Tag: Rwanda

Rwandan Mountain Gorillas

Our 5 days in Rwanda have been absolutely glorious. Believe me, I KNOW how extremely fortunate I am to be able to have these amazing experiences and I am so very, very grateful.

We were able to see first hand the difference one person can make when we visited the Ellen DeGeneres Center, which honors the work of Dian Fossey.

Prior to Dian’s arrival in 1966, the mountain gorillas were close to extinction. Thanks to her tireless work and advocacy, which continued until her murder in 1985, these magnificent creatures have been protected.

Sigourney Weaver’s generous donation made it possible for us to view Dian Fossey’s cabin—sorta like Julia Child’s kitchen in the Smithsonian.

The center has fantastic hands on exhibits, a 360 degree theater, and virtual reality.

I’m VERY glad that I had the virtual reality experience AFTER the REAL gorilla trek because the virtual reality trip had a silverback coming right up into my face, and let me tell ya, it was SCARY.

For the ACTUAL trek, I thought I was prepared. I had spent many hours at the YMCA, because I expected to be walking uphill, at a high altitude, for several hours. The weather could have been hot and humid … or cold and damp. It was actually all of the above, and then some.

What I was NOT prepared for were the vines that grabbed my shoes and wouldn’t let go without a fight. This was not a photo of MY foot, but it gives you the idea of what walking along the “trail” was like. (Yes, that was the trail).

Okay so I’ll confess that more than once during our 2 hour trek, I had a “ what the hell was I thinking” moment. It also occurred to me that after we found the gorillas and spent our hour with them, we would have to walk DOWN the exact same way we had come.

Our porters did much more than carry our packs. They also held our hands during particularly treacherous stretches, for which I was especially grateful. There are no hand rails in the jungle, folks! Or bathrooms either.

Would I recommend gorilla trekking? HELL YES! I realize how incredibly fortunate I was to be able to spend an hour watching these majestic creatures in their natural habitat.

We spent the full hour with the “Lucky” Family, so named because their group included twin boys.

There are currently 24 “habituated” families living in Volcanoes National Park. Although there are several more families living on the mountain, the remainder are not used to human contact. It takes about 5 years of gradual exposure before tourists can spend time with them.

Was the experience worth it? You be the judge. How many people get to watch a silverback twerk?

Eventually we met most of the family: here’s one of the moms and her baby,

the twins, doing what brothers tend to do,

If you’d like to see them in action, just hop on over to YouTube.

https://youtu.be/fS1dMFJPgWU

And the adventurous toddler, exploring on her own.

If you think this trek would be too arduous for you, fear not. Rwandans have a solution that a member of our group used. Take a look at this alternative mode of transportation.

Not surprisingly, you pay extra to be carried like royalty, but for a once in a lifetime experience like this, I think it would be well worth the extra money.

My family would not be shocked to learn that I got lost while on the trail. Fortunately, one of my new best friends heard me calling out, and helped me find my way back to the group.

I know. I get lost a whole lot. But come on. Take a look at this trail.

As we were preparing to leave at the end of our hour, the family was also (as the Billy Joel song went) “movin out” .

So what else was memorable?

Seeing women work as porters, trackers, and protectors. Just in case we encountered an angry buffalo or rogue elephant, this beautiful young woman was prepared to guard us,

the gorgeous scenery on our way to the mountain,

returning to our fantastic hotel,

and best of all, being able to share the experience with a wonderful group of people, my new friends.

Next stop, Kenya, where our group will gain an additional member.

Rwanda

I had been dreading the long flight to Rwanda, especially because it departed from Newark after midnight. Surprisingly, it wasn’t too bad. Thanks to zolpidem, I was able to sleep on the plane, despite a whole lotta shakin’ going on.

I would have given myself the “seasoned traveler” award for anticipating that my luggage would be left behind in Istanbul. Upon landing in Kigali, I checked my AirTag and learned my luggage was 2,975 miles from me. So, I wasted no time watching other people’s bags pop out of the chute. Nope. I immediately took myself to the lost luggage desk to complete the necessary paperwork.

My backpack contained one change of clothes, my Jammie’s, chargers and toiletries, plus my credit card, cash and camera. Everything I needed for a couple of days.

Did you notice I said I WOULD have given myself the award? That’s because it got snatched away when I made the rookie mistake of putting a tube of toothpaste (big enough to last the entire trip) in my backpack. The toothpaste, plus my seasoned traveler award, got tossed in a trash bin at Newark Airport.

That AirTag was worth every penny I paid for it. I was able to watch my luggage travel to Lebanon, then Ethiopia, till it eventually showed up in Kigali a day later. Although airport staff had my phone number, email and hotel info, no one ever contacted me. Thanks to my AirTag, I didn’t waste time on the phone making international calls, trying to find someone who could give me information about my bag.

As they say in OAT world, this was a learning and discovery experience. I learned that the airline would not deliver my bag to the hotel. Instead, I had to drag my sorry ass to the airport, and then discover how very tight Rwandan security is. We had to get out of our vehicle, which was thoroughly inspected by people plus a sniffing dog, then once I got to the terminal, I had to go thru security AGAIN and visit 3 different places before my bag and I were joyously reunited. Fortunately, Fred( my hero and our driver) guided me thru the entire process.

The best thing about travel is it gives you perspective. After visiting the Kigali Genocide Memorial, delayed luggage becomes a teeny, tiny, minor irritant.

30 years ago, over the course of 100 days, more than a million Rwandans were murdered. The victims were mostly Tutsi, but Hutus who refused to go along with the killing were also massacred.

Believing that churches were safe havens, many Tutsi sought shelter in the Nyamata Catholic Church. Shamefully, the Catholic priest did nothing to stop the slaughter. The perpetrators threw grenades inside the packed church, then attempted to finish off anyone still alive, with machetes and guns.

Nayamata Churcb is now a UNESCO site and burial place for thousands of victims. Particularly heartbreaking are the coffins for infants and children.

Luckily the attempt to slaughter everyone inside the church was not successful. The stories of those who survived are displayed outside the church to bear witness to what had happened. Here’s a short sample:

As terrible as the massacre was, Rwanda’s story is one of hope for the future.

We visited one of the “reconciliation villages” where perpetrators and survivors now live side by side in harmony. Naturally, it took a considerable amount of time for everyone to heal and to learn to trust one another. The perpetrators had to confess to what they had done, serve their time in prison and ask the survivors for forgiveness.

At the village, both a survivor and a perpetrator told their stories. We learned that those who committed the atrocities had been fed a steady stream of propaganda and misinformation. Agitators whipped up hatred for people who had previously been friends and neighbors.

Janet, one of the survivors with her daughter. Janet was our hostess for lunch at the village.

We have so much to learn from Rwandans, who exhort us to practice ubumuntu.

Perhaps Africans have a huge capacity for forgiveness? I recall Nelson Mandela didn’t seek revenge against his white captors, but urged the nation toward reconciliation.

America is now going thru a very divisive time. Maybe we can learn to speak to each other, listen carefully and exhibit “greatness of heart”.

RWANDA, KENYA & TANZANIA

I have wanted to see gorillas in their natural habitat for decades, ever since I saw the movie about Dian Fosse’s life. If I’m lucky, my dream will soon be coming true.

In a few weeks, I’ll be leaving for five days in Rwanda. This is the pre-trip OAT offers before their main trip to Kenya and Tanzania. The maximum amount of time that any group is allowed to spend with the gorillas is one hour. But that’s not guaranteed. If the gorillas become agitated, they could retreat into the bush before the hour elapses.

According to the documentation that I received from OAT, there are eight of us on the pre-trip. A ninth traveler will be joining us in Nairobi at the start of the main trip, so it’s a nice small group, composed of two couples and four women traveling solo. At least that’s what I’m guessing, from last names and geographic areas.

I have to tell you, getting to and from that part of Africa is not easy. My flight from Newark to Kigali leaves after midnight, stops for about an hour in Istanbul, and doesn’t arrive in Kigali until 1 AM the following day.

Okay, confession time. I screwed up. Originally I booked a one night early arrival into Kigali. When I got my flight information and saw I was landing the next day, I canceled the early arrival. It took me a while to realize that I HAD to book that early arrival, otherwise I’d be sitting in the lobby from around 1 AM until a room for that day was available. Not fun. By the time I figured this out, it was less than 90 days before departure, so I called OAT to rebook that room. That’s when I learned that OAT doesn’t allow changes within the 90 days before departure. Internet to the rescue. I booked directly with the hotel. They are going to keep me in the SAME room that I would get with OAT (which happens to be an upgraded room, at no additional cost), AND they are meeting me at the airport and transporting me to the hotel at no additional charge. I love it when my stupidity actually turns into a good thing.

For the return trip, I will be flying out of Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, leaving at 2:30 AM, and arriving in Istanbul around noon. Because I’m hoping to sleep on the plane for BOTH flights, I decided to fly business class with Turkish Air. The OAT flight department was able to find me a reasonably priced flight as long as I stayed two nights in Istanbul. Such a deal!

While in Africa, we will be flying in small planes, so OAT supplied us with duffles, specially constructed to ensure that everyone’s luggage can fit onto the plane.  When Mike and I went on OAT’s Ultimate Africa trip in 2014, we received similar duffels, which I decorated with sharpies, including–much to his surprise– Mike’s.  After the trip, I gifted my duffel to my sister, Sandy, so new project!

The decorations made it easy to spot our bags, which was very helpful, because other OAT trips were leaving from the same hotel. Not only were we able to differentiate our bags from others in the trip, we were also able to make sure OUR bags were on the RIGHT trip!

Yes, I know it looks like the bag was decorated by a not very talented six year old. But you have to admit, no one else will have a duffle that even REMOTELY looks anything like this.

OAT’s documentation included confirmation of the hotels and lodges, so I checked them out on line. I couldn’t believe that almost all accommodations have swimming pools, so I added a bathing suit to my packing list.

I am beyond excited about this trip! I hope you’ll travel vicariously with me. The next post will be from Africa. The map at the top of this post shows where we will be visiting.