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If there was an adjective to describe the hills in Kigali city then plenty would fill the gap. My childhood dream was to visit my father's land: Rwanda. Growing up, most of the news about this country was negative, yet I somehow wanted to be there. The opportunity presented itself in the year 2016 and I grabbed it. I booked a bus from Nakuru, Kenya to Kigali, Rwanda. I packed most of my clothes even though I was not sure what lay ahead of me. The bus ticket indicated that we were to leave at 7 pm. 2 hours later, we were still waiting at the bus park. I became anxious and started asking the other passengers questions. They had made the trip before so they reassured me that we would arrive on time and we did. Finally, at 10.30 pm, we boarded the bus and off we set to the land of a thousand hills. I slept throughout the night often waking up to check the time. We arrived in Kampala, Uganda just as the sun was rising and stopped at a petrol station for a few minutes. I stepped outside to stretch my legs as I glanced at what the hawkers were selling early that morning. Soon we were back inside the bus ready to sit for another 8 hour drive. Before we reached the border of Uganda and Rwanda, some hawkers entered the bus selling roasted goat meat. I was so hungry and the aroma did not make things easier for me. I dislike eating while on road trips so I made sure to drink yogurt before the start of the journey thinking it would keep the urge to indulge at bay. It didn’t work, so I applied self-control and focused on finishing a book by Mahatma Gandhi. After crossing the border to Rwanda, the road began meandering as if to remind us that we were now in the land of a thousand hills. In less than an hour, we arrived in Nyabugogo Bus Park in the outskirts of Kigali city. My uncle came to pick me just as the sun was setting at around 6.30 pm. It was the perfect timing since the street lights were switched on and several buildings had also switched on their security lights. As we drove towards the city, I could not keep my eyes off the magnificent scenery. I gazed at every portion of the city that my eyes could accommodate. It was lit! A perfect first impression. In that moment I realized that had I arrived earlier based on the bus schedule, I would have missed this spectacular night scene. It tends to get dark earlier in Rwanda compared to Kenya and by the time I arrived at my uncle’s home, darkness had fully set in. That night as I retired to bed, I was all smiles and could not wait to explore Rwanda in the coming days.