Firsts

November 27, 2009

1)            First time wearing a skirt in Rwanda.  Response: “You look smart!”  “I’ve never seen your legs before.” “I like your legs, they are nice (in an extremely polite way).”

2)            First minor (emphasis on minor) accident on the scooter.  Interestingly, I had to explain to the police in broken French how to write up the “report” – basically a scratch piece of paper with his name, my name, the other car’s name and the time and date in his handwriting – with a few dozen onlookers.  The policeman, who incidentally did not ask for my driver’s license, kept asking me why I needed a report because the bike and I seemed fine.  Very odd.

3)            First Thanksgiving in Rwanda.  Also my busiest Thanksgiving to date – starting with breakfast with some girls at my house before work in the morning, followed by an afternoon Thanksgiving lunch complete with fried turkey among other expats working in Kigali, then a Fellowship Thanksgiving dinner and prayer time with the expat Bible study I’ve been attending, and finally ending the day with a bonfire before getting home at 11.  Very fun and festive but exhausting!  Not exactly passing out in front of football and Macy’s Day parade after turkey.  I do have a lot to be thankful for this year!

4)            First time cooking an apple pie.  For the thanksgiving dinner number 1.

5)            First real week of frustration since being in Africa.  I couldn’t sleep at all for three nights in a row due to the neighbors doing metal work behind my house until the wee hours of the morning and another night due to a dog barking and yet another night because of a loud radio by another neighbor.  At first this was an interesting cultural difference.  Now it is just annoying.  The neighbors have been quieter since our guard Etienne spoke to them, but all the same it’s been a long week!

6)            First night out dancing.  First salsa dancing and then a really loud club with a cover and hip hop music.  My ears are still ringing!

Les Animaux!

November 22, 2009

This weekend, I went to Akagera National Park, in eastern Rwanda with a few colleagues – Matthew, James and Valens (you remember him, the guy who does not like my glasses!).  We left at 6:00 am in order to reach the park by 8:00 am, and began the morning with strong Rwandan coffee at the Lodge.  The views were spectaular, with Tanzania in the distance, and as we sipped our coffee on the deck, a baboon walked into the hotel lobby!  I am not joking.  After the hotel staff chased it out with a stick, the baboon settled himself on top of the roof, just above us.  I knew right then this was the beginning of an unforgettable day!

The next eight hours were spent in a Land Cruiser trekking north along the Rwanda-Tanzania border in search of les animaux.  I felt like I was in the Lion King as we ran into giraffe, monkeys, hippopotamus and even warthog! 

Giraffe

Hippopotamus

Zebra

The highlight of the day for me was eating lunch at the highest peak in the park – Matthew and James brought an amazing spread – and listening to music just a few hundred yards from dozens of zebra!  Simply breathtaking.  I don’t think I will ever forget the views I saw – unlike anything I had ever seen before.  Hope you enjoy the pictures, although they don’t do the experience justice.

James, Valens, Matthew and Erin

Busy Little Bee

November 15, 2009

I have had a busy week and a half since my last post.  I want to try to write once a week, so hopefully I will do better.  I guess busy means I am settling in!  Last Friday was what the office calls “IJM Sport Day” – held once a month – so we left work at 3 pm to play Ultimate Frisbee, my first time.  I could certainly get used the idea of leaving work early to play sports.

Last weekend, I took my first trip out of Kigali to rural Rwanda with a group of American girls.  Jenny lives in Musanze (formerly Ruhengeri) and invited us up to her place on Friday night.  We took a two-hour bus ride along a really bumpy road and sadly saw a head on collision on the way.  It was sobering and certainly there were casualties; I prayed the rest of the way there.

After a yummy dinner Friday night, I spent my first night under a mosquito net at Jenny’s house.  The next morning, we had a lovely breakfast in a local hotel, with a charming terrace, and got ready for a 3 hour hike.  The five of us caravanned via moto to the trail head, and entered into a new world!

We began the hike uphill and met many village people along the way.  The land in this part of Rwanda is heavily cultivated, as land is quite scarce.  Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa with approximately 10 million people living in a space about the size of Maryland.

I was entertained by the numerous village children who yelled out “Muzungu, muzungu!” from the bushes.  It would startle me as the children were hidden in the fields and in the bushes, until I scanned my surroundings to find the source of the greeting.  As friendly as the children are, they are scared of any sudden movements, and we capitalized on this by turning around quickly and watching the 15-20 children following us scatter.  Mean?  Probably.  But highly entertaining.  J

The hike allowed us to see some really beautiful parts of Northern Rwanda, including lakes and the volcanoes where the mountain gorilla live.

On the way back to town we took another caravan of bikes – this time bicycles rather than motos – which got even more attention from the local Rwandese, who shouted and waved, stopping their work or conversations to run to the road and greet us.  Probably the closest I’ll ever get to stardom, but I’ll take it.  We took the bus back to Kigali Saturday evening so I was able to make it to church on Sunday.  After church, I went to a craft market and was able to bargain for some jewelry and traditional African bowls.  The scooter does make getting around Kigali much more manageable!  A friend has suggested I name it...stay tuned.

Work last week was actually very busy.  I had meetings with potential partners of IJM, observed a mediation hearing before the Abunzi court, attended a Legal Aid conference and completed a few actual pieces of work product.  It feels good to be a contributing member of the office, as I slowly get to know most of the office staff.  Friday was the IJM Rwanda spiritual retreat, so the entire office went offsite for a day of meditation, Scripture study and prayer.  It was refreshing to be in such a beautiful private garden and to continue to build relationships with national staff outside the office.  After the retreat, the office came over to our house for a traditional Louisiana gumbo dinner party. The evening ended with a lively game of “Zoo” which, as I am sure you can guess, proved to be hysterical!  I was glad that I was able to entertain in my home and introduce the Rwandese to a little bit of Louisiana culture, which, unsurprisingly, shares many similarities with Africa – namely, rice and gravy dishes along with French influence, mosquitoes and heat!

Speaking of mosquitoes, I woke up on Thursday morning to the tune of over 400 bites!!  Every square inch of my body was covered, including my scalp, eyes and ears.  It was truly disgusting, but after about 30 minutes with the calamine lotion, I was able to leave for work.  I decided it is time to start sleeping with a net.  So, Thursday night, Audrey helped me set up the mosquito net.  I’ll show those mosquitoes whose boss.  So I thought.  When I woke up on Friday morning, I had even more red, itchy bites!  Crap.  Now what?  Audrey gave me a few possibilities, “It’s probably bed bugs, fleas or lice, or maybe a combination of those three.”  That’s right.  You read correctly.  I am thinking to myself, “You have got to be kidding me, lice?"  How truly disgusting and dirty.  But, I did move to Africa, what did I expect?  That everything would be exactly as it is in NYC?  Well, there are bed bugs in NYC; how comforting.  Fortunately, while I was at the spiritual retreat on Friday, Emanuel boiled my clothes in hot water, fumigated my room and set my mattress, pillows and even Snoopy outside in the sun, which did the trick.  I slept peacefully on Friday night and woke up Saturday morning with no bites.  All the same, I plan on sleeping with a net from here on out.

Yesterday, I played a few hours of tennis with fellow intern James, who is from London.  We played in the heat of the day at the Novotel courts and had a really great time!  Hopefully we can start this new tradition, and I can actually improve my game since James is much better than me (shocking, I know).  It is nice to be able to play tennis relatively hassle free – it only cost $3 per person – as compared with NYC where finding an available court is an adventure all its own.  Unfortunately, I think I ended up with mild heat exhaustion and couldn’t move for the rest of the day.  I could be that out of shape, but I don’t think so.  But as one of my favorite quotes says: "An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered."  That has certainly been true in my first month in Rwanda!

Erin and Scooter Take Kigali

November 3, 2009

I got my scooter last Friday, just in time for the weekend. I went with another IJM colleague, Melissa, downtown to pay for the scooter at 9:00 am and finally got the vehicle around 5:30 pm. It was quite an ordeal. First we had to pay – in cash – at the dealership, and then we had to go to an assortment of places all around town to get the registration, plates, insurance, etc. But now that the process is over, I am a proud owner of a black Scooty Pep+, complete with pink helmet! I spent the three-day weekend exploring parts of Kigali and practicing driving the scooter, eventually confident enough to take my first passenger on Monday.

Friday night, after successfully driving the scooter home, I went (in a car) with my roommate Allison and an acquaintance to the one and only movie theater across town. I wasn’t quite confident enough to take the scooter across town in the dark, so I was thankful for the ride. The cinema was playing Slumdog Millionare, and it was a nice treat to have popcorn, a coke and a lovely movie to watch on a Friday night. It felt almost like I was back in the US! The theater itself was on top of a hill and had lovely views of Kigali lit up at night. Chantal, a fellow IJM staff member, joined us for the film, pictured on the right below.

Saturday, after making a leisurely breakfast, I did laundry. Our house staff Emanuel does laundry but in Rwandan culture, it is not appropriate for a man to wash underwear and so we do those ourselves. Yes, that’s right, we hand wash our undies and hang them in the back yard to dry.

It’s nice to have an actual yard – a change for me from NYC the past several years. A few weeks ago, Emanuel, Allison and I planted some flowers in the front yard from the plant-able birthday card my mom gave me when I saw her in NYC.

For Halloween on Saturday night, I went to a bonfire with my roommates at some friends of Audrey’s house. They had an amazing backyard overlooking a valley. The night was actually cooler than usual so I needed a sweater, perfect weather for a bonfire. We even had s’mores. I met a lot of other people from different parts of the US and UK who are also here working for a brief period.

Sunday, after church, Audrey, Allison and I went for a short hike up Mount Kigali, about a 20-minute drive from our house. We took Audrey’s dog, Moo Moo, who most definitely is pregnant. While we were hiking, some Rwandan children began following us saying: “Look at that dogs nipples!” in Kinyarwandan. Audrey, 26, grew up in Uganda, so she speaks the local language, which makes life in Kigali much easier for Allison and me. Allison, girl on the right in the picture below, is 21 from Pennsylvania.

Monday was an IJM Rwanda office holiday, for All Saint’s Day the day before, and Allison and I decided to go to the pool at Novotel. I didn’t realize Novotel had a pool, and I was really in for a treat. When we got to the Novotel and headed out back with our day-passes, I felt like I stepped into a Western haven. For the first time since arriving in Rwanda, I felt like I was on a vacation! Westerners sat outside at canopied tables having brunch, overlooking the large pool with clay tennis courts in the distance. Allison and I lay out on comfortable chairs with the warm sun on our faces. As I settled into my book, I laid back and completely relaxed. What a treat – in November no less! Totally worth the $8 for the day – I may spend many a Saturday here when in need of a retreat from “regular” Kigali life.

After the pool, I drove downtown to exchange money and get a few groceries. Ah, independence – how I’ve missed you! I was starting to feel confident and comfortable until I got lost on my way home. I took the “shortcut” back to the house and ended up outside of Kigali a good ways and had to turn around and find my way back before the sunset! [Travelers’ Tip: If Rwandans are yelling “muzungo, muzungo” while pointing and staring at you, you probably aren’t headed the right way.] I was so happy to find my way home after about 2 hours, when it should have only taken 15 minutes. The weekend ended with goat brochettes, “chips” and Mützig beers at a local eatery with Matthew, James and Allison – also IJM interns/fellows (we are 4 total in the office). Now that I am feeling more mobile and my health has vastly improved, life is falling into place. I can now fully focus on work and less on just getting by. Today was the most productive workday I’ve had so far; I even did Pilates after work. Less “shocking” stories from Kigali in this post compared with others, or maybe I’m just getting used to things here!