Rwanda

In Rhungeri we trekked gorillas in Volcano national park which was unbelievably fabulous. The gorilla group was 9 and we found all of them just chilling out under this clump of trees - so we got to go underneath into the clearing with them so there were 4 of us and 9 gorillas all staring at each other in this little 8m canopy cover. The little ones were curious and came almost close enough to reach out and touch. I nearly had a heartattack when 'charles' the massive (200kg) silverback ran at us at full speed pounding his chest, but the guide just laughed and gave me a little pat on the arm because it makes you a silly white girl to react the car-sized monkey.
We went back to Kigale to catch a bus south to Butare (because all roads really do lead to Rome, all buses only go to and from the capital). Butare was quiet, but the view from absolutely everywhere in Rwanda is fantastic, which made just wandering the town a nice way to spend the afternoon. Danielle and I went to the National Museum in the morning while the others went to one of the memorials outside the city. Then Dave, Danielle and I got back on a bus to Rome and spent the afternoon wandering the old neighbourhood in Kigale. We spent a good part of the next day at the Genocide memorial which was incredibly intense, but really well done. Yesterday we wandered the outdoor markets in Kigale, and took motos (everyone in Kigale rides motorcycle taxis because car taxis are hard to come by and cost an absolute fortune) all the way to the north end of the city to go to the movie theater we had thought was playing a local-made film about the genocide. Turns out the cinema shut down 3 years ago and our guide book is slightly outdated. We sat at a bar with a pretty view of the city for a few hours, then taxied to the airport at 1am for our 4 am flight. Dave is going to bus across Uganda, and Danielle is right now on her connecting flight to amsterdam - so the original 6 has officially fallen apart. But the other Malawi group has seen fit to adopt me so we are now a group of 7.
We landed in Nairobi at 6:30 and convinced the YMCA to let all of us sleep in a 3-bed dormroom until our other rooms were ready. Very cosy - but so desperate for a nap. Today is a public holiday in Kenya, so not much is open, but the city itself is interesting and this is the first time we've been allowed to roam the city.