Chasing sunsets in Burundi
Burundi, located in the heart of Africa, is the second smallest country on the continent, but it has a big secret: some of Africa’s most stunning sunsets. The sun’s daily “goodbye” is not just ordinary. It is a stunning multicolored painting across some of the country’s signature rolling green hills and over the world’s second deepest lake. Chasing Burundian sunsets is a tour to grab your camera at some of the most beautiful and peaceful locations in the country. Fiery skies, jaw-dropping scenery, and a magnificent lake create moments of pure magic. It’s the perfect way to finish a fantastic day of adventures.
Shores of Lake Tanganyika: a freshwater oasis.
The best place in Burundi to see a world-class sunset is at the eastern shores of the mighty Lake Tanganyika. This massive body of water will often have you feeling like you are overlooking an ocean due to its vast expanse, an uninterrupted canvas for the sun to sink into. The best locations for viewings will come from popular beaches near Bujumbura (the main city), like Saga Beach and Bora Bora Beach. As the day cools off, you can find a lakeside restaurant or settle in soft sand and sip a cold drink while you enjoy the sunset.
The Scenic Overlook from Kiriri Hill.
For a different, yet equally magnificent sunset experience, travelers will want to go to the hills that tower above Bujumbura, specifically, the high viewing points of the Kiriri neighborhood, which provide panoramic views that are hard to beat. You are perched high over the city, where you watch the sun sink effortlessly before dazzling over the lake and into the city below.
As the sun begins to set and the colors are painted in the sky before nightfall, the city lights of Bujumbura brighten and contrast with the dazzling light show of the natural world in motion the city is known for. A perfect viewpoint for this romantic moment in Bujumbura is the Unity Monument (Monument de l’Unité). A historical point of view for reflection to close out the day, the viewpoint takes you to an elevation that allows you to view the deep waters of Lake Tanganyika and bask in the view of the outlay hundreds of meters above to view and extend across to the mountains of the Democratic Republic of Congo as the sun sets, allowing for a truly cinematic experience worth remembering and capturing as a memory to share again and again.
Historic and Serene: Livingstone-Stanley Monument.
Farther south of Bujumbura, just off the highway near the lakeside town of Rumonge, lies a somewhat ordinary rock structure, but one with an interesting and important history: the Livingstone-Stanley Monument. This is the official site that commemorates the first meeting of the famous explorers David Livingstone and Henry Morton Stanley, an event that is worth recognition. The other reason you would step back from the historical point in eastern Africa is that it is just a nice, quiet point to enjoy the sunset above Lake Tanganyika.
Sitting on a slight incline above the lake, the monument’s historic sheltered position gives you another valuable layer of experience. Here, you are not amid city goers and lakeside activity, but among rolling hills and extensive views of the lake. The setting sun is more personal, as it invites you to contemplate the landscape and its history; it is here, when the sky glows bright gold, pink, and blue. It is an easy, meaningful place for travelers to seek a minute or two of semi-meditative stillness and enjoy magnificent views out over the lakes.
The Highlands: Chasing the Last Light on the Green Hills
Far from the lake, on the iconic Burundi “Land of a Thousand Hills,” you find different views of the sunset, and the vast green land creates images in the setting sun in the skies. As you head inland, towards the interior of the country, and particularly in the central provinces, the sun sets behind the high, rolling mountains. While you don’t see the sun sinking into the water, the direct, late afternoon light on the terraced green tea and coffee plantations and in the small villages in the valley is astonishing.
Burundi’s highest peak, Mount Heha, is a tiresome but extremely worthwhile hiking experience, particularly if you can find the perfect viewing point on one of the hills around it for that final view. The cool, fresh mountain air and view for miles of peaceful, calm, green scenery, drenched in golden hour light, provide a memory that is distinctly Burundian as part of the beauty that characterizes this little-known African diamond in the rough.
