11 – 13 December 2011
After the hot springs we once again hopped onto a bumpy, dusty road and started off north and west to Lake Kivu. What makes Lake Kivu so interesting is its sulphur deposits bubbling up from under the surface as various intervals. Rwanda has built a plant which processes the sulphur and turns it into energy, enough to power the entire country for 400 years!
Tea plantations
We drove over hill (mountain) and down dale (valley) through beautiful tea plantations until we ended up on a road that was under major construction and a donga 50cm wide and 1m deep meant that even our hard-core Landy’s were unable to proceed. Luckily with enough gesturing and repeating of “Kivu. Kivu” we managed to ask a farm worker the direction to the lake. Fortunately the detour was not significant and we popped out at Cyangugu (“Cy” pronounced “Ch”), which is the border town to the DRC. We stopped at the first hotel we found on our Garmin and bumped into a biologist who the Reads had met in Mwanza. She was working in the DRC and happened to be having lunch with a British couple who had just driven the road along the lake that we were debating whether or not to take (due to mixed reports of how drivable it was in the rainy season) and so were able to offer us invaluable advice. We were once again astounded by the Lord going before us and preparing the way for us!
Over hill and down dale
We spent the night at a Catholic guest house (note to any travellers out there” Catholic guest houses are the best – spotless, good value and you can find one in any town it seems) and Alex befriended a German couple who had just come from where we were going to and were once again able to offer some useful information. Unfortunately when we woke up in the morning we noticed that one of our back tyres was totally flat and our nearly five-month punctureless record came to an abrupt end…
The next day we went in pursuit of Kumbya Peninsula, which had been recommended to us by the Schoonbees. According to our guide-book, it is a peninsula that has always protected by missionaries as a place of retreat and so has not fallen prey to deforestation and the like. After taking a “wrong turn”, quite by chance we happened upon someone who could speak a few words of English and when we pointed this way and that saying “Kumbya. Kumbya” and shrugging our shoulders wondering which was to go, his face lit up and he said “Missionaries? Go to hospital [pointing up the driveway that we had stopped in] for key”. Within a few minutes we had found the right person and obtained the key to a three bedroomed house on the water for R70 for the night!
Our house at Kumbya
Kumbya turned out to be a real highlight and from the moment we arrived, we wished we had more time to spend there.
Kumbya Peninsula
The afternoon and the next morning were spent reading and bird watching and swimming and sleeping and enjoying the stunning views and peace and quiet.
Impressive lightening show
Perfect book-reading spot
Since it was Alex and Kath’s anniversary, it was the perfect, relaxing 24-hours and we celebrated with Alex’s favourite strawberry wine and a delicious bowl of butterscotch instant pudding.
The anniversary couple
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