Rwanda 12 - 31 May
post by scott and allana
Kigali city centre
We landed at Kigalis' small airport and walked across the tarmac... WE'VE ARRIVED!!!!!!!!!!!!! We were now officially in the land of the great mountain gorilla. As we walked out the doors of Kigali airport we were amazed-- where was all the dirt, grime and pollution one expects when arriving in a developing country? The aggressive touts and taxi drivers? There was none of this. It was quiet, clean and green. No one hassled us, it was such a pleasant relief.
Rwanda is the land of a thousand hills. The place where genocide occurred during our lifetime. This history is all pervasive, but Rwanda is a country with great promise and hope looking to the future. We learned quickly that the Hutu/ Tutsi question is strictly taboo. Now, everyone is Rwandan. Importantly for us Rwanda is also home to some of the few remaining mountain gorillas who live on a string of dormant volcanoes which border the Congo and Uganda. The gorillas are what attracted us here, but after a short time in the country we've already realised that it will not only be the gorillas we remember fondly.
Rwanda is the land of a thousand hills. The place where genocide occurred during our lifetime. This history is all pervasive, but Rwanda is a country with great promise and hope looking to the future. We learned quickly that the Hutu/ Tutsi question is strictly taboo. Now, everyone is Rwandan. Importantly for us Rwanda is also home to some of the few remaining mountain gorillas who live on a string of dormant volcanoes which border the Congo and Uganda. The gorillas are what attracted us here, but after a short time in the country we've already realised that it will not only be the gorillas we remember fondly.
kigali
Our little patio at Hotel Step Town
Weary from the 30 hour trip from Chile we were grateful to see the wide smile of John our hotel manager at the airport. We drove across the city to his "Step Town" hotel perched on the side of the hill which Kigali CBD sits atop. We were amazed that despite being a 5 minute walk from the city centre high rise (there is only one), the roads were dirt, there was hardly any traffic, and it was so quiet! Kigali is home to a little over 1 million of Rwandas' 11 million inhabitants, but the city is spread over many green hills and valleys, allowing for a quiet, peaceful vibe. It is also now one of the safest places in Africa - kind of strange given that all we knew about Rwanda was what we saw on the news in the mid 1990s. We could walk around after dark wherever we wanted, whether it was through town or down the small dirt roads in the backstreets. We found that the majority of Rwandans are softly-spoken, gentle, extremely polite and very welcoming. Immediately we found ourselves charmed by them and their clean little capital city.
The vast majority of Rwandans are subsistence farmers. You can see why - the soil here is incredible... Rich volcanic earth has allowed people to grow crops in every corner of the country, with subsequent steady population growth to the point where each square kilometre has around 300 or more people crammed in - the highest population density in Africa (However each family only has a 70x70m block of land to farm on average). Over the next few weeks as we drove around the country, we were continually amazed at how people were simply everywhere-- there was no "empty land" as you see in Australia. The entire country is covered by small family farm plots.There are only three National Parks in Rwanda and due to recent history all have been regazetted to provide extra land for
refugees. Farm plots reach the very boarder of the parks and unfortunately encroachment of people and farms into the parks has
decimated the wildlife. Elephants, rhinos and lions (among others) have been wiped out in the past few decades.
Although the wildlife conservation track record in Rwanda has not been fantastic the country surprised us with other green initiatives. For example, plastic bags are completely banned in Rwanda! This is enforced to the point that you are searched when you arrive in the country, and when police have plastic bag crackdowns even buses are pulled over at boarder points and passengers (both locals and foreigners) have their bags searched! Also the entire population, including much-loved president Paul Kagame, participates in 'Clean Up Rwanda Day' on the last Saturday of every month. Between the hours of 8am - 11am the entire country heads to the streets and collects every last bit of rubbish. This too is enforced by police! We were fortunate enough to witness this community clean up while we were there, but the streets around our hotel were already so clean locals just swept little rocks and dust off the dirt road!! Others used the time to tend to their gardens. No wonder we had noticed immediately how clean the place was!
refugees. Farm plots reach the very boarder of the parks and unfortunately encroachment of people and farms into the parks has
decimated the wildlife. Elephants, rhinos and lions (among others) have been wiped out in the past few decades.
Although the wildlife conservation track record in Rwanda has not been fantastic the country surprised us with other green initiatives. For example, plastic bags are completely banned in Rwanda! This is enforced to the point that you are searched when you arrive in the country, and when police have plastic bag crackdowns even buses are pulled over at boarder points and passengers (both locals and foreigners) have their bags searched! Also the entire population, including much-loved president Paul Kagame, participates in 'Clean Up Rwanda Day' on the last Saturday of every month. Between the hours of 8am - 11am the entire country heads to the streets and collects every last bit of rubbish. This too is enforced by police! We were fortunate enough to witness this community clean up while we were there, but the streets around our hotel were already so clean locals just swept little rocks and dust off the dirt road!! Others used the time to tend to their gardens. No wonder we had noticed immediately how clean the place was!
genocide memorial
After a few days settling into Kigali and seeing the sights around town,
we knew it was time for us to visit the National Genocide Memorial. The memorial is a "must do" for visitors to Kigali but it's not easy. As you walk through the rooms there are panels of chronological information interspersed with horrific displays. Even spending hours here reading about the hard facts, it is almost impossible to comprehend the atrocities that occurred. The devastation was total, not a single Rwandan escaped direct physical or psychological terror. We were just kids when all this happened in 1994 and only vaguely remember it being portrayed on the news; more or less that two African tribes were killing each other. The reality is so much more.
This was a calculated, thoroughly planned, rehearsed, systematic genocide of Tutsis by the government of the day. The government did not attempt to hide what it was planning. They had been importing tons of machetes from China for 12 months prior, stock piling weapons around the country and building Hutu citizens into a blind frenzy through government controlled hate-fueled mass media. It was also with disbelief that we read prior to colonial rule by Belgium, Hutus and Tutsis had lived amicably and even intermarried. In fact the titles were fairly arbitrary, with Hutus able to become Tutsi and vice versa. But in 1932 Belgium brought in identity cards, and, seemingly similar to the yellow stars forced on Jews, this was the beginning of the horror. Within the memorial building we found
one of the most confronting things to be a large central, circular room, where thousands of photographs of victims had been pinned up by surviving family or friends. Worst of all was knowing this was just a tiny fraction of the people killed. Most victims will never have their photos put up because there is no one left to do it. Entire families, generations, were wiped out in 100 days of madness.
we knew it was time for us to visit the National Genocide Memorial. The memorial is a "must do" for visitors to Kigali but it's not easy. As you walk through the rooms there are panels of chronological information interspersed with horrific displays. Even spending hours here reading about the hard facts, it is almost impossible to comprehend the atrocities that occurred. The devastation was total, not a single Rwandan escaped direct physical or psychological terror. We were just kids when all this happened in 1994 and only vaguely remember it being portrayed on the news; more or less that two African tribes were killing each other. The reality is so much more.
This was a calculated, thoroughly planned, rehearsed, systematic genocide of Tutsis by the government of the day. The government did not attempt to hide what it was planning. They had been importing tons of machetes from China for 12 months prior, stock piling weapons around the country and building Hutu citizens into a blind frenzy through government controlled hate-fueled mass media. It was also with disbelief that we read prior to colonial rule by Belgium, Hutus and Tutsis had lived amicably and even intermarried. In fact the titles were fairly arbitrary, with Hutus able to become Tutsi and vice versa. But in 1932 Belgium brought in identity cards, and, seemingly similar to the yellow stars forced on Jews, this was the beginning of the horror. Within the memorial building we found
one of the most confronting things to be a large central, circular room, where thousands of photographs of victims had been pinned up by surviving family or friends. Worst of all was knowing this was just a tiny fraction of the people killed. Most victims will never have their photos put up because there is no one left to do it. Entire families, generations, were wiped out in 100 days of madness.
Upstairs there was a room dedicated to children and babies of the genocide. Large photographs on the wall stood above some information about the child, including favourite food, best friend, and tragically, last words and cause of death.
Outside the memorial is a garden which houses multiple huge cement slabs which are the resting place of a mind-boggling 250,000 people killed in the genocide. We bought a rose to lay on the cement, but the act was so futile we felt pathetic. We just stood there looking at the cement slabs and out to the new Kigali beyond.
Outside the memorial is a garden which houses multiple huge cement slabs which are the resting place of a mind-boggling 250,000 people killed in the genocide. We bought a rose to lay on the cement, but the act was so futile we felt pathetic. We just stood there looking at the cement slabs and out to the new Kigali beyond.
As the sun faded behind the hills we walked the 2km back into town and ended the night with a drink at the famous "Hotel Rwanda" -
Hotel Des Mille Collines, where the brave interim manager sheltered hundred of Tutsis from slaughter in 1994. It is probably the most
upmarket hotel in town with a mixed patronage of affluent Africans and westerners at the poolside bar. As we sat there at the fancy bar drinking cold draft beer, it was difficult to think about the hope and tragedy that unfolded here. We had been numb after the memorial, and unable to talk much. But as the night wore on we started to discuss what we had learned, and as things properly sunk in our emotions caught up with us. A fantastic local band by the pool was competing with the even more beautiful harmonies of a wedding party on the top floor, who were singing their hearts out. Listening to this music we were incredibly moved by Rwanda. This tiny country has been through actual hell on earth. But they are here now, singing, living, beaming "you are so welcome!" to us on the streets, and we feel that we are witnessing the true indomitable spirit of humanity right here.
(NB, some very good books we have been reading to help get our heads around what happened are; 'We Wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families' by Philip Gourevitch and also, 'Shake Hands with the Devil' by Romeo Dallaire. Both highly recommended.)
Hotel Des Mille Collines, where the brave interim manager sheltered hundred of Tutsis from slaughter in 1994. It is probably the most
upmarket hotel in town with a mixed patronage of affluent Africans and westerners at the poolside bar. As we sat there at the fancy bar drinking cold draft beer, it was difficult to think about the hope and tragedy that unfolded here. We had been numb after the memorial, and unable to talk much. But as the night wore on we started to discuss what we had learned, and as things properly sunk in our emotions caught up with us. A fantastic local band by the pool was competing with the even more beautiful harmonies of a wedding party on the top floor, who were singing their hearts out. Listening to this music we were incredibly moved by Rwanda. This tiny country has been through actual hell on earth. But they are here now, singing, living, beaming "you are so welcome!" to us on the streets, and we feel that we are witnessing the true indomitable spirit of humanity right here.
(NB, some very good books we have been reading to help get our heads around what happened are; 'We Wish to inform you that tomorrow we will be killed with our families' by Philip Gourevitch and also, 'Shake Hands with the Devil' by Romeo Dallaire. Both highly recommended.)