Global Wanderlusting

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