Easter came and went, I was taken away for a weekend to the border regions, a town called Kisoro within 20k of the Dr. Congo and Rwandan borders (yes I call him Doctor Congo). One of the nuns from here wanted to go and I offered to pay gas if she got a car, and then she put me up and got me food and drink at her brother's place for the weekend as well.
We left fri, drove down along the edge of the ridge of the Rwenzori mountains (I don't know I'm not impressed, it just looks like a jungle ridge to me, but I keep being told there are mountains with glaciers beyond). We descended into the dry plains area which was rathersavana-esque. Funky umbrella trees and all, water buffalo, gazelles and various birds. Oh and hot and sunny.
From there you climb up a ridge which borders the rift valley and descend into the valley proper, much greener and lusher than before,drive through constant forests, past a crater lake or two and then,from Kabale on, down a dusty dirt track to Kisoro. Turns out we overloaded the car on the way down, the nuns filled it with food, and so the muffler fell off about 10k from our destination, which means that we pulled into town with the muffler nestled comfortably between my legs... They got it fixed the next day though.
The next day, Sat, we feasted and wandered the town shoe shopping (yes nuns, being women, shoe shop) and then eventually went to meet my travelling Nun's brother who lives on the Rwandan border and is a business man of some sort (I didn't ask what sort). He wasn't there so we wandered across the border for a peek, went into a restaurant and Sister ordered every beer on the menu so I could try them all... Then her brother came and ordered spicy chicken wings! So good, roast chicken served with spicy peppers and fresh lime, you just rub the peppers and lime on to taste and go nuts, first spicy food in ages! So drunk(her brother and I, not the nuns) we wandered back across the border after it seemed to be closed, but it was ok, he knew the guards (hence not asking his business). The stopped us at first but he said hi, and they recognised him and just wondered if he had anything for them to drink, they were thirsty and wanted some water!
Oh and we did the whole Rwanda thing with no passports for the locals, and Jesse, the nun with whom I travelled's 8 year old nephew in tow and no parents.... a bit different from US border controls.
So yeah, the next day I climbed Sabinyo, an extinct volcanic cone (i.e. mountain) in Magahinga National Park. I was thinking of gorilla tracking but, alack, the gorilla's had gone back to Rwanda so I was SOL. Anyways, climbed the mountain which was cool, not hard, just a 1400 vertical metre slog, through new forest, then into virgin bamboo forest, into the acacia forest with great gobs of hanging old man's beard, then up into the montane (I guess that's what they call it)with the giant lobelias that are so talked about and yet I'm not entirely sure why.
It was misty on the ridge, a constant stream of misty cloud blowing onto us from the Rwandan side of the mountain. Fitting, you'd feel cheated if you didn't get the mist eh? Then I stood on the summit which straddles the Dr. Congo, Rwanda and Uganda, so I've now been to Dr. Congo as well, if only about 5 m. into Dr. Congo but that's really not the point is it?
Yeah, but the parks piss me off. I don't know what there point is really. If its to preserve natural wonders than who for, cause the way it is now I have serious ethical concerns. Ya see, its damned expensive, you have to go with a guide and an armed guard (we are assured he is for the animals more than anything, I suspect its for the guerrillas more than the gorillas). No wandering on your own. Its USD40 for a day, USD375 for a day of gorilla tracking.The locals have a reduced price, but by reduced price you are still talking a huge chunk of someones income, to the point that all these great parks are pretty much exclusively for the use of rich tourists. Which bothers me. We applied pressure through the WWF etc for them to define these parks, to kick the people who had been living in them out (i.e. the pygmies, or even the local Bantu farmers) so that they can be turned into ridiculously expensive sanctuaries that cater to hi-end tourism. So is it appropriate that we now have exclusive access to these parks? I'm not convinced. It bothers me. That and I hate hiking on a straightforward trail with a guide. Not my style.
So after that we feasted on goat, Joeseph (the Nun's brother in Kisoro, not the one on the border) had secured a goat for the Easter feasting and we ate that goat (who I have pictures of the family with). We feasted and feasted. I ended up in the living room of theirmothers place (they all live in a compound) with Joeseph and Jackson,our driver, having beer and, mostly, just staring at the wall.Relaxing and getting our manly drink on while the women made their local variant of scones (kinda like a bland, baked plain donut would be my best explanation, and not round), and prepared dinner/did dishes etc. Wierd feeling for me to have that going on and I couldn't even help clear the table.
I was exhausted and tried to nap but they came and got me so that we could watch some traditional dancers they had brought over. Interesting...ish. To me more interesting was the music, just women singing to a tribal beat on a drum. Everyone in the household seemed very into it. Then I passed out on the couch waiting for dinner (supper at 1600) which wasn't until 2300. After that they continued part two of a soap-opera-esque movie series, all filmed on a camcorder and just a couple light years away from the"style" of our TV. (style in quotes as it doesn't really describe the complex of commercialism, subtlety and artistry that we really do takefor granted in our TV).
Then we drove back in the morning, stopping at every different climate zone to buy the local produce, oranges, pineapples, sweet potatoes etc, to restock the convent stores. I watched sunset over the Queen Elizabeth Nationap Park, with the Rwenzori in the background, its was quite stunning, I think I pissed everyone off with my photography, and 11h later we made it back, only slightly the worse for wear.
I think I should stop now.