When dad asked me what country in Africa I would most like to go to (back before I left to travel Asia last year) my response was Rwanda. I'm not exactly sure what attracted me to this country, as it does not have an outstanding feature such as Victoria Falls or the Pyramids of Giza, however it was the country in Africa I knew the most about. Back in 2010, my teacher Miss McCarthy of Year 10 elective geography spent a term teaching us about the horrific genocide that occurred in 1994 between the Hutus and the Tutsis - 2 cultural groups that divided the nation of Rwanda. This was an issue in history that (unlike many others) remained quite vivid in my memory. The personal accounts, facts and research we spent class time googling were then solidified by the blockbuster hit (and the main reason why most people know where Rwanda is on the map) "Hotel Rwanda."

There was one thing I wanted to do in Rwanda, and I really didn't think we would make it to the country because of visa issues, and that was to see the Genocide museum in the capital of Kigali. Weird thing to travel to a country just to see - but like I said, if you spend time researching and writing reports and assignments about an issue, it becomes more than just a tourist attraction, it becomes personal.

I was so impressed with the museum as the citizens of Rwanda have really done an excellent job in explaining the history, whilst remembering the victims. The exhibition also has a section explaining the nature of genocides, plans of prevention for the future and list a number of examples of other genocides in history - some that I'd never even heard of. There was a genocide in Namibia that surprised both me and dad when the British (or French?) tried to gain governance back in the 1800s. Then of corse you had WWII and Cambodia's Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. It featured videos of survivors from not only the Rwandan genocide but these other ones as well and it just amazes me how a country can get so uncontrollable at such a rapid rate. In just 3 months, Rwanda's population was diminished from 7 million to 5 million with innocent people murdered in the most horrific of ways. Hacked to death by machete, burned alive in their homes, bashed to death with bats, gassed with monoxide. The saddest part of the museum was the section that was dedicated to the children. Rooms and rooms of pictures and personal stories of the child victims - listing their favourite foods and hobbies and who their best friends were. The pictures of siblings holding hands together and the descriptions of the ways they were murdered was just awful - almost sickening to think someone could beat a child to death with a baseball bat or throw an infant against the wall - repetitively banging their head so they die from brain death. The worst part of it all was that these murderers - were not just strangers or rebel militia, but often they were neighbours, friends or even family. Overnight the Hutus and Tutsis became enemies and any Hutu who would not participate in the massacre of Tutsis would be considered a traitor, persecuted and killed as a consequence.

A solemn finish at the museum ended with a visit to the mass graves along with the display of bloody clothing, skull heads and remaining bones of victims. Some of those skulls were just so little - for someone that use to be around children almost everyday - it was heart-wrenching for me to see. However despite this being one of the saddest and most confronting museums that I've ever been to - because it is a fairly recent issue in history (this year is the 20th reunion) the museum is quite new and very well set up. The grounds are beautiful, the information is understandable and the way they pay respect to the victims is touching. It would be an excellent excursion for a year 10 geography class studying one of Africa's darkest moments - however unfortunately it's a little bit far away from Sydney.

With the museum ticked off, we were free to spend the remaining week just hanging out, meeting new people and discovering Rwanda. In fact the best part of Kigali we discovered, was the "Discover Rwanda Youth Hostel" where we met so many new people and had 2 great nights just hanging out, listening to great beats and exchanging stories with some new friends. We met a guy Luic from France who was cycling across the world. When we asked him how long he'd been away from home he responded 3 years … OMG was he serious? He'd been cycling for 3 years across China, Nepal, France, Thailand, a million other countries in Europe and finally Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and now Rwanda - aiming to make his way down to South Africa by the end of the year. The stories he told us of the headspace of a cyclist seemed inhumane - to be that determined, motivated and to deal with such hardship such as kids throwing rocks at your bike and at you (as he experienced in Ethiopia) just seemed insane. He was sleeping in a tent every night, carrying only what he could fit on his bicycle but enjoying life to the fullest. Another person we met was a guy who reffered to himself as "Safari" - a Rwandan who was adopted by Belgiums as a baby and had decided to come back to his home country after living in Belgium for 20 odd years to discover his roots. He had spent 8 months in Rwanda - living in convents and moving from town to town but was really a true Belgium at heart with his love of house music and of corse his ability to brag about the most-wanted festival in the world of Tommorrowland. Anyone who is anyone would have a dream of one day attending this extravaganza, including myself, however that dream might be a little harder to achieve now as Safari explained that 40% of tickets are sold just to Belgium's haha. Sarah was a girl from the UK who had previously been to Uganda to work in an orphanage a couple of years ago and was back to check on how they were doing which was so beautiful to hear and see her photos of such precious kids - most HIV positive of corse. So many people, so many stories, I could really go on for days as I think that the best part of travelling is the people you meet. It's crazy how inspiring a stranger can be or how much help you can receive from people living on the other side of the world.

We also discovered Lake Kivu and Musanze - which were towns to add to our Rwanda expedition. Lake Kivu was beautiful as we got a hotel room right on the lake with a view that was serene and in Musanza we stayed at the same hotel as Diane Fossey who was an activist for saving the gorillas from being hunted and who was ironically killed by poachers herself. She was the main reason why the gorillas have been saved and are now repopulating due to strict protection by the Rwandan government, as well as in the Congo and Uganda. Her room at this same hotel we stayed at, was left exactly the way she had it as a kind of memorial for her. I haven't seen "Gorillas in the Mist" but apparently Sigourney Weaver played Diane and it is the other blockbuster movie that gives a name to Rwanda.

After finishing off our last new country in Africa (number 11) before heading back to Uganda and Kenya for our final couple of weeks, I've got to say just how happy I am to have been lucky enough to visit Rwanda - as this really was on my bucket list and it did not disappoint.

Catch you on the flipside!