Global Wanderlusting

It has been some time since I have posted, but I promised that I would add a post about the wonderful wedding that I was honored to have attended during my brief stay in Rwanda. I served as an English/French Teacher at the Teacher Training College in Kabarore, Rwanda.  At one of the staff meetings, the Principal invited the entire staff to the wedding of his brother and although I was so very new there, I jumped at the opportunity to attend such a unique ceremony honoring the culture of Rwanda.   One of the first things I needed to know was what to wear to a wedding since I really had not brought a fancy dress with me for my Peace Corps service.   Fortunately, I had a Rwandan friend in the States who indicated that it would be a wonderful experience for me if I wore the traditional Rwandan wedding dress: imishanana.  After checking out all of the little boutique shops in Kabarore, I found one which rents the dress, and I cannot tell you how much fun the two clerks had dressing me appro

As of today, Thursday, April 16 (I try to write my blog posts on Thursdays), I am have been back in the United States for a month with the first 14 days staying quarantined as was highly recommended by Peace Corps upon our return stateside.   I had promised a post about the wedding I attended on May 7 and it will be forthcoming, but I thought I might share with you my experience as an IS/EVAC/COS (oh, those acronyms!) Peace Corps Response Volunteer from the Teacher Training College (TTC) in Kabarore, Rwanda.   This may take a few weeks to finish and since I am not in Rwanda any longer, I will share some of the photos that an acquaintance is taking in this stunningly beautiful country. (@jonkmania) One of the highlights of my teaching at TTC was teaching an English Communications class.   The teacher was so kind and gentle and he suggested that we use topics provided by the Rwanda Education Board (REB).   For the first couple of classes, we did just that, but I was notic

This has been a trying week for me.   As I have mentioned in previous posts, I serve in a boarding school where prospective primary and secondary teachers are being trained.   There are over 400 kids (Year 1, Year 2, and Year 3) at the school, and I live in the apartment that is adjacent to the girls' dorm.   There are three terms during the school year and we are coming to the end of the first in a couple of weeks.   I have yet to meet the Year 3 students as they have been doing their practicum at schools throughout Rwanda. This past week all of the teachers were assigned a number of Year 3 students to observe.   This meant that none of them were in school.   There are still about five student teachers on campus, but for the most part, other than a class here and there, they just sit in the staff room streaming music and talking loudly in Kinyarwanda.   Hence no substitutes and kids left alone in classes. Interestingly, some of the teachers left assignments and the

As promised, here is brief glimpse at my living conditions at the Teacher Training College in Kabarore, Rwanda. Please note that when the Peace Corps staff member dropped me off here, he “oo’d” and “ah’d” claiming that I had one of the nicest spaces of any Peace Corps Volunteer here in Rwanda. The dorm is new as of last year and I am the first to live in this space. Trust me, I am grateful. My apartment is situated at one end of a dormitory. There are two separate “apartments” on each end of the girls’ dormitory with a large room in between where the girls live. Surprisingly, I hear very little through the walls, but given the sports complex (basketball court, volleyball court, and soccer field) is right outside my front door and the girls shower, lavatory and washing area are right outside my back door, there is plenty of commotion when school is not in session and on weekends. I am grateful that I have a fan and earplugs to tune things out. The students here are very

Whenever I visit another country, I am always quite amused by some of the advertising of products that are available.  Here are a few from Rwanda that have made me giggle. In the native Kinyarwanda language, "r"s and "l"s are often pronounced identically. In truth I think that there is a bit of a difference but it is slight.  In class, I try to get my students to speak English as often as possible, and when I ask them what they did over the weekend, they respond that they "played".  It has taken me some time to figure out that what they meant to say is that they "prayed".  Given this explanation, can you guess what this sign is referring to? Rwanda has fabulous coffee.  Truly, it is strong and delicious.  For the most part, the locals, however, do not drink coffee.  They prefer tea - which is also fabulous in Rwanda.  From what I understand, coffee is for export and is too expensive.  I love coffee!  And even though it is a bit difficult f

Last Saturday, the nation of Rwanda celebrated Heroes Day.  If you read the history of the nation of Rwanda, you will note that there have been a number of strifes over the years.  Hence there are many heroes to be recognized.  This day commemorates the many Rwandans who have served others and most importantly have lost their lives for the sake of others. My Principal, Joseph, invited me to join the community and although I was not required to do so, I wanted to be a part of the festivities. Little did I know that the festivities included being awakened at 5:30 in the AM by the 400 students for "sports".  The basketball court is right outside my front door so there was no way that I could not hear them.  I decided to join in since I already had my yoga clothes on.  In fact, it was a series of stretches very similar to those which I practice every morning.  It was a great workout for me...and for them. At 10 AM, the community gathered for a celebration that la

It has been exactly one week since I have been at my site in Kabarore, Rwanda.  It is in the Eastern part of the country near the Akagera National Park.  I am living on the campus of a high school boarding school which was not really what I had envisioned, but I am making the most of it.  The school has provided me with a very spacious house on campus and I spend most of my time in one little room in the middle.  There is a basketball court right outside my front door and much activity at the back of the house so I just stay in the middle. I have just finished my very first week teaching at the school.  It has been a bit confusing as the teachers expected me to "teach" and I had no idea of the curriculum nor the style of teaching.  They are so very kind and understanding that we have spent the week organizing the material so that we "co-teach" in an effective manner.  I am quite exhausted at the end of the day since the day begins at 7:20 AM and ends at 5:00 PM. 

I loved going to the market in Fayetteville, AR to get my weekly regimen of the apples that were available.  There was an apple kiosk with apples only and all of the people knew that I eat apples every day with peanut butter. AND I MEAN EVERY DAY!  I so loved how the young woman there told me which apple was the best one for the season. But now I am Kigali, Rwanda, where apples are rare and are a luxury.  When I served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Lesotho, I was told by the PCMO (Peace Corps Medical Officer) to eat apples to be able to move things through my digestive system...., but I have no issues at all. But I LOVE APPLES. And they are not easily found here. There are, however, other wonderful fruits to enjoy including bananas, pineapples, etc.  I have yet to go to the local market, but I look forward to what I can find. "The content of this website is mine alone and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U. S. Government, the Peace Corps, nor the Rwandan Go

It is Sunday, January 19, and it is the first day that we have not had meetings from 8:00 - 5:00.  It is intense as a Peace Corps Response Volunteer, but there is no other choice and we are all fine with it.  It does not allow us to communicate more so with our loved ones at home, but we hope that these little blog posts make up for the lack. We have been living at a convent here in Kigali which is where Jesuit priests are housed when they come to Rwanda/Kigali.  It is simple but clean and sufficient.  I have to say, however, that I have not slept well here.  I am constantly struggling with the mosquito net and we are surrounded by praise music at all hours of the night and day.  Last night at 12:45, there was a praise group singing right outside my window.  I am fine with praise-singing, but not at that hour.  As I write (4:45 PM on Sunday), there is praise-singing practice right outside my door.  I hear thunder, so here's to some percussion added to the music. Yesterday was a

These two young girls met their family members with beautiful flowers.  Beautiful bouquets are found everywhere and it is a cultural tradition to greet someone with a bouquet. It is January 15 today and I have been in Rwanda for exactly two days.  Yet we have had two full days of language and culture training.  The Program Manager feels that it is best to "throw us in" as we eventually settle into the sleep schedule and daily routine.  I can tell you that I slept very little last night as I was told to drink a LOT of water during the day, was versed on issues with malaria, had to get up more times that I had wanted because of all of the water that I had consumed and I could not get my mosquito net back in an orderly fashion for solid sleep.  Oh, the joys of the nightly predatory life of a mosquito dictating my sleep habits! “The content of this website is mine alone and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps , nor the Rwanda Gove

AND I AM OFF TO RWANDA! Today is departure day and I have been up for hours making sure that I had not packed too much so that the two big bags did not weigh over 50 lbs.  My good friend and neighbor, Mary, drove me to my storage unit where I dropped off my car and then drove me to the Northwest Arkansas airport.  I wanted to be early because another PC Volunteer had posted that he had had some issues with the contents of his bags earlier in the day.  I can tell you that the Delta check-in fellow could not have been nicer and he helped me transfer some contents of my bag so that I did not incur any overage fees.  Good vibe, don't you think? “The content of this website is mine alone and does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps , nor the Rwanda Government.”