May 18, 2008

We had the day to “relax” but it ended up being just as full! We did get to sleep in, which was AMAZING! We did get to lay on the beach in the morning and read which was very relaxing. Then we had lunch with Madalyn who is the Rwandan who is working with The Great Ape Trust of Iowa. She gave us some very good information and answered a lot of our questions. Then she showed us around Gisenyi, which was very nice of her. She brought us to a CyberCafe since we didn't have internet. Then we went to a market, which was very neat. It was kind of slow because it was Sunday, but we saw some beautiful fabrics and lots of fresh produce. We even saw cassava, Sarah!! Then Aloys took us to the border of the Congo. It was crazy to be that close! We went to the border in two different places, one the informal and one the formal border. Then we went to the Serena Hotel for dinner. It was fabulous! It was right on the lake and had a wonderful beach. At lunch a few of us had talked about the foods that we missed, and they had almost everything we said we were missing! They had burgers and boneless chicken and mashed potatoes and even chocolate! It sounds little, but we were really excited! After dinner Aloys took us to see the volcano he had told us about. It doesn't erupt, but you can see its red glow. It was beautiful, and it was crazy to think that we were that close to the Congo! He said it's dormant now, but in '05 it erupted. Then we headed back to our hotel. It wasn't paradise compared to the Serena, but it was perfect for us!