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Discover Rwanda
Perhaps short of vocabulary, one foreigner described
Rwanda as, The Switzerland of Africa, �The Land of a Thousand
Hills�, another �the land of a thousand smiles� and yet the
local people talk of Rwanda �Nziza�, beautiful Rwanda.
This goes to show how difficult it is to ascribe any
human definition for the splendors of this great land of
uniquely beautiful landscape. A home to the renowned warriors of
the past, colourful dancers, a beautiful people of infinite
hospitality.
Welcome to the land that beckoned to great explorers,
scientists and conservationists, who spellbound by the beauty of
the land left a lot undiscovered for the benefit of the future
generations.
There is something fascinating about
Rwanda, which I
cannot tell you.
Discover it for yourself.
Gorilla Tracking Safaris
Providing sanctuary to the last remaining population of wild mountain
gorillas, Rwanda is an exciting destination synonymous with
gorilla tracking and trekking safaris.
Gorilla tracking in
Rwanda takes place in
Volcanoes National Park (Parc des Volcans).
Gorilla tracking is a million dollar practice with immense
economic benefits to the local community, without which the
mountain gorilla conservation would be a liability. This daily
adventure has made the mountain gorilla one of the most
expensive animals though not in league of the teddy bears.
Gorilla
trekking is a
clean practice (eco friendly) which ensures minimal impact to the
local community, the environment and the gorillas.
Gorilla Trekking Rules and
regulations have been put in place for the safety of the
trackers, the gorillas and to check adverse environmental
impacts. Besides these
rules and regulations guarantees the
continued existence of the gorilla as species, that is to avoid
the extinction of the gorillas.
Encounter with the
Gorillas has been described as thrilling, evocative and even
emotional. The gigantic silver-backs are gentle and will
rarely attach unless provoked. Young gorillas are a bit
adventurous even playful and will come to touching distance of
individual trackers. They are particularly attracted to bright
colours like yellow. In that case avoid them.
Equally unique is the
Nyungwe forest
National Park. A primate�s nirvana with 13-recorded species of
primates including the chimpanzees, Nyungwe is equally of great
significant to the explorers as it hosts the source of
the river Nile which eluded great explorers like Richard Burton,
John Speke, James Barker and a host of others.
Thus a discovery tour of Nyungwe forest is a very
rewarding experience. Besides tracking the chimpanzees
and the other primates, it gives one a rare opportunity to trace
the footsteps of the early explorers in search of the elusive
source of the river Nile.
Unlike Richard Burtons and John spekes of the
earlier days who missed it, you will definitely discover it and
thanks to Rwanda�s conservation effort, the source of the Nile
is exactly the way it was when it was finally �discovered� in
1898. In addition
the forest is a nature lovers paradise with 275 species of
birds, 260 species of trees, over 100 species of orchids and 125
species of butterflies.
Great is the wildlife experience of
Akagera National
park.
Elephants, buffaloes, zebras, lions roam the plains while huge
crocodiles and hippos rule the river sides, lakes and ponds.
Birding in Akagera is equally great with over 425 species
recorded.
Besides with three great apes- man, gorillas and chimpanzees,
Rwanda is definitely ideal place for those searching for the
missing evolutionary link.
Rwanda is full of hard adventure. The peaks of Virunga
mountains, beckons to mountain climbers.
The ascent of the Karisimbi volcano (4507M) takes
two days while
Bisoke (3711) climb take one day.
The hilly nature of the country with numerous observation
points is ideal for hiking and trekking while protruding
rocky outcrops offer great opportunities for rock climbing.
Camping opportunities exists in the wilds of
Akagera and
Nyungwe forest.
Equally fascinating is boating in Akagera in close
vicinity of grunting hippopotamus and wide mouthed crocodiles.
The twists and turns of this country�s road are a great
challenge to any motor sport enthusiast.
The mountain gorilla rally held every August is a
test of the endurance to both the machine and the crew.
The presence of many lakes makes Rwanda ideal for funs of
water sports.
Currently one can engage in canoeing and swimming.
For those who fear open water, swimming is
available in some of the hotels and lodges.
Boat tours can be easily arranged in Lake Kivu and
Muhazi.
With over 740 species of birds recorded, Rwanda is a
bird watchers paradise, of unrivalled repute.
Conference and business tourism is well catered for.
A majority of the tourists and business hotels have the capacity
to cater for large conferences and business meetings.
While some feature sophisticated conference facilities,
complete with Internet, faxing, interpretation and translation
options, others have simple business centres with only Internet
and telephone facilities.
Too much meetings or sightseeing without refreshments is not
ideal for anyone. In Kigali, there are restaurants specializing
in international cuisine like India
Kigali has numerous eating places ranging from high class
restaurants catering for international clients to basic kiosks
selling drinks and snacks.
Outside of Kigali most of the tourist centres have clean
restaurants where one can take a meal and continue with
exploration.
Cultural tourism is vibrant.
The traditional dance � Intore� is both alluring and
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