Blogs from Rwanda, Africa - page 34

“WHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” SPLASH!!!! *gurgle gurgle sputter* “WHHEEEEEE!!!!!!!!” Kevin has now, officially, lost his marbles. After arriving at the Lake Muhazi house on Saturday and unloading the truck (food, mattresses, bags and six people), Kevin empties his pockets, takes of his shoes and flings himself into the Lake, clothes and all. Cr-azy! The lake, however, is so irresistibly warm and inviting that I just HAD to do it! I spent a while paddling around, then decided that my shirt was holding me back to I got out, took off the shirt, found a rubber inner tube in the house that Chris mentioned to me, and jump back in. Once again, all the Africans present were giving me REALLY funny looks. Oh well, just adding to my legend! Irene took a few photos, most of them with me mostly ... read more

Hey everyone - I am back in the States now, safe and sound, and I'm finally posting about the rest of my trip. The computers were too slow there! For the second half, we continued to do interviews and work at the Village of Hope. We also took time for travel and sightseeing, and learned about some of RWN's work outside Kigali while we were at it. So here goes. One of our first travels outside Kigali was to a place called Butare. Butare is noted as the district with the largest number of fatalities during the genocide, and there is a rather infamous memorial there that we all went to see. We also visited the history museum and did some craft shopping at a co-op there - I bought a lot of stuff made out ... read more

- Morahô. - Yego. - Amakoro. - Imeza - Yego. Helsinga byrjar aa sitje, folk smilar medan eg gaar forbi og nyttar desse frasene. Vi gaar same veg. Ser dei same tinga. For dei er dette ein vanleg tirsdag, for meg er alt nytt. Alle butikkane er stengde, dei opnar ikkje foer tolv. Folk ha paa seg finstasen. Her i Kibuye skjer dette to gonger i veka. Dette er berre ein av dei utallege konsekvensane av det som skjedde vaaren 1994. To gonger i veka er det gacaca her i Kibuye, byen der det det mest groteske foeregjekk faade i kvantitet og kvalitet om ein kan seie det slik. Gacaca er den ein tilpassing av det tradisjonelle rettssystemet. Domsstolen er seks lokale respekterte mennesker i fraa byen. No sit vi paa tribunen, same staden som dei ... read more

One of my favorite memories of Zambia was listening to the rain fall on the roof as I went to sleep. In the rainy season it would rain every day, and usually rather heavy rain, too, and since the roof of our house was corrugated asbestos with no ceiling, the rain was very loud. The loud drumming sound had a calming effect on me, and it drowned out most other noises, making it easier to fall asleep. And so I find myself lying on a mattress in Muganza, looking up at the metal roofing sheets of the Baha'i Center that I am sleeping in, and praying for the rain to fall. Too bad its the dry season and there is no chance of that happening. I will have to seek comfort in the constant sound of ... read more

There’s a lot of subjects that I feel its right to say something about while I’m here. Important topics, that need to be given real thought and consideration, before you’d have a genuine insight into the country and it’s people. Race, Poverty, Religion, Happiness, Grief, Community, Loneliness, Genocide, Compassion, Hope, it’s all here in abundance and very close to the surface. It seems that when you strip away the superficial in people’s lives, TV, Celebrity, Fashion, Money, Choice, all that remains is the important stuff. But even after 5 weeks in Rwanda, immersed in the culture, I think I still need more time before I can begin to do justice to any of the weightier topics. Therefore I think it’s best if I start at the lighter end …and work my way up, gradually. Rwanda… If ... read more