Rwanda is one of the many places Crichton visits in his inspired memoir, Travels. Wether due to caprice, or ennui, Crichton decides to go on a wild animal safari in order to catch an ephemeral glimpse of the ever rare, mountain gorilla. The mountain gorilla is said to be the rarest of all apes, with only about 600 left in the mountainous region near Mgahinga in Rwanda. Crichton recalls that seeing a huge, salient mountain ape in its natural habitat was his greatest wildlife experience. In Swahili the mountain gorilla is called "Sokwe." Most grow up to six feet tall, and weigh in at about 300 to 425 pounds. The average lifespan is 40 years. They are vegetarians that live in dense forest, and whose only predator are humans. Crichton reflects in the book that he thought no other animal had the cachet of the mountain gorilla. He remembers the awe he felt, as only one mountain gorilla exists for every ten million humans.
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