Yeah ok, I know I go on and on about Kigali but this blog is supposed to have a travel element to it and I’m not really travelling anywhere at the moment, so I’m afraid you guys are stuck with me blabbing on and on about the city I’m currently and happily calling home.
There’s a lot to love about Kigali (and Rwanda in general), a place I knew very little about before I found myself on a bus on the outskirts of town. Usually when I approach a city the smog, traffic, congestion and whatever else put me off straight away but, in this case, as I rode the bus into Kigali I just had a smile on my face and a really good feeling about the place.
So I thought I’d come up with a list of the reasons on why love this city so much so you can get an idea why I’m always going on and on about it. Here goes, in no particular order…
Safety
Kigali is one of the safest places I’ve ever been. I think it’s on par with some of the places I’ve been in Asia. I feel a lot safer walking down the street here than I do in my hometown. In fact, I don’t think I’d even walk around alone at night in Canada! True, the guys with machine guns on the corners are slightly intimidating but after awhile they just sort of blend in with the scenery. So much so that I often find myself scared to death when I nearly walk into them.
Friends
I’ve been really lucky to have met a really fantastic group of friends here in Kigali and they’re a big part of the reason I’ve stuck around for so long. My best friends are scattered all over the world which makes it difficult to choose a city to call home so, for the time being, I’m happy to have a great group of people around me here.
Easy Lifestyle
Life as an expat here in Kigali is an easy one. It’s not the cheapest city in East Africa, but it’s still ok value and a lot cheaper than living in Canada or the US. There are lots of good restaurants to check out, I can afford tennis lessons a couple times a week (on clay courts!), I’m taking guitar lessons, we employ someone to clean the house and do the laundry (I’m a passionate hater of housework), I’m hoping to start Kinyarwanda lessons soon and day to day life is just relaxing.
Friendly Locals
Africans have a reputation for being friendly and, while Rwandans are a lot more reserved than their neighbours in the rest of East Africa, I still get a good vibe from most people. Making genuine local friends is harder than in many places I’ve been (unless they want to date you) but the people I’ve met have all been welcoming, curious and warm.
Friendly Expats
The expats that I’ve met here always seem to be fun and interesting. The expat scene here is small and if you’ve been here for awhile, you’ll probably know a lot of the other longer-term expats. People are friendly and parties are fun and there doesn’t seem to be the ‘I’ve been here longer and know more about this place than you’ type of pissing contest that you get in a lot of cities popular with expats. Most people I’ve met so far have been welcoming which is good since the expat community here is a small one and there’s not a lot of room for arseholes.
Local Bars
Kigali has restaurants offering up any kind of food you could imagine but I most enjoy eating out at the various local bars scattered all over the city. I’ve recently been exploring an area of town called Nyamirambo which has a lot of lively local bars with good food (whole fish, whole chickens and goat meat on a stick are popular, and yummy, choices) and questionable entertainment. Lip syncing to local tunes which gyrating on a small stage as throngs of men look on seems to be popular with the ladies here. Comedians who pretend to fart as the sound system plays fart noises is also well-received. If nothing else, local bars offer up entertainment choices you’ll probably never see at home. They’re a great place to come for a cheap, fun, yummy night out.
Lots of Opportunity
This is an exciting time to be in Kigali. I feel like there are a lot of business opportunities here and Rwanda is open to new investment. I have a few friends who have started small businesses and things seem to be going well so far. New businesses are popping up all the time and it’s exciting to see what’s next.
Climate
I’m convinced that the weather in Kigali is perfect. Perfect for me, at least. The temperature seems to hover around 25C and the sun shines every single day in the dry season. In the rainy season it still shines and the skies only open up for a few hours each day. And when it rains, it really rains which is just fun to watch.
Scenery
The city is built across a bunch of rolling hills with even bigger hills on the horizon. There are great views everywhere from the side of one hill across to some other hill. I can watch the sun set behind Mount Kigali from my back porch every night and seeing the hills light up at night combined with the stars in the sky is really beautiful. It’s just a friggin’ pretty place and I always find myself smiling as I walk around town or take in all in from the back of a moto.
Moto Taxis
I’m sure zipping around on the back of motorbikes every day is the most dangerous thing I can do here, but it’s fun! I love being able to flag down a motorbike driver (they’re registered and even carry a helmet for their passengers) for point-to-point transport from anywhere to anywhere for under $2 a ride.
And a few things I don’t love…
Security
Kigali and Rwanda in general is… well policed. The security is great because it keeps the city safe (and in Rwanda there are obviously other reasons to keep things as secure as possible) but you need to be careful here about what you talk about and to whom. People are being watched. I’ve probably already said too much…
Subdued
Except in the Nyamirambo area, the streets in Kigali are empty by about 8pm. Street food is illegal here and there’s little in the way of music. It’s a sleepy city but you can still have late nights at the bars or at parties… it’s just not going to be spilling into the streets.
Annoying Rules
Flip flops apparently are illegal and thatched roof houses are on their way out too as the government tries to outlaw things that might make Rwanda seem less… I don’t know… successful? Rich? Who knows. You can’t walk on the grass, either! Annoying.
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