Have I adjusted?
Nation wide “congés” or holidays are announced the night before on the 10 o’clock news. I, like many Rwandans do not have a radio in which case I might not hear there is a day off. This week was particularly interesting: Monday night it was decided that primary schools would be closed because of “Toussaint”. My office made it a late start day, but most people came in to work.Today, Wed.Nov. 2, it was decided at around 4pm that tomorrow is a holiday because it is the end of Ramadan. I believe Friday is a holiday because of national tree planting. There is something deeply disturbing and foreign about this. Imagine the chaos and control at the top when these decisions are made last minute. More serious, is the lack of support and recognition to people who are organized and want to get things done. I am not yet considering myself in this last group. However, the work ethic here often leaves to be desired and these surprise moves do no allow people to plan their lives.
Power outages at 7 pm just when you have started to cook – are a real pain!
Matches, used in great quantity are of poor quality and break with sparks flying.
Candles, also used in great quantity are of poor quality also. Something I will stock up on when in a developed country.
Rwandans cannot distinguish between r and l. A bit like the Chinese!
When greeting and talking a Rwandan will hold your hand all the while and emit sounds of ayyyye, ayyyye, in acknowledgement of what you are saying.
Children continue to be heart-warmingly genuine in their greetings and curiosity.
Many of these children are being exploited: carrying inordinately heavy loads of wood, vegetables, jerry cans of water on their heads. These same children are also the ones who are kept out of school to perform this child labour. I would be reassured if as many tall, strong youths were doing the same lugging around. On the contrary, these youths lounge about aimlessly with little to do.
Absenteeism, amongst teachers and principals especially, is alarming if I compare it to home. However, in any emergency ranging from not being paid to having a sick family member, the nearest bank or hospital or health unit is probably 2 hours walking one way.
The following account will require your patience and imagination and you should feel some affinity with digging and plants in order to appreciate my puzzlement.
The road cleaners/fixer uppers: these have sprouted these last weeks since the rains have started. Imagine very hard surfaced, rutted, sand or dirt roads. They are so hard they feel like stone sometimes and roots and stones are deeply imbedded and protruding. When it rains this becomes a thin layer of treacherous “slither” as no road is flat for longer than 20 metres. Anyway, the mixed company of cleaners , (men, women, children of all ages) equipped with the rwandan hoe, scrape earth from the side of the hill adjacent to the road and use this earth to cover the road. At the same time they deepen the ditch between hillside and road for the rainwaters. The hillside from which the road has been dug out can range from 10-20 ft or more and there are often trees growing on the edge of these hillsides. With the scraping of the grassy hillside, the bared earth and roots of the trees become exposed, ready for the attack of erosion caused by the deluges. Eventually the trees die. I have not yet figured out what the best way to improve roads would be. Once graded and paved, they stay in good condition because there is no frost but grading and paving is not in the cards for the province of Gikongoro, except for the road running to the Congo which passes through this province and on the outside of this town.
I have adjusted; don’t worry! I believe I am fairly resigned to the above, although the plight and future of many children are of great concern. More on that another time!
Friday, November 04, 2005
Morning Routine
Have I spoken in detail about my morning routine? My alarm goes at 5:30 and I am usually up by 5:45. It seems early but I rarely turn off the light after 10 pm because most evenings there is no power, causing my eyes to tire and quickly removing the pleasures of a whole evening of reading. On my kitchen table are two large thermoses with hot water prepared by Claudine the previous afternoon. I take one of them to fill a small plastic tub, which I take to the bathroom and set in the bathtub. Yes, I do have a full-length bathtub, but no running hot water to put in it! I then sponge bath standing in the bathtub. (Do I miss a lengthy hot shower? YES! Alternatively, on mornings when I feel so inclined, I will first light the kerosene stove and heat some water for porridge and coffee and put on the computer with my yoga CD. Thirty minutes of yoga followed by sit-ups make me feel virtuous and give my body a good kick-start. Breakfast can be porridge made with Kenyan instant oats and milk powder made by Nestlé. I add either honey or sugar. Sometimes I have bread with a soft-boiled egg or old bread that I attempt to toast in the frying pan, with jam. Coffee requires some of the freshly boiled water or hot water out of the thermos. I put coffee in a little stainless steel pot I bought here and pour the boiling water over it. After a few moments, through a fine sieve, I pour the coffee mixture from the pot into the cup, which usually has some powdered milk in it. This coffee I have grown to tolerate, but it is not up to the quality I would like. Next trip out of the country, I will get a filter holder and bring some filters. I also need to change the coffee, but have decided to finish this big package, as it was really expensive. I will sit at the table in the living room, in front of the window and have breakfast. I may play some music on the computer, but usually I listen to the birds singing. If I am lucky, I can see the outline of a volcano which must be at least 100km away. At this time I also set the small mirror on the table and look at my face, checking for (re)sprouting of facial hair and possibly applying some make-up and brushing my hair. I am planning to buy a large mirror and fasten it to a wall where I might have a maximum of natural light. At about this time I hear the clanging of the gong for the school cafeteria and it is 6:45. I collect my trusty computer bag, (the one I bought when Havergal first gave us laptops), and possibly a backpack if I am doing school visits, and head off to the diocese office. This walk takes about 10 minutes at most. I arrive at about 7.05 and leave my bags in the office, grab my 2 Bibles to join in the Morning Prayer session. (one Bible is Kinyarwanda, the other English). We spent most of October reading Jeremiah and have just started Revelations. People take turns leading the reading and we usually start with singing a hymn. These hymns are mostly African with great rhythms and harmonies. After the reading there is discussion as to the interpretation: Lessons to be learned? Good examples? Bad examples? This is followed by requests for prayers and then the prayer, always in flowing Kinyarwanda. At the closing of the time together, people bring up items of interest related to people or work. By 7:45 or 8 we are all ready to start work. So far, I have not had many days that I spend at the office. School visits on the back of the motorbike have taken up a lot of my time. When in the office, I am at the computer writing observations, making notes, and writing letters. Making phone calls is something I would like to do more of, but the phone is locked for outgoing calls and I have to specially ask to use it.
More on the rest of my day later.
More on the rest of my day later.
Thursday, October 06, 2005
Life and work in Kigeme after 5 weeks
I have started my 5th week here in Kigeme and have adapted to life in this village. My little house is cozy, although there are some things to add to it: nicer looking curtains (they have wonderfully bright, cotton fabrics at the market), a few more chairs (made locally), that I can place on the veranda and easily carry in, a buta gaz 2 burner stove top (a bit of a luxury!), a rug , to name a few. Some of these are bulky and I will have to wait until I find a vehicle to transport them. Food is fresh, tasty, but quite limited in variety. As we get more rain, I will start to plant some seeds and see what I am able to grow in my garden.
My work has shifted from lots of reading of files regarding the 42 primary schools and 3 secondary schools associated with the Episcopalian church diocese for which I work, to school visits. These I do on the motor bike as a passenger. The roads are very winding and steep with a very uneven surface. There are also virtually no signs and so far I have not seen a map with the roads we take marked on it. I will eventually go on my own, but for the time being my motard Prosper is an excellent chauffeur.
There is much that needs improving in the schools. Teachers for the primary level can start teaching with a high school diploma if their school had a teacher training section. There is a shortage of experienced teachers (genocide, HIV Aids and an average life expectancy at birth of 40) and the younger teachers are disenchanted by the challenging settings and the poor pay. Many use this as a start and a means to earn money to continue their education. So I have seen some very mediocre teaching just because of a lack of proper training. Students learn by rote through lots of repetition and one wonders how much they understand. In grade 4 the language of instruction suddenly becomes French (around Kigali, the capital, it is English). Before that time everything is in Kinyarwanda. The president, Paul Kigame decided a number of years ago that Rwanda should be trilingual: Kinyarwanda, French and English)Students are not well enough prepared in French in grades 1-3 to make this switch and so comprehension of the material is limited. I have lots of ideas for workshops to support these teachers and to show them how they will have to not just teach their subject, but also continue to teach French. A few of the schools I have seen so far have strong leadership and you can see that in the way the teachers teach and the overall atmosphere of the school.
The buildings and equipment leave a lot to be desired. Only the newer buildings made of brick, usually financed by projects coming from the developed world or foreign NGO's, have windows with glass and paved floors. Otherwise windows have wooden shutters and are small, floors are dirt and ceilings are reed on the inside, mud tiles or sheet metal on the outside. Students often sit on low benches or large mud bricks instead of proper desks. Some classrooms have only a small blackboard. All primary students are supposed to wear a uniform. Not all can afford one in which case they wear the only clothes they own - second hand, ill fitting and dirty. In most schools all children are barefoot; at some of the schools nearer a town one will see children with flip flops or used sneakers.
Schools start around 8 am. Often, opening assembly is at 7:30 or 7:45. It is held outside. There is singing of a hymn, a Bible reading + reflection, the national anthem and announcements. Classes in grades 1-3 are 30 min. long and in 4-6 they are 45 min long. There is a midday break from 12:15 -1:45. Most children go home for something to eat, but there are many who live too far away so they lounge around the school grounds and play without anything to eat. Many of the students are visibly malnourished. School finishes around 4:30. There are a number of districts where the schools are supported by the UN World Food Program. WFP delivers 50KG bags of maismeal, beans, wheat flour and large cans of oil. The school has to hire 2 people to prepare morning porridge and lunchtime maismeal with beans for all the students. All over a wood or charcoal fire of course. Each students pays equivalent of 50 cents a month to help pay the cooks. Quite a production but it works. Children are no longer hungry and learn much better. These schools have also seen their enrollment in the younger grades increase dramatically. This is a problem because there are not enough classrooms so they have to build the simpler, cheaper ones made of adobe bricks quickly. These buildings do not last long in the heavy rains.I do wonder how long they will need this support of food. Things do not look like they will change much in the next few years. The poverty circle is very vicious!
During my visits I usually go around the classes and introduce myself. With the little ones I need a translator although in schools with a more dynamic directeur/directrice, I have found I can make myself understood in French by playing some games and using lots of gestures and asking basic questions. I have also sat in on lessons and then been asked to give my impressions either to the teacher or to all the teachers. I make copious notes when I get back to the office or at home and get more and more ideas as to what I can do to help.
Just to finish this education thing off, grade 6 does a National Exam which in fact is the entrance to secondary school. The latter costs money; primary school is free. In this province the results on average are about 12-20% of grade 6 students who pass. When I ask kids the question: quel âge as-tu? I will see 13 yr olds in grade 3 and 16 yr olds in 6. As long as the results are this poor and students leave school after grade 3 and after grade 6, I don't see much poverty reduction in this province. Sorry to leave it on a negative note. Perhaps I should add that in all schools I am most warmly welcomed by bright eyed and enthusiastic kids and on the whole hard working teachers who are keen to have me come and give a workshop.
Hope this gives you an idea of what is occupying me here. I have met some nice people with whom I can spend time on the weekends. (most live in another town) I do lots of writing and reading when there is electricity. Daylight is from 5:30 am to 6 pm; my bedtime between 8 and 11 pm.;weather is pleasant. We are heading into the rainy season, which I think means frequent and hard, but relatively short rainfalls.
My work has shifted from lots of reading of files regarding the 42 primary schools and 3 secondary schools associated with the Episcopalian church diocese for which I work, to school visits. These I do on the motor bike as a passenger. The roads are very winding and steep with a very uneven surface. There are also virtually no signs and so far I have not seen a map with the roads we take marked on it. I will eventually go on my own, but for the time being my motard Prosper is an excellent chauffeur.
There is much that needs improving in the schools. Teachers for the primary level can start teaching with a high school diploma if their school had a teacher training section. There is a shortage of experienced teachers (genocide, HIV Aids and an average life expectancy at birth of 40) and the younger teachers are disenchanted by the challenging settings and the poor pay. Many use this as a start and a means to earn money to continue their education. So I have seen some very mediocre teaching just because of a lack of proper training. Students learn by rote through lots of repetition and one wonders how much they understand. In grade 4 the language of instruction suddenly becomes French (around Kigali, the capital, it is English). Before that time everything is in Kinyarwanda. The president, Paul Kigame decided a number of years ago that Rwanda should be trilingual: Kinyarwanda, French and English)Students are not well enough prepared in French in grades 1-3 to make this switch and so comprehension of the material is limited. I have lots of ideas for workshops to support these teachers and to show them how they will have to not just teach their subject, but also continue to teach French. A few of the schools I have seen so far have strong leadership and you can see that in the way the teachers teach and the overall atmosphere of the school.
The buildings and equipment leave a lot to be desired. Only the newer buildings made of brick, usually financed by projects coming from the developed world or foreign NGO's, have windows with glass and paved floors. Otherwise windows have wooden shutters and are small, floors are dirt and ceilings are reed on the inside, mud tiles or sheet metal on the outside. Students often sit on low benches or large mud bricks instead of proper desks. Some classrooms have only a small blackboard. All primary students are supposed to wear a uniform. Not all can afford one in which case they wear the only clothes they own - second hand, ill fitting and dirty. In most schools all children are barefoot; at some of the schools nearer a town one will see children with flip flops or used sneakers.
Schools start around 8 am. Often, opening assembly is at 7:30 or 7:45. It is held outside. There is singing of a hymn, a Bible reading + reflection, the national anthem and announcements. Classes in grades 1-3 are 30 min. long and in 4-6 they are 45 min long. There is a midday break from 12:15 -1:45. Most children go home for something to eat, but there are many who live too far away so they lounge around the school grounds and play without anything to eat. Many of the students are visibly malnourished. School finishes around 4:30. There are a number of districts where the schools are supported by the UN World Food Program. WFP delivers 50KG bags of maismeal, beans, wheat flour and large cans of oil. The school has to hire 2 people to prepare morning porridge and lunchtime maismeal with beans for all the students. All over a wood or charcoal fire of course. Each students pays equivalent of 50 cents a month to help pay the cooks. Quite a production but it works. Children are no longer hungry and learn much better. These schools have also seen their enrollment in the younger grades increase dramatically. This is a problem because there are not enough classrooms so they have to build the simpler, cheaper ones made of adobe bricks quickly. These buildings do not last long in the heavy rains.I do wonder how long they will need this support of food. Things do not look like they will change much in the next few years. The poverty circle is very vicious!
During my visits I usually go around the classes and introduce myself. With the little ones I need a translator although in schools with a more dynamic directeur/directrice, I have found I can make myself understood in French by playing some games and using lots of gestures and asking basic questions. I have also sat in on lessons and then been asked to give my impressions either to the teacher or to all the teachers. I make copious notes when I get back to the office or at home and get more and more ideas as to what I can do to help.
Just to finish this education thing off, grade 6 does a National Exam which in fact is the entrance to secondary school. The latter costs money; primary school is free. In this province the results on average are about 12-20% of grade 6 students who pass. When I ask kids the question: quel âge as-tu? I will see 13 yr olds in grade 3 and 16 yr olds in 6. As long as the results are this poor and students leave school after grade 3 and after grade 6, I don't see much poverty reduction in this province. Sorry to leave it on a negative note. Perhaps I should add that in all schools I am most warmly welcomed by bright eyed and enthusiastic kids and on the whole hard working teachers who are keen to have me come and give a workshop.
Hope this gives you an idea of what is occupying me here. I have met some nice people with whom I can spend time on the weekends. (most live in another town) I do lots of writing and reading when there is electricity. Daylight is from 5:30 am to 6 pm; my bedtime between 8 and 11 pm.;weather is pleasant. We are heading into the rainy season, which I think means frequent and hard, but relatively short rainfalls.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Poverty is everywhere in this province of Gikongoro
September 17 , 2005
(This was posted September 29. Sorry!)
It surrounds me, yet the Rwandans have a smiles on their faces. As I listen to my shortwave radio, I hear about it on all the newscasts esp. because of the UN meeting in New York where the Millenium goals set 5 years ago are being discussed. When I go to stores in the village the produce available changes all the time. All the dry goods are in see-through, no name plastic bags, in small quantities - Flour, salt sugar, etc. A type of super market grocery store isfound only in the larger cities and they are also stocked sparingly. The produce there, while more interesting, is pricy. I think I will splurge however on a box of dry oats so I can make some porridge and maybe try my hand at some granola bars this coming week. (Yes, all on a kerosene stove!)
Earlier this morning I was visited by my friend Jacqueline for the third time. She speaks only Kinyarwandan, looks ageless but probably in her 30's and extremely poor. Last time she was here she explained with gestures that she wants to clean up (i.e. weed) my garden. I had already given her some food when she came the other 2 times and I appreciate the fact that she wants to do something in return. I have to be careful. I am already now paying 2 people on my 120,000 RWfrs salary and she could be the third. Through the bishop's 12 year old daughter, Charlotte, there was some translating going on this morning. In spite of my saying, I thought she should wait because the ground is still way too hard, she has started anyway. I have already prepared a bag of carrots, tomato and an onion. I do not have that much food in the house.
Back from getting bread in the village. Got two buns for Jacqueline and her bag of veggies. She was not a happy camper. I know she prefers to have money but I am hesitant. J managed to gesture she wanted soap to wash her ragged skirt and top. So, I emptied some soap powder in an old water bottle and gave her an end of a bar of soap.
Language is a barrier here. I feel a bit uncomfortable with Jacqueline. She did a good job, but I have to feel my way as to how much I should be giving because I will be here a long time and do not want to give the wrong impression. She is sweet and could certainly use a good wash and some new clothes. I need time however to figure out how best to help her. The other two people in my service are Claudine, a wonderful young woman who keeps the tiny house sparkling clean and cooks pretty tasty meals. Sylvain is here the weekend nights as a security guard. There is a little room inside a door beside the front door where he has a bed and a chair. Not sure yet how much I will be paying him, but hope to find this out later today when I go to Butare to compare notes with other muzungus.
Another poverty moment: In Butare, Geert ( a young Belgian volunteer)and I are walking side by side. We have just bought some sweet buns at the Lebanese supermarket and he pulls them out of the plastic bag to eat one, but it falls on the pavement. At the same moment a woman approaches us begging for food. Dilemma: do we pick up the bun that rolled on the street and give it to her, do we give her a bun out of the plastic bag (there is only one for each of the 4 of us) or do we just walk on and assume she will pick the bun up from the street. We did the latter and she picked it up as we saw when we discreetly turned around. Not the best feeling, not the Samaritan way, but yes there are beggars in Butare and they really are hungry. We have taken to travelling with bananas or plain bread and hand those out when people ask for money or food.
(This was posted September 29. Sorry!)
It surrounds me, yet the Rwandans have a smiles on their faces. As I listen to my shortwave radio, I hear about it on all the newscasts esp. because of the UN meeting in New York where the Millenium goals set 5 years ago are being discussed. When I go to stores in the village the produce available changes all the time. All the dry goods are in see-through, no name plastic bags, in small quantities - Flour, salt sugar, etc. A type of super market grocery store isfound only in the larger cities and they are also stocked sparingly. The produce there, while more interesting, is pricy. I think I will splurge however on a box of dry oats so I can make some porridge and maybe try my hand at some granola bars this coming week. (Yes, all on a kerosene stove!)
Earlier this morning I was visited by my friend Jacqueline for the third time. She speaks only Kinyarwandan, looks ageless but probably in her 30's and extremely poor. Last time she was here she explained with gestures that she wants to clean up (i.e. weed) my garden. I had already given her some food when she came the other 2 times and I appreciate the fact that she wants to do something in return. I have to be careful. I am already now paying 2 people on my 120,000 RWfrs salary and she could be the third. Through the bishop's 12 year old daughter, Charlotte, there was some translating going on this morning. In spite of my saying, I thought she should wait because the ground is still way too hard, she has started anyway. I have already prepared a bag of carrots, tomato and an onion. I do not have that much food in the house.
Back from getting bread in the village. Got two buns for Jacqueline and her bag of veggies. She was not a happy camper. I know she prefers to have money but I am hesitant. J managed to gesture she wanted soap to wash her ragged skirt and top. So, I emptied some soap powder in an old water bottle and gave her an end of a bar of soap.
Language is a barrier here. I feel a bit uncomfortable with Jacqueline. She did a good job, but I have to feel my way as to how much I should be giving because I will be here a long time and do not want to give the wrong impression. She is sweet and could certainly use a good wash and some new clothes. I need time however to figure out how best to help her. The other two people in my service are Claudine, a wonderful young woman who keeps the tiny house sparkling clean and cooks pretty tasty meals. Sylvain is here the weekend nights as a security guard. There is a little room inside a door beside the front door where he has a bed and a chair. Not sure yet how much I will be paying him, but hope to find this out later today when I go to Butare to compare notes with other muzungus.
Another poverty moment: In Butare, Geert ( a young Belgian volunteer)and I are walking side by side. We have just bought some sweet buns at the Lebanese supermarket and he pulls them out of the plastic bag to eat one, but it falls on the pavement. At the same moment a woman approaches us begging for food. Dilemma: do we pick up the bun that rolled on the street and give it to her, do we give her a bun out of the plastic bag (there is only one for each of the 4 of us) or do we just walk on and assume she will pick the bun up from the street. We did the latter and she picked it up as we saw when we discreetly turned around. Not the best feeling, not the Samaritan way, but yes there are beggars in Butare and they really are hungry. We have taken to travelling with bananas or plain bread and hand those out when people ask for money or food.
Thursday, September 08, 2005
Tuesday September 6
Tuesday September 6
Spoke to Michelle today for the first time. Long overdue. I won’t say it was good to hear her voice. It sounded strange and far away. Definitely good to talk however and hear the news and tell my latest. I guess I miss most telling people about my day. It’s not loneliness yet, just very quiet. Looking forward to my radio – that I bought in Kigali and will get in a box with other stuff this weekend when I meet friends in Butare and get on the internet to send some emails. It’s 6:40 and the power has just gone off. I didn’t notice it because someone had just come to the door and introduced himself. He knew Doutsen who lived here before. It was on when I came home but off most of the day at the office. So we have had a total of one and a half hours since last night. I did charge my batteries but figure I should invest in a rechargeable lamp. Just cannot read by candle light and kerosene lamp. Yesterday and today was the monthly meeting of all the priests in the Gikongoro district. At lunch today, walking back to work, one of the parish priests here in Kigeme told me that I was expected to introduce myself at 4 pm and had I been told about this? Well I hadn’t and Eusélie came in at 2:45 and told me at around three that I was expected at the meeting. I then pumped her for about 5 Kinyarwanda phrases of welcome which I practised and delivered at 4. I got a round of applause. There was time for questions and I underwent a gruelling session, first about my personal life, then my children, did I have a husband and then about my views on homosexuality and divorce. One of the priests had to translate to Kinyarwandan because they did not all understand me. Knowing full well the African churches’ stand on these issues, I asked if I could be honest and they all nodded. I stated my beliefs, my tolerance, that I had friends who were in homosexual relationships and that this has been the case in all my adult life – starting in Holland in the early seventies. They were curious to know how I could marry my Christian faith with my views regarding homosexuality and divorce, given what it says in the Bible. I painted a picture of North American and western culture : many cultures, many influences and that some protestant churches do not interpret the Bible as literally in all its teachings; that within these churches there are varying opinions and that we do not all agree on all things. I tried to explain that Christians are involved in homosexual relationships and still strive to live as good Christians. I was also asked that, given the views I have, how would I deal with these issues in the classroom, given they were accepted in my culture. Here I could give the VSO answer which is that I am here to share my background and culture with theirs, not impose it and then my own answer, that I would never talk to a classroom of young people in the way I had spoken to them, that young people need information and then need to make up their own mind and that I spoke to them honestly only because they assured me I could be honest. Well the whole thing lasted 45 min and I was not quite expecting the number of direct questions. It does concur however with the general curiosity of all Rwandans. They want to know everything about us, from the west, even in the street when they talk with you. Hard to know how I came across, but Bishop Augustin assured me my honesty was appreciated and that now everyone knows where I stand. I hope I won’t regret today!!!
Spoke to Michelle today for the first time. Long overdue. I won’t say it was good to hear her voice. It sounded strange and far away. Definitely good to talk however and hear the news and tell my latest. I guess I miss most telling people about my day. It’s not loneliness yet, just very quiet. Looking forward to my radio – that I bought in Kigali and will get in a box with other stuff this weekend when I meet friends in Butare and get on the internet to send some emails. It’s 6:40 and the power has just gone off. I didn’t notice it because someone had just come to the door and introduced himself. He knew Doutsen who lived here before. It was on when I came home but off most of the day at the office. So we have had a total of one and a half hours since last night. I did charge my batteries but figure I should invest in a rechargeable lamp. Just cannot read by candle light and kerosene lamp. Yesterday and today was the monthly meeting of all the priests in the Gikongoro district. At lunch today, walking back to work, one of the parish priests here in Kigeme told me that I was expected to introduce myself at 4 pm and had I been told about this? Well I hadn’t and Eusélie came in at 2:45 and told me at around three that I was expected at the meeting. I then pumped her for about 5 Kinyarwanda phrases of welcome which I practised and delivered at 4. I got a round of applause. There was time for questions and I underwent a gruelling session, first about my personal life, then my children, did I have a husband and then about my views on homosexuality and divorce. One of the priests had to translate to Kinyarwandan because they did not all understand me. Knowing full well the African churches’ stand on these issues, I asked if I could be honest and they all nodded. I stated my beliefs, my tolerance, that I had friends who were in homosexual relationships and that this has been the case in all my adult life – starting in Holland in the early seventies. They were curious to know how I could marry my Christian faith with my views regarding homosexuality and divorce, given what it says in the Bible. I painted a picture of North American and western culture : many cultures, many influences and that some protestant churches do not interpret the Bible as literally in all its teachings; that within these churches there are varying opinions and that we do not all agree on all things. I tried to explain that Christians are involved in homosexual relationships and still strive to live as good Christians. I was also asked that, given the views I have, how would I deal with these issues in the classroom, given they were accepted in my culture. Here I could give the VSO answer which is that I am here to share my background and culture with theirs, not impose it and then my own answer, that I would never talk to a classroom of young people in the way I had spoken to them, that young people need information and then need to make up their own mind and that I spoke to them honestly only because they assured me I could be honest. Well the whole thing lasted 45 min and I was not quite expecting the number of direct questions. It does concur however with the general curiosity of all Rwandans. They want to know everything about us, from the west, even in the street when they talk with you. Hard to know how I came across, but Bishop Augustin assured me my honesty was appreciated and that now everyone knows where I stand. I hope I won’t regret today!!!
Tuesday September 6
Tuesday September 6
Spoke to Michelle today for the first time. Long overdue. I won’t say it was good to hear her voice. It sounded strange and far away. Definitely good to talk however and hear the news and tell my latest. I guess I miss most telling people about my day. It’s not loneliness yet, just very quiet. Looking forward to my radio – that I bought in Kigali and will get in a box with other stuff this weekend when I meet friends in Butare and get on the internet to send some emails. It’s 6:40 and the power has just gone off. I didn’t notice it because someone had just come to the door and introduced himself. He knew Doutsen who lived here before. It was on when I came home but off most of the day at the office. So we have had a total of one and a half hours since last night. I did charge my batteries but figure I should invest in a rechargeable lamp. Just cannot read by candle light and kerosene lamp. Yesterday and today was the monthly meeting of all the priests in the Gikongoro district. At lunch today, walking back to work, one of the parish priests here in Kigeme told me that I was expected to introduce myself at 4 pm and had I been told about this? Well I hadn’t and Eusélie came in at 2:45 and told me at around three that I was expected at the meeting. I then pumped her for about 5 Kinyarwanda phrases of welcome which I practised and delivered at 4. I got a round of applause. There was time for questions and I underwent a gruelling session, first about my personal life, then my children, did I have a husband and then about my views on homosexuality and divorce. One of the priests had to translate to Kinyarwandan because they did not all understand me. Knowing full well the African churches’ stand on these issues, I asked if I could be honest and they all nodded. I stated my beliefs, my tolerance, that I had friends who were in homosexual relationships and that this has been the case in all my adult life – starting in Holland in the early seventies. They were curious to know how I could marry my Christian faith with my views regarding homosexuality and divorce, given what it says in the Bible. I painted a picture of North American and western culture : many cultures, many influences and that some protestant churches do not interpret the Bible as literally in all its teachings; that within these churches there are varying opinions and that we do not all agree on all things. I tried to explain that Christians are involved in homosexual relationships and still strive to live as good Christians. I was also asked that, given the views I have, how would I deal with these issues in the classroom, given they were accepted in my culture. Here I could give the VSO answer which is that I am here to share my background and culture with theirs, not impose it and then my own answer, that I would never talk to a classroom of young people in the way I had spoken to them, that young people need information and then need to make up their own mind and that I spoke to them honestly only because they assured me I could be honest. Well the whole thing lasted 45 min and I was not quite expecting the number of direct questions. It does concur however with the general curiosity of all Rwandans. They want to know everything about us, from the west, even in the street when they talk with you. Hard to know how I came across, but Bishop Augustin assured me my honesty was appreciated and that now everyone knows where I stand. I hope I won’t regret today!!!
Spoke to Michelle today for the first time. Long overdue. I won’t say it was good to hear her voice. It sounded strange and far away. Definitely good to talk however and hear the news and tell my latest. I guess I miss most telling people about my day. It’s not loneliness yet, just very quiet. Looking forward to my radio – that I bought in Kigali and will get in a box with other stuff this weekend when I meet friends in Butare and get on the internet to send some emails. It’s 6:40 and the power has just gone off. I didn’t notice it because someone had just come to the door and introduced himself. He knew Doutsen who lived here before. It was on when I came home but off most of the day at the office. So we have had a total of one and a half hours since last night. I did charge my batteries but figure I should invest in a rechargeable lamp. Just cannot read by candle light and kerosene lamp. Yesterday and today was the monthly meeting of all the priests in the Gikongoro district. At lunch today, walking back to work, one of the parish priests here in Kigeme told me that I was expected to introduce myself at 4 pm and had I been told about this? Well I hadn’t and Eusélie came in at 2:45 and told me at around three that I was expected at the meeting. I then pumped her for about 5 Kinyarwanda phrases of welcome which I practised and delivered at 4. I got a round of applause. There was time for questions and I underwent a gruelling session, first about my personal life, then my children, did I have a husband and then about my views on homosexuality and divorce. One of the priests had to translate to Kinyarwandan because they did not all understand me. Knowing full well the African churches’ stand on these issues, I asked if I could be honest and they all nodded. I stated my beliefs, my tolerance, that I had friends who were in homosexual relationships and that this has been the case in all my adult life – starting in Holland in the early seventies. They were curious to know how I could marry my Christian faith with my views regarding homosexuality and divorce, given what it says in the Bible. I painted a picture of North American and western culture : many cultures, many influences and that some protestant churches do not interpret the Bible as literally in all its teachings; that within these churches there are varying opinions and that we do not all agree on all things. I tried to explain that Christians are involved in homosexual relationships and still strive to live as good Christians. I was also asked that, given the views I have, how would I deal with these issues in the classroom, given they were accepted in my culture. Here I could give the VSO answer which is that I am here to share my background and culture with theirs, not impose it and then my own answer, that I would never talk to a classroom of young people in the way I had spoken to them, that young people need information and then need to make up their own mind and that I spoke to them honestly only because they assured me I could be honest. Well the whole thing lasted 45 min and I was not quite expecting the number of direct questions. It does concur however with the general curiosity of all Rwandans. They want to know everything about us, from the west, even in the street when they talk with you. Hard to know how I came across, but Bishop Augustin assured me my honesty was appreciated and that now everyone knows where I stand. I hope I won’t regret today!!!
September 3
A city of hills with quite a bit of green, but also red soil and dust as this is the dry season. There are people everywhere, mostly moving about on foot. Children in school uniforms walking to and from school, boys and men standing around, little children running after us and calling us ‘muzungo’. There are small shops every few houses it seems. On the hillside where our compound is, the houses vary from very minimal to reasonably well kempt. Most Rwandans who work in offices have a phone in hand. They are smartly dressed – the men with cleanly pressed shirts and pants, the women with colourful dresses and skirts. The major shopping area is relatively small with some bigger shops, lots of pharmacies, internet cafes, phone shops, banks, travel agents, clothing shops etc. Yours truly may not be elegantly dressed, but she does have a phone in hand. She will be a pro in the use of Michelle’s phone from France especially when she gets the hang of text messaging.
The neighbourhood with the government buildings, is elegant, clean and with beautifully paved roads. There are some elegant hotels and an impressive bank building of the BCDI bank where I will open account next week, but in my Gikongoro province branch not here in Kigali. On the various hillsides the array of dwellings is very mixed: mostly small, simply constructed houses with a yard of some sort. People move around on foot or public taxi. The latter are much more organized than in say Sumatra or even Lima, Peru. There are also motorcycles and cars and some bicycles, although the hills make that a hard way to move around. The other night we took a real taxi home from the restaurant. The driver took a shortcut down a steep road which was not paved and more like a track than a road, with huge ruts. The car was an ordinary one and with four rather heavy people (I was the lightest) I was surprised we made it down. Such a road would be impossible to use in the rainy season. Moving around this city, one gets a sense of organization or control. There are three layers of control around the city: the community security force (volunteers), the police and the military.
We have been to a few bars in the area of the compound after the dinner hour. Here there are absolutely no tourists. There are very few women to be seen in these establishments. The odd one would be young and always with a male companion. It appears, and I had read this before I left, that women have family obligations in the evening whether they are married or not. The volunteers here find this an obstacle in having social contact with female colleagues after working hours.
Speaking of volunteers, there are about 30 of us in Rwanda with VSO. They are mostly between 24 and 34 with the exception of Antonia Eastman (from Wales) and me. She will be living in Butare, about 1 hr from where I am. I think we will get on well together. There are moments when I feel somewhat ‘older’, but on the whole these young people are very friendly and try to be inclusive. There is a preponderance of women volunteers, but I had already observed this in the training sessions.
Today I was in Kigali, (pronounced [Chigali] and was taken by a volunteer to see the MINEDUC, the Min of Education building. I will probably go there to attend meetings at one time or another. We also dropped by a volunteer, François, from Montreal, who works for a National Organization that tries to coordinate all efforts to work with and educate Rwandan children who have disabilities (hearing/vision impaired, but also physical and mental disabilities). In the afternoon, we went to spend our 100,000 RWfrs on equipment for our houses. This is about 170 US$. I bought sheets, towels, a blanket ,pots, jerry cans (plastic for water), broom, buckets, wash basins, glasses, cups plates cutlery, knives etc. etc. I felt like I was a student again, buying cheap stuff for my student room. There will be a lot more I will have to buy. I may splurge to buy a buta gas two burner stove. In the meantime it will be a kerosene stove (supplied by VSO) that I will use for cooking and heating water. I am perturbed to be without a radio. I meant to get one in Toronto and never got to it. Did not find a suitable one in Kigali today and it will be the only way to stay in touch with the rest of the world. I will have another try before leaving on Saturday afternoon.
The electricity issue is a big one. It’s 10 pm and I have light in my room, but this has been an exception since I am here. Mostly the electricity is off and this means darkness everywhere. I have realized it is treacherous walking outside after dark because you cannot see all the potholes. Every time the power is on I find myself charging batteries, cell phone or the laptop. (I have had to interrupt this writing session as the power did go out last night around 10:15)
I have met some Rwandans already- there are 6 who work in the programme office and who have given some workshops or who have helped us fill out forms. They are polite, friendly and quite easy to communicate with. On Friday, I will meet my employer. We will spend the day getting to know each other as we attend briefings given by the people in the –program office.
Later this afternoon I will be off to Kigali again to look around, perhaps enter this blog and then touch base with Maurits and Tine, who live here and who are friends of Pim and Ineke. I am looking forward to getting their perspective on Rwanda, as they have been here for a while. Maybe I can find a radio and a power bar. I am kind of obsessed with power and electricity. Next entry will be from Kigeme, via Butare, where the internet café is. Cheers.
The neighbourhood with the government buildings, is elegant, clean and with beautifully paved roads. There are some elegant hotels and an impressive bank building of the BCDI bank where I will open account next week, but in my Gikongoro province branch not here in Kigali. On the various hillsides the array of dwellings is very mixed: mostly small, simply constructed houses with a yard of some sort. People move around on foot or public taxi. The latter are much more organized than in say Sumatra or even Lima, Peru. There are also motorcycles and cars and some bicycles, although the hills make that a hard way to move around. The other night we took a real taxi home from the restaurant. The driver took a shortcut down a steep road which was not paved and more like a track than a road, with huge ruts. The car was an ordinary one and with four rather heavy people (I was the lightest) I was surprised we made it down. Such a road would be impossible to use in the rainy season. Moving around this city, one gets a sense of organization or control. There are three layers of control around the city: the community security force (volunteers), the police and the military.
We have been to a few bars in the area of the compound after the dinner hour. Here there are absolutely no tourists. There are very few women to be seen in these establishments. The odd one would be young and always with a male companion. It appears, and I had read this before I left, that women have family obligations in the evening whether they are married or not. The volunteers here find this an obstacle in having social contact with female colleagues after working hours.
Speaking of volunteers, there are about 30 of us in Rwanda with VSO. They are mostly between 24 and 34 with the exception of Antonia Eastman (from Wales) and me. She will be living in Butare, about 1 hr from where I am. I think we will get on well together. There are moments when I feel somewhat ‘older’, but on the whole these young people are very friendly and try to be inclusive. There is a preponderance of women volunteers, but I had already observed this in the training sessions.
Today I was in Kigali, (pronounced [Chigali] and was taken by a volunteer to see the MINEDUC, the Min of Education building. I will probably go there to attend meetings at one time or another. We also dropped by a volunteer, François, from Montreal, who works for a National Organization that tries to coordinate all efforts to work with and educate Rwandan children who have disabilities (hearing/vision impaired, but also physical and mental disabilities). In the afternoon, we went to spend our 100,000 RWfrs on equipment for our houses. This is about 170 US$. I bought sheets, towels, a blanket ,pots, jerry cans (plastic for water), broom, buckets, wash basins, glasses, cups plates cutlery, knives etc. etc. I felt like I was a student again, buying cheap stuff for my student room. There will be a lot more I will have to buy. I may splurge to buy a buta gas two burner stove. In the meantime it will be a kerosene stove (supplied by VSO) that I will use for cooking and heating water. I am perturbed to be without a radio. I meant to get one in Toronto and never got to it. Did not find a suitable one in Kigali today and it will be the only way to stay in touch with the rest of the world. I will have another try before leaving on Saturday afternoon.
The electricity issue is a big one. It’s 10 pm and I have light in my room, but this has been an exception since I am here. Mostly the electricity is off and this means darkness everywhere. I have realized it is treacherous walking outside after dark because you cannot see all the potholes. Every time the power is on I find myself charging batteries, cell phone or the laptop. (I have had to interrupt this writing session as the power did go out last night around 10:15)
I have met some Rwandans already- there are 6 who work in the programme office and who have given some workshops or who have helped us fill out forms. They are polite, friendly and quite easy to communicate with. On Friday, I will meet my employer. We will spend the day getting to know each other as we attend briefings given by the people in the –program office.
Later this afternoon I will be off to Kigali again to look around, perhaps enter this blog and then touch base with Maurits and Tine, who live here and who are friends of Pim and Ineke. I am looking forward to getting their perspective on Rwanda, as they have been here for a while. Maybe I can find a radio and a power bar. I am kind of obsessed with power and electricity. Next entry will be from Kigeme, via Butare, where the internet café is. Cheers.
Kigali August 30 First Impressions
A city of hills with quite a bit of green, but also red soil and dust as this is the dry season. There are people everywhere, mostly moving about on foot. Children in school uniforms walking to and from school, boys and men standing around, little children running after us and calling us ‘muzungo’. There are small shops every few houses it seems. On the hillside where our compound is, the houses vary from very minimal to reasonably well kempt. Most Rwandans who work in offices have a phone in hand. They are smartly dressed – the men with cleanly pressed shirts and pants, the women with colourful dresses and skirts. The major shopping area is relatively small with some bigger shops, lots of pharmacies, internet cafes, phone shops, banks, travel agents, clothing shops etc. Yours truly may not be elegantly dressed, but she does have a phone in hand. She will be a pro in the use of Michelle’s phone from France especially when she gets the hang of text messaging.
The neighbourhood with the government buildings, is elegant, clean and with beautifully paved roads. There are some elegant hotels and an impressive bank building of the BCDI bank where I will open account next week, but in my Gikongoro province branch not here in Kigali. On the various hillsides the array of dwellings is very mixed: mostly small, simply constructed houses with a yard of some sort. People move around on foot or public taxi. The latter are much more organized than in say Sumatra or even Lima, Peru. There are also motorcycles and cars and some bicycles, although the hills make that a hard way to move around. The other night we took a real taxi home from the restaurant. The driver took a shortcut down a steep road which was not paved and more like a track than a road, with huge ruts. The car was an ordinary one and with four rather heavy people (I was the lightest) I was surprised we made it down. Such a road would be impossible to use in the rainy season. Moving around this city, one gets a sense of organization or control. There are three layers of control around the city: the community security force (volunteers), the police and the military.
We have been to a few bars in the area of the compound after the dinner hour. Here there are absolutely no tourists. There are very few women to be seen in these establishments. The odd one would be young and always with a male companion. It appears, and I had read this before I left, that women have family obligations in the evening whether they are married or not. The volunteers here find this an obstacle in having social contact with female colleagues after working hours.
Speaking of volunteers, there are about 30 of us in Rwanda with VSO. They are mostly between 24 and 34 with the exception of Antonia Eastman (from Wales) and me. She will be living in Butare, about 1 hr from where I am. I think we will get on well together. There are moments when I feel somewhat ‘older’, but on the whole these young people are very friendly and try to be inclusive. There is a preponderance of women volunteers, but I had already observed this in the training sessions.
Today I was in Kigali, (pronounced [Chigali] and was taken by a volunteer to see the MINEDUC, the Min of Education building. I will probably go there to attend meetings at one time or another. We also dropped by a volunteer, François, from Montreal, who works for a National Organization that tries to coordinate all efforts to work with and educate Rwandan children who have disabilities (hearing/vision impaired, but also physical and mental disabilities). In the afternoon, we went to spend our 100,000 RWfrs on equipment for our houses. This is about 170 US$. I bought sheets, towels, a blanket ,pots, jerry cans (plastic for water), broom, buckets, wash basins, glasses, cups plates cutlery, knives etc. etc. I felt like I was a student again, buying cheap stuff for my student room. There will be a lot more I will have to buy. I may splurge to buy a buta gas two burner stove. In the meantime it will be a kerosene stove (supplied by VSO) that I will use for cooking and heating water. I am perturbed to be without a radio. I meant to get one in Toronto and never got to it. Did not find a suitable one in Kigali today and it will be the only way to stay in touch with the rest of the world. I will have another try before leaving on Saturday afternoon.
The electricity issue is a big one. It’s 10 pm and I have light in my room, but this has been an exception since I am here. Mostly the electricity is off and this means darkness everywhere. I have realized it is treacherous walking outside after dark because you cannot see all the potholes. Every time the power is on I find myself charging batteries, cell phone or the laptop. (I have had to interrupt this writing session as the power did go out last night around 10:15)
I have met some Rwandans already- there are 6 who work in the programme office and who have given some workshops or who have helped us fill out forms. They are polite, friendly and quite easy to communicate with. On Friday, I will meet my employer. We will spend the day getting to know each other as we attend briefings given by the people in the –program office.
Later this afternoon I will be off to Kigali again to look around, perhaps enter this blog and then touch base with Maurits and Tine, who live here and who are friends of Pim and Ineke. I am looking forward to getting their perspective on Rwanda, as they have been here for a while. Maybe I can find a radio and a power bar. I am kind of obsessed with power and electricity. Next entry will be from Kigeme, via Butare, where the internet café is. Cheers.
The neighbourhood with the government buildings, is elegant, clean and with beautifully paved roads. There are some elegant hotels and an impressive bank building of the BCDI bank where I will open account next week, but in my Gikongoro province branch not here in Kigali. On the various hillsides the array of dwellings is very mixed: mostly small, simply constructed houses with a yard of some sort. People move around on foot or public taxi. The latter are much more organized than in say Sumatra or even Lima, Peru. There are also motorcycles and cars and some bicycles, although the hills make that a hard way to move around. The other night we took a real taxi home from the restaurant. The driver took a shortcut down a steep road which was not paved and more like a track than a road, with huge ruts. The car was an ordinary one and with four rather heavy people (I was the lightest) I was surprised we made it down. Such a road would be impossible to use in the rainy season. Moving around this city, one gets a sense of organization or control. There are three layers of control around the city: the community security force (volunteers), the police and the military.
We have been to a few bars in the area of the compound after the dinner hour. Here there are absolutely no tourists. There are very few women to be seen in these establishments. The odd one would be young and always with a male companion. It appears, and I had read this before I left, that women have family obligations in the evening whether they are married or not. The volunteers here find this an obstacle in having social contact with female colleagues after working hours.
Speaking of volunteers, there are about 30 of us in Rwanda with VSO. They are mostly between 24 and 34 with the exception of Antonia Eastman (from Wales) and me. She will be living in Butare, about 1 hr from where I am. I think we will get on well together. There are moments when I feel somewhat ‘older’, but on the whole these young people are very friendly and try to be inclusive. There is a preponderance of women volunteers, but I had already observed this in the training sessions.
Today I was in Kigali, (pronounced [Chigali] and was taken by a volunteer to see the MINEDUC, the Min of Education building. I will probably go there to attend meetings at one time or another. We also dropped by a volunteer, François, from Montreal, who works for a National Organization that tries to coordinate all efforts to work with and educate Rwandan children who have disabilities (hearing/vision impaired, but also physical and mental disabilities). In the afternoon, we went to spend our 100,000 RWfrs on equipment for our houses. This is about 170 US$. I bought sheets, towels, a blanket ,pots, jerry cans (plastic for water), broom, buckets, wash basins, glasses, cups plates cutlery, knives etc. etc. I felt like I was a student again, buying cheap stuff for my student room. There will be a lot more I will have to buy. I may splurge to buy a buta gas two burner stove. In the meantime it will be a kerosene stove (supplied by VSO) that I will use for cooking and heating water. I am perturbed to be without a radio. I meant to get one in Toronto and never got to it. Did not find a suitable one in Kigali today and it will be the only way to stay in touch with the rest of the world. I will have another try before leaving on Saturday afternoon.
The electricity issue is a big one. It’s 10 pm and I have light in my room, but this has been an exception since I am here. Mostly the electricity is off and this means darkness everywhere. I have realized it is treacherous walking outside after dark because you cannot see all the potholes. Every time the power is on I find myself charging batteries, cell phone or the laptop. (I have had to interrupt this writing session as the power did go out last night around 10:15)
I have met some Rwandans already- there are 6 who work in the programme office and who have given some workshops or who have helped us fill out forms. They are polite, friendly and quite easy to communicate with. On Friday, I will meet my employer. We will spend the day getting to know each other as we attend briefings given by the people in the –program office.
Later this afternoon I will be off to Kigali again to look around, perhaps enter this blog and then touch base with Maurits and Tine, who live here and who are friends of Pim and Ineke. I am looking forward to getting their perspective on Rwanda, as they have been here for a while. Maybe I can find a radio and a power bar. I am kind of obsessed with power and electricity. Next entry will be from Kigeme, via Butare, where the internet café is. Cheers.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Pre-departure for Rwanda
Lots of reading documents about my new country. More challenging, is how to ride a motorcycle and acquire a licence.
Travel arrangements also needto be made.
Travel arrangements also needto be made.
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