Well, the day is nearly here! Panic? Yes, of course I am panicking. I have so much to do for my six week adventure in Rwanda.
I first went there in 2007 for a four-week self-funded volunteering project. I taught at Sonrise School, in Ruhengeri/Musanze, in the north west of this tiny country, just the size of Scotland.
The school had been set up by the local Bishop after the 1994 genocide when nearly 1m people died in 100 days.The majority Hutu population, egged on by the local radio, slaughtered the minority Tutsis, who historically, had held power in the country. The pupils in the school are mostly funded by American sponsors. To be an orphan in Rwanda means you have no father, though you may have a mother, aunts and uncles. Rwandans are very poor - earning less than one dollar a day - if they can get a job.
The culture shock on my first visit was immense. I was put up in a local house, sharing with Jodi, a young Canadian girl who had also come to work as a volunteer at the school,and we got on famously. We had to shop for our own food and even buy our own pots, pans, knives and forks from the local market.
And that's where I met Bright. Rwandans speak French - it was a former Belgium colony - but those who fled to Uganda during the genocide came back speaking English. Now president Paul Kagame and his government have decreed that all Rwandans must learn English.So the young people, who have learnt our language at school, want to talk to you as you wander the streets in the 'wild west' town that is Ruhengeri, but lately re-named as Musanze - very confusing. Other towns have been renamed, so if you do not have an up-to-date Bradt guide, you might not get to where you are going!
Bright was one of the people who fell in beside me as I walked along the rubble strewn road into town. And he kept 'finding' me each time I ventured out to the market, volunteering to barter the prices down for me, and to carry my packages home. Obviously he was hoping for a 'tip' as he was not in school - no money for fees - and had no work, and was head of his family at 18 years old, looking after his elderly grandmother and six siblings. It's a hard life in Rwanda, and there are many young people bringing up families as their parents either died in the genocide or have perished from Malaria or Aids. His father had died of disease many years ago, and his mother has had to go to Uganda to try and earn some money.
We kept in touch and now I am going back, to stay with Bright and his family. I do not know what type of house he has, but as he has spoken of a 'compound' in his e-mails I guess it is brick built and not the often-seen wattle and daub houses, with just a tin roof and dirt floor that is common in these parts. I guess they will cook in the garden - which is usual - but whether there will be hot showers, and a 'proper' toilet, are the delights I have yet to discover. They tell me they have purchased new sheets for our visit, which is very humbling when none of the household is earning.
The welcome Rwandese give to you wherever you go in this lovely, hilly, country is overwhelming, They have nothing, yet they give you what they have. It teaches you what is important in this life.
During my visit I will be doing a careers' seminar at Sonrise School, some teaching at the Agricultural facility of the National University of Rwanda, a seminar at the university's journalism department, some teaching at the primary school up in the hill-top village of Shyira, helping out at the Tukabunde Project for orphanrf youngsters and hopefully a visit to the beautiful Lake Kivu.
Last time I did gorilla trekking, and saw the Umubano (friendship) group of rare mountain gorillas, that is one of the main tourist attractions in Rwanda. This was a thigh-wrenching climb up the Virunga mountains, in the national park, but I did get to see the huge silver back under the trees, his wives, and many babies tumbling around us - a fantastic experience! But,as my left knee is giving up on me I don't think my consultant would be too impressed if I did this again.
But there is plenty more to do and see in this wonderful place - well named as the 'land of a thousand hills'.
So,very early on Thursday I am off on my 'great adventure' a 15-hour flight via KLM from Liverpool via Amsterdam to Kigali, their capital, where Bright will be meeting us. I just hope I can recognise him after all this time!!!
I WAS AWAKE FOR MY OPERATION!
(Sun 04/03)
Me and Sir Jimmy Savile
(Thu 03/11)
What not to wear!!!
(Wed 15/06)
Rwandan adventure Our sponsored child
(Mon 06/06)
Rwandan Adventure - Lunch Was Alive!
(Mon 23/05)
