Rwanda
I traveled to Rwanda in 2022 without having much prior knowledge of the country, but I was very pleasantly surprised by the vibrancy of the capital city, Kigali, and the rollings hills of the surrounding terrain which made for beautiful views. From the urban areas, we traveled out to the volcano Mt. Sabyinyo to find the gorilla families that nest in the jungles.
The Gorillas
The first thing you notice is their size and strength. Even at rest, they are casually picking up large sticks, bamboo, and moving dense growth as if it were nothing.
The silverbacks have a gentle fierceness to them that is intimidating. They will be fully calm, lazing in the grass, and then rush into a display of loud bravado.
Eventually, you notice their eyes. There is humanity in them - a cognition of the world around them. They see us watching them and are as much observing us as we are them. My curiosity of their behavior reflected back at me.
Lastly, you will notice that they are immensely playful. The infants run around climbing trees, tackling each other, and pestering the adults.
