Wüstenschiff

StefanS hat geschrieben:Ich war im Januar 2008 in Goma und bin gar nicht aus der Stadt gekommen, weil mich die Einheimischen vor den Rebellen gewarnt hatten und anscheinend schon die ganze Stadt umstellt war. Da bin ich dann zurück nach Ruanda, leider. Und meine Erfahrung mit der damaligen Sicherheitslage ist wahrscheinlich nicht mehr aktuell.

Daniel hat geschrieben: Bukavu

Accomodation
Hotel Tourist – on Av. Lumumba, $20-35/room/night in the main building,
depending on the size of the room. They have also some small rooms in the
back, for $15. Check the conditions first. Breakfast included. The power
tends to be low in intensity (hard if you want to read) and the cold water
is intermittent but usually reliable (you might stay 10 mins with the soap
on you though)

Where to eat
Inexpensive good eats (around 2500 CF a meal, they serve fufu, tilapia,
fries with goat brochettes, etc) can be found at Restaurant Kalil on Av.
Maniema (close to the crossroad with Av. Lumumba) and Mama Kinja (ask
around).
Where to drink a good coffee – indulge yourself at Orchid Safari Lounge,
with a wonderful view over the lake. It’s not so expensive as you might
think.
Coco Lodge on Av. Muhumba is also a very nice new place, luxury
accommodation and restaurant. The owner, Carlos, is Swiss and a veteran in
Congo, he knows everything and everybody.

Internet
There are several cybers scattered around the center, but you should be
lucky if they have connection. Hotel Residence has always connection but is
more expensive. The same for Orchid Safari Lounge.

ICCN/PNKB-GTZ –
To visit the park Kahuzi-Biega, including the gorillas, go on Av. Muhumba
and look for PNKB-GTZ headquarters. Ask around, in the neighborhood
everybody knows where it is. A good contact is Kiza, he is a conservationist
for PNKB. A permit for gorillas cost $400/person/day. A car with driver to
the station of Tchivanga would be $50 (it will wait for you there as long as
needed, to take you back), try to negociate a better price or take a moto.
You will be escorted by 4-5 rangers and soldiers. You can get really close
to the gorillas. 12 persons (most having “humanitarian” written down in the
column for Profession) have visited the gorillas in the entire month of
december 2009. 50 from July up to January. Camping could be arranged at the
Tchivanga station, but that’s not official, just talk to the people there.
Other trips can be done in the park. Climbing Mount Kahuzi is one. There are
no official rates since the routes are not open for tourism, but you can
arrange it if you really want.

Bukavu - Goma

The only reliable variant is to take a boat on Kivu. There are “canot
rapids” (speed boats) for $50/person, leaving at 7:30 in the morning from
the port. Takes 3- 3.5 hours to get to the other side. The slow overnight
boats leave at 5:30. The pricier first class is $25 or $20 depending on the
boat. 1st class conditions are good enough, it is on the upper deck, there
are sofas (you can get some sleep), a TV; meals, beers and coke are
available for reasonable prices and they do include breakfast in the price.
The boat is rather slow. It arrives at Goma very early in the morning.

Goma

Budget: Colibri hostel – reasonable pit hole, for $15/room (for 2 persons).
No running water, the receptionist will fill you the bucket.
Hotel de Grand Lacs, VIP, Ihusi are in a different class, very nice places
if you have enough money. The terrace at VIP is particularly nice, with live
music and antelope skins on the tables.

Internet – there are several small cybers around the central round point,
but not very reliable. They close early. If in need you can find reliable
(but slow) internet at VIP, for $2/hour.

Aus: O lume mare

Daniel (carpatik) hat geschrieben: Goma or Bukavu?

... I clearly recommand Bukavu. I did not like Goma at all. Goma for me was a dusty, poor place and peple less welcoming then Bukavu, although Bukavu is full of MONUC and NGOs workers, which leaves a mark on the attitude of the local people. I've stayed in Bukavu 3 days, including the new year celebration, but just 1 day in Goma.

Aus: Lonely Planet