Transafrica 2018 STOP 6

May 8, 2018

Bujumbura – Kigali

Flight distance: 96 nm
Hours in the air: 0.55

The Switzerland of Africa

We did regret a bit the ultra short stay in Bujumbura getting up Monday morning, yet little did we know what was to come. To cut a long and painful story short, we were stuck for 8 hours at the airport until we finally made the short hop to Kigali. There was a major hick-up between our handler in Kigali and the Rwandan aviation authority which meant for us not getting the permit to fly. After 6 hours Rainer lost patience and brought his connections into play. All the sudden there was movement within minutes which resulted for us in getting the green light 90 minutes later.

At that point we still had our short flight and then a 3 hour transfer to our lodge in front of us. We arrived at 10 o’clock at night, had a short dinner and went to bed around midnight.

Facts & figures

The next morning, our friend Beat had joined us in the meantime, was one of the highlights of this trip: going to see the mountain gorillas. We had perfect conditions. A short walk brought us to our “Agashya – Group”, the largest one close by. I believe the photos speak for themselves, yet they can not convey the experience being so close to these amazing creatures! The rest of the day was finally leisure time to digest the last few days and tank more energy for what’s still ahead.

The last day in Rwanda was another welcomed day off for our pilots. We made our way down from the Volcanoes N.P. back to Kigali. This 3 hours day-time drive gave us a good sample of todays Rwanda.

We visited the sites remembering the Genocide from 1994. It’s almost a wonder how this nation has dealt and evolved from those dark days. All in all, Rwanda and Kigali, 25 years ago with almost no paved streets, is a clean and organized country of lush green fields and friendly people.

Source: wikipedia.org / nationsonline.org