Well, it’s taken 42 blog posts and over 60,000 words, but I’ve managed to get there – this is the … More
Category: Letters from the heart of Africa
7 tips for volunteers in Africa
It’s almost time to fly home. These seven months in Rwanda have felt so much longer – the richness of … More
The Ragged Children of Kinigi
When the ragged children of Kinigi danced, it was a scene of both joy and sadness, those imposters both, two … More
Unexpected hosts: gorillas after the mist
After noon, we started the descent in to the mists of Mount Karisimbi, the highest peak in the Virungas, a … More
The snowman in the heart of Africa – Climbing Mount Karisimbi (part 2)
Continued from part 1 I walked towards the fire where there were two crouching silhouettes outlined in bright orange. I … More
Climbing Mount Karisimbi
CLIMBING MOUNT KARISIMBI , a snow-capped volcano between Rwanda and the DR Congo, the tallest peak in the Virungas, was … More
Travels with Dr Muss – Healing the Memories
I started ‘Letters from the Heart of Africa’ over 15 months ago and now, 34 posts and 50,000 words later … More
When Memories Come Calling
Memories are like kites dancing on warm zephyrs on high – with just a tug, and if our strings of … More
A Weekend Break in the Northern Hemisphere #2: Kampala and Lake Victoria
Crossing the border from Rwanda to Uganda, a traverse from Francophone to Anglophone Africa, offered subtle changes from the bus … More
Being Lighter at the Equator: a Weekend Break in the Northern Hemisphere
With my friends Thierry and Juko, I took an 8 hour bus ride from Rwanda to Kampala in Uganda, crossing … More
A hike up Mount Bisoke and a lesson in understanding gorilla sounds
One Friday afternoon, with Freddy’s permission, I snuck out from work early – we had decided to climb the perfectly … More
Sometimes on Tuesdays, always with tea (Part Two)
(To read part one of this post please click here) On one of our regular meet-ups Vincent* told me how … More
Sometimes on Tuesdays, always with tea
Sometimes you can’t see how incredible a person is when you first meet them. Still waters run deep, people are … More
Faith, devotion and complicity
I enjoyed lazy starts to the day on the veranda, shooting the breeze with Peter the security guard. We’d breakfast … More
Where you never walk alone
In contrast to my daily commute in London, my walk home in Kigali was rarely dull, no two journeys were … More
The sports bar in the heart of Africa
Football (or soccer for followers of this blog across the Pond) often gets in to the press for the wrong … More
Electric-green unplugged
Today it’s April the 7th 2018, a day that marks the 24th anniversary of the start of the Rwandan genocide. … More
As Time Goes By …
Giving a training course to a group of nurses in Rwanda gave me a new perspective on the concept of … More
Unguarded Moments
The basic facts I knew about Rwanda before I lived there were: it has rare mountain gorillas. Diane Fossey, the … More
Being mindful – bug bites and quiet nights
Most of the nights after work were quiet nights at home and I found my pace shifted down a gear, … More
In Search of Silence and the Missing Female to Female Nine Pin
It’s been a few months since I last posted for the series ‘Letters from the Heart of Africa’. We are … More
The nemesis of my sole
Heel gobbler. Lace snapper. Tongue cracker. In the stony, dusty backstreets of Kigali, the capital of Rwanda, shoes took one … More
Feeling down: the 6th Week Blip
Six weeks in to my volunteering placement in Rwanda I felt down. I had hit what psychologists call the ‘6th … More
A weekend in the rural beauty of Rwanda
One Friday after work, I took a bus from Kigali till I reached a sleepy village called Gahini beside a … More
The Resilience of Hope
I passed the cream-coloured boundary wall the next morning, its smooth surface was now pock-marked with a spray of holes, … More
A Festering Malice: the Grenade Attack
What kind of person would throw a grenade at a cemetery? What must happen in a person’s mind for them … More
Leisure pursuits: tennis, jogging and painful stomach-flattening (please do not try this at home)
I settled in to the small bungalow. My social life revolved around a good circle of colleagues and friends , my work … More
The Spotless City
How could a city in a developing country be so completely litter-free? From the airport taxi, the streets of Kigali, … More
Politicians and Popstars
Over the years the Kigali Genocide Memorial has been visited by countless celebrities and dignitaries; Angelina Jolie, Matt Damon, Natalie … More
My friends, the survivors
I settled in to my role as an adviser at the Kigali Genocide Memorial – I got a desk, there was … More
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