Gorillas, Chimps and Monkeys OH MY!

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Rwanda - we have come up with one word to explain this beautiful country: Complicated. Rwanda is the land of a thousand hills, the land of endangered mountain gorillas, the land of endangered chimpanzees, the land of 12 million people sustenance farming on a land mass less than half the size of Nova Scotia, the land of a genocide that killed a million people in 90 days, exactly 19 years ago. Where were you in April, May and June of 1994? Rwanda is the land of government intervention - new roads, medical clinics and schools mostly built from foreign aid dropped here out of guilt for international omission to help during the genocide. The air feels heavy here - heavy with such tragedy in the communal soul of a country, heavy with such rapid change, heavy with oppression happening just outside of two of their borders. It complicated.

We had a truly amazing time tracking wild mountain gorillas and chimpanzees. it was a once in a lifetime experience, and if we all experienced the presence of our closest living relatives or the presence of a silverback playing poppa to rambunctious teenage gorillas, i truly believe we would conserve, respect and cherish our natural world. I will let the pictures tell you the story. And we also have videos!!!! But we can't post them until we get home....

love liz and steve

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Photos

Peek a boo!
(Chimp saying a shy hello)

Comments

[Jennifer]

How fascinating!

[Alanna]

Unreal!!!
I can't believe these photos! And the pic of the grave markers made me get a little somethin' in my eye.

[Liz and Steve]

i still can't believe we were that close to wild gorillas!
...we we are very glad we spent a day to hike to Dian Fossey too....