House of Rock and Roll

Eastern Congo: Looks Like Heaven, Feels Like Hell

The government official spun around in his chair, kicked an empty beer bottle with his heel and stared out of the window. “North Kivu looks like heaven,” he said.

I agreed. A sunbird sang and we sat for a moment in silence, lost in the sunset. In the distance, cormorants and cuckoo hawks circled high above the glassy waters of Lake Kivu.

As the sky blackened and a plume of red smoke spurted from Nyiragongo volcano, the official took a long drag on his cigarette. “It feels like hell, my girl,” he said.

He could have been talking about any one of a number of conflict zones: the white sands of Baghdad Island, Herat in Afghanistan or Darfur’s mountainous Jebel Marra region, with its orchards, hot springs and long-drop waterfalls.

But this was Goma, once the “tourist capital of Congo” and North Kivu’s main town, perched on the northern shores of Lake Kivu, where jungle meets volcanic rock and gentle green hills.

The tourists don’t come anymore. Information centres are boarded up and the minister for tourism has turned his attention to journalists.

“The future of our province is dark,” said local resident Kennedy Ndayisenga, who once ran a successful tour company but now works as a fixer. “We don’t know where we’re going.”

Goma used to be known for its sunrises, mountain climbing and gorilla trekking. Now the city that has endured endless loss, destruction and volcanic eruptions against a perennial backdrop of conflict is in the grip of a forgotten emergency.

Since August, more than 175,000 people have fled violence in North Kivu between government troops, insurgents loyal to renegade Tutsi General Laurent Nkunda, Rwandan Hutu rebels and jungle Mai Mai militia.

Last week, the Congolese army used helicopter gunships, artillery and rocket launchers to retake the dairy farming town of Mushake – around 40 km (25 miles) from Goma – from rebels loyal to Nkunda. At least 35 soldiers, from both sides, were killed. At least 30 were injured.

Mushake was quiet when I passed through two weeks ago. Houses were empty, restaurants and drinking holes boarded up. Most of the residents had fled and only the wives and families of Nkunda’s soldiers remained. They stood around chatting in the square. One woman led me through the muddy streets to her home. We walked through a cloud of tiny baby-blue butterflies, past cattle grazing on the rolling plains, dotted with skinny eucalyptus trees and orange blossom. Now those streets are marked with blood, sweat and tears.

War zones aren’t supposed to be beautiful. And if they are, reporters probably aren’t supposed to admit it. But in Mushake, like the rest of North Kivu, it serves only to heighten the desperate situation.

The United Nations says tens of thousands of women and girls – some as young as a few months old – have been raped in the provinces of North and South Kivu in the past year alone. Deaths from hunger and preventable diseases are peaking. Villages empty as camps for internally displaced people swell.

At Mugunga IDP camp, I knelt in the black earth to conduct interviews with people who had lost everything. When I looked up, the mountains were embroidered with the gold rays of early morning sunlight.

In Goma, policemen carry rocket launchers almost as tall as them. In the countryside, children transport arms for rebels. Families shelter in schools and churches. Old men cry out for biscuits.

Yes, North Kivu is bloody beautiful. The mountains are bruised and the volcano is bleeding. Streams of blood-red lava spill over its lip. The smoky flames look like a flare, a cry for help.

This, as Joseph Conrad said, is one of the dark places of the world.

With neither tourism nor adequate news coverage, it will probably remain that way.

Visit Hakuna Matata tours Website By clicking here Rwanda tour . Mountain Gorilla tour . gorilla Tour .

More Rock And Roll High School Articles

Retro Glam & Collegiate Charm: Two Looks for Fall

There are two looks – Retro Glam and Collegiate Charm – that seem to be the benchmark of Fall trends from year to year. Slight variations like plaid, bubble skirts, short boots, high boots, colored tights, black tights and the like only enhance those basic looks.

Here’s what to look for when you shop for a retro glam or collegiate charm look:

To dress retro glam, don’t be afraid to wear vintage cuts in new and unexpected ways. If a print is a little too old-fashioned for you, have the dress, skirt or blouse altered into a more modern shape. On the other hand, if the cut of the item is very vintage, pair it with modern accessories to avoid a costumed appearance.
Jewelry is key to a retro glam look. A little goes a long way, and try mix up what you wear so as not to appear straight out of Grease, for example. Pearls would be too much with this outfit, so I paired the retro-fitting dress with a long, rock-and-roll chain necklace.
When it comes to retro glam, the bigger the sunglasses, the better.
Here’s what to look for in shoes: a chunkier heel (no stilettos), buckles, round-toes, vintage (gold, red, etc.) or muted colors, mary-jane styles or classic peep-toe pumps.
A scarf completes the retro glam outfit. Tie it loosely, or with a more retro-flair by flipping one end over your shoulder.
For a bit of authentic ladylike coordination, use a clutch instead of your huge, leather tote.
A 50′s/60′s style jacket finishes off the outfit. A bit of boxiness is a must. Look for large buttons or a peter pan collar. With longer dresses/skirts, try a cropped jacket. If you’re wearing something shorter on the bottom, then make sure your coat falls slightly above your hemline, but not too far.

Like what you are reading? Then, here are some tips for your next fall shopping spree:

Start off with an interesting blouse. It can be longer, like a tunic, or a bit shorter. Ruffles are preferred, but not required. A print is good also, but a solid color is easier to coordinate the accessories with.
Every collegiate girl worth her salt knows that some plastic-framed reading glasses add a bit of quirky charm.
A few bright-colored items in a coordinating color family add some conversation pieces to the entire outfit. See how well the colored pants, bracelet and blue cardigan look together? The yellow on this bracelet is a bright color, yes, but is also surprisingly neutral.
A long, grandpa-style cardigan worn over the blouse helps keep you warm, but that’s not the real reason I included it. Skinny jeans are tricky to proportion: if your top is too short, you end up looking very “hippy,” or bottom-heavy, without balance on your upper-half. Use a longer cardigan to correct that and balance out your collegiate charm look.
A big, leather tote bag serves two purposes: one, it has that collegiate – and somewhat scholarly – look we are aiming towards without seeming like a briefcase. And the second reason is that the bag adds a good neutral base for the entire outfit.
Interesting, comfortable shoes with a slight heel to accentuate the skinny pants: these are exactly what I’m talking about.
An outfit with a bit of quirk would not be complete without a standout piece of jewelry, like this snake bracelet.
Skinny pants with color, instead of the classic denim washes, are fun and easier to wear than you might think.

Interested in seeing some great samples of retro glam & collegiate charm? Check out my personal Stylefeed at http://www.stylefeeder.com/profile/jaclyndwile. For a full version of this article, with images, check out http://blog.stylefeeder.com/2008/08/12/retro-glam-collegiate-charm-two-looks-for-fall/.