Day 19 Tuesday, January 30 Rest Day in Kibuye

by Henry

There was the steady pitter patter of rain on our tents overnight, but we were all able to stay dry in our tents.

After breakfast, we decided to take a 20 km bike loop to a couple nearby villages.


Everyone's natural impression was that this is the Rwandan version of Neuschwanstein Castle.


A collection of fishing boats and fishermen.


Genocide memorials are scattered throughout the country. This memorial is located right next door to a soccer field where 15,000 Rwandans were brutally killed.


At this Catholic Church, a kilometer down the road, about 11,600 Rwandans were killed here during the genocide. Hard to see, but under the white cross, it says "Never Again".


The inside of the church is simple, but the altar is very colorful.


There are lots of banana plantations. We saw them in Egypt, and also here.


Locals are able to balance amazing loads on their bicycles. These are cartons of eggs.


For heavy and bulky loads, the Rwandans are adept at pushing their bikes up any steep hill. 

We stopped in the village for a $2 lunch buffet at a restaurant.

We returned to our campsite, and cleaned mud off our bikes. There were some muddy unpaved stretches on our ride today. We will resume biking tomorrow. On our tour, there are six days where we climb over 2000 m. Tomorrow is the first such day. Between the heat, humidity, elevation (we are currently at 1460 m), and total ascent, all bikers will be challenged. At least for tomorrow the road is paved all the way.