This past weekend, Mary, Caitlin, and I ventured to the shore of Lake Kivu to visit Gisenyi, a resort town on the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
A popular weekend getaway for both Rwandans and expats, Gisenyi has been referred to as the “Martha’s Vineyard of Rwanda,” a title that I found curious until I witnessed some of its breathtaking shoreline views and sprawling luxury hotels.
We arrived on Friday night so that we could maximize our weekend time for exploring Gisenyi and its surroundings. It was quite an eventful weekend and, thanks to the weather and other exciting adventures, featured much less basking on a beach than I had expected. We started Saturday morning with a delicious breakfast at our hostel.
Then we set off to the neighboring town of Kabari/Mugongo to visit the Imbabazi Orphanage, started by an American named Roz Carr after the genocide. The orphanage was a bit farther from the bus stop than we expected (7 km sounds shorter in the guide book than on foot). As we trekked along the road, we made lots of friends and amassed a herd of curious kids.
We also saw some breathtaking views of Lake Kivu, farmland, mountains, and volcanoes.
Upon arriving at the orphanage, we were brought by one of the guards to the main office, where a young American woman on staff greeted us. She gave us a tour of the 100-acre orphanage, which also sustains itself by working as a flower farm serving Kigali.
On the way back from the orphanage, we decided to give our feet a rest and catch some bicycle taxis. I was shocked to find out at the end of the 30-minute, 7-km bike ride that my driver, who was drenched in sweat and had visibly struggled to get my American body up the hills, only asked for 200 francs, about $.34. In comparison, one of those touristy fifteen-minute bike rides around New York city usually costs something like $15.
Once we arrived back at the hostel, we got our swimsuits and sunscreen on, only to be drenched by a sudden torrential rainstorm on our way to the beach. We retreated to our hostel bar, where we had a drink and ended up meeting a reporter who had just returned from Goma, in the DRC. He shared some shocking and horrific stories about accounts of rape and marauding militias he had encountered. In sum, he told us “The time I spent in the Congo was the worst two weeks of my life.” To hear that and to know that Goma is about 3 miles from Gisenyi created an eerie sense of calm. It’s unsettling and morbidly ironic to know that right across the border from the beautiful vacation town of Gisenyi is a city ravaged by war and overflowing with internally displaced people.
The next day, we met up with a Rwandan friend of a friend who lives in Gisenyi and took us on a walk around the shoreline. Intrigued about the fact that we were literally one mile from the DRC, we went on a little walk and saw the border checkpoint (I’m sure much to my mother’s displeasure). It was surprisingly mundane looking, with lots of security guards, a passport and immigration station, a Porsche driving through the checkpoint from Congo, families with suitcases crossing over in both directions, and trucks carrying goods stopping to be checked. We also saw a few U.N. trucks heading into Rwanda, presumably for some R&R on the beach. Unfortunately no pictures were allowed at the border checkpoint – my friend showing us around said he had been arrested last year for taking a picture (he was detained for 7 hours but in the end the police just made him delete his picture and then let him go). We did get a picture with a nearby sign down the road.
After getting our fill of excitement in for the day, we walked along the road that leads to the beach and finally saw why Gisenyi is called the “Martha’s Vineyard of Rwanda.” Peeking into the grounds of the Stipp Hotel, right on the water, we saw a tropical wonderland awaiting lucky visitors:
Our walk took us along the beach and finally to the Lake Kivu Serena Hotel, one of the nicest 5-star hotels in the country with branches in both Kigali and Gisenyi. Here’s an image I found online of the Gisenyi Serena by night:
We ended our adventure sipping a drink on the Serena lawn, overlooking the beach and Lake Kivu, before heading to catch our 3-hour bus back to Kigali. The bus ride ended up being one of the most entertaining 3 hours of my life, thanks to Deo, an eccentric and talkative professor-diplomat-philosopher sitting next to us. A native Rwandan who had spent much of his life in the Congo, Deo had a contagious enthusiasm for classical Greek mythology and referred to me as Helen of Troy throughout the ride. Our conversation spanned across Greek mythology, Congolese history, Rwandan diplomacy, French and English philology, development, the Ice Age, and everything in between. Upon hearing about my background and interests in diplomacy and peace and conflict studies, Deo invited me to come with him to teach at the university in Goma, DRC, an offer that I politely declined.
I have a feeling I’ll be back in Gisenyi soon – there’s a lot left to explore, like visiting the Bralirwa Rwandan beer brewery, indulging in the the nearby hot springs that are said to have curative powers, and maybe even lying on the beach to soak up some sun.