August 3 – 9
Hi All,
We decided to stay at a hotel on 8/3 near SFO as we were concerned about taking Uber early morning on the 4th. We had an 8:30am United flight on 8/4 necessitating getting to SFO by 6:30ish which meant a 5am time to leave the Brentwood house. There is a scarcity of Uber drivers in Brentwood due to Covid. We learned from our Uber driver that you can now schedule a ride early morning and a driver can accept the day before. Then you know you have a driver. Our driver Ron said he would be glad to take any early morning rides in the future….good to know!!
We had a nice dinner and a good night’s sleep and were up early to take the shuttle to SFO. We had no issues at SFO with all the Covid protocols as we had gotten our negative RT-PCR Covid test results the day before. We had plenty of time for our traditional Bloody Mary to start opening ceremonies at the United lounge!! The flight schedule was not the best…..Dulles, Brussels, then Kigali, Rwanda….got in ~7pm Rwanda time (hotel ~9pm), which is +9 hours from California time….all in, a 30 hour trip door to door. At the Kigali airport we had our 2nd Covid test….a nice sort of gentle swab of the throat. After the Covid test and clearing all the officialdom stuff we were met by Erik our Nat Hab guide for the next 5 days. Erik took us through deserted streets to our hotel, Kigali Serena Hotel. There was a strictly enforced Covid curfew from 6pm to 4am….whoa!!
We were strictly quarantined in our room until the next day when our Covid test results would be available…darn, had to order room service:)) Supposedly, we could view our Covid test results online the next morning via a link they had given us at the airport. Well, a good example of “technology is your friend, NOT”….Kathy got hers but my link kept saying error. A quick WhatsApp text to Erik and an hour later he had the result….the technician the night before had entered the wrong #…ugh!!! By getting our negative results early in the morning, we had time to go to the Genocide Memorial. If you saw the movie Hotel Rwanda then you may remember this horrible tragedy. Erik actually drove us by the hotel, Des Mille Collines, which is still operating as a 5-star hotel. Paul Rusesabagina, the hero hotel manager, appeared once again in the history of Mont Rochelle, the Vineyard hotel we stayed at in Francshhoek South Africa….I will recall that story in the Cape Town blog!!
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26875506
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rwandan_genocide
The Genocide Memorial was well done with an introductory video, and then a self-guided tour with many pictures, videos and a tour of the gardens and the mass graves holding ~250k people. History has been able to trace some of the roots of these racial issues some 20-30 years back, with many European countries (mainly Belgium and France) contributing to keeping the powerful/wealthy amongst the few. The manner in which the media was controlled by the genocidal power was astonishing and in ways brainwashed the masses for years. And, the International response was non-existent. The subsequent wars in neighboring countries continued for another 10 years or so. All in, some 1 million people died in Rwanda, another 1 million displaced, out of 7 million people in 1994.
It was a sobering way to start our adventure. But, quite necessary in order to understand modern day Rwanda. Today, Rwanda has one of the fastest growing economies in Africa with 13 million people. Since the end of the genocide, Rwanda has received extensive foreign aid, with nearly 50 percent of its 2019/20 budget coming from domestic and foreign borrowing/grants. We found the country very clean and the people very friendly and talkative!!! Any ethnicity abuse/racial talk is illegal and strictly enforced.
After lunch we took the 3 hour drive to our hotel. “Situated ideally near Volcanoes National Park, Five Volcanoes Boutique Hotel is an ideal base for viewing the critically endangered eastern mountain gorillas. Rwanda is home to approximately one-third of these majestic creatures, with an overall estimated population of 1,004 individuals ranging between Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Embark with highly attuned gorilla-trekking guides, hiking into the lush, montane forest with a group no larger than six travelers. Vegetation can vary from tall bamboo forest to thick bushes and stinging nettles. The hike can last anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours, as you trek to where trackers have already located the gorilla family that you will visit. Upon first-sight of the gorilla family, you will have an hour with these majestic primates, it is often the most poignant wildlife experience of one’s life.”
We found the Hotel to be…3-star for accommodations (a bit dated), 4-star for the food, and 5-star for the staff….3 big wow’s for the staff….very friendly, accommodating, always ready to chat about Rwanda and always had a fire ready for us when we had cocktails!!! The breakfast was a buffet, but dinners were close to gourmet!! Each day before trekking, the staff carefully fitted us with long gaiters to protect us from the underbrush and various thorns. After the trek they carefully took them off as well as our dirty shoes, then gave us a brief foot massage. Later that night our clean shoes were returned!!!
Here was our briefing for the gorilla trekking: “Awake early to be at the park headquarters at approximately 7:00am for a briefing and to meet your gorilla trekking guides and fellow trekkers. Enjoy a bit of coffee or take a peak inside the headquarters at some maps of the area. Once your group has been briefed, you will head out to begin your trek! Depending on the gorilla family you are visiting and what mountain they are on that day, your hike will begin from different points, and most groups will have to drive to the starting point of their trek. Meet your gorilla trekking porter, and head off in the direction of the gorillas! The scenery can be quite beautiful on your walk, with local farms and villages all around. Once you get into the forest, the vegetation can vary greatly from tall bamboo forest to thick, bushy vegetation and stinging nettles. Your gorilla guides and porters will assist you up the mountain, communicating with trackers who are typically already on the mountain having located the gorilla family. Once you reach them, you will leave your daypack with your porter, leaving any food items behind, and take only your camera up to where the gorillas are (remember, no flash photography, please!). Enjoy one hour with these magnificent creatures! Your trek can take as little as 30 minutes to reach the gorilla family or as long as several hours, depending on their location on the mountain.”
https://www.volcanoesparkrwanda.org/
The Volcano Park ad Rwanda government have done an outstanding job of collaborating/partnering with the local villages. Each family and village now is paid part of the Park revenues to help guard and protect the gorillas. The Park has built a stone wall to try and keep the gorillas out of the farmers crops. The farmers stand watch as well….kids in the day and adults at night. This partnership is mainly responsible for the gorilla population on the rise, with some estimates maybe close to 1500, up almost 50% since the last count done 5 years ago.
Well….we were assessed to be in the “senior” group….meaning easy hiking…..hmmmm. We did the gorilla trek two consecutive days to better our chances of seeing the gorillas….not cheap….each day’s permit was $1500pp…yikes!! For both days, when we got to the starting point the guide said, he has good news and not so good news….the good news is we found the gorillas, the challenging news is they have moved considerably up the mountain, so get your big boy and girl pants on, we are in for a hike….gulp!!! The first day we did 5 miles total and 1400′ vertical up/down(start at 7800′ so for us sea level boat people we were definitely sucking wind:(((. It took us about 2.5 hours to go up and 1.5 hours to come down…toal 5 hours with the 1 hour gorilla viewing!! The 2nd day we did 8 miles total, 2000′ vertical up/down and took 3.5 hours to go up and 2.5 hours to come down…yikes!!!! We did have porters assigned to us which carried our packs as well as lent us a hand to help pull us up on the steep parts. And it is a rainforest with no clear paths (the guides were hacking their way through the brush with machetes) and it had rained the previous nights so it was quite slippery and wet….let’s just say our backsides got a Tide challenge:))) We had 5 people total the 1st day and 6 total the 2nd day. The Park has 20 gorilla families they observe. 12 at any time are for the human viewings, 4 for research and 4 on a break. I’d say the Park was about 60-75% full both days.
Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow…..yep, 5 Big Wows for the gorilla viewings. Similar in some ways to the Orangutans in Borneo except instead of viewing platforms where the Orangutans came to eat, these mountain Gorillas are in their habitat and had to be found. The 1st day we got there around 10am and the family was still active. We observed the Kigama family, 2 silver females with 20 family members. In fact 2 juveniles were playing with sticks and one came by me and the guide, Enrique, smacked me in the shin and then reached out and tagged Enrique….Enrique was laughing but I was somewhat concerned (no, not screaming like a girl this time:))) until he quickly explained this was male juvenile play….like tag….oh, I get it, except to see these large and powerful animals running at you….well, ok…..maybe not right at me but pretty darn close….it was spooky the first time. The 2nd day we observed the Kwitando family, with a Silverback male, maybe 300-350-lbs, ~7-8 years old. The troop had 19 members, the 2nd largest. We got there late morning and the family was pretty much down for a nap except the youngsters….oh what a treat….so human like in facial expressions/emotions and both males and females scolding/playing/grooming these youngsters.
After the 2nd day of gorilla trekking we had our 3rd Covid test. This time a nurse came to the Hotel, did a quick throat swab and we were done. We had the tests the next day!!!
The 3rd day we followed the same routine….yep, get up @ 5:30am, full on breakfast by 6:00am and out by 6:30-6:45am….joy, NOT….but instead of gorilla trekking we went to see the Golden Monkeys!!! “These endangered monkeys are active characters that live among bamboo vegetation near the foot of the volcanoes. Currently there are just two habituated golden monkey groups, each with approximately 80 members. A golden monkey trek operates similarly to the early morning gorilla treks. Groups are limited to eight travelers, and once you meet up with the golden monkeys, you will have one hour to spend with them!!”
It was a much easier and flatter hike….maybe 4-5 miles total….but after 15 minutes of excellent viewing, it downpoured buckets of rain….yuck….we did have raincoats but still got pretty soaked/cold. After about 30 minutes under a tree it let up somewhat for some decent viewing but when the guide said anyone want to go back, most of us gladly started our way back!!
After the Golden Monkeys we then did the 3 hour drive back to Kigali airport where we caught the 2 hour, 5:15pm flight to Nairobi, Kenya. Most of that drive was spent discussing the events of the gorilla and monkey treks as well as Erik’s personal experience in the Genocide 100 days. He was in his early 20’s and volunteered with the Red Cross. His family lived ~100 miles from Kigali and several members of his immediate family were slaughtered. The International/UN sponsored Gacaca Courts certainly went a long way to promoting reconciliation and forgiveness. “For a decade until 2012, 12,000 gacaca courts met once a week in villages across the country, often outdoors in a marketplace or under a tree, trying more than 1.2 million cases. Their aim was to achieve truth, justice and reconciliation among Rwandans as “gacaca” means to sit down and discuss an issue.” Erik said it indeed worked, to hear from the person who did the killing tell how and why he did it, where the bodies were buried and ask for forgiveness was powerful and helped so many people forgive.
Both Kathy and I highly recommend this adventure. Yep, it was physically challenging at times, but the rewards far outstripped the pain (just take plenty of Advil and a few wee drams:)))
The Plan: Up next is the Kenya Massai Mara Great Migration and Nairobi National Park….but it will take some days to sort out all the pictures/videos!!!
Hope all is well!
John
PS: Pictures at: http://mysticmoonvoyages.com/photo-gallery/nggallery/main-album/african-safari-leg-1-rwanda-and-the-mountain-gorillas
