Sarah in Kigali

Hello All!

As promised, I am currently writing to you from an internet café in Kigali, Rwanda. Overall, my journey here went smoothly. I didn’t get any sleep for about 50 hours, and I almost passed out from dehydration on the 11 hour bus ride (I was trying not to drink water so I wouldn’t have to use the “restroom”), but aside from that, everything was fine.

There was one incident where Valerie (my travel buddy) and I ran out of Ugandan shillings and had to barter with the bus ticket guy – but I put on my cutest, most desperate face, and he let us give him five US dollars instead of 3,000 Ugandan shillings (overpaying him by three dollars and fifty cents).

The bus ride itself was not as bad as I thought it would be. Yes, it was very bumpy, and I think both my Dad and Mr. Berttato would have had a difficult time. But I was okay. We had to wait at the Ugandan/Rwandan border for about an hour while they checked our suitcases for plastic bags (plastic bags are illegal in Rwanda), but it was good to get off the bus and stretch my legs. I also got to use my mad French skills to get a nice Congolese lady to show me the bathroom aka a hole in the ground (she even paid the fee for me as I had run out of Ugandan shillings).

Then when we got back on the bus, a young girl who I had smiled at earlier handed me two bananas (one for me and one for Valerie). I really hate bananas, but I didn’t have the heart to say ‘no thank you.’ Plus, Valerie wasn’t feeling so good, and I think she needed the extra calories.

Speaking of bananas, I think I came to the wrong place. Bananas and banana trees for that matter are everywhere! I read somewhere that banana trees take up 34% of the land here in Rwanda.

After arriving in Kigali, I had a day and a half to rest – which was very much needed. Today was orientation; we talked about goals for the delegation, the schedule, safety, etc. Tomorrow we visit the Genocide Memorial and then go to N’Manzi Peace Village (a village of child headed households where orphans of genocide victims and HIV/AIDS take care of their younger siblings and other orphans).

Kigali is a large sprawling city, and I’ll post pictures of it soon. It really is funny to watch how kids react to us (white people). A lot of the little girls run up to me saying “bonjour!” and try to either shake my hand or touch my arm.

Surprisingly, Kigali is also dirtier than I thought it would be. Most resources said it was one of the cleanest cities in Africa – and I guess in terms of trash on the street, it is pretty clean. But the air pollution is horrible – when I get back to my room at night and blow my nose, the tissue turns completely black. Gross; I know…

It also may not have been the best idea to go to an all all-inclusive, four star Mayan Riviera hotel two days before I flew off to sleep under a mosquito net and shower with cold water and salamanders… but I’m dealing. My high maintenance side isn’t super thrilled, but my adventurous/academic side is ecstatic.

Anyway, I think that’s enough for now. My internet time is almost up.

Hope you all are well,

Sarah

*Also a note for Mom and Dad: When I got off the plane in Uganda, they did ask us to fill out a health form with a list of swine flu symptoms. One of the questions was “please write down all of the countries you have visited within the last seven days.” Well, I lied to the border control and didn’t write Mexico – luckily they didn’t see the Mexican stamp in my passport ;o)

Two Days and Counting...

Hi Everyone!

I just want to welcome you all to the blog I'll be using during my time in Africa this summer. I'm really not sure how often I'll be able to update it - sort of depends on the internet situation in Kigali. But I'll know more once I get there.

For those of you who don't know, I'm traveling to Kigali, Rwanda to participate in a Human Rights Conference with the NGO Global Youth Connect. There are about 13 American participants from ages 18-30. We will be discussing Human Rights in Rwanda and the US today and will also be doing a bit of volunteer fieldwork. For the most part, we will be staying at a guesthouse run by a Catholic Church, but there are a couple nights where we get to stay with a Rwandan family! My volunteer placement is with an organization called CIMS (Center for Information and Social Mobilization) - a group that focuses on land-related conflict involving the rural poor. I think it will be a great experience and a perfect warm up for my first semester at Georgetown (where I'll be taking classes towards a Master's in Conflict Resolution).

I'll be leaving the US on the 24th... it's actually going to be a great adventure. I fly from Newark to Brussels (8 hour flight) and then from Brussels to Kigali (another 8 hour flight) and then from Kigali to Entebbe, Uganda. (I bought a ticket to Uganda because it was 700 dollars cheaper... weird thing is, my plane stops in Kigali, but I'm not allowed to get off it). I get into Uganda around 11 pm and then take a 10 hour bus ride the next day from Kampala, Uganda to Kigali, Rwanda. If all goes as planned, I should be arriving at the guesthouse in Kigali on the evening of the 26th. Sounds fun eh? eh?

Okay, well hopefully my next post will be from an internet cafe somewhere in Kigali!!

Cheers,
Sarah