Blogs from Rwanda, Africa - page 37

I know that Rwanda as a country has more to offer than being the country where an atrocious genocide recently took place, but it's really hard to look at the country and not immediately associate the genocide with it. The Bradt guide book on Rwanda lists a UNICEF National Trauma survey of '95, which stated that: :: 99.9% of children witnessed violence :: 79.6% of children experienced death in the family :: 69.5% witnessed someone being killed or injured :: 57.7% of children witnessed killings or injuries with a machete :: 87.5% saw dead bodies or parts of bodies One of the main reasons that I wanted to go to Rwanda was b/c I wanted to see for myself how a country can move on so quickly after a genocide, and how two groups that ... read more

Hello loyal fans! THis one, it wont be serious. Or long. So yesterday (Wednesday) I killed a goat. On purpose. Yup, I have blood on my hands (or did, until I washed very thouroughly). On Monday Papa Jean bought the goat and brought it back to the property, where it was immediately deemed by all the worker's as "too small". So on Tuesday Papa Jean went to take it back and get a bigger one. Failing at that, he brought the original one back and told all complainers to suck it up. Seeing as how the goat had managed to survive our scrutinies, I decided to name it, and chose "Betty". On Wednesday morning Betty got the chop. No worries, animal lovers, it was a sharp knife. We (Gad, Eric and I) then hung Betty from ... read more

It is a singularly unique experience to travel to a remote village with only a few friends, stay there for a few days and experience the love and energy of the people there. It is especially interesting when you are the only muzungu (whitey) in a village of milabulas (Africans). To have people treat you like you are ten years older than you are, and listen to what you say even though you are much younger than they is very fulfilling. However, my trip to Nyagisagara was not about me, it was about the people there, and experiencing their passion and spirit. It was also about financing Baha’i activities that the local Baha’is cannot usually afford. To begin I will copy a brief blurb about the Baha’i Faith from Wikipedia for those of you who don’t ... read more

Hey folks This is going to be a very brief entry, as I want it to just be visual. I am just going to attach a whole bunch of pictures, in hopes of conveying a small part of the beauty of this county. I have resized all the photos to be smaller so that they upload more quickly, but if you would like a full sized (3 megapixel) copy of a picture, email me at baalwolf@gmail.com and tell me the photo title(s). Thank you all for your comments and messages. I have been informed that "Petite Chirurgie" means "small surgery", which the Anderson clinic does not do. Feel free to pass on the link to this blog to whomever you like, as the reason that I am writing it is to inform as many people as ... read more

So, I have been here for a month now, and I have had some great experiences. And so far (terribly sorry) I haven't mentioned one of them...well, maybe the one about going to the village, but I didn't give much detail. Rwanda. Synonyms: War, hate, genocide, strife, 1994???? No. Not at all. I have to admit that for a very long time, that is how I have though of Rwanda. I have read several books about it, including Shake Hand With the Devil by Lt. Gen. Romeo Dallaire. I even met Gen. Dallaire and talked with him (briefly). And so I thought that I knew what Rwanda was about. I thought I knew what I was going into (though I knew that it wouldn't be as bad, since it has been 13 yrs since the ... read more