Goma - Democratic Republic of Congo

I arrived at the border which was very low key and again without hassle. It wasn't busy at all. I waited in line behind a few others but was waved inside the office by an official. I handed him my passport. I asked if he spoke English ( in French), he said no but did end up speaking a few words here and there. He only asked me a few questions like if I would be working and how long I would be staying. I stressed that I was only a tourist and since the visa on offer at borders is only valid for 8 days, I wouldn't being staying longer than that. Visas of longer duration are available at DR Congo embassies but since I was nearing the end of my trip and was unsure how safe the rest of DR Congo was, the 8 day visa was enough for me.

I have wanted to visit the Congo for a long time and there were many things I wanted to do such as visit gorillas, climb volcanoes and explore remote parks home to endemic animals like the okapi and bonobo but for now I would have to settle for a few days in Goma. Niyragongo volcano loomed over Goma and is one of 2 active volcanoes in the Virunga range. The volcano blew its top most recently in 2002 and slowing covered Goma in lava. There were few casaulties because the lava moved slow enough for the town to be evacuated. This left the city centre looking like a moonscape and a modern day Pompeii ( to quote the guidebook) and this is what I wanted to see.

After crossing the border I walked to the Ihusi hotel, a fancy and expensive hotel popular with UN and aid workers. Koenraad told me to come here to call Enrique, his contact in Goma. His other friend Marie, was away on a mission. I called Enrique and he said he was busy for a while and could come in the evening. I told him I didn't have a room here and would just be waiting for him. He said he would come pick me up soon. I had the most expensive bottle of coke while I waited for him. He came in a half an hour. Enrique was a little older than me and was from Italy. He had only been in Goma for 2 weeks but had worked for the UN in Burundi before. He didn't know Koenraad personally but his fellow coworker and roommate Marie did but like I said she was away on a mission which left today. Enrique didn't know me either but was kind enough to take time out and pick me up and bring me to their house. We drove through the centre of Goma and a few minutes later were at his rented house. Their house was on a beautful stretch of lakefront land along with lots of other very nice houses rented out mostly by foreign aid agencies. He rented the house with 5 others and they just moved in 2 weeks ago. He had to go back to work and dropped me at the house, showed me around and then left. He or someone else would be back in the evening.
I was supposed to be staying in Marie's room but while I relaxed on the second story balcony, she called the caretake, Poppa and he in turn handed the phone to me. Marie was from Belgium and spoke excellent English. She said her mission was cancelled due to an unforeseen security threat and she would be coming home this evening and would really like to sleep in her own bed. This was no problem for me. I'll sleep anywhere. She said she would bring home a mattress and make me comfortable in the living room. This was totally fine for me. I was just glad that she was letting me stay at her house.
I walked down the street and ate a hamburger and fries at La Chalet restaurant. It was a fancy place and a little out of my price range but the only place close by. I also went to check out the supermarket nearby, the Goshop. The US dollar is king in Congo and all the prices were in this. This was much more than a supermarket though. It also sold generators, electronics, camping equipment, booze, health care products and more. It was expensive and I didn't buy anything. I went back to the house to relax and wait for someone to come home. Marie and Jerome came home around 8.30pm. We ate some of their canned food that was for their cancelled mission and then some cooked food of rice and beef. It was all good. Marie explained that their mission was cancelled because the area was more dangerous than they thought and they needed to establish a base there instead of just visiting the place. She was a human rights officer and had a very interesting job and met a lot of dangerous people. After a beer and chatting for a while we all went to bed. My bed was a comfortable foam mattress on the floor of the quiet living room.