We discussed at length should we go or not to Burundi. It is the
only country for which the Foreign Travel Advice gov.uk advises
against all but essential travel, fortunately except for the capital
- Bujumbura. On the other hand, even if Bujumbura was our
destination, to reach it from Rwanda still we needed to cross half of
the country. What's wrong with Burundi, then? It is one of the
poorest countries on the planet (even Afghanistan and Central African
Republic seem to have higher income per capita)! The latest available
World Bank GDP per capita report lists Burundi as the poorest country
with a nominal domestic product per person of 251 US dollars! Its
annual domestic product per person is 55 times smaller than the one
of Lithuania (14100), and 166 times smaller than the one of Germany
(41800). Even as compared to its neighbors, Burundians are almost
three times poorer than Tanzanians and Rwandans and four times less
well-off than Kenyans. Burundi has been so impoverished by the fatal
combination of its landlocked geographic location, an never ending
civil war and the conflicts spilling over from its unstable
neighbours, such as Congo and Rwanda. Good news is that Rwanda after
the horrors of the 1994 genocide became surprisingly stable.
The signs of deprivation are visible everywhere. Kids travel from one village to another at the back of the lorry trailers. When a lorry slows down in a town, they jump at its back and climb up until they attach themselves to the railings and put their feet on a trailer door knobs. The ones that are better off and can afford a bicycle don't miss a 'free-ride', either. They've got a well-developed technique - a cyclist first needs to sit down on a frame of its bike and only then is within an arm's length reach of a truck. They can travel like this for half an hour, one of the 'free-riding' cyclists managed to do so with the whole bunch of green bananas, which can easily weigh 30 kilos. Needless to say that this mode of transport is super dangerous, also needless to say that on the mountainous roads it's a great relief for anyone that otherwise would need to walk or pedal. The people often look just miserable their cloths are dirty, full of holes and worn out. We've seen very few people smiling, which contrasts with the neighboring countries, where the people seemed mysteriously joyful and well-disposed towards foreigners in spite of their dire situation.
What is there to see in Burundi? Not so much, actually. Bujumbura is beautifully set at the coast of lake Tanganyika, which is world's longest lake and second deepest and second biggest in terms of water quantity (after Lake Baykal in Siberia). The Lonely Planet guidebook recommends the Bujumbura beaches as the most beautiful inland beaches in Africa. Hmmm... the setting is picturesque indeed, though the beauty of the beaches is clearly over publicized. What we liked most about Buja is its gastronomy, the Belgian-French influence is clearly visible or rather taste-able there. While walking into the patisserie Cafe Gourmand, we felt as if we entered the teleportation machine straight into 'Au Vatel' in Brussels for the quality and look of its pastries and a rooftop bar in Barcelona for the quality and esthetics of seating. Almost a perfect place, with only one complaint that the quality of service was also 'typiquement bruxelloise'. If you ever happen to be in Buja, don't miss a dinner in Botanika and a drink in Bora-Bora bar with a view over Tanganyika lake and the sun setting behind the mountains on the Congolese side.
The signs of deprivation are visible everywhere. Kids travel from one village to another at the back of the lorry trailers. When a lorry slows down in a town, they jump at its back and climb up until they attach themselves to the railings and put their feet on a trailer door knobs. The ones that are better off and can afford a bicycle don't miss a 'free-ride', either. They've got a well-developed technique - a cyclist first needs to sit down on a frame of its bike and only then is within an arm's length reach of a truck. They can travel like this for half an hour, one of the 'free-riding' cyclists managed to do so with the whole bunch of green bananas, which can easily weigh 30 kilos. Needless to say that this mode of transport is super dangerous, also needless to say that on the mountainous roads it's a great relief for anyone that otherwise would need to walk or pedal. The people often look just miserable their cloths are dirty, full of holes and worn out. We've seen very few people smiling, which contrasts with the neighboring countries, where the people seemed mysteriously joyful and well-disposed towards foreigners in spite of their dire situation.
What is there to see in Burundi? Not so much, actually. Bujumbura is beautifully set at the coast of lake Tanganyika, which is world's longest lake and second deepest and second biggest in terms of water quantity (after Lake Baykal in Siberia). The Lonely Planet guidebook recommends the Bujumbura beaches as the most beautiful inland beaches in Africa. Hmmm... the setting is picturesque indeed, though the beauty of the beaches is clearly over publicized. What we liked most about Buja is its gastronomy, the Belgian-French influence is clearly visible or rather taste-able there. While walking into the patisserie Cafe Gourmand, we felt as if we entered the teleportation machine straight into 'Au Vatel' in Brussels for the quality and look of its pastries and a rooftop bar in Barcelona for the quality and esthetics of seating. Almost a perfect place, with only one complaint that the quality of service was also 'typiquement bruxelloise'. If you ever happen to be in Buja, don't miss a dinner in Botanika and a drink in Bora-Bora bar with a view over Tanganyika lake and the sun setting behind the mountains on the Congolese side.
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