From Back Home

1.      Hanging out with my friends

2.      A comfortable, normal-sized bed

3.      Good beer

4.      Chipotle

5.      Salad

6.      Eating things that Johannes cooks or bakes

7.      Brushing my teeth with tap water

8.      Seasons

9.      My iPhone...or just generally speaking a cell phone with a battery that lasts longer than 3 brief calls

10.   Wearing perfume rather than insect repellent

Nyungwe Redux

For my birthday weekend, Johannes and I made a trip back to our favorite corner of Rwanda – Nyungwe Forest. We left early on Saturday morning, grabbing coffee and banana bread to go from Bourbon. After about two hours on the road, we stopped in Butare for ice cream at Inzozi Nziza. Unfortunately, we weren’t the only ones with the same idea and ended up in line behind 20 or so brand-new Peace Corps volunteers. Eventually, we received our coffee ice cream and were on the road again. The drive was as spectacular as I remembered, and this time the scenery was even dotted with the largest sunflowers I’ve ever seen. Just gorgeous!

Hilly countryside on the road between Butare and Nyungwe Forest

We arrived at our favorite hotel – Nyungwe Forest Lodge – just in time for a late lunch and spent the afternoon relaxing in our suite, reading books and magazines and watching the movie “Despicable Me.” After a delicious dinner, we turned in early in preparation for our 3:30 am wake-up call. Unfortunately, Johannes and I didn’t sleep well, despite the super comfortable bed. It was probably a combination of the high altitude and the constant rain which made us worried about our early morning chimpanzee tracking expedition.

At 3:30 am we were up and at ‘em, and after some Rwandan tea and warm muffins, we were on our way. We picked up our guide a short distance away, and he directed us to the Cyamudongo Forest, which is much smaller than Nyungwe (only 6 sq km) and is located further south and west, not too far from the borders with Congo and Burundi. We drove an hour and a half on progressively worse roads but eventually arrived at the start of our hike. It was quite chilly, and the path was muddy and slippery from the rain. In all honesty, the “hike” was more like trail running for an hour until we heard the chimpanzees screeching and hollering nearby. Unlike with the gorillas, it is difficult to get close to the chimps, so we stood on the path and watched them ascending and descending trees, eating leaves, and resting amid the branches. Although it was possible to see them with the naked eye, one needed binoculars to get a glimpse of their faces or see exactly what they were up to. 

The beautiful Cyamudongo Forest

A chimpanzee...you'll just have to take my word for it! ; )

Another chimp in action

Apparently, chimps are omnivores and sometimes eat other monkeys. Thus, it was surprising to see Mona monkeys springing from branch to branch nearby. We watched the scene for two hours, until I was pretty cold, tired, and hungry and ready to head back to the warmth and comfort of the lodge. On the hike back to the car, we took our time, and the guide pointed out various interesting flora and fauna. We also ran into a couple groups of baboons, who unbeknownst to me actually bark like dogs. We even saw a tiny baby baboon, but Johannes didn’t want to take any pictures, because he’s “seen way too many baboons – they are like a plague!”

You can see a Mona monkey if you look closely

Back at the lodge, we took warm showers, ate a satisfying lunch, and settled down for a nap. We enjoyed another wonderful dinner, complete with a cabernet sauvignon from South Africa. That night we slept like logs and woke up feeling refreshed. The sun was shining, and we ate breakfast on the patio and enjoyed the view of the tea plantation and Nyungwe Forest one last time. As we drove through the National Park, a few L’Hoest monkeys came to the side of the road to say good-bye. The rest of our drive was uneventful, and this time we benefited from a quiet pit-stop at Inzozi Nziza and shared chocolate ice cream with bananas and a couple of Snickerdoodle cookies (how they ended up making those in Rwanda, I’ll never know!) – power lunch! ; )   

One source of the Nile River has been discovered in Rwanda

A L'Hoest monkey saying good-bye! ; )

We're going to miss the Land of a Thousand Hills...

A Bite to Eat

Since you've all been reading the blog faithfully and are in the process of booking your flights to Kigali for your next vacation, I thought I would share some restaurant reviews with you:

Banana

Our favorite restaurant in Kigali, Banana offers delicious African specialties in a romantic setting. The evening typically starts with the main waiter lugging the chalkboard menu over to our table and reading it word-for-word, which goes something like this: “As a starter, we have a bacon and avocado salad, which is a salad with bacon and avocado.” This continues for several minutes and inspires reactions ranging from mild annoyance to inconspicuous giggling. We usually opt for guacamole as a starter – made with fresh, perfectly ripe avocados, it never disappoints. Generally speaking, it is wise to order a starter in Rwandan restaurants, because you’ll likely be waiting a long time for your main course. As my boss says, “Don’t go out to eat if you’re hungry.” So true! Luckily, when the entrees finally arrive at Banana, they are nearly always worth the wait, such as a Congolese chicken dish paired with fried plantains that are crisp on the outside and melt-in-your-mouth sweet on the inside. You can even get Schweinshaxe – a popular Bavarian dish of pork knuckle – which Johannes often does to diminish his homesickness. As most of you know, I live for dessert, and since I’ve been in Rwanda, I can count on one hand the times I’ve ordered it. After sitting in an uncomfortable wooden chair for two hours, heading home and eating a few bites of Ritter Sport chocolate sounds more appealing.

Heaven

For awhile, this was Johannes’ favorite restaurant in town, and I admit that the terrace is one of the loveliest spots in Kigali. Our most heavenly experience at Heaven was a Sunday brunch a few months ago, where we nearly cried tears of joy over the delicious French-press coffee, mini burritos, and French toast with caramelized bananas. Ironically, the restaurant cancelled its Sunday brunch service the following week. Our dinners there have been hit or miss. Johannes loves the hamburger, which is smothered in gouda and takes up nearly half the plate. I prefer to try dishes on special for the evening but have been disappointed before with a chicken dish boasting a spaetzle accompaniment that turned out to be chopped up spaghetti. Heaven’s biggest strength is probably its service – the waiters are quick to bring an amuse bouche if the food is taking too long. The restaurant’s greatest fault is, in my opinion, the loud expats that frequent the place and destroy the ambience of the terrace.

Khana Khazana

Interestingly, one is not deprived of high-quality Indian food in Kigali. With candlelit tables on a pleasant patio, Khana Khazana is our favorite place to eat curries and naan. We almost always opt for one of the abundant vegetarian options, but to be honest, the menu is so extensive, one could pick only among the multiples of eight on the numbered menu and come away sated and happy. A dish of mutter paneer or aloo gobi, paired with steamed rice and plain naan, is enough for two, while ordering an extra dish can provide leftovers for the next day, which the waiters don’t mind wrapping for you. The food and service are consistently top notch, and the romantic setting can’t be beat. If someone at a nearby table has a birthday, you are in for a treat, as they dim the lights and then the waiters sing and dance around the entire patio – it’s quite a sight!

Shokola

Shokola has a lot going for it in the food and drink department, but its service is among the slowest in town. Johannes and I learned our lesson early on and now always bring something to read if we are heading there for a meal, which makes the waiting time bearable. My favorite items on the menu include a soothing mint tea and a fresh chicken couscous salad, which is plentiful enough to share. They also recently started a lunch menu, which includes delicious pita sandwiches with the freshest ingredients. On Sundays, they offer a Mexican menu with a vegetarian burrito that comes closest to satisfying my Chipotle cravings. On the weekends, the crowd here is a unique mix of hippie kids who sit in front of their laptops and chain smoke through breakfast and expat moms who let their kids run wild, but if you can avoid those factions, you will be in for a delightful, albeit S-L-O-W meal.

Virunga - Take Two

This week I’m delighted to introduce Diana Hristova – friend, Johannes’ work colleague, loyal blog reader, and recent Rwanda visitor – as guest blogger. Enjoy her take on our visit to the mountain gorillas!

Steffi and I arrived in Kigali on a Thursday night to spend a long weekend with Johannes and Ginger on our way from Bujumbura to Dar-es-Salaam, and to go see the mountain gorillas. In “the country of a thousand hills” almost every spot offers a gorgeous view, and Kigali reminded me of San Francisco… ok, maybe the San Francisco of Africa. We started the weekend the way Johannes and Ginger usually do, with a stop in Bourbon for café lattes and crepes. For regular readers of Ginger’s blog, expectations for the drive to Ruhengeri were very high: “spectacular views, drastic drops into river valleys below and luscious green rolling hills as far as the eye can see”. However, as soon as we left Kigali, the rain was so heavy and the fog so dense that we could barely see a few meters in front of the car. We pulled up by the side of the road and played 20 questions until it slowed down. Luckily, the weather on the way back was gorgeous and the views were indeed magnificent.

We arrived at the lodge just before dinner. The place was beautiful, strangely quiet and empty, and very cold. The dining room and bar were heated with small individual size fire-pits, placed next to whoever is coldest, and the rooms had fireplaces. We kept the fire going with some World Bank reports that we no longer needed. 

Mt. Sabyinyo - the gorilla group we saw bears the same name

Mt. Gahinga and Mt. Muhabura from the Gorilla Mountain View Lodge

The next morning we showed up at the Park’s headquarters at seven, armed with power bars, water and cameras. I was half-way through Dian Fossey’s book “Gorillas in the Mist” and I was ready to dispense practical advice: Do not try and cuddle with the baby gorillas! Apparently that’s when things could become unpleasant. There are 56 permits sold every day, and seven groups of gorillas, so in the morning of the trek everyone is split into seven groups. We picked the Sabyinyo group, which has the largest silverback ever recorded (220 kilos), and the youngest baby in the park (2 months old). Our guides were both incredibly nice and knowledgeable, “equipped with a natural GPS”, as one of them said. We had a journalist from Radio France International in our group, so they spoke in both English and French the entire time. 

Guhondo, the Sabyinyo group's dominant male and the heaviest gorilla ever measured!

At the other end of the spectrum, a two-month-old baby goriilla

We had to drive about 15-20 minutes to the entrance of the park on a road that can’t fairly be called a road at all… “Rwandan massage” as Johannes put it. Once we were there, we hired a porter to carry our water, and we each got a walking stick engraved with the name of the Sabyinyo group. The first 15 minutes of the hike were through a field, but once we got into the Volcanoes Park it became a little more challenging – the vegetation was so thick that we had a guide walking in front of us with a machete to clear the way. We found the group within another 15-20 minutes. The park rules permit exactly one hour with the gorillas once you find them, and we were incredibly lucky because they had stopped for a break. So for the next hour we could just hang out with them, five meters away, take pictures, watch them curiously, and have them watch us curiously. All gorillas congregate around the silverback for comfort and protection. He was lounging in the middle of the group, first on his back, then on his stomach, then on his back… and scratching, in a very familiar human manner. The little baby was playing in its mother’s lap, an incredibly adorable tiny black ball of fluff! Luckily no one tried to cuddle with it, and after awhile the gorillas were ready to move on. We followed them for a bit, and watched one of them very skillfully peel and eat bamboo.

Look at those massive hands!

Enjoying the sunshine!

Steffi, Diana, Ginger, and Johannes with gorillas in the background

Sadly our time was up. We walked back to the Park headquarters to collect our certificates, and then headed back to the lodge. We spent the rest of the day looking through our pictures, relaxing by the fire, and planning our next adventures!

Zanzibar At Last

Ironically, several years ago, on Johannes’ first-ever trip to Africa and his first overseas trip with the World Bank, he was sent straight to Zanzibar for a staff retreat – not too shabby! He told me of white sand beaches, the turquoise water of the Indian Ocean, palm trees as far as the eye can see, and mouth-watering seafood – I couldn’t wait to go myself! And finally, earlier this month Johannes and I headed to the tropical island for 9 days of rest and relaxation.

We spent the first five days at the Ras Nungwi Resort on the northern end of the island, and it was honestly like paradise. We spent our days lying on the beach, reading, swimming, and eating delicious fish or seafood for every meal (except breakfast). It was my first time swimming in the Indian Ocean, and the water was so warm. We even saw a beautiful red starfish! The bed in our room was massive and oh so comfortable – this was a treat in itself given our five-foot long, hard-as-a-rock bed in Kigali! After a few days here, we had forgotten work stress completely and were beyond relaxed. On our last evening, we had a romantic candle-lit dinner on the beach under a breath-taking starry sky.

The view from Johannes' hammock on the beach

The swimming pool at the resort

During the last four days of our vacation, we were based in Stone Town, staying at the new and charming Kisiwa House. Most of our days were booked with tours, but we were also able to squeeze in some shopping and delicious meals. On our first full day in town, we spent the morning on a city tour, learning all about the unique wooden doors sprinkled throughout the city, the slave trade which played a big role in Zanzibar’s history, and the House of Wonders which was the first building to boast electricity and an elevator. In the afternoon, we took a boat out to Prison Island, which is home to massive land turtles – originally a gift from the Seychelles, where they are now extinct. They were so adorable!

Traditional Zanzibari door

Stone Town and the tower of the House of Wonders

Hungry, hungry turtles on Prison Island

The next day we spent the morning on a spice tour – a popular excursion for tourists to Zanzibar. We were able to smell, touch, and taste a variety of spices, herbs, and fruits – everything from cloves and cinnamon to jackfruit and custard apples. I was especially excited to see the ginger, of course – it’s called tangawizi in the Kiswahili language. In fact, whenever I told locals what my name is, they couldn’t help but giggle! That afternoon we ventured into Jozani Forest to see the endangered red colobus monkeys. They are very comfortable around human visitors and were so fun to watch, especially the babies!

The tourists decorated in coconut palm "artwork" from the spice tour

Red colobus monkey posing for the camera

On our last full day, we went on the Safari Blue tour – a must-do for tourists. It’s an all-day adventure that includes a boat ride to an uninhabited island, dolphin-sightings, snorkeling, a decadent seafood lunch, and sailing on a dhow (a traditional Zanzibari sailboat). We topped it off with a romantic dinner at the Serena – enjoying a four-course meal under the stars with the waves crashing along the beach below and relishing every last bite – from the lobster tail to the dark chocolate mousse with lemongrass custard. We knew that soon enough we would be back to the more bland Rwandan diet! ; )

Humpback dolphins off the coast of Zanzibar

Virunga - Take One

To celebrate Johannes’ birthday, we decided to spend the weekend at Virunga Lodge in northern Rwanda near the town of Ruhengeri and Volcanoes National Park. We left last Friday morning after our usual stop at Bourbon for café lattes and fruit crepes. The drive to Ruhengeri is quick – just two hours from Kigali – despite being one of the worst roads in Rwanda (embarrassingly sponsored by the World Bank), which is unfortunate because it is one of the most-traveled, particularly by tourists on their way to see the mountain gorillas. That said, the views are spectacular – drastic drops into river valleys below and luscious green rolling hills as far as the eye can see.

After driving the last 30 minutes up a steep hill on a disastrous dirt road, we finally reached Virunga Lodge. Its location is unbeatable – situated on a hill between Lake Bulera and Lake Ruhondo with impressive views of the five big volcanoes in the park. Many famous folks have stayed at the lodge, including Rahm Emanuel, Hillary Clinton, Don Cheadle, and Bill Gates, but they all probably arrived by helicopter! : )

Virunga Lodge

Mt. Muhabura

The breathtaking view from the lodge

Our main goal for the weekend was to relax since we have plans to come again and see the mountain gorillas in late November with some friends. On our first evening we watched some of the local villagers put on a traditional Intore dance and then Johannes went off to get a massage while I settled in with a good book. For dinner, we managed to avoid the group table in the dining room by requesting our own special table for two in the bar area with a warm fire nearby (it gets COLD up there!) and enjoyed a delicious meal, complete with some whiskey for Johannes and a glass of Amarula (a South African cream liqueur that is made from the fruit of the elephant tree and tastes like caramel) for me.

Intore dancers

On Saturday we ate a late breakfast with fresh mango and then set off with our guides for the village walk down to Lake Bulera. The whole time children from the village waved at us, yelled “muzungus!”, or even walked along with us for awhile. After a couple hours we reached the lake and went for a canoe ride where, interestingly, the village women were in charge of paddling and steering the boat. We continued on our way with sightings of many interesting birds and even a chameleon! Following a quick stop at the local hydropower plant and a sampling of banana beer in another village, we got a ride back to the lodge.

Johannes and his new friends

While Virunga Lodge was pretty amazing, Johannes and I couldn’t help but compare it to Nyungwe, which we both liked a lot more. Virunga has more of a “rustic” flare – the public toilets are more like outhouses, there is not always hot water for a shower, there are no fancy bath products in the bathrooms, etc. As Johannes said, “Do you think Hillary brought her own shampoo?” We, of course, hadn’t – honestly, at that price, we were expecting more. Man, do we sound spoiled! ; )

All Play and No Work

I’ve received some feedback from my faithful readers that it sounds like all Johannes and I do is go on fun weekend trips, stay in extravagant lodges, and chase exotic animals. While this is partially true, I swear to all of you that we are also working hard during the week to pay for our adventures. Therefore, this post is dedicated to describing what we’re doing for a living while in Rwanda. For those of you who think this sounds a bit boring, tune in again next week when we’ll be back to our regularly-scheduled programming and monkey pics! ; )

Let’s start with Johannes, because of course, his job is the reason we are here in Rwanda! A coordination group exists for bilateral and multilateral donors who give direct budget support to the Rwandan government. The organizations take turns co-chairing the group (together with the government), and currently, for these six months, the World Bank is the co-chair. Thus, Johannes’ job at the moment revolves around leading this donor coordination group, including managing a large event with the Ministry of Finance a couple weeks ago. He is also currently evaluating the progress on the World Bank's country program in Rwanda and works with a couple of his colleagues on managing their projects. Let's just say he is pretty busy!

Johannes and Peace, one of his favorite Rwandan colleagues

For my part, I’ve been keeping busy with a few different consulting assignments. During my first two weeks in Rwanda, I wrote a mid-term review for a World Bank project – the Rural Sector Support Project (RSSP) – at the Ministry of Agriculture (MINAGRI). The most shocking realization for me was that the government employees here work very long hours – often from 7 am ‘til 7 pm. As most of you know, I’m not a morning person, so arriving at 8:30 am was usually the best I could do! ; )  Often I had the opportunity to join the team for a carb-heavy lunch, and I really enjoyed seeing everyone joke around and laugh together. The research was also fascinating to me, and I learned a lot about rehabilitating marshlands for rice production and developing hillsides to increase crop production and prevent soil erosion.

Ginger outside of the RSSP office

Since then, I’ve been a fixture around the USAID-funded Rwanda Justice Strengthening Project (JSP), which is part of the MCC Threshold Program. The project is implemented by Chemonics– my former employer from 2004-2008. I’m enjoying doing project management work again and feel especially lucky to have landed with such a great team. I work most closely with Sam, our finance and accounting director, who has a great sense of humor and faithfully teaches me new words in Kinyarwanda. I’ve also had the opportunity to bond with the staff at regular group exercise activities, including aerobics classes and power walks through hilly Kigali.

Ginger and Sam in front of the JSP office

In addition, I’m contributing to some of Chemonics’ new business efforts within Rwanda by performing research, conducting meetings, and recruiting local staff. This work is top-secret, so you’ll have to ask me about it offline sometime! ; )  And finally, I’m doing some volunteer work with Nest, a U.S.-based nonprofit organization that gives microloans to women artisan cooperatives and helps them identify markets for their handicrafts. Our local facilitator, Specioza, coordinates the artisans to make beautiful products – everything from jewelry to baskets – using traditional techniques and patterns.   

A Funny Thing Happened...

A week or so before I arrived in Kigali, Johannes was here by himself. One morning, a woman approached him outside our apartment building and asked if he needed a cook. He didn’t want to be rude, so he came up with what seemed like a legitimate excuse. “No, I’m sorry – my wife is coming next week, and she’ll take care of the kitchen.” Haha, yeah right! ; ) 

The slogan of the National Institute of Statistics: “If you don’t count, you don’t count!” Shout out to Prof. Zeevi at CBS! : )

One day while doing a short-term assignment at the Ministry of Agriculture (MINAGRI), I brought a box of chocolates to share with my colleagues after lunch. One of the women was very excited about the chocolate, and she started reciting a Rwandan proverb in Kinyarwanda. Her colleague politely translated for me: “When the rain falls, it falls again.” After pondering for a moment, I ventured, “Ah, so what she is trying to say is that I should bring chocolate again, right?” “YES!” they all exclaimed.

The price of a normal-sized box of Kellogg’s Mini Wheats at the nearby Nakumatt grocery store: $16!

So plastic bags are not allowed in Rwanda, which helps make this a very clean country. (Between you and me, I snuck a few in – my shoes were packed in them!) The grocery stores offer brown paper bags, for example, but sometimes you just need a plastic bag, right? Yet Rwanda takes this law so seriously that even plastic trash bags are outlawed. Yes, this means we throw our trash directly into the trash can – craziness, right? Luckily, our cleaning lady takes care of the mess that ensues.

One day at MINAGRI, we were approaching the deadline for my report, and I was getting frustrated about delays in obtaining the information I needed from my colleagues. In a moment of exasperation, I lamented to one colleague, “When you Rwandans say that something will be ready in 5 minutes, you actually mean one hour!” Without a moment’s hesitation, he responded with, “Yes, we’re sorry,” apologizing for all of his countrymen in one fell swoop.

The name of a restaurant near the Bourbon Coffee in MTN Centre that we haven’t yet been brave enough to try: Dolphin Seafood!

Johannes and I were shopping at Nakumatt, and we were contemplating purchasing a loaf of bread at the bakery counter. Johannes inquired, “What kind of bread is that?” pointing to a loaf on the shelf. The man working there pondered for a moment, and then responded, “It’s brown inside.” Hmmm, very helpful information! We bought the loaf of bread anyway, and it was pretty good! : )

The price of a box of Snickers ice cream bars at the nearby Nakumatt grocery store: $20!

Earlier this week Johannes and I went out to dinner with our friends Diego and Lewis. We each took turns ordering our drinks – a small beer for each of us. The waiter arrived shortly thereafter with TWO bottles for each of us. We were all quite puzzled until Lewis explained that, in the Burundian tradition, it is polite to bring two bottles when someone orders a small beer. In a sense, it’s like that old Lay’s potato chips commercial: “No one can eat [drink] just one!” The unfortunate aspect of their hospitality is that the second beer gets warm in the meantime, but oh well!

The Magic of Nyungwe Forest

Johannes and I had the most amazing weekend in Nyungwe National Park in southwestern Rwanda! We departed Kigali on Friday morning after depositing my first Rwandan paycheck and eating a delicious breakfast at Bourbon Coffee. After about two hours on the road, we stopped in Butare at the National Museum of Rwanda, which was really impressive. Everything is described in English, in addition to Kinyarwanda and French, so we learned all about population density, climate, traditional farming and hunting techniques, old-fashioned dwellings, jewelry, musical instruments, etc. Also in Butare, we stopped for delicious coffee ice cream at Inzozi Nziza (“sweet dreams”), an ice cream shop started by the women who own the Blue Marble ice cream shops in Brooklyn, NY. Inzozi Nziza is run by a women’s cooperative, and the members become shareholders and receive training in English, computing, and hospitality. To read more about this cool social enterprise, check out www.bluemarbledreams.org.

We all scream for ice cream!

The drive from Butare to Nyungwe National Park offers breath-taking views of rolling hills checked in red soil and bright green fields of banana trees, tea plants, and other crops. As one enters the park, the roads get worse but the views get even better. Johannes drove slowly, so we could spot blue monkeys (they’re not actually blue – that’s just their name!) and mountain monkeys (which have white beards) along the way. We also caught a glimpse of the marshy area where elephants use to roam freely. The Kamiranzovu trail (meaning “sinking elephants” because sometimes the animals would be swallowed alive in the swamps!) offers the most sightings of orchids (Nyungwe boasts 150+ different species of orchids alone!) and three-horned chameleons – we hope to try this trail on our next visit! 

Beautiful tea plantations with Nyungwe Forest in the background

A mountain monkey!

Eventually, we arrived at Nyungwe Forest Lodge – the five-star resort where we would spend the weekend. Johannes and I had planned this excursion to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of when we first got together, so we decided to splurge! And oh, was it worth it! : )  The lodge is situated on the western end of the national park amid rolling hills of tea plantations. We were greeted with passion fruit cocktails and escorted to our gorgeous room with a balcony that looked out onto the forest. Later in the weekend we would even see mountain monkeys swinging in the trees from our balcony!

Our room was one of four in this chalet looking onto the forest

Nyungwe is the largest mountainous rainforest in all of Africa covering more than 1,015 sq km, and there are so many different activities – everything from tracking chimpanzees to hiking to the source of the Nile – that it’s almost impossible to decide what to do. Saturday morning – after eating breakfast on the sunlit terrace at the lodge – we headed off on a 3.5 hour hike with our guide. The hike was wonderful and included spectacular views of massive mahogany trees and blue monkeys jumping from branch to branch, as well as a brief visit to the brand new canopy walk (which isn’t officially open yet) located 150 meters up in the air. I also learned a new word – “igishigishigi” – which means “fern” in Kinyarwanda and is so fun to say.

Johannes on the brand new canopy walk!

A view of the canopy from below - "like rivers in the sky," said our guide.

A blue monkey jumping from tree to tree

Back at the lodge, we enjoyed a three-course lunch, complete with a delicious salad that Johannes and I each inhaled, and then took a dip in the infinity pool which looked out onto the forest. We ended the evening with another three-course meal – the best I’ve had since arriving in Rwanda – including medium-rare filet mignon, red wine from South Africa, and malva pudding for dessert.

On Sunday, we headed out for another hike – this time on the Isumo (“waterfall”) trail. The hike originates in the middle of the Gisakura tea plantation and ends with spectacular views of a waterfall. Ultimately though, the highlight of the hike was actually when we were driving back and ran smack into a group of Ruwenzori colobus monkeys. Usually one has to get up very early and pay quite a bit of money to track them, but we were lucky enough to see them just like that. These black and white monkeys are habituated, so we were able to get really close and watch them play, wrestle, and even make monkey love.

Johannes and Ginger at the waterfall!

Gorgeous ferns everywhere!

Colobus monkeys up close and personal

It is difficult to describe how perfect the whole weekend was. Nyungwe is like no other place I’ve ever been, and well, the lodge was hands down the nicest place I’ve ever stayed, so it all added up to a fabulous excursion. Now Johannes and I are determined to work extra hard in Kigali and make it back for another visit before leaving Rwanda. Next time, in addition to the Kamiranzovu trail, we would like to go chimpanzee tracking – I just have to overcome my fear of setting out at 4:30 am!

Safari in Akagera

On Saturday morning, we got up early and headed out in our SUV, anxious to grab coffee and start the drive to Akagera National Park, which lies in the Eastern Province of Rwanda on the border with Tanzania. As we pulled onto the main road near our apartment, we were surprised to find the streets eerily quiet with no other cars in sight. Johannes quickly realized that it must be Umuganda (literally meaning “contribution”) – the last Saturday of every month when all Rwandans are supposed to participate in community service. On this day, one is not allowed to drive between 7 am – noon. Oops! We stopped by our coffee shop anyway and found it closed, so we returned home to eat breakfast and rethink our strategy.

After breakfast, we decided to just go for it since we were reluctant to sit around at home. On the other side of town, we got pulled over by a policeman, who took Johannes’ driver’s license for about 5 minutes and then let us go. Luckily, that was our only run-in with the law on Umuganda, and finally we were on our way. The road was well-paved, and we made good time as we drove past the southern park entrance and headed to Nyakarambi to check out an artisan cooperative that makes Imigongo (cow-dung) paintings. We decided to buy three of them, and by the time we had selected the best ones, paid, and were heading back to our car, it seemed like the whole village had gathered around to see what the “muzungus” were up to.

Soon we arrived at the Akagera Game Lodge situated on the beautiful Lake Ihema inside the park, and we had a look around followed by a drink on the terrace before the sun set. And then as we changed clothes before dinner, a warthog (like Pumbaa in the “Lion King”) walked by our balcony as a preview of what the next day would bring! We went to bed very early knowing that we were scheduled to meet our guide at 6:30 am for a game drive.

Johannes at the entrance to Akagera National Park

This was my first safari, so as you can imagine, I was pretty excited! And Akagera did not disappoint! We saw all kind of birds and animals. My favorites would have to be the hippos, giraffes, and zebras, but we also saw baboons, vervet monkeys, Nile crocodiles (the world’s largest reptiles!) and three different types of antelopes – impalas, topis, and waterbucks. While we saw lots of fresh elephant poop, sadly no elephants made an appearance. The roads were decent, and although the ride was somewhat bumpy, Johannes did an amazing job.

A baboon only vaguely interested in his visitors

An impala - the most common type of antelope in Akagera

A camera-shy zebra - doesn't he look fake?

Crested cranes - it's difficult to see but they are sharing the water with crocodiles!

Hippos!!!

Seeing the giraffes was probably the most amazing thing – we had driven north through nearly the entire park over the past four hours and were about ready to give up on seeing a giraffe when our guide spotted one. We stopped the car and got out to get a closer look. As we approached, we noticed a second giraffe nearby. Johannes was trying to get the best shot with his camera, so our guide kept taking us closer and closer until all of a sudden we looked up and noticed another giraffe practically right behind us. Don’t worry – they’re not dangerous – the big male just quietly started at us as we took lots of pictures! 

The first giraffe we spotted - sooo much bigger than at the zoo!

Then this guy snuck up behind us!

Life in Kigali

Our apartment is starting to feel like home after we moved the furniture around a little and changed a few light bulbs to give off a warmer glow. The place has one bedroom and one and a half baths, plus a nice balcony that looks out to the west providing great views of the rambling hills around town and frequent gorgeous sunsets.

Our bedroom, complete with a freakishly short bed

Blogging in the living room

View from our balcony

 The apartment building is located near the Belgian school. To be honest, I don’t know exactly where the Belgian school is, but in a city where few street names exist and those that do are rarely used, that is apparently the best way to describe how to get to our place. The World Bank office is a short walk away, which makes Johannes’ commute even easier than it was in DC. For the past two weeks, I’ve been working at the Ministry of Agriculture, which is on the other side of town – about a 15 min drive away.

We are renting a big old white Chevy Blazer, fondly nicknamed Otto, which Johannes drives skillfully around town, dodging motorbikes and mini-vans and pulling in and out of tight parking spots. I feel lucky to have such a talented chauffeur! The guys who supervise the gate to our building always wave fondly when we drive in or out of the parking lot and try to teach me words and phrases of Kinyarwanda.

Most nights we go out to dinner. Much to my surprise, Kigali is FULL of excellent restaurants – many of which I still haven’t visited. Those of you who know me well won’t be surprised when I later write blogs of restaurant reviews, but just for a preview, here are some of the highlights so far: fresh ginger and lemon tea and chicken couscous salad at Shokola, Sunday brunch complete with French toast and caramelized bananas at Heaven, vegetarian spaghetti and fried plantains at Banana, and mutter paneer and naan at Khana Khazana.

I’m not going to lie to you – I still have mad cravings for a huge delicious salad and a Chipotle burrito, but hey, it could be worse! Thankfully, we have also found good beer here in the form of Mützig lager, which helps me feel slightly better about missing my favorite beer season back in the US – Oktoberfest!

To work off all of these calories, Johannes and I have started taking tennis lessons at the Laico Hotel. Our coach, Bosco, is so patient and encouraging. At our first lesson, when Johannes told him that we were both beginners, he said, “Don’t worry – I’ll bring lots of balls.” : )  Today we had our third lesson already, and we're both showing signs of improvement.

Bosco, our tennis coach, testing my forehand (which is not good...YET!)

 

Johannes in action

Sweaty and out of breath after our tennis lesson