The very first impressions from Bujumbura

My first impressions of Burundi collected just a few jours after my arrival ...

After a very very very long travel of over 24 hours, I finally arrived in Bujumbura, Burundi. Buja (how the Burundian capital is often affectionately called) is a beautiful city between Lake Tanganyika and hilly mountains (pour les francophiles, les milles collines). The town stretches from the lake up the hills with impressive views from the hill sides over the lake and the mountains of the DRC on the other side of Lake Tanganyika. 

The weather is quite bearable. It does not get very hot during the day (around 30 degrees) and, at night, it cools down (around 15 degrees). Due to the lake and mountains, the climate is very nice. But we are only at the beginning of the dry season and, I have been told, it will get much hotter in the months of July and August during the peak of the dry season. The surrounding hills of Buja are truly amazing. But for now, the view over the mountains and the lake is not often clear. The best views, I have been told, can be experienced during the rainy season after a heavy rain clears the sky.

The surrounding hills sides of Buja are green and filled with plantations of mainly coffee, tea, manioc and fruits. Some farmers even harvest strawberries. Burundians often say that God has spoiled them when it comes to climat and geography ('Dieu nous a gâté!'). I am very much enjoying the local coffee, the tropical fruits and the local beer, called Primus. Many Burundians in the capital also love to drink Amstel, the Dutch beer that is locally brewed in Burundi. And Burundians love to drink beer and have been complaining about the recent price increase of almost 5% of their beloved 'ikiheri' (la Primus en Kirundi) now costing 1200 FBU. The high alcohol consumption is a big problem. A recent report stated that over 50% of Burundian youth start consuming alcohol before the age of 13. 

For now, I am staying in a small and simple hotel right by the Université du Burundi. The town feels pretty safe. Even though, it becomes deserted after 9pm due to security concerns related to bandits. I have been told that I can easily walk around during the day in the center of the town. But I have to be careful with robberies. It is especially challenging to see so many street kids in Buja (les enfants de la rue). Today, it is estimated that Burundi counts over 5000 street kids, 3000 of which live in the capital.

Burundi is one of the poorest countries in the world. The differences between rich and poor are appalling. While we are driving around by car and enjoying a beer at nice lake clubs, we see a lot of people getting water at a local 'water center' and carrying big containers of water up the hills back to their neighborhoods, which have no access to water. 

All Burundians are very friendly and welcoming. It is really impressive. They primarily communicate in Kirundi, a Bantu language with quite a lot of similarities to Kiswahili. So I decided to take a little class to get to know some expressions in the local language. Burundians are very impressed when foreigners try to speak a few words in Kirundu. People also speak Kiswahili (especially in the big cites around the lake), which is becoming more and more important due to regional integration. Plus, there are many Congolese living in Burundi.