Kigali/Volcanoes National Park – Gorilla Trek Rwanda

I wrote this back in 2017 but never got around to posting it!

From September 15, 2017:

Set high on the jungle-covered slopes of the volcanic Virunga Mountains, the Volcanoes National Park is best known as a sanctuary for the region’s rare mountain gorillas (think Harambe). There are currently 10 Gorilla groups left that are accessible to visitors. There is also a limit of 8 visitors per gorilla family (per day). At the time of our booking, permits were around $750USD pp. It was soon increased to $1,500USD pp. YIKES!

The trek will vary in length depending on a) which gorilla group you’ve been assigned and b) where the gorilla group has ventured for the day. Highly regulated treks allow visitors to spend an hour at a time with these gorillas in their natural habitat.

The experience:

All groups head to the welcome site by 730AM. Greeted by african drums and tribal dancing is an alternative method to waking your senses in lieu of coffee. At this point, your guide joins a meeting with other guides to “negotiate” how the human groups are assigned to their gorilla family. Not exactly sure what happens behind closed doors as gorilla families range from small groups of less than 10 gorillas to groups of nearly 30 gorillas. Some are close by and some are hours away. Nonetheless, after a few rounds of negotiations, you are assigned your family for the day and off you go!

We were assigned the 2nd largest gorilla family (the Igisha Family) with 26 gorilla members. AMAZING. The trade off? They were very.. very far away. So our morning started off with a 2 hour drive towards the border of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Thank goodness our driver/trek guide were so experienced with the unmarked “roads”. The further they drove, the less we had to hike. Alas at some point, they could drive no further and we had to start our trek. As the day progressed, the gorillas were getting further and further away so we had to speed things up.

Our hike started at around 2,700m above sea level as such altitude sickness is a definite possibility. By the time we finished our 1.5 hour hike, we were at around 3,000m. Now the hike itself is not hard for any fit traveller (I am not one) but the terrain makes it difficult as the path is simply carved by our trek guide and his trusty machete.

I remember the last few steps before laying eyes on the first gorilla. My heart was pounding increasingly faster and my palms were starting to sweat. Soon my eyes realized there were 20+ more gorillas inches away and the Male Silverback leader, 3x the size of an average man, just steps away. The next hour was spent with endless attempts to capture every movement with my eyes, iPhone and DSLR. Talk about multi-tasking. Time flew by quickly and before we knew it – it was time to head back!

Typically the trek should have you back at the lodge by noon for lunch. Not sure if we were just SLOW or if our Gorilla group was just THAT far away but we didn’t get back to the lodge until a little past 3PM. Just like that, another bucketlist item was crossed off.

Summary:

Accommodation: Mountain Gorilla View Lodge

Local Tour Operator: Primate Safaris

Clothing: Kigali is hot but Volcanoes National Park is chilly. In anticipation of the trek, for top layers I wore a beater, turtle neck, fleece and vest. Layering is key. Also, try to avoid flashy colours. For bottoms, I wore pants that were water-resistant & skinny legged. Water-resistant was a must for me because you never know where you may sit (or fall) and skinny legged because I didn’t want any creepy crawlers making their way into my boots. The lodge provides free gator shoes so have no fear if you are not a fan of the skinny pants. For shoes, I wore blundstones. The lodge does an amazing job at cleaning your shoes afterwards so suede = no problem.

Difficulty level: LOW . Honestly, I’m just very out of shape. Also, there are porters available for hire ($10USD) to carry your backpacks or camera gear. I had my husband aka free porter :)

London, UK 2016

Final stop along the honeymoon was in London. Each visit has been so different. Same city, different time stamp. This 3rd time was with my new husband.

In 2016, I had a much better camera and more money in the pocket. So, our trip was very different in comparison to my last visit in 2011 & 2012. This trip was focused moreso on exploring all the different neighbourhoods (fantasizing where we would live) and eating, eating, eating. However, knowing me, I always have to make some concessions for the budget to balance.

I recall one BIG oversight on my end with AirBNB. I can never get over how expensive accommodations in London can be. So, when i saw a really good deal on AirBNB (first time user), I jumped at the opportunity. Well, lesson learned, some things are too good to be true. LESSON LEARNED.

Living in Taipei, 2009

Another reflective post from 2021 re: 2009. My semester abroad was finally happening. Although I was slated to attend the Fall 2008 semester, I deferred so that I can participate with my sister (who also decided to apply). She learned from my past mistake and applied for the PROPER school (that is, NTU).

Off we went! The Wong Sisters conquering Taipei … now, no longer Wong Sisters but rather the LooLees ;)

Our semester was from January to April, I believe. We arrived a little earlier and were able to move into my sister’s apartment (private/new/clean) in very central Gongguan area. We spent the first few days getting acclimatized to our new surroundings. I will never forget the sinking feeling of being so lost, confused and scared.

Even trying to take the bus from 1 area to the other was daunting. I'd rehearse the Chinese words over and over again in my mind. The fear of not being understood or worse, laughed at, was paralyzing. However, I'm so happy Taipei is SUCH a friendly city. Any effort is appreciated and busy bus drivers were always so encouraging.

Step 1: Clean the sister's new apartment (private/brand new)

Step 2: Quick trip to Japan before the semester began / I was allowed to check-in to my dorm

Step 3: Repeat Step 1 but for Sarah's dorm (right?)

Upon our return from Japan, I got the green light to move into my dorm at NCCU. My lovely older sister assisted with the relocation of my effects to my new home and left me there upon this sight:

While my sister got a brand new private apartment, I got a FREE but disgusting, bug-filled, zero privacy accommodation.

Looking back, I am still very proud that I lived in “these conditions” (don’t I sound like a member of the 1%). I was very motivated by the FREE price tag. However, these conditions were less than ideal for a North American gal. To illustrate:

• First night in the new room (sans roommate), I was greeted in the morning with a face filled with bug bites. This is already after a ridiculous amount of effort cleaning throughout the night.

• Waiting in line for the 1 north american style toilet (no squatters for this girl, please)

• Perfecting the EXPRESS shower as each day was greeted with a new insect infestation. Unless you enjoy showering next to a family of spiders, you get in & out pretty quickly.

• Brushing your teeth / doing laundry with cockroaches

Lodging aside, everything about my semester abroad was GREAT:

1. Great food (once I was able to differentiate the word sausage vs intestine)

2. Great people (locals and fellow cohorts)

3. Great sights (Taiwan is so underrated)

4. Great grades (somehow got As in every class despite DEFINITELY failing most of my course work)

Memories to cherish:

• Weekend trips exploring great parts of the island (Tainan, Kenting, Hualien, Penghu, Yeliu, Jiu Fen, Lu Dao, Alishan)

• Balancing school, chinese tutoring, shopping, eating and drinking..lots of drinking

• Failing my chinese proficiency entrance exam and getting slotted in Level 1 with a gent from Czech, 2 from Pakistan and another from somewhere else. After 2 classes, my pride got the best of me and I quit. This CHINESE girl was not going to stay in this Level 1 class.

• Weekly chinese tutoring comprising of me reading menus with my tutor. It paid huge dividends.

• Lifetime friends I would still love to visit even though I haven’t seen/talked to in years.

I’ve since been back to Taipei many, many times. Although my Chinese has disappeared, Taipei will always feel like a 2nd home.