Blogs from Ville de Kigali, Rwanda, Africa

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Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali February 22nd 2019

Going going, gone. i was going to go to the Islamic Republic of Iran, but weather and the tardiness of the aforementioned country’s turn around time in issuing visas and a film on Netflix got me to change my mind. So no Iran (it’s still on the bucket list) Rwanda it is, after the famous film ” A fish called Rwanda”. Visa upon arrival and no hassle, well I have not arrived yet but still. As if I would seek political asylum in Iran or Wanda for that matter.. I've rented some kind of bike, I haven’t seen it yet and as long as it will get me around it does not really matter after all I did Vietnam on a clone of a Honda clone, the size of a gnat. With me in full ,black, ... read more
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Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali November 25th 2018

This is my first visit to Kigali the capital of Rwanda, and the country itself. I'm at 158 countries visited on my own little count. The official excuse to come here for 6 days is to play the Rwanda Golf Open. Little disclaimer, it is not that easy to write a blog about a country that has gone through so much, while spending my time on a golf course, in a country that is still one of the poorer in the world. So I would appreciate your understanding. The country is certainly one of the most amazing in Africa. So much has been done here the last 20 years...and at the same time, there is a lot of things that cannot be told and about which I cannot write about. So yes, it is complicated to ... read more
Genocide Memorial, remembering this cruel year of 1994!
Sunday in Kigali.....best way to go around is by motorbike taxi...just over 1usd for a 7km ride!
Here, ten belgian commandos, working under UN, were murdered on the 7th April 1994! We won't forget!

Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali August 29th 2018

Get a sleep in this morning as we don’t have to leave until 1200. Late breakfast and we get a late check out - 1100. Meet a couple who had wanted to go to the shops to but some Safari desert boots thatbthe guide and some of the drivers were wearing. Had been given instructions on where to go, hir an Uber and it should be easy. I made the mistake of asking when they were going. Oops. WW4. End result was they spoke to the concierge, and came back. All sorted they said, the bus is coming 20 minutes early as it goes past the shopping centre and they can drop in and get the boots. Hmm, was that a question or a statement. Chris gets the hackles up a little and asks a few ... read more

Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali July 3rd 2018

Okay where did we leave off? I think we were about to go to Bright Future. This place is absolutely amazing and made me wish I had more time in Mbarara. Sheila, the head woman, is totally exhausted but such an inspiration. She has taken the often broken system of orphanages in Uganda and tried to downsize it so it was more of a family dynamic. This smaller size (13 children currently) allows her to also throw in all her efforts to try to relocate the children she gets on her doorstep, from the police, from the hospital or from finding them abandoned in the bush. Unfortunately if the children are with her past one year typically they will remain there until they go out on their own. This has happened to several of her children ... read more
My sick bed view as I chatted and drank Stoney
My roommate got too drunk to say good-bye in Mbarara
View from my hotel room in Rwanda

Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali November 17th 2017

My visit to Uganda was now at a close. I used today to visit the national museum, and to confirm my plans for the next few weeks. The museum was overrun with school groups, so it was a bit difficult to see what little it had. What I did like was looking at the various types of uniforms they wore, which were so varied. Luckily, I had plenty of time to get to the airport for my flight to Rwanda, as the road is heavily congested. I met one traveler who told me, and showed pictures, that his group left Kampala early enough to catch their flight. However, due to the heavy congestion, they abandoned their van and flagged down boda-bodas (motorcycle taxis) to carry them and their luggage to the airport. With the motorcycles swerving ... read more
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Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali December 5th 2016

It is coming to 12:00am, and we have been climbing up and down of this steep volcano for over 1 and half hours. As we continued with the rest of the group passing through the stinging nettles, the bamboo as well as the mud, my eyes quietly glanced at these beautiful primates. I hurriedly called my friend Tom and then whispered saying there they are……. It was always my pleasure to do something special on my birthday and here I was trekking the mountain gorillas on the day of my birthday. Tom and I wanted to do something special and so chose to visit these unique primates. I became 29 years old today and this has been the most precious gift in my life. Tracking these mountain gorillas has been the most precious gift to me ... read more
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Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali March 22nd 2016

Today was our last day for some of us, as the trip officially ended tomorrow, but I had to leave early so Alison could go on her vacation, and a couple others were in the same boat. Our breakfast at 7, left the hotel by 8 and our drive to Kigali from Musanze was just over 2 hours and we got to the Genocide Museum in a decent amount of time. A very sobering experience and I was looking forward to going while at the same time dreading the after effects of it. I’ve been to a few memorials now, and they are never a positive experience but we as a society can hopefully learn and grow from it and one day somehow, find a way to end all the hatred that is out there. We ... read more
Genocide Museum
Wall of Names
Genocide Museum

Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali February 18th 2016

A few overland trucks stopped by while I was around and I had a good time reminiscing how the long organized tours could be. Other than that there was a few characters that would show up on the regular such as Jean D’Amore. This cat was amazeballs….He was one of the best politician personality types that I have ever met…if that makes sense…he was soooo funny and had something to say in such a correct but funny way that I always laughed and supported whatever weird nonsense he was spouting. LOVED IT. Not only was he a funny man, but finishing up his PhD and running all kinds of charity things and UN work, etc etc etc. This guy also had a flock of turkeys in his city center home as well as a bunch of ... read more

Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali August 1st 2015

Every year many of the VWB interns make a weekend trip to Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda, and this year Brit and I were joined by Sue, Janaya, and Chantara from the LCP program, as well as Anna, for the weekend trip. The genocide occurred in 1994 and since then the country has undergone an incredible transformation making it a night and day difference from Uganda. But before I go into all that let me just talk a bit about the journey to get there using good ol’ Ugandan public transport. Well before you can take the bus, you have to figure which bus to take and get tickets. Back home this would be a simple endeavour but like most things here, it is far more challenging than it needs to be. We start asking ... read more
Mass grave at Nyamata Church
Nyamata Church
Mass grave at Nyamata Church

Africa » Rwanda » Ville de Kigali June 30th 2015

We crossed the border into Uganda 10 days ago and were greeted by a very "friendly" man at Uganda customs who did not like the looks of our $20 bills - we had to pay for our visas in US $ - he told us to go back to Kenya. We persuaded him to take 5 of our finest bills and after the line grew to 10 people he grudgingly accepted. Welcome to Uganda! Our first stop was Jinja, a town famed for housing the source of the Nile River. While the sight of the source was not super impressive, in concept we found it pretty cool. We spent a day getting used to things in Uganda, rode a boda-boda, ate delicious local food and did what we do best - wander aimlessly. We ended up ... read more
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