n January 2002, Nyiragongo erupted, sending a stream of lava 200 metres (219 yd) to one kilometre (1,100 yd) wide and up to two metres (6½ ft) deep through the center of the city as far as the lake shore. Agencies monitoring the volcano were able to give a warning and most of the population of Goma evacuated to Gisenyi. The lava destroyed 40% of the city (more than 4,500 houses and buildings).

“Even though we were warned on the radio, some people just didn´t leave in time” , Emmanuel told us while he gesticulated frenetically with his arms, indicating how the hot lava spread over the town of Goma, “They ran for the cathedral and thought hiding inside would save them. It didn´t. They fried to death.”

We were all standing on top of an outcrop of sharp black lava, where the eruption had started in January 2002. It was Emmanuel, our guide, Jeff and me, a very passionate local woman who saw herself as the caretaker of the area and about a dozen kids in awe of what they called monics. (mispronunciation of United Nations mission in Congo, MONUC) The lava had just broken through the ground where we were standing, about 10 km:s south of Nyarigongo Volcano, but at the edge of this unfortunate town.

“The lava stream was one kilometer wide and up to two meters deep and it just went through the whole town ending up with a great fizz in Lake Kivu.”

I looked to the north, were the perfect coned shaped volcano Nyarigongo, looked as calm as an active volcano can look like. Just a small cloud covering it, a bit of smoke crawling out of the caldera we had stood on a few days earlier. I turned my eyes back to the south and saw a wide black line of dried lava shooting through the town. Goma probably has one of the most beautiful settings in the world, at the foot of a string of volcanoes which forms Virunga National Park and overlooking the charming Lake Kivu. But it is a town which has suffered badly from the effects of the eruptions and from the two wars of 1996-97 fuelled by the Rwandan Genocide. We left the eruption area, went back to the dusty road, paid a few “fees” for our visit and started one of the oddest city tours I have ever done. But also one of the most interesting.!

It was in one way, a trip through the lives of many unfortunate, struggling people, who´s lives had been totally ruined. It was a tour plagued by rubbish everywhere, poverty, kids with signs of kwashiorkor, the thinnest of dogs, ramshackle homes and stores, extremely pot holed dirt roads and enormous amounts of people just trying to figure out how to go ahead with daily life. There were many fortunate ones. They kind of hid in homes covered by barbed wire and guards, as where all of UN:s deposits around town. Their presence could be seen everywhere. Troops came from Uruguay, Pakistan and India. I even heard Swedish spoken.

Is this tourism?

Cruising through Goma....

In my mind, absolutely. For me tourism is showing reality, creating understanding and finding ways to build bridges between cultures. And even though, for somebody with a very negative attitude to the realities of life, sure, it was a lot of misery. But, amongst all this, there was a everlasting feeling of hope, possibilities and pioneering. People were starting to rebuild their lives, by setting up what it looked like, very unstable structures, homes, on top of the dried lava. Others were transporting enormous loads of fruit, building material, cassava, on home made bicycles of wood. Small businesses were starting up everywhere. On sale was second hand clothes, cassava, loads of pine apple, beer and lots more. Things were happening and the one feeling which always have dominated my time in Africa is that the Africans are extra ordinary resourceful people and always find ways to survive and live in dignity. And they still know how to laugh!

It was definitely a tour of hope!

But, except mobile phones, and to be fair to reality, not a lot had changed in those 21 years since I passed through on my push bike. Congo, of course, have gone through a lot of upheaval, at least two wars, Mobutu was dead and gone and a new president had arrived, the son of Laurent Kabila, Joseph. As far as I can understand, the governing by cleptocracy that was Mobutu’s legacy, is far from gone. Many Congolese we conversed with, talked themselves warm for Paul Kagame, the president of Rwanda, a country modernizing quickly. I can understand they want change! Just crossing the border to the twin city of Gisenyi on the other side, was quite dramatic. In reality, this area was once part of the great kingdom of Rwanda and many of the inhabitants are of course Tutsi and Hutu. The Belgians, like other colonial powers, didn´t care about such things and made their borders without thinking about the tribal identities in the area.

“Is it safe to visit this area?” I asked Emanuel, which echoed what his boss Kennedy and pretty much everyone else we´d come across during the visit in this region, ” Yes! The last insurgents left the area half a year ago and we welcome tourists again!”

“And the Hutu FDLR-rebells have left as well?” I asked, and Emanuel answered: “Yes, but some or still hiding away in the mountains and forests north and west of the town, but are easily avoided. ”

The recent history of Goma has been dominated by the volcano and the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, which in turn fuelled the First and Second Congo Wars. The aftermath of these events was still having effects on the city and its surroundings in 2010.

Of course, if you read on the Internet, and the recommendations of the British and American Embassies,  its almost on pair with Yemen, which is one of the safest places I have ever visited. Congo is one of the most fascinating places on earth, for me the real Africa, and just have to be visited! And like Kensington Tours moving in just six months after the last disturbance, is very brave and shows why I want to work with them. They move the limits what is possible and offer something utterly unique. My feeling, travelling through Congo, is that it is almost unspoilt by tourism! Not many places you can get those feelings nowadays!

And Goma feels very safe, very stable, but one major difference have occurred since I passed through 21 years ago. Somebody said that the Congolese have lost their innocence through the wars and taking photos is a major obstacle. There´s no doubt, there´s a more aggressive attitude formed, which is very understandable.

Goma is probably one of the most interesting places on earth right now!

And, not only that, Goma is the birth place of Innocent Balude, the 13-year old which is the number one super star in Congo right now, see why here!

Jeff Willner have big visions and a big heart....he is the leader and founder of Kensington Tours. A very good friend of mine today!

Bainu with his wife Sharol and ten months old son having a break and a laugh

Back in Oman, right now in the Indian enclave of Wattaya. There´s a smell of curry over the area, but it is calm and sparsely populated. We are staying with two friends, Bainu and his wife Sharol.

“We are worried. We have left everything behind in India and we have given our hearts to Oman” , Bainu Tomas said whilst we were eating breakfast together in his flat in Wattaya, “But this omanization just puts us in a limbo, not knowing what to do or expect. We accept it, but it is still kind of a shock that it will be implemented so fast. That is why my my wife is still working as a teacher, even though with a newly born child, we would need her at home here.”

Bainu came 6 years ago from the state of Kerala, like many other Indian immigrants working in Oman, on an invitation from the government. Oman needed foreign workers to be able to construct a foundation of a country. Just like their neighbors in Saudi-Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. In Dubai two-thirds of its population is made up by immigrants who are there to keep the country alive. In Oman they´re less, but the country still needs them. But Sultan Qaboos, the beloved ruler, wants Omanis in every position of the society, something I can understand, since I often wonder, what will happen if the poorly treated immigrants in Dubai would revolt against their masters? There is no doubt, that Oman is understanding the issue of keeping its Arab soul better than some of its neighbors. But, the question is, are they ready to run the country by themselves?

Muttrah by night - climate this time of the year is fantastic!

Since being involved myself in the tourist industry I have seen there´s still a lot of work and acclimatization before Oman can be run by its own people, because the service level amongst them is still low and prices heavily over flated. They still need their ex-pats and immigrants from all over the world. And being a traveller, one always feels like an immigrant, an outsider, so I do well understand them and nothing upsets me like the stories that come out from for example Dubai how badly treated some of the immigrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and India are. But Bainu has been happy during his time here.

“Well, I belong to the educated immigrants who come here, not the laborers, and for this reason life has been good” , he said and smiled as always.

Bainu is religious and spends a fair amount of time in his local church all made up of Indians from Kerala, and he is therefore very easy going and gentle, and doesn´t judge anyone unfairly or complain about his own situation. But he does says he worries. He isn´t ready to return to India yet. Wages are not on the same level there. And he says that when they first came here, they could even save money and send back, but nowadays, even they almost work 6 days a week, long hours, both of them, they just about make it. But they´re doing well, the Tomas Family, there are other immigrants who are suffering. Please read this article about the situation in Dubai. Oman is different. And it feels good being back!

Abdullah - the driver which quit his job for the day to take us on a tour of Muttrah!

Since we stayed outside the more well to do parts of the time, we decided to take the small minibuses to travel around Muscat, when our friends didn´t come and pick us up, and this is really the way to see another, much more interesting part of Muscat and Oman. It is lively, demanding and you get a perspective how things are if you are not well to do in Oman. Everything takes more time and is more demanding. But you meet a lot of great people. One of them was Abdullah, who owns his own mini-taxi and when we met him and said we loved his country, who quit is job and instead took us on a tour of the city. We arrived back at our flat at 2 a.m. People are extraordinary friendly here.

But the reason we have come here this time is two very important lectures which will define the direction of the Expedition. Hold on, you will know in a few days…..this is the most important of all visits i have done to Oman. Judgement day.

Downtown Abu Dhabi - the richest city in the world

Just a short note from Abu Dhabi International Airport, located just outside the richest city in the world!

After landing late at Abu Dhabi International Airport after an exhausting trip from first Williamstown in Massachusetts in a car – it took seven hours to reach Philadelphia, and from there two hours flying to Chicago and than an additional 16 hours to Abu Dhabi- I figured the city would be similar, if not as expansive, as Dubai. A city free of an Arab soul and a kind of fantasy city of spectacular man made structures. And Abu Dhabi is considered to be the richest city in the world. But I realized already on the way into Cristal Hotel, who are hosting us, that Abu Dhabi was more like a mixture of Oman and Dubai, somewhere in between. It is much more modest. We are invited to the city since their biggest newspaper published an article about the Expedition. (Read more here!)

No matter what you think, one does get impressed by all these man made structures on soemthing which used to be a hamlet in a desert!

It feels good being back in the Gulf-Arab World. Climate is as good as it could be, not to hot, not too cold, just perfect and life isn´t as fast, demanding and predictable. And this my 9th visit to this part of the world might turn out the most decisive ever when it comes to the Arabian Expedition. I am heading for Oman for two very important lectures and meeting some sponsors who really fit into what the Expedition needs to build these important bridges between the east and west. But, I am not there yet and I have just returned from a bit of a stroll through the heart of Abu Dhabi and my first reflexion is that is much more lively than both Oman and Dubai. And most people you meet are Asian immigrants, mainly resting in the parks, talking and socializing, this Friday, which is the day of rest in the Muslim world. They´re mainly Pakistanis, Indians and Filipinos. Which isn´t odd, considering that almost 75% of the total population of  around 2 million inhabitants are immigrants. And many of them are worried right now, due to the economic problems in Dubai. The taxi driver from the airport told us that the traffic congestions have doubled since December, when Dubai hit the economic wall, and that immigrants from Dubai where trying their luck in Abu Dhabi now. They are desperate to survive. Once I get to Oman, I will write a report on an immigrant family who worries a lot what will happen to them.  They have asked me to come and stay with them. In the meantime, do read this very sad article about immigrants in Dubai! The situation could be similar in Abu Dhabi. Suddenly, whilst writing here in Abu Dhabi, I just feel I do prefer Oman to these two emirates, since the Omanis are in majority in their country and you deal with them every day and in every way.

75% of the Emirate is composed of immigrants from primely Pakistan, India, Phillipines.

But, if the expedition doesn´t get the backing we want from Oman, I would easily consider Abu Dhabi to be an alternative. It has a sound Arab base, you see emiratees everywhere and they have kind of a very good mixture between the Arab and the Western world. And after having a couple of meetings here, there´s definitely a lot of interest from this little Emirate!

Keep in touch to see how it all goes…..plane to Oman just arrived!

By the way, the article about the Expedition in the National came with an editorial, read here!