When I am traveling people always ask me where I am from when I tell them they always say “Wow New Zealand that’s the most beautiful place ever”. I agree New Zealand is stunning but many people have never set foot in Rwanda. It really is the land of a Thousand hills and maybe one of the most stunning and green places on the planet. The hills are endless, the smiles radiate and you leave feeling a sense of true fullness from the country and its people.

Every Rwandan was expected to carry round an identity card prior to the 1994 Genocide. This card classified them into a class group, Hutu, Tutsi or Twa. Being labeled a Tutsi was like being handed a death sentence, over 100 days starting in April 1994 Tutsi’s were hunted like animals and brutally killed. This identity card lies in Ntarama church where over 5,000 Tutsi found their final resting place.

Machetes, clubs, axes lye scattered on the church floor what stories they could tell of a bitter history and slaughter of so many innocent victims. The killings were personal and painful. People were hacked and many lay suffering before meeting their final death. No Tutsi would be spared, babies and women were tortured and raped before finally being killed.

Many fled to churches to take refuge believing they would be safe. With over 95% of the population claiming Christian faith in 1994 the assumption that sheltering inside a church would be the right choice.  If the walls of the Churches could speak there would be bitter screams and certain pain etched in them. Over 5,000 Tutsi faced their last days inside Ntarama Church… never again!

Children’s eyes shine and people speak of a much brighter future. When speaking with a survivor of the Genocide he said the best revenge he could have is by being successful. Rwanda certainly has progressed and is even more progressive thinking than many other countries. There is a lot we can learn from Rwanda, with plastic bags being illegal and the monthly ‘Umganda’, this is a country making great progress. Umganda is a mandatory community service where on the last Saturday of every month everyone in the country reports to their local district from 8am till noon in order to perform their civic duties which can range from cleaning up the streets, cutting trees or repairing buildings.

Education continues to be the key to bringing many countries out of poverty and building a brighter future. However, this has to be the right education. An education that fits the country and works with the culture it has set out to educate. Getting more girls in school and keeping them there longer not only delays pregnancy but is the way to build a brighter future for generations and the entire nation.

Music and dance are have an important place in tradition in Rwanda. Intore dancers once only performed for the Royal court but these days can be found performing at many cultural centers in Rwanda. At Iby’wacu Cultural Village in Kingi (http://cbtrwanda.org) you can be treated to Intore dancing, local drumming and other customs from ex-poachers who are now working to conserve the rich culture of Rwanda.

The Mountain Gorillas are now by far the leading reasons tourists come to Rwanda. With only 720 estimated to be remaining there has been a huge amount of effort in recent years to maintain and help build increase the Gorilla population. There were 22 new gorillas named at this year’s ‘Kwita Izina’ naming ceremony in Rwanda. Hard working organisatons, such as Gorilla Doctors (http://gorilladoctors.org/), work in the parks putting a huge amount of time and love into keeping these incredible Great Apes healthy and numbers growing each year.