The car rolled over the hill, and a hundred shades of green unfolded before her.

Her heart and breath stopped. Every part of her body was focused on the view before her.

The valley below could be called agricultural land by those without a heart. But there would be very few who could remain unaffected by the sight she beheld.

Rows of green corn in varying shades of ripening gradually merged into banana trees. Large patches of lush green grass alternated with the corn fields, brightening the scenery. A muddy red stream cut through the greenery, disappearing into the distance. Dark green mango and avocado trees dotted the landscape. The red soil of the farmed lands offset the bright and dark greens. The bright yellow flowers of the Cassia tree popped up occasionally among the hundred shades of green.

The banana trees continued up the hill, merging into the eucalyptus trees and the untamed wilderness beyond them.

“Stop! Stop!” She cried out.

The guide stopped the car over the bridge. She climbed out and stood in awe for a moment.

The grey clouds above, with some patches of blue sky, sharpened the colours before her.

She finally lifted her phone to take a photo.

“I know the camera can’t capture the reality of what I see right now. But I don’t want to forget this scene,” she explained to the guide.

“You must really like greenery,” he wryly observed.

“You don’t understand. It’s not that it’s green. It’s a hundred shades of green. Can’t you see it?”

—-

I hope you enjoyed this fresh-off-the presses travel snippet from my drive from Akagera National Park back to Kigali, Rwanda. I really debated adding a photo, but the photos I took did not do justice to the view I saw, unfortunately.