A Year in Rwanda

The Business Tourism Company ... Rick and Colette Taylor ... on a yearlong assignment to build the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions) tourism sector in Rwanda. “Rwanda is a country of hills, mountains, forests, lakes, laughing children, markets of busy people, drummers, dancers, artisans and craftsmen. We manage to squeeze thousands of hills and 12 million people into our 26,338 sq. kms. Our land is rich and fertile, the climate pleasant. This has been our home for centuries. We are one people. We speak one language. We have one history. In recent times though genocide has cast a dark shadow over our lives and torn us apart. This chapter is a bitter part of our lives. But one we must remember for those we lost and for the sake of the future. This is about our past and our future; our nightmares and our dreams; our fear and our hope; which is why we begin where we end with the country we love … our Rwanda.” Kigali Memorial Centre

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Campi Kigali ...

The 10 stone columns at the Camp Kigali memorial site in downtown Kigali mark the spot where 10 Belgian UN peacekeepers were murdered on the first day of the genocide. Originally deployed to protect the home of moderate Prime Minister Agatha Uwilingimana, the soldiers were captured, disarmed and brought here by the Presidential Guard before being killed. Each stone column represents one of the soldiers and the horizontal cuts in it represent the soldier’s age.

The bullet-sprayed building in which the soldiers died now houses a small exhibition on the genocide. It is a powerful, sobering reminder of the past – well worth a visit.

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A ‘living’ testimony to the past ... very sobering visit.

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Another ... Year in Rwanda

2015 sees us back in Remarkable Rwanda. We are going to be in and out of the country until March 2016 - driving the Rwanda Convention Bureau forwards with a new team ... exciting times ahead.

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Kigali ... June 2015 ... its like coming home!

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Sister Filly’s visit …a highlight of 2014!

What an absolute delight to have Filly visit us in Rwanda … we packed the week full of remarkable Rwanda’s highlights – and even hobnobbed with His Excellency the President … well okay - amongst 800 other delegates at the WEDF conference in Kigali!

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Vibrant colours of Kimirongo market in Kigali.

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En-route from Kigali to the Eastern Province - lunch at Lake Muhazi.

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Sisters - a quick safari in Akagera National Park - and where else but Ruzizi Tented Lodge!

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Roadside barbecue food stall ... yum!

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An arduous trek up Karasimibi mountain - and the reward was Dian Fossey’s original family - the Susa group!

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Golden Monkey trek - Volcanoes National Park. A definite add on to a gorilla trek!

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Paradise Malahide, Lake Kivu - local favourite ... sundowners and sambaza!

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World Export Development Forum - Kigali 2014.

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Ruzizi Lodge - Tree Top Tent

We were one of the first to enjoy this fab new tent at Ruzizi Lodge in Akagera National Park. Do yourself a favour … spend a quiet weekend soaking up the birdsong, cry of the fish eagle and chatter of the monkeys … in between delicious food and abundant game watching.

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Ruzizi Lodge - Tree Top Tent - for a real getaway from it all break.

Jess and Sarah ... the best park management team in the business!

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An abundance of game ... up close and personal!

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Three eco-regions in Akagera National Park - savannah, mountain and swamp.