✈️ Day 1 – Leaving Home: The Journey Begins

Travel days always carry a quiet kind of energy, that blend of excitement, anticipation, and a hint of nostalgia. As evening fell over Kigali, I looked out over the hills one last time before heading to the airport. The warm Rwandan light gave way to dusk, and for a moment I just stood still, letting the day settle before the journey ahead.

Our flight to Brussels was a red-eye, with a short stopover in Entebbe. The terminal in Kigali buzzed softly, families embracing, travelers rushing, others simply waiting. There’s something deeply human about airports at night; everyone is somewhere between where they’ve been and where they’re going.

When we touched down briefly in Entebbe, I caught a glimpse of lights reflecting off Lake Victoria through the window, a reminder that even in transit, beauty has its quiet ways of showing up. Back on board, the cabin dimmed, and the hum of the engines became a kind of lullaby. Between half-sleep and small awakenings, I watched the stars above the clouds and thought about how travel always begins with a surrender to time, to movement, to everything unknown.

By the time we reached Europe, dawn had started to tint the horizon. The sky was pale and endless as we descended into Brussels, the city wrapped in early autumn mist. It felt like stepping into a new rhythm, one I was ready to discover, camera in hand.