Missive from the Congo 024



Lakeside at the Chalet restaurant



This week’s missive is on entertainment in Goma. Life in Goma is pretty good, all things considered, and the UN doesn’t work us too hard but some recreation is a necessary part of life. The opportunities, however, are somewhat limited. There are no movie theatres. No bowling alleys, bike paths or ski hills.

 There is a large and beautiful lake but there are no public beaches. In any event the medical folks back in Canada have pumped us full of tales of nasty things (mostly microscopic) that live in the waters of the lake and would like to live in your body. So I (we) treat the lake like a beautiful women. Look but don’t touch.



Karibu Hotel

 There are a couple of pools in town, at two of the hotels. The Karibu Hotel is less than 500 metres from the house. They have a nice pool, serve a buffet in mid-afternoon, and of course cold beer. They charge eight dollars for the use of the pool but don’t have any lounge chairs and the area around the pool is grass. But it’s also relatively quiet place on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The Ihusi hotel is a much larger complex just outside the downtown core of Goma, only a few hundred metres from the border with Rwanda. Its pool is larger and much reminiscent of a North American hotel. They too serve cold beer and food. They have lounge chairs and other seating. They charge ten dollars but are much busier. They have a kiddie pool and a shallow end to the main pool and so draw many more kids and families.



Ihusi Hotel

 There are a number of restaurants around town that we go to. This can be a form of recreation, after a fashion. However, considering we eat lunch at a restaurant pretty much every weekday, and that the menu from one restaurant to the next is pretty much identical, it doesn’t really do much for me.

There are some nightclubs in town though I personally haven’t been to any. The problem is that most of them are out of bounds. Unfortunately the folks in the UN have a considerable amount of disposable income and there are a significant number of them who are in the “men have needs” camp. Prostitution has been, and continues to be, a significant problem in the Congo, though it is hardly unique to the Congo. The UN has taken a number of steps to curb the involvement of MONUSCO personnel with prostitutes. Nightclubs that allow prostitutes to operate are placed on the prohibited list. There is a 6 PM curfew for contingent troops and 11 PM (2 AM on Friday and Saturday) curfew for other UN personnel including military observers. The military police do their best to enforce the rules and the penalty for SEA (Sexual Exploitation and Abuse) violations is generally repatriation.



Umojo at Eastern Region HQ

 The one “club” we do go to is the Umojo. This is the outdoor cafeteria in the headquarter complex down by the lake. Friday night is happy hour and they have a DJ and a bar. Because it is within the headquarter complex, only specific personnel can access it. So no prostitution. The music is generally ok and the atmosphere is festive. Of course, the attendees are generally your coworkers so if you are tired of talking shop this is not the best place to go. Still, not a bad place on a Friday night.

There are also a number of private parties around town. They are typically hosted by international staff working for UN or non-governmental organisations. We’ve even hosted one or two. As you might expect they are by invitation only. The crowd tends to be more varied than at the Umojo. You can meet some interesting people from around the world. Though once again the recreation is mostly centered on music and alcohol.



TV and DVD collection

 Closer to home we have a very large collection of DVDs and a TV to watch them on that's better than the one at home, all courtesy of the Canadian taxpayer. The Canadian Forces Personnel Support Agency sends us a regular stream of DVD and magazines as part of the Personnel Support Program (PSP). We probably have the single biggest collection of DVDs in Goma. So we have no lack of movies to choose from. We also have a number of TV series on DVD. I’m almost done with season one of NCIS.

The PSP also funds the satellite TV service we get from South Africa. So we literally have hundreds of TV and music channels to choose from. We regularly watch about five. Pretty typical. It was the same four years ago in Kisangani. Nonetheless we do appreciate the channels we choose to watch.

There are two other more unconventional recreational opportunities that exist in Goma. The ICCN (Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature) offers two tours that you can purchase. The first is to scale the Nyirangongo volcano just outside of Goma. The other is to travel to visit the gorillas in Virunga National Park. Unlike many things in the Congo these are well organised and run expeditions that deliver what they promise. The reason for that is that the ICCN gets to collect and keep revenue that is not diverted into people’s pockets. And the tours are not cheap. The overnight trip to the volcano is $200 USD and the gorilla expedition will set you back $400 USD. However, they are unique experiences. You wouldn’t do them every weekend. Canada House is scaling the volcano next weekend.

So what do I do? Well, a little from column A, a little from column B, and a little from column C. During the week I generally watch a little TV or an episode of NCIS in the evening after supper and workout. I go out to happy hour or a party about every other weekend or so. But most of the time I just relax in the back deck with the housemates, catch a few rays if it’s sunny, and read a book or play cards.