DRC Day 25

Another day. Still no visas.

We did go to the Bono Sanctuary today, which was fun. Bonobos are primates, related to chimpanzees, that only live in the DRC.  Turns out the kids were terrified of the bonobos, so that made it very... loud. But it was great to get out of town and see a little more of "typical Congo" outside of downtown Kinshasa.

We stopped by the Embassy on the way back from the bonobos, (ok, to clarify, David stopped, and we all were still sitting in the car) and the only update we he got was "I'm too busy to talk to you right now. Come back tomorrow morning." He then texted her if there were any updates, and the reply he got was "I said I would let you know right?" Ah, sweet American egocentric attitude. After this whole process, and working with third world government, you know that the hold up is? The Americans. Nice.  I'm feeling pretty warm and fuzzy toward American Bureaucracy right about now.

Apparently Brooke's last day in the office was today, according to David. Hoping for good news tomorrow!

Unfortunately, I'm going to have to change my plane tickets... Again. And David read the French part of my visa (ok, it's all French) and he said it's good til the 27th of June, since I entered on the 27th of May. So that buys me a little more time than I thought before I have to extend my visa. Hopefully I'll be gone by then.

Here are some pictures of our adventures:

Our First Bonobo Friend

Mama and Baby

Lots of Friends Came to Play

The Hike Continues

(and nearly killed us after all this sedentary lifestyle)

Our Group

(The guy in the back was our guide.  David is holding Raya.)

And these are from the drive:

Outdoor Furniture Store

Pardon the angle.  These were all taken from a moving vehicle, swerving on bumpy roads.

Agriculture

I feel that this picture does not adequately portray how bumpy the roads were.

On the way back, we had to wait because this guy ran out of fuel right there, blocking the road.  So we sat there until someone came with more fuel, and they could move it.  We attracted quite the throng of curious children as we waited.

These ladies are kind of my new Heroes.

Blurry Hillside Homes