Burundi

[TailPipe]

To my unpleasant surprise I found out that the standard visa issued at the land border is actually a transit visa. A peculiar way of doing business. I asked 2 different employees of Modern Coast about the visa. I even had someone calling directly to immigration. I always got the same answer. Your visa costs 40 USD.

When I arrived at the border they gave me an ordinary entry stamp and a receipt that simply stated 'visa'. Nowhere does it say you have to leave the country within 3 days. And no one bothered to tell me it was a transit visa. As such I assumed it was a standard visa. That left me with 2 options or extend my stay for a month for 90 USD, or return, but I had already overstayed my 'transit visa'. I phoned a 'chef de poste d'immigration’ from a border. He told me I would get a fine. How much? Don't worry the fines are small. When I got to the border I put 10 dollars in my passport and when he opened it he said 'that's the fine'. I got my stamps and left.

Some general remarks. Whether you come for a business trip or leisure you are probably going to want to stay in the commercial city centre. In the neighborhoods the food is really very poor. The worst I've encountered anywhere. You are also much more secure in the commercial city centre. Police are everywhere.

This isn't a liberal democracy. Make sure you understand the events of 2015 and the aftermath. Read the reports of HRW. Don't talk about politics.

[TailPipe]

This hasn't been mentioned here before but you need hard cash in this country. No plastic, no online bookings and no money transfers. Unless you know a way of sending USD or EUR from your home country and receiving the same currency on this side you are going to be losing hard.

The official exchange rate of the USD to BIF is around 2000 while on the black market the USD to BIF is around 3500. That's a whopping +70%. Don't think because you are making a hotel booking or similar in USD or EUR without a conversion to BIF this doesn't apply to you because if they want to get hold of that money in their country they are going to get it exchanged at the official rate. Meaning they have to ask more in USD to get the same amount of money. As such you should always be able to get a better price by walking in instead of online. The consequence of this is this is you will be carrying uncomfortable amounts of cash.

It is not entirely legal to exchange on the black market so thread carefully when exchanging for yourself and even more so for the exchanger. This job can get them into serious trouble. Do not divulge how you met them, where you changed or their first or last names. Find a trusted source. Otherwise walk in town. They will find you. If you come overland there is an exchange just before the Burundese border control. There you can get a couple of days worth of BIF. Not the best exchange but you will avoid having to do dicey street deals in a country you only just entered.

As a sidenote. You do as you please but I always tip the hotel employees in the places I'm staying at. Especially in the cheaper hotels you can tell they are not used to getting tips. My room always smells of flowers when I enter and I get fresh sheets every day. Once I was staying in a place where they had horrible polyester sheets that made my skin itch. I gave the cleaning lady a small amount. Can't remember exactly but let's say 30 cents. To my surprise the next day I was sleeping on soft cotton.

[TailPipe]

Bwiza is a grid of streets and alleyways with large communities from The Congo, Mali and Senegal. Swahili is the dominant language here. The Malians and Senegalese adopted the language from the Congolese who came before them. It's about a km from the city center. Perfectly walkable during the day but you have to be able to stomach it. This is a working class area in what arguably could be the poorest nation on earth. The epicentre of nightlife is the crossroads at the Escottise Dance Club in the 4th Avenue, Bwiza, Bujumbura. You can find it on google maps. By night you will see taxi's parked on all sides and girls standing on all 4 corners. You can find streetwalkers from nightfall onwards but the real club action starts after midnight.

I asked some guys that work in the area what the going rate is. One said 20 000 BIF, the other 30 000 to 40 000 BIF. The both agreed it should be around 10 USD. I suspect you can get away with 20 000 and that you are on the safe side with 30 000 BIF.

If you do decide to venture here please do take a taxi after 23:00.

Wrong decision. As the clubs start to fill up after midnight I decide to come back later. On my way back up towards the club I decide to follow a couple of guys that where walking in that direction. Thinking that way I wouldn't be isolated. Unfortunately I decided to follow the wrong guys. Instead of staying out of harms way as my intention was I put myself into harms way. A demand of 2000 francs was made for the 'youngsters of the hood' (jeunes du quartier) and that I needed 'security'. I took that as a veiled threat and that was exactly what it was. A taxi driver who drove past and smelled the situation was fishy looked me into the eyes and asked in a hushed voice if I needed a taxi. Amazingly I declined thinking that as I was a 'big man' I could handle the situation myself. The taxi driver drove on but then decided to stay driving slowly on the pace we where walking at. He was doing exactly the right thing. One of the guys tried to intimidate him by running towards his door. When we arrived in the 4th avenue there was a lot of movement and they took a turn. I gave the driver a good tip. Bless him.

Why did I decline? The truth is the best protection you have as a muzungu is exactly being one. However uncomfortable I may feel I will never ever show fear and I will always try to project confidence. I think I declined taking that taxi because I felt that I would be 'giving in' and 'losing face'. Now I stood my ground and didn't give them a penny but I should have taken that taxi. Point. Sheer stupidity.

The club was indeed buzzing after midnight. To my surprise I see a couple of whites of dark complexion. I think they where Mauritanians.

I decide to go outside to have a look at the SW's on the crossroads. A guy is jumping up and down asking in broken French for money. I decline. He goes on. Then I decipher the word 'danger'. I was getting angry and it showed. Told him to piss off. He backed down. Finished dancing as a warrior. I've never received veiled threats earlier in Africa. Now twice the same night. I'm going to have to have to change areas and Bwiza is surely not the worst area in Buja. Kamenge, Buterere and others are far worse.

I went home by taxi (LOL) with a girl who had the word pro written all over her. The way she dressed, talked, smiled, the package. Big firm tits and big nipples. But she wasn't fat on the contrary. I hadn't negotiated. Was wondering in the taxi how that was going to go down in the morning. Some pro's master the art of sex with techniques equal to exquisite craftsmanship but she didn't. To top it up she was an 'ooh and aah girl'. I don't understand experienced hookers do that. It's such a give away.

Gave her some extra holy water in the morning. Bless her. More pleasurable having sex when you are sober and I never have a hangover while I'm fucking.

I give her 30 k. She has money problems she says. I give her another 10 k. She politely asks for more. I tell her she has had enough. She says she's hungry. I say I'm not. She asks for my phone number. Seems my donation wasn't that bad then ey?

[Neddy69]

The situation as it is right now concerning visas. It has been mentioned here that there is visa on arrival for all travellers on all Burundi borders and that is correct. However there is a catch. VOA is theoretically only if there is no Burundese legal representation in your country. If there is you are supposed to get it there. If you did not you will get it on arrival anyway but the airline might refuse to let you departure.

If you arrive through the airport the Covid test is 100 USD. If you enter overland you only pay 15 USD.

Visiting the embassy in Kigali was a waste of time. Told me I had to get it done in Kigali and that it would take 1 day to process and 90 USD. The manager selling tickets for the bus Kigali-Bujumbura phoned directly to the immigration officer at the border. Visa on arrival for all travellers and a 15 USD Covid test. In my case plus 40 USD for a one month visa to be paid in dollars only. And so it was.

Valuable hands on information. Asante sana for putting Burundi back on the map. So it pays to be a poor Bus passenger versus a rich air traveller. Find out of you can extend the one months tourist visa. For a fee.

Mwalimu.

[TailPipe]

Info on the website of Modern Coast is unreliable. Tickets are 16000 RWF. One departure daily. Reporting at 9:00 am. Departure 10:00 am. Ride should take + - 8 hours. Old Chinese busses but pretty comfortable. Be prepared food wise. The bus only stopped at the border and for a 5 min toilet break. No hassle whatsoever on either the Rwandan or Burundese side. Roads are paved all the way to Buja. Surprisingly the landscape is nicer once you cross the Rwandan border. A mountainous / hillside area. Banana trees abound. Passed several provincial capitals like Kirundo and Ngozi. Don't expect much. The are just large villages. This is a rural country. Destitute villagers in rags everywhere. Then a broken down truck blocked our road. We got stuck in the mud aside. Hundreds of locals came out to watch the spectacle. Young ladies in group giggle at my sight. When I look back they hide their faces behind a scarf. I'm enjoying myself here. After hours of fruitlessly trying to get out the driver decides to call it a day and sleep in the bus overnight. I leave in a cramped minivan and arrive around 21:00 in Buja.

[TailPipe]

The situation as it is right now concerning visas. It has been mentioned here that there is visa on arrival for all travellers on all Burundi borders and that is correct. However there is a catch. VOA is theoretically only if there is no Burundese legal representation in your country. If there is you are supposed to get it there. If you did not you will get it on arrival anyway but the airline might refuse to let you departure.

If you arrive through the airport the Covid test is 100 USD. If you enter overland you only pay 15 USD.

Visiting the embassy in Kigali was a waste of time. Told me I had to get it done in Kigali and that it would take 1 day to process and 90 USD. The manager selling tickets for the bus Kigali-Bujumbura phoned directly to the immigration officer at the border. Visa on arrival for all travellers and a 15 USD Covid test. In my case plus 40 USD for a one month visa to be paid in dollars only. And so it was.

[TailPipe]

After years of interruption, a bus operator has restarted plying the route between Kigali and Bujumbura. Tickets are 13 $. You can book tickets online through the Modern Coast Express website. Designated seats.

https://www.modern.co.ke/#.

From their FB page:

SERVICE UPDATE.

Dear esteemed customers;.

We interrupt our today's programming to announce resumption of direct bus services from KAMPALA to BUJUMBURA and from KIGALI to BUJUMBURA and vice versa effective tomorrow. Below is the schedule:

KAMPALA ➡65039; BUJUMBURA daily departures for 109000/* UGX.

KIGALI ➡65039; BUJUMBURA daily departures for 14500/* Rwandan Francs.

We'll keep you posted on any other developments.

We look forward to taking you to the beautiful cities in East Africa full of fragrant nature and surrounding environment.

[Dick Milhous]

Plus 100 $ for compulsory covid test upon arrival.

Covid "cottage industries" arising from the petri dishes and pandemic hysteria. Arrival test in Dar thankfully cheap, now 10 $. You get it on the exit, $100 plus service fees.

[TailPipe]

Been looking at interafrican flights. If you have enough time you can do an 'African sex tour' between Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Kenia. The flights are reasonably priced between 100 and 200€.

[Univelton]

Good to know. But with extortionate Visa cost plus a 100 USD extortionate COVID test upon arrival, Burundi will be off my list for the time being. And as I said. Absolute no need to go to Burundi. The same pussy is available in Rwanda in plentiful supply..

Absolutely too costly such fees. But if there are no additional fees for testing upon arrival and day 3 and 24-hour hotel quarantine like in Rwanda, then one would make a simple calculation and compare them. Pussy being the same, I'd opt for Burundi as girls might be more girlfriend experienced, easygoing and unsuspicious. Some hookers in Rwanda have become state agents.

[Neddy69]

All nationalities can now obtain visa on arrival on arrival in Burundi without any prior application.

https://www.rwandair.com/blog/2021/04/21/burundi/

Good to know. But with extortionate Visa cost plus a 100 USD extortionate COVID test upon arrival, Burundi will be off my list for the time being. And as I said. Absolute no need to go to Burundi. The same pussy is available in Rwanda in plentiful supply.

Neddy.

[Zimzam]

All nationalities can now obtain visa on arrival on arrival in Burundi without any prior application.

Plus 100 $ for compulsory covid test upon arrival.

[Bumblebee61]

The problem mate is. To get a visa. You can only get it in Kigali and it takes a week. There's is talk that Burundi applied to join the EAC which might lead to Visa on arrival. But nothing official yet. And I hope your French is up to scratch. They only speak French. But stay in Rwanda. Same Tribe Bahutu and Watutsi. No difference. And you get burundian refugees in Kigali too....

All nationalities can now obtain visa on arrival on arrival in Burundi without any prior application.

https://www.rwandair.com/blog/2021/04/21/burundi/

[TailPipe]

GDP & PPP estimates for Burundi In 2021 according to the IMF, 261 $ GDP / capita and 779 $ PPP / capita per year. Absolute poorest country on the list. Even Somalia does better. Figures that stick in your face. Got to be a walhalla for African enthusiasts. Didn't know about the visa problems. Was preoccupied with security concerns. Had a look at the EU embassy's of the country. Very difficult requirements. What is the security situation for foreigners in the country? Better not mention politics during small talk LOL.

[Univelton]

The problem mate is. To get a visa. You can only get it in Kigali and it takes a week. There's is talk that Burundi applied to join the EAC which might lead to Visa on arrival. But nothing official yet. And I hope your French is up to scratch. They only speak French. But stay in Rwanda. Same Tribe Bahutu and Watutsi. No difference. And you get burundian refugees in Kigali too...

Neddy.

Neddy, spot on. Tutsi and Hutu are plenty in Kigali and all squirt. My concern is about very stringent measures in Kigali. Curfew, gun people in every corner! If they mistakenly push the trigger, you are the next victim!

It is true Kigali is more open and business friendly than Burundi. But you do not feel safe in this mongering ecosystem.

Take Kampala, Nairobi, Dar es or Mombasa for example, you feel safe.

And South Africa, though COVID rates are high, there is a feeling of freedom when mongering.

I have to take intensive French course and learn about French kisses, then become king in Bujumbura.