The car was speeding on a twisting road that cuts through the green of the hills around Lake Bunyonyi. On the side of the road, some baboons were chilling and the driver stopped so I could get a closer look. This wouldn’t have happened if I were traveling by bus, but happily, there were no […]
Tag: Africa
Planning: gorillas and lava lake in Virunga, Congo
While not for the average holidaymaker, the former Zaire is home to two of the most incredible experiences an adventure traveler can ever dream of: getting up close and personal with critically endangered gorillas looking into the soul of the Earth at the largest lava lake in the world. Both activities are in the southern sector of […]
The largest lava lake on Earth
Ever since I visited Ethiopia but skipped Erta Ale, the thought of seeing a lava lake made for itself a permanent home in my head. Then I found out that the biggest lava lake in the world is at the top of Nyiragongo volcano, just a few hours walk from the mountain gorillas in D.R. […]
The mountain gorillas of Virunga, Congo
We’ve been walking for a bit over an hour and the armed rangers tell us we’re close. We stop to put on our disposable face masks: we need to keep the germs to ourselves. Again I check that the camera settings are correct and off we go. Two minutes later, my heart stops: there he […]
Rwanda then and now. The rebirth after the Genocide
I met Donatella on a minibus going from Gisenyi to Ruhengeri. She works ‘with the schools’ in a church-led program and she’s from the French-educated generations*. I congratulated her for how clean and organized everything was in Rwanda. My praise was heartfelt and honest and I could see the pride in her eyes when receiving […]