Many folks have a distorted imagination and an unfair bias towards what Africa is, could be or should be. When I let my family and friends know of my plans to visit the continent, I was met with apprehension and caution and to my very high expectations, my experience in the motherland continent was the most adventurous and illuminating ever.
Back in 2006, I had watched the gut-wrenching movie ‘Hotel Rwanda’ and I had silently prayed that one day when I am financially able, I shall visit Rwanda as my first country in Africa. Fast forward to Fall 2021, I landed in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda and my adventure began in one of the most environmentally conscious countries. Republic of Rwanda is a highly elevated, landlocked country in Central Africa, bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and Democratic Republic of Congo. Rwanda has a nickname “Land of a thousand hills” due to the land’s geography with many mountains in the western region and numerous lakes within. From 15th century to late 18th century, Kingdom of Rwanda was ruled by Tutsi kings until the land was colonized by Germans in 1897, Belgians in 1916 and ultimately gaining independence as a Hutu-dominated republic in 1962. The population as of 2023 is over 15 million and the national language is Kinyarwanda, with Swahili, English and French as other official languages. The literacy rate is 76% and economically, it is ranked 30th in Africa and 130th globally. Rwanda is also ranked the cleanest country in Africa.
I visited Rwanda at a time when Covid restrictions still applied, so all incoming visitors at Kigali Intl. Airport had to go through a COVID test and stay in a hotel overnight until results were emailed to the hotel. I stayed at an aesthetically pleasing boutique hotel, located in the hills and once the Kenyan manager of the hotel informed me of my negative results next morning, I started my road trip to Kibuye, a quaint, lakeside town in Karongi district with my pre-arranged driver David. During the 4 hour drive, I witnessed the passing lives of many locals, kids riding bicycles, produce sellers and construction development projects. I was in awe of nature’s wonders with a blend of the rolling luscious green hills and sunny-sandy, brick coloured mountainous landscape as the backdrop.
When I stopped at one of the local shops, some traditionally-clad old ladies and children from a neighbouring establishment were inquisitive of where I was from and how pretty I was dressed. They communicated in their language, ‘Kinyarwanda’ and David translated while we happily exchanged some bits of our lives. Our car was also randomly stopped by the Rwandan cops where they stared at me down and exchanged a few words with David while asking for his papers. During that short exchange, my overactive imagination led me to a hypothetical scenario of these cops checking my luggage and causing a major inconvenience for me, but luckily within a few minutes, they let us go and then I asked David what the conversation was about. He smiled and said, “the cop wanted to know if you are a girl or madam” and once he heard my confusion, David clarified that, “‘girl’ means single, and ‘madam’ is married so I told the cop that you are a madam”. I laughed and commended him on his smart thinking where he gently advised me to “be a madam on this trip” to avoid unnecessary questioning. I nodded and sighed at the sad hilarity of it all and reflected back on how simple things can be difficult to manoeuvre in different countries and their cultural norms as a solo female traveler.
Upon arrival at my bed and breakfast in Kibuye, which was owned by wonderful Ugandans, I was greeted by Ugandan breakfast, which consisted of omelette, toast, bananas and coffee. On my first bite I realized how the flavours of this omelette reminded me of Bengali dim bhaja. I was astonished at the similarity between Ugandan and Bangali cuisine and discussed the spices and cooking technique with the Ugandan host. Soon enough, I booked a boat tour of the grand Lake Kibuye with a very knowledgeable guide and came across different small uninhabited islands. We got off the boat in Napoleon Island for a light hike which I couldn’t finish due to the presence of noisy bats all over. However, some tragic facts about Napoleon Island that the tour guide had mentioned was how during the genocide, about 2000 Tutsis had taken refuge here and due to a tip off, the island was surrounded by Hutu militia and those poor souls were brutally murdered. That was my first experience hearing a local Rwandan speak of the genocide and in the next few days upon meeting other locals, I came to witness Rwandans perseverance and the manner they discussed that period of atrocity was with compassion, composure, silent reverberating emotions or indifference. Everyone either had a story or was told a story of a time laced with displacement, pain, rape, loss and endless death.
When visiting nearby towns in Kibuye, I witnessed townspeople, gardeners, professional street sweepers cleaning the streets. This is a government enforced mandatory practice called ‘Umuganda’ for all citizens (with few exceptions) to participate in maintaining the cleanliness on a monthly basis. ‘Umuganda’ is a Kinyarwanda word that translates as “coming together in common purpose”. Once back in Kigali, I chose to stay at an Airbnb designed and owned by an eclectic Belgian personality, with rooms that had balconies without railing and gorgeous views of Kigali’s hills and nightlights.
Since Uber was not an option, I built up the courage to explore the city like the locals do and used their transit system, which consisted of hailing ‘Motos’ or motorbike riders and reaching any destination within city parameters for $1-$2 fare. It was exhilarating exploring the hilly but super clean, smooth roads so efficiently and fast with a helmet on. I decided to pay a visit to Kigali Genocide Memorial, where about 250,000 bones of victims of the genocide are buried. My tour there started with a 10 minute video of real accounts from survivors, walking around multiple exhibitions covering the extensive history of the Belgian Colonial “divide & rule” impact that started in 1990 in different towns where minority Tutsis, TWA and moderate Hutus were being murdered & how the subsequent French government funding of weapons to ruling Hutu militia led to the systemic genocide of Tutsis in 1994. There was a calculative government propagation, military training, and psychological warfare for years in play with the world superpowers and UN staying silent while allowing this final atrocity to happen, lasting 100 days from April 1994 – July 1994 and killing about 500,000 – 660,000 human beings. While walking around the memorial of children who died, tears flowed down my face as I came across these innocents’ pictures and read about their short-lived lives, their personalities, their likes and dislikes. It was hours of heart wrenching education of this beautiful country’s tragic past and the gradual reconciliation of the ethnic groups post-genocide to forgive, unite and create a Rwanda with a hopeful future.
the Kigali Genocide Memorial giftshop, I picked out an artisan crafted statue and a bag of coffee, from a Tutsi-women owned brand and due to the shop’s credit card machine not working and not having enough Rwanda Francs to cover the purchase, the shop manager assured me that he’ll drop off the items at my hotel and pick up cash from there later on. I was not entirely surprised at his effort and kindness because I was getting used to Rwandans being so welcoming, generous and warm.
I met a local Kigalian, Maya at my Airbnb and we hit it off so seamlessly that she offered to take me to explore the restaurant scene, shopping malls and Kigali nightlife. The malls had wonderful stores showcasing Rwandan fashion designers, jewellery designers and brands and for a shopaholic like myself, I was happily spending Rwandan Francs. Due to Covid restrictions, there was a strict curfew in place at 10pm and every night while we’d be out and about dining on ugali (cornmeal porridge) with akabanga chili oil, goat meat on skewers, Nigerian jollof rice or the popular rolex (omelette rolled in chapati), there would be locals scrambling to find a moto or taxi 30 minutes prior to curfew. Kigalians were very strict about maintaining curfew and the general consensus I heard was that curfew was beneficial to the general population so Covid crisis can be managed adequately and how everyone was looking forward to Christmas 2021 for the curfew to be lifted. This was yet another deeper reflection of how Rwandans believed that functioning as a cohesive entity always benefited all for the greater good.
Since stepping into Rwanda, I had grown accustomed to how efficient the overall ecosystem was as I was never stressed or struggled when going about my day exploring the city. However, this confidence let me to slacken a little and instead of following Covid guideline of getting tested 48 hours prior to departure, I arrived at Camp Kigali testing centre 23 hours prior to my flight. My Covid tester was cynical at best stating that the lab needed 24-48 hours to post results and that information started an anxious roller coaster for me. As a seasoned traveller, I rarely left anything to chance or fate and there I was, checking and refreshing the RBC covid portal million times and wondering if I’d miss my flight departing. My new Rwandan, Indian, Kenyan, Belgian friends optimistically assured me that “you’ll get your results right on time before your flight” & lo behold, 10 hours prior to my flight, my results were posted negative and I screamed in relief and hugged my friends. The system in place works with ease for the citizens, expats and tourists alike and while discussing the efficacy with my Kenyan friend, he agreed that his home country lacked such a cohesive, technologically savvy system and so did many other countries in the continent.
I was not too eager to leave such an extraordinary country as I felt the trip was too short but my next adventure in Africa awaited and one day soon I wish to return to explore in depth the rest of the majestic landscape. I will forever be indebted to Rwanda for allowing me to experience such vulnerability, natural beauty and honesty and until next time ‘Murakoze’ (thank you in Kinyarwanda). American author Naomi Benaron said, “I fell in love with Rwanda the moment I saw those verdant, rolling hills rise up beneath the wings of the plane as we descended toward Kigali airport” and I felt the same sentiment as my plane ascended.
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Mahbuba Alam is a proud New Yorker who grew up as a third culture kid in the Middle East. An avid enthusiast in world beauties, histories, mysteries and other ephemera, Mahbuba is addicted to Anthony Bourdain shows and met him in Fall 2016. She is a self-professed food geek and a passionate connoisseur of diverse cuisine in New York City and everywhere else. Mahbuba has travelled to 30 countries and solo travelled to 16 of those. A life goal of Mahbuba is to climb Mount Kilimanjaro and visit Antarctica.
