Rwanda ( MAP)
We progressed though Mwanza via dirt roads to Rwanda - also the main truck
supply route to that country. We were in Rwanda (official language French)
mainly to see the Parc de Volcans - the national park on the borders of
Rwanda, Zaire and Uganda, any two of which seem to be closed to tourists
because of internal troubles. This park is home to the gorillas popularized by
Dian Fossey's book 'Gorillas in the mist', and was another unforgettable
experience - a stiff half-day hike to find one of the four gorilla families
that are habituated to tourist visits, and an hour of watching the group - the
adults spend most of the time eating (very destructive, as they may eat the
tree bark of up to four trees each per day). The kids however are very
curious, and you can make faces and watch them play with each other in a way
that reminds us of our own childhood.
Both Rwanda and Burundi have very large army presences - and regular trouble
between the Hutu and the Tutsi, the two major tribes in the region. There was
such trouble in Burundi when we tried to enter, and the roads were closed, so
we had to fly to Bujumbura. We stayed there for just a day before taking
another flight to Douala, Cameroon, over-flying Zaire and Central African
Republic, in order to avoid the trouble in Zaire. We exchanged trucks with
another Guerba expedition travelling west to east, picking up their truck in
Cameroon.