Experience Traditional Music and Dance of Local Communities in Bwindi National Park.

Experience Traditional Music and Dance of Local Communities in Bwindi National Park. Bwindi Impenetrable National park is located in the south western part of Uganda on the edges of the Rift Valley. Bwindi Impenetrable National park is a mist- covered area with diverse rainforests. Which contains over 400 plant species.  Bwindi Impenetrable National park was designated as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 due to its vast biodiversity.

The park has over 221 butterfly species, over 345 bird species and 120 mammals that include; Mountain Gorillas, red tailed monkeys, bush monkeys, buffalos, vervet  monkeys, blue monkeys, forest elephants, golden cats, Potto, clawless otter, Chimpanzees, colobus monkeys, African civet, Duikers, Bats and many more.  Bwindi Impenetrable National park is a home to over 351 bird species, numerous flowers and over 105 ferns. It also has numerous rivers and streams that include; Ivi, Muyanga, Ntengyere. Mountain Gorillas is what drives the attention of most tourist who come to do Gorilla trekking however, the park offers other activities that include bird watching, wild life watching and cultural encounters.  Experience a Vibrant Traditional Music and Dance of Local Communities in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. You can experience a wonderful traditional music and dance experience in the local communities in Bwindi Impenetrable National park by visiting the Batwa community and the Bakiga Community. The Bakiga The Bakiga people are originally farmers that live around the areas of Bwindi Impenetrable National park. When you visit the Bakiga people in their community, you will be able to see how they have managed to coexist with the Batwa people. 

The Batwa; Experience Traditional Music and Dance of Local Communities in Bwindi National Park.

They are found at the park borders. They are also known as the Batwa Pygmies. They used to live in the forest with the animals and they were in harmony. They were depending on the forest for survival in terms of food, shade and medicine. However, they were convicted by the government from living inside the park. You will be experience the different way of living of the Batwa people since they are untamed and far from modernity. When you reach the homes of the Batwa people, you will be entertained with cultural dance that indicates that you are welcome. They will sing for their traditional songs, that you will stay on your mind even you go back home after the trip.  The tourists will be able to visit the Nkuringo Cultural centre at the Nkuringo sector of Bwindi where they will be taught how to weave baskets, cook the traditional meals of the Batwa people, how to make beer from bananas and also how to dance the local traditional dances. The Batwa and the Bakiga share the same dancing strokes however, the sound of the beats is quite different when you listen to it. When you visit the Batwa people, you will be told stories about how they stayed in the forest, and some of the things they miss about living in the forest. The Batwa will teach you about their culture, music and dance as they also learn from you. It is always a knowledge exchange experience since they teach you about their way of life and you teach them about the basic living skills and techniques of modern world. The lessons include; crafting, weaving, cooking, household chores, music, dance and storytelling.  The Cultural visit to Batwa people and Bakiga will require you to pay a certain cost. The tour payment you will make, all of it will be retained by the village to support the farm and livelihood of these communities. 

 What to Bring;

Walking shoes, you will need comfortable shoes since you will walk through the forest to reach where they stay as a community. Since the tour is going to involve you dancing, you need to be wearing comfortable footwear. The visit to the Batwa community and the Bakiga community takes you long hours which will make it another reason for you to wear comfortable shoes. Insect Repellent, you will have to move with an insect repellent since they live around the forest so the mosquitoes will be many and you must be protected from them fully.  A Hat, it is a must to walk with a hat since it tends to be so hot to handle the temperature. Sun cream, it is a must for you to move with sun cream since the hot temperature might cause some effects on your skin which will make you get irritated. Drinking water, you need to carry refillable drinking water to prevent you from being thirsty the whole tour. Cash; you will need to carry the cash for tips for the dancers and musicians and for buying souvenirs from the communities since they make art crafts.  Local drinks and Snacks, you will need to pack some snacks to keep you company for the walk and the whole tour. Binoculars, you can carry binoculars since will encounter plenty of bird species along the way. Camera, you will need to pack a camera with good battery, good storage so that your able to capture every moment with the Batwa people and the Bakiga people.

Best time to visit the Batwa and the Bakiga; 

you can visit the Batwa and the Bakiga all year round however it is best done during the dry season when the walking trails are dry and very comfortable to walk through. You can have experience a vibrant traditional music and dance of local communities in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park after gorilla trekking which you can do in the high peak season in the months of June, to September and December to February. The cost of Gorilla permits per person per day is 700USD for Foreign Non Residents, 600USD for Foreign Residents and 250,000UGX for Citizens of East African Member States.  When you are on an Experience of Vibrant Traditional Music and Dance of Local Communities in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park you will be able to see plenty of other attractions besides the Batwa and the Bakiga people and they include; the endangered Mountain gorillas, the different bird species, the different kinds of plant species, the impenetrable forest, black and white colobus, vervet, red-tailed monkeys, L’Hoest’s, Nocturnal Potto and many more mammals.