Lions, Giraffes and Gorillas Oh My

[Flying mermaid]

We have some good gorilla photos and I was smacked by a gorilla . Just about to fly to Tanzania but hope to catch up soon

 

[Flying mermaid]

Re tipping. I understand these are world class facilities that take money to create and upkeep but in the same breath, these aren't Contiki Bali prices either, people are paying $$$+ for the privilege so the expectation of tipping and poor performance is very disappointing.

It wasn’t poor performance, so much as a really miserable waiter at the end, which made me very unhappy, as we had got on well. Tipping is endemic in Africa - I generally budget for $100+ per day.

 

[Flying mermaid]

You couldn't take photos inside the memorial, but here are a couple from outside. The wall of names has huge gaps, as they slowly try to piece together the names of those who have died. Estimate to be between 500,000 and 1 million. What I found particularly sad was the involvement of priests and nuns in the slaughter

 

[Flying mermaid]

We had lunch at the Hotel des Mille Collines - the real "Hotel Rwanda", then looked around Kigali, before the 3 hour trip to Bisate.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Rwanda is spending like crazy to modernise the country - bitumen roads, tin roofs, not thatch. Solar electricity, each rural family got a free cow to give them a kick start. The town of Musanze is having drainage, pavements and electric lighting installed.

Schools have a cute system for handling huge numbers. 1/2 the kids go in the morning and 1/2 in the afternoon. The next day they swap - very long days for teachers!

 

[Flying mermaid]

The mists came down very soon after our arrival at Bisate - these are photos I took with my iPad the afternoon we arrived and the next day. Standing in pretty much the same spot on our balcony

 

[Flying mermaid]

Our first day at Bisate was a rest day and we had told Alex that we wanted to go for a walk and then plant some trees and then maybe a community visit. Alex very enthusiastically said he would do all of that with us. Apparently he planned to be with us all the time!

So after an early breakfast Mr FM and I sneaked out for our walk and asked the staff to tell Alex we would see him later. We had an incredible walk around part of the Bisate property, reaching the high point of nearly 2,600m.

Wilderness Safaris bought 43 Hectares from the community - all degraded farmland and have already planted 21,000 trees, with another 10,500 trees ready in the nursery to be planted with the help of the community over the next few weeks. The community helped to build Bisate and many now work there.

 

[JohnM]

Aaaahhh! - Rwanda does Eucalypts so well - like Ethiopia, Madagascar... - and the list goes on .

And you would have noticed that it is not just Kigali that is ultra-clean and tidy...

 

[JohnM]

Schools have a cute system for handling huge numbers. 1/2 the kids go in the morning and 1/2 in the afternoon. The next day they swap - very long days for teachers!

Other places do the same - eg. Ethiopia.

 

[Flying mermaid]

Aaaahhh! - Rwanda does Eucalypts so well - like Ethiopia, Madagascar... - and the list goes on .

And you would have noticed that it is not just Kigali that is ultra-clean and tidy...

According to Alex the whole country had a cleanup day once a month and even the President and his family take part!

Bisate explained to us that they are using Eucalypts to stabilise the soil, but once the native trees grow they will slowly eradicate them. They are planting four main species - bamboo and Hygenia and two others. Gorillas like to eat bamboo shoots and build nests in the Hygenia tree (which I am sure you know).

 

[Flying mermaid]

Some room photos. Each is a stand alone villa quite separate from the others. there is one part that is the bedroom/living room and the other the bathroom area, separated by a fireplace. I loved going to sleep with the fireplace glowing.View attachment 137590 View attachment 137591

 

[Flying mermaid]

This is another iPad photo I took showing the villa below us. We were in villa 6 - the top one. I seriously thought I was going to die of a heart attack the first time we walked up - it’s at a fairly high altitude and I don’t cope with walking uphill!

 

[Flying mermaid]

On return the staff suggested we might like to have lunch in our room, so we ordered that for 1pm and returned to have a rest. At 1pm lunch arrived - and Alex However he is a very intelligent man and had worked out we didnt want an escort. He said - I know what it is - you want a holiday! Yes Alex - that is wh we booked 6 nights we want to see the animals, but we also want to read and enjoy the surrounding.

Happy with that he departed after arranging to pick us up bright and early for our first Gorilla trek.

 

[Flying mermaid]

We were assigned the Muhoza fsmily - a small family with a large Silverback. He seemed to be quite a family man letting the babies play all over him.

I have to say without my porter I would really have struggled. We were late starting out, so they set a cracking pace and it was quite steep and slippery. However my porter just held my hand and I used my stick and I could keep up (albeit panting like crazy). Mr FM said he was quite worried as I went gray but it did get better.

 

[Flying mermaid]

 

[rock86]

WOW! The photo's so far have been amazing, cannot wait to see the rest of the trip.

 

[Denali]

Wow, what an amazing experience!

Wondering if they have a odor before you see them? I remember in NT wondering what died (by the smell) before we saw buffalo. Different animal of course but its not like theyre using Dove daily

I see everyone wearing long sleeves and gaiters, are there bugs & mozzies?

 

[JohnM]

No odour IME.

 

[JohnM]

Bisate explained to us that they are using Eucalypts to stabilise the soil, but once the native trees grow they will slowly eradicate them.

Good luck with that! They're dreamin'. Eucalypts coppice, so to 'eradicate' them requires grubbing out the stump.

 

[Imw]

Absolutely loving the report.