After a much needed rest day, the team departed south for Huye, formerly known as Butare. The journey began with a long and slow crawl up one of the steeper hills behind a transport truck that just barely made it to the top. We enjoyed watching the bicycles hitch a ride using the bumper of the truck as it rolled along.
As the road opened up we took in the lush greenery of the rolling hills of Rwanda. Huye is home to the National University, and was once a leading candidate to become the capital of Rwanda after independence, but lost out to Kigali due to its central location. Now, Huye is the fourth largest town in Rwanda with a population of 55,000.
On the outskirts of town, we turned off the main road onto a rain-rutted, red clay trail, until we arrived at Karama. The site was large, situated in a valley surrounded by tall hills. Today's progress was slow, but steady. This particular area was one of the more impoverished, with many disabled and barefoot children. The need here was very evident.
As the day progressed, dark clouds turned to torrential rain with mothers, children and the team all seeking shelter. A decision was made to pause the remainder of the distribution for the day, and continue the next morning. Our team shuttled back for an overnight stay in Huye to rest up for what will be a busy day tomorrow.
Team Rwanda, 2024
Rotary Club of Kigali Virunga 🇷🇼 and SCAW 🇨🇦