Hotel des Mille Collines

     Somewhere along the line I began to realize that my friends liked to surprise me.  So after we regretfully left Heaven, they told me we were making one last stop, but they didn't tell me where.
We pulled into the parking lot of a large hotel

very near Heaven, and Moses asked me if I knew where we were.  As it happens, I did know where we were--at the Hotel des Mille Collines (or Hotel of a Thousand Hills, a name for Rwanda), or, as it is better known to the world, the Hotel Rwanda.  I had just watched the movie again shortly before I departed from home.
     You may remember the 2004 movie starring Don Cheadle, which was about a hotel manager in Kigali who gave shelter to over 1000 Tutsi (and Tutsi sympathizers) people fleeing the 1994 genocide.  The people thought they would be safe there because that's where the U.N. troups were headquartered, but they got precious little support from the U.N. (the U.S. either).  But this man, on his own, opened up the hotel to all those seeking sanctuary, and he did in fact manage to arrange for all of them to leave the country safely.  It's a great movie, and if you haven't seen it, you may want to.
     The basic facts of the story are true, and this is the hotel.  It's been remodelled a LOT since 2004, but it is definitely the same, posh place as it was then.  It features fabulous local artwork and a swimming pool area that looked really inviting even to a non-swimmer like me.

 It was just so very sobering to think about the horror of the Genocide while standing in the beautiful location where it occurred.  Hard to imagine it could happen.  Makes one feel we should all be vigilant that it 
DOESN'T happen again.
     Also, it made me admire Rwanda for its amazing recovery and reconcilation.






And then it was sort of startling; it was time to say good-bye to my new friends.  They were SUCH pleasant companions, and we experienced so much together.  I will miss them.  And, by the way, if anybody who may be reading this thinks THEY might want to go to Africa sometime, please let me know.  I'd love to set you up with Moses and his company.

They drove me to the airport, where we underwent the most exacting security check ever.  We had to take everything out of the car and set if on the sidewalk where the guards opened everything and had their dogs sniff everything.  We were body-wanded and asked some questions, and . . .  well,  I guess I felt secure but a little scared.
     They  offered to wait for me, but they were heading home to Uganda yet that night and of course it wasn't necessary for them to hold my hand.  So, with a genuine feeling of regret, I said good-bye to Emma, Moses, and Jackie (as pictured in order, above).
     There were some very nice shops in the airport, where I did make a few last minute purchases, and before long I was on my way to Amsterdam.