The Ants Go Marching

We went to Nyungwe Forest which is a rainforest in the south of Rwanda. It is a rainforest with gorgeous views where you can see both Burundi and the Congo. Before leaving for our walk we were informed that there were ants and that it would make sense to wear rainboots or shoes. But I did not want to get my shoes dirty and Laura also decided to wear sandals so off we went. 

It had rained all morning and so the trails were slippery. I was happy that they provided walking poles as it helped me keep my balance numerous times. But sure enough just as our guide had promised there were ants in certain places. Unfortunately, at the bottom of one especially slippery hill there were hundreds of them. I managed to go quickly through them and had only about 20 on me. Laura managed to fall in them and we spent the next 10 minutes getting ants off!

We took a 5 hour drive along the coast from Kamembe to Kibuye. The views were spectacular!

In Kibuye, we rented a boat and went to two islands- Napoleon's Hat, and Amohoro. On the first there were hundreds of fruit bats that inhabited the island. We hiked to the top of the island for some great views. Amohoro island was a beautiful island where we went for a swim.

Photo by Mark Tymm

Camping in a Safari Park

After visiting Kigali for a couple of days, we woke up early to head to Akagera National Park in hopes of seeing a variety of animals. When the Chad SALTers were originally planning this safari, we thought there would be just the 4 of us going. But as people heard about it they wanted to join so we ended up with 15 people along for the ride- MCC workers from Rwanda, Burundi and the Congo.

It was fun to go camping in Rwanda. We slept in tents and ate, chatted and sang around a large fire. The following day we got up early to continue our drive. We ended up seeing many different animals!

A lesson in humility and sharing

During the MCC Chad retreat in Ethiopia, we went to Crater Lake. The lake was about 2 hours from the lodge we were staying at. We planned to take horses up and down the mountain to the water and take a boat to the islands on the water. When we arrived to pay for our fees, we realized we did not have anywhere near enough money to pay for our planned trip. We decided to hike down the mountain and take horses up, and we asked if our driver had any money we could borrow from him. With that sorted out we began our hike down the mountain.

 The view was gorgeous and I really enjoyed the hiking. Part way down, we came across some children. They were eating tiny apples, and I began interacting with them. One girl about 8 years was eating and I pretended to take bites from it. Then all of a sudden she shoved the rest in my mouth. We both began to laugh. She speaks a local language and through the guide I understood that her name means Orange. We walked together with other local children for a while before saying our goodbyes. I was given another complete apple before continuing my journey.

Photo by: Mark Tymm (above and below)

We arrived at the lake and had the pleasure of being canoed across the lake to the Orthodox monastery by four men. On the island, we were greeted by locals who offered us fried barley, a popular Ethiopia snack usually eaten with coffee. It tasted very good. On our boat ride back, Angela (my boss) offered us (and the 4 boatman and guide) gummy bears. It was fun to see the Ethiopians try a yummy treat for North Americans.

We were greeted by small horses each being led by a guide. We took the horses up the mountain but once we arrived at the top, we realized that we should tip the men. Unfortunately at that point we had the equivalent of less than $2 to be split between 6 guides. It was humbling for them to except our money even though it was not an appropriate amount, but we had run out of money.

Overall, it was a lovely day where we enjoyed great views, new friends, and people who shared and took care of us!