Headed for Northern Rwanda for Gorilla Trekking

After the incredible memorial we left Kigali midday and traveled north towards the Virguna Mountains with our guide Johnson.

We stayed in the Virunga Mountains in Northern Rwanda for 2 days of gorilla trekking and to visit the golden monkeys.

Our journey was so exciting, once we left the populous city of Kigali, we started to enter the more rural parts of Rwanda. The country as a whole is so lush, the hills in which we drove up would

make a Tour de France rider wince due to the intense incline and sheer length of them. We also passed by the "black market" which was selling windows, doors, mattresses (pretty much anything). Our guide Johnson explained that everything there had probably been stolen from someone's house!

The journey was 3 hours but due to the incredible views and exciting conversation we had with Johnson, it did not feel that way. Our final destination was the Virunga Lodge near the town of Ruhengiri, which was our home for the next 3 days. Alex and I were excited to finally be able to call a place home for more than a night. However, the lodge was located at the very top of a large hill. In order to access the lodge we must endure a "Rwandan Massage" (not as relaxing as one would think). The road is a muddy rocky pathway with a steep descent and caused the 4x4 khaki green jeep to throw us back and forth very aggressively. (Which is what Johnson likes to call a Rwandan Massage).

Once we arrived we were greeted with champagne and stunning views of the Twin Lakes and volcanoes! From our vantage point, we could see Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. We were then introduced to Clement our butler for the duration of our stay. We went to the room to have a look and then went straight up to the helipad to watch the entertainment for the night.

There were around 20 locals there performing the traditional Rwandan dance named the Intore. The women wore skirts and tops and danced with woven baskets on their heads, whereas the male dancers wore bells on their feet, long blonde headdresses and had spears and shields.

This dance used to be performed in front of royalty and the women would carry a percentage of her family's crops (like rice, beans etc) in her basket and gift it to the queen. The male dancers represented the army who would make noise to scare away the enemy. After they performed their amazing dances we were then invited to join them. Alex was given a stick and shield and I was given a basket to attempt to balance it on my head. It was challenging and it just made me admire the dancers even more. Everyone just had smiles on their faces and it was so joyous to experience. Another core memory created there so early on in our trip.

We then had a dinner and retired for bed quite early as we had a 5am wakeup the next morning in preparation for the gorilla trekking.