Rumonge, a provincial fishing and marketing centre about 75 km south from Bujumbura, is a former trading post created in the 19th century by Zanzibarites, where Muslim influences for religion and Swahili influences for culture are dominant. Although it is supervised by the Burundian customs officers who ensure the payment of taxes on the loads coming from Tanzania (fish, but also fabrics), the improvised auction on the pier is a good time to observe absolutely: the arrival of each boat causes a frenetic animation.

Getting hammered the eve by 2 or 3 large Primus beers (0,72L) delayed the wake up time, preventing us from seeing most of fish market action happening at 6:30 – 7am. Place was still busy and a few boats kept arriving when we reached there at 8am so it was still very lively and interesting.






Street scene at Rumonge.





Most boats are back already at 9:00.





The biggest catch of the day: a 4,5kg capitain (or Nile perch) - Sorry for the blurry picture!





Due to climate change, waters of Lake Tanganyika rise to levels not seen in years, submerging the old road (marked by the 3 concrete bollards in front of the boats).





Raised drying racks for small sardine-like ndagala initiated by FAO a few years ago.





Women historically dried catches of ndagala on the ground, where they were easy pickings for animals and the rain. Around 15% of the catch was lost or spoiled during the drying process. United Nations food agency project in Burundi has cut fish waste by half and provided jobs for hundreds of families.









Cracks and potholes during the first 5km out of Rumonge.





Despite the negative social and environmental impacts, Rumonge is also at the heart of the flourishing and highly profitable regional palm oil economy, which is the wealth of this whole part of the country. Throughout the Rumonge plain, small artisanal presses can be seen extracting oil from palm husks.





The pragmatic idea of lunching in situ or at Resha vanished into thin air as we were clearly running behind schedule on our program, pity! So, we just stopped by at these resorts for photo purposes only.



Entrance of the upmarket Tanganyika Blue Bay Resort.





Every visitor might know these cute kids speaking a perfect English and living just accross the road .





Perfect for a day trip or week end getaway...





Taken from the popular pier.





One of the many Chinese infrastucture projects on the way to Resha Royal Imperial Hotel.





Notice the carved copper plate representing the Egyptian sovereign Amenhotep IV.





From the sandy beach.





For the best locations, one can select to eat or drink over the lake at Pavillons Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda or Rwanda.





Breathtaking views of the steep coastline along the way.









The tallest mountain in Burundi, Mount Heha is part of the Burundi Highlands mountain range. The mountain is popular for trekking and at 2,667m, it makes a good challenge for anyone looking to summit. The mountain is located fairly close to Bujumbura like 1½ hour drive and this is the most convenient location to use as a base before setting out to climb the mountain.



It's not a strenuous hike because it has just a 105m elevation from where the car was parked near tea fields.





Definitely looking forward to observing Gitega, Lake Tanganyika and Bujumbura from there...





3 different trails suitable to your own level to reach the summit.




Nearly the whole hike was covered with small pine trees. There were large carpets of bright green mosses growing under the pine trees along with ferns and wild orchids.

Lumitel radio mast at the top.





Amazing yet hazy views, late afternoon – after a flat 40 min climb. (Certainly much faster if you practise sports regularly ).





Well, can one find out where those Burundian capitals are???





Back to the car .









Rusizi National Park is the most famous and the most visited of all Burundi National Parks & Reserves. The park is sectioned into two significant areas which are separated by the Bujumbura-Uvira road. The larger part of the park lies on the eastern bank of Rusizi River. This flood plain is 2km wide and 45km long with acacia trees, shrubs and grasslands dominating the wild vegetation. South of the highway (another section of the park) is the delta of Rusizi river which drains into the Lake Tanganyika. The river delta is dotted with small islands, water streams, channels, papyrus beds and phragmites. The park is great for bird watching – our goal today – as we already did the game walk 2 years ago.

Let's give the boat cruise a try ( up to 10 people).





One of the 3 viewing decks of the Rusizi Delta section





In terms of fauna diversity, hippos and crocodiles are noticeably the biggest animals of the reserve. Other animals include servals, jackals, antelopes marshbucks as species of small mammals (in the northern part), plus snake and varanus.



Sadly, no Gustave anymore!





A water bird census was conducted in 2007 and 226 bird species were counted including African skimmers, spoonbills, whistling ducks, Malagasy pond heron and marabou storks to name but a few!









Great white pelicans.





Dark blue Lake Tanganyika waters stand in stark contrast to the muddy Rusizi River.





Swirling woody debris.





Grey heron.





Hippo gathering.









According to the guide, a 3 day old newborn, resting at home!





From the north, Pont de la Concorde – Paris, errr no!?! Gatumba, sorry



Burundi named its the national football team after the bridge residents: Intamba Mu Rugamba.





Cruising 5km upstream from Gatumba will take you to DRC border, add another 60km you'll reach Rwanda.





In 2016, during a Kenya Airways flight from Bujumbura, while chatting with a traveller we became good friend over the time as he frequently travels to Europe for conferences or trainings. As hobby, his wife is a dancer for the locally famous Club Culturel Intatana, which aims to promote Burundian culture through traditional dances. It was a fantastic chance to be able to attend a rehearsal and to interview them. I truly regret struggling so much with video editing... . Below is one of their video used by the non-profit organization Sectoral Chamber of Hospitality and Tourism of Burundi:


Cheilla, Christine (the founder) and Astere (the manager).





They perform in weddings, special public events, private group/individual parties and international festivals (China, Ethiopia, France, Ivory Coast etc etc...) .





My friend's wife, Natacha, at the left









Club Intatana has celebrated its 10th anniversary in Nov. 2019.





Feel free to contact them via Facebook or Twitter for more infos or a show !