Kigali is a city that sleeps, mostly, early and rises with the sun. Today it is a bustling, clean, prosperous and safe city of new construction. Kigali is a city of gangs of motorbike taxis buzzing the ridges and valleys that make the city.

It is city where the citizens embrace its bland uniform architecture out of reverence for its bloody past. Beneath its modest surface you will find a luminous arty and musical city that pulls you into a warm welcoming optimistic embrace.

Downtown Kigali is a city of commerce and colour. (Image: Graham Holliday, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

A walking tour of Nyamirambo, one of Kigali’s oldest neighbourhoods, is the best introduction to the city. (Image: Graham Holliday, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Yams, and cassava, are staples of Kigali tables. Here on display at the Kigali Market. (Kigali Wire, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Vegetables from the rich Rwandan earth find their way to Kimironko Market. (Kigali Wire, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Kigali’s main market, Kimironko, moves to its own radio station. (Kigali Wire, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Kigali has become a magnet for artists from around Africa. (Image: Graham Holliday, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

A herd of Moto taxi drivers shelter from a Kigali rainstorm. (Image: Kigali Wire, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Rwanda is one of the last refuges for Africa’s mountain gorilla’s and is home to a gorilla sanctuary in Bwindi, a 4 hour drive from Kigali. (Image: Marc Ben Fatma, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Rwanda’s economic miracle is built on technology, finance and agriculture. Beekeepers outside Kigali inspect their harvest. (Image: Kigali Wire, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Football in Kigali is social, more than competitive. (Image: Kigali Wire, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

In 1994 as South Africa was transitioning to democracy, Rwanda erupted. Over the course of 100 days, Rwandans killed almost a million of their fellow citizens. Memorials to the genocide can be found around Kigali and the rest of the country.

The entrance to the Rwanda Genocide Memorial in Kigali. (Image: Gwendolyn Stansbury, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Facade of Genocide Memorial Church in Karongi (Image: Adam Jones, BY NC 2.0, via Flickr)

Exhibit at the Rwanda Genocide Memorial in Kigali. (Image: configmanager, BY-NC 2.0, via Flickr)