Rwanda's Northwestern Region
Lake Kivu
The largest of the numerous freshwater bodies that decorate the Rwandan landscape, Lake Kivu is a never ending delight of shimmering serenity in which to lose yourself. Enclosed by steep, emerald terraced hillsides along the Congolese border, the surrounding backdrop to the glistening waters of Lake Kivu is nearly as picturesque as the lake itself.
Upon its banks, find the infamous collection of twists and turns that gives Lake Kivu one of the most fantastic drives in the country. Further inland, find a speckling of charming villages, where fisherman ply the serene waters in traditional dugout canoes, vibrantly dressed women smoking from intricate wooden pipes and talented troubadours strumming sweetly on stringed iningire.
The wildlife Lake Kivu proves as hypnotic as the lake itself, with flotillas of pelicans sailing ponderously across the open water, majestic crowned cranes preening their golden crests in the surrounding swamps and jewel like malachite kingfishers hawking silently above the shore.
