Heaven’s likeable staf go out of their
way to make such encounters happen.
Impeccably trained, many come from
disadvantaged backgrounds; Alissa, who
moved to Kigali with her public health expert
husband in the mid-2000s and volunteered
at an orphanage for survivors of the 1994
genocide against the Tutsis, has a talent for
spotting potential.
“When we irst arrived, Rwanda was still
recovering — not just from the trauma
of genocide and civil war, but also from
famine,” explains Alissa. “People thought
we were crazy to leave the States and raise
our family here in Kiyovu.” Hundreds of
thousands died between April and June 1994,
and it took time for enemies to reconcile
and exiles to return. But ater spending
much of the last quarter-century inding its
feet, Rwanda has now blossomed into one
of Africa’s most dynamic, forward-facing
nations, and Kigali into one of its most
liveable cities.
Spread over a cluster of hills, Kigali divides
naturally into neighbourhoods. The avenues
and boulevards of Kacyiru and Kimihurura,
in the centre, are dotted with embassies,
oices and independent galleries. The
working-class district of Nyamirambo, in the
southwest, has steep cobbled streets, kitenge
(colourful fabric) merchants, traditional
barbers and tailors, lively bars and a proud
history — this was where resistance to
the genocide was strongest. Kiyovu, west
of Kimihurura, has international hotels,
smart restaurants, fashion studios and
aluent allure. Uniting these and the other
neighbourhoods are the cheerful buzz
of motorbike taxis, the fastest way to get
around, and an abiding tidiness: Rwanda,
one of the irst nations in the world to ban
plastic bags, requires its citizens to come
together on the last Saturday morning of each
month for a three-hour stint of public service
called Umuganda, typically involving street-
sweeping, tree-planting or verge-trimming.Clothes shop in the
Nyamirambo district
LEFT: Murals on the
Impact Hub
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