This is the most unusual story about my first night in Kinigi, when I travelled endlessly on the back of a Moto through a pitch-dark forest, balancing a dish of spaghetti...
after a trip into nowhere on a moto, Heidi holds on the a bowl of spaghetti till the end
Why? Read on! It was already dark when I arrived in Kinigi village, down from Ruhengeri. Chilly it was high up there, but I was euphoric. I had found a guy who took me up the mountain on his Moto for 2 USD, whereas most tourists end up paying 20 USD for a taxi, once public transports stop running. I even remained calm when the La Paillotte Guesthouse in Kinigi was full, despite the reservation I had (it was the only one I ever made in Rwanda).
“No worry”, the young lady at guesthouse said, “We have another, much better guesthouse just up the road”. Food? Plenty there! I jumped on another Moto to fetch my permit from the Kinigi Guesthouse and zipped back to La Pailotte. Now the story had changed… “No more food at the new house, but why don’t you take a large bowl of spaghetti and bread along?” Yes, why not?
On the back of a Moto, I left the sleeping village of Kinigi and soon started wondering what “up the road” really meant! After some time on the paved road we turned into a really bumpy forest road. I tried to keep myself on the Moto, holding on to the bottle of water and the dish of spaghetti, my dinner. I could not decide whether I felt annoyed, scared… or both. The trip continued. We were riding into nowhere, the driver spoke no English and my mind was racing. Was this a kidnapping? Was I still in Rwanda, or was I already in the Democratic Republic of the Congo? Should I make the driver stop? How? Would he? What could I do, if he did not?
Even though we were going slowly, jumping off a moving Moto into a dark road did not seem a smart idea. And above all, where would I go? We had taken so many turns! Even if I kept on the dirt road, I might end up in even deeper forest. My only comfort was the bottle of water and the pasta, my survival kit… Well, kind of!
leaving Kinigi for the Ugandan border
When we stopped, I could not see anything until two people started moving towards us with flashlights. One introduced himself as the manager. Of what? I almost freaked out… The place had no light, no electricity, nothing! “The generator ran out of gas, but we have lots of candles” the guys informed me happily. Time for decision making had come - there was no way I would stay in a dark room, all by myself, not even knowing where I was. My Moto driver was still there. As calm as possible I informed him that was going back with him to Kinigi.
I looked at the three guys: what would they do? One became whiny, his boss would be angry if I left. That’s when I knew I was in control. Promising to calm his unknown boss, I climbed on the Moto and did the bumpy trip again. Only when we were back on the paved road was l certain we were actually going to Kinigi.
At the La Pailotte, I delivered an angry speech and guess what? All of a sudden they had a room! I was so pissed off, I paid another Moto to take me to Kinigi Guest House further up on the hill. I was determined not to leave Kinigi Guest House even if they were full. I was so emotional that I embraced the lady when she handed me the key. I was in such a state that this shabby room felt like the presidential suite.
In the dining room, I ran into a South African couple I had met in Gisenye. Words kept pouring from my mouth, everybody had to hear this! And guess what? The spaghettis were still warm after I unwrapped the aluminum foil…
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