Weekend in Kibuye

Muraho! (that's "hello" in Kinyarwanda) And welcome to my blog! Here I will write about my adventures over the next 4 months in Rwanda. I hope you find it interesting to read!

I arrived here on Tuesday, August 31st, and on our first weekend, Johannes arranged for a relaxing getaway to Kibuye, a small town situated on Lake Kivu in western Rwanda. The drive took about 3 hours, and while Johannes paid careful attention to the big trucks and curvy roads, I dutifully waved to all the little kids along the side of the road who were excited to see a "muzungu" (white person). 

Lake Kivu is an interesting place, and not only because it is located on the border with Congo. The lake actually has the potential for limnic eruptions - what is that, you may ask? Well, it is a rare phenomenon unique where carbon dioxide of volcanic origin seeps into the lower strata of a very deep lake and accumulates there, becoming increasingly volatile. An external trigger, like a landslide or storm, can cause a cloud of this gas to burst out of the lake, thereby killing all oxygen-dependent creatures nearby. This actually happened at two lakes in Cameroon in the mid-80s, and once scientists identified the cause, they singled out Lake Kivu as the only other lake where such a phenomenon would likely occur. Of course, Johannes didn't mention this fact until we had already arrived at our hotel!

Moriah Hill Resort

The weekend consisted of a lot of lounging around, reading books and drinking coffee, as we didn't want to take on too much before I got over my jet lag (which honestly wasn't too bad). The highlight of our weekend was a boat excursion with Cassim, who drove us around for 2 hours on the lake. Our first stop was Napoleon's Island - its shape resembles his hat - and we got off the boat to walk around and see the thousands of fruit bats that inhabit the island. Here Cassim also informed us that the cows on the island can swim (!), so whenever they run out of grass to eat on Napoleon's Island, they can swim to another island. Craziness!

Johannes & Ginger on our boat tour

Looking for bats on Napoleon's Island

Yikes, they're everywhere!

The people were so warm and friendly in Kibuye, and as we hiked through the village, we would greet everyone with "Bonjour!" and they would reply with the same, emphatically waving both of their hands. And then we met some adorable kids who chased after us and smiled for the camera. A friend warned me that Rwandan kids are the cutest, and she may just be right!

Cute Rwandan kids!

Enjoying the sunset over Lake Kivu from our balcony