After returning from Jackie's childhood home and 'the tree', we went to the market so I could buy some extra food for everyone, knowing they were unable to feed us all. We made a typical dinner and what I remember most is that it was quite challenging and labour intensive cooking for so many people over only two charcoal fires (all the drinking water also has to be boiled over these charcoals too).
While I was outside cutting vegetables for dinner, James came to ask if a few of them could watch a movie on my laptop. I set it up for them inside and went back to continue with dinner. To my amusement, I came in later and found young and old crowded onto a little couch and the floor watching Pirates of the Caribbean on my 13 inch screen. I realized that this is such a novelty for them - they don’t have a tv, there are no movie theaters. Maybe they are able to watch with friends who have televisions once in a while. I’m glad they can enjoy it!
So the plan for Saturday was to go to Akagera National Park - about an hour and a half drive from Mutara. The best time to view the animals is in the early morning before the scorching midday sun signals retreat to the shade, so considering all of this, our morning was going to start very early. I encouraged everyone to get to bed early but the kids were too excited to sleep. And, as luck would have it, I was sharing one of the smaller bedrooms with them. Nine or ten of us sharing three foam mattresses did not make for a restful night...
Morning came all too quickly, but the excitement got me up and moving. We were on the road a bit behind schedule and had to stop for fuel and some breakfast food & lunch food. As we drove the narrow road towards the park gates, the sun made its beautiful entrance in a swath of orange across the savannah sky.
After an hour or two of driving and viewing, we came to a different part of the park. The acacia trees and green shrubs gave way to a wide open space scattered with grazing animals and watering holes. This open plain was ringed with hills and just stunning!
We were able to drive right through the middle of the plain towards the far hills where the buffalo hang out. We found an entire heard grazing and stopped a fair distance from these crazy (and dangerous!) animals, staying in the vehicle as we observed them. They are massive and intimidating, yet peaceful. They move slowly, letting little white birds rest on their horns while they eat the grasses. Suddenly, the birds shot into the air and the entire heard scattered into the nearby brush, gone in an instant. I'm not sure if we scared them off, but they stayed hidden for the rest of the day.
Our final quest was to find some giraffe and hope for any other sightings. It takes a lot of luck to see a leopard, lion, rhino or other 'big five' animals in Akagera. The park was devastated in 1994 during the genocide with the rebel movement coming though, general lawlessness, and poaching. Some of the original park land was also taken from the park and settled by people re-patriated afterward. There are plans to return it to its former glory in the next decade or two.
We headed back toward the park gate on the suspicion that some giraffes would be in that area. The dirt roads were incredibly bumpy and hard on the brakes... and then, yep, our brakes were gone! James managed to navigate us back to the gate, about an hour away, and arranged for a dude on a motorbike to bring us the part we needed from town. We had some lunch (PB & banana on bread) while we waited and hung around for a couple hours while James fixed the vehicle. We left for Mutara mid afternoon, SUV fixed, giraffes on the list for my next safari, and very thankful for what we experienced.
That afternoon and evening, after arriving back in Mutara, we were invited to visit Monica's family on their ranch near the Ugandan border. They welcomed us wholeheartedly and invited us in. There were a lot of people living there, extended family included, and I didn't meet all of them. Most don't speak any English, but were quite intrigued by the 'white girl'.
After sitting around (admittedly bored) listening to their Kinyarwanda for a bit, Jackie grabbed my arm and took me from the house to a traditional hut out back. It's a place they use for hanging out and is clean and well kept. We sat in the hut with some of Monica's family and were fed a meal of beef and rice. It was delicious and I definitely ate until I was over-full (I haven't had beef like that since leaving South Africa). The ladies sitting with us in the hut were so curious about me, it seemed as if they have only seen muzungus (caucasians) from afar. Jackie could hardly eat she was laughing so hard at what they were saying about me in their language. She tells me they are amazed at my colour, my hair, my skin, everything! They even had to touch my skin and wanted to see my hair witout a hat - to which Jackie was thoroughly amused! It's quite funny thinking about how I appear to someone who has grown up in a pretty homogenous culture. These are grown women who were giggling with utter disbelief!
picture with the intrigued women
Later on we are offered milk from their cows from carved wooden containers. This is a very traditional thing, Jackie says. They milk their cows, boil the milk, and then store it for days and weeks inside these wooden containers (no fridge!). The smell of the milk inside the wooden jug just did not sit well with me, so I politely declined to drink some (maybe not clean enough for me anyway). Jackie felt obligated to drink some and ended up sick all night long. Very glad I averted that.
We visited one of Jackie's aunts later that same evening, sitiing with her and her children in their basic mud home. She was very gracious and kind but had nothing to serve us when we came (not that I minded, it just showed how impoverished she was). A tragic situation. There was a single LED bulb hanging from the ceiling of the place, casting a dim blue in the dark hut. She sat on the dirt floor with her kids as we sat on the few chairs they had while visiting. It didn't feel right to take pictures, although I wish I could share some with you now. We didn't stay for long and thanked them so much as we left.
The next morning we packed up and drove home, actually leaving later than planned so that the sunset danced by as we neared Kigali. Sylvan was waiting for us as we pulled into the driveway - he has missed us terribly! It was really amazing to go and was nice to be back again.
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