Please note that VSO is in no way connected with or responsible for the content, comments and observations in this blog: these are solely my own in a personal capacity.
FRIDAY
Headed to the bank early – Jane needed some cash to pay her PHARE volunteers and I had it on me, but I want to pay my hotel bill to date and have enough on me to pay for a modem in Kigali. There was no one in the bank at all – I just walked straight up to the cashier and got my cash!!
Then I went to the Post Office: got my first letter today – go raibh míle maith agat, a Sheosaimh! It’s been a while since I got an actual handwritten letter from someone but it was also the first thing I have got from home. Then, just as I was about to head out and find a moto to go to work, Bosco rang from the VSO office. He said he was coming out to collect Tina’s stuff from Gisagara and wanted me to come along. This gave me two hours to pack all my stuff in the hotel because this was a perfect opportunity to move all my gear, minus whatever I needed for Kigali. I also zoomed up to the market to see if I could get the stuff on my shopping list (see earlier blog) but I gave up as I couldn’t find most of it!!
Anyway, Bosco arrived with Grâce, the woman who is managing the property for her father who is away in Amsterdam. We headed off and called first to my new house, where I stuck all my things in one bedroom (to which only I have the key) and we did a quick survey of the house to see what needed fixing and what furniture I might need. Because the house is technically ‘furnished’, VSO seemed to think that I didn’t need anything, while I was keen to hang on to at least a few bits and pieces, especially the bed (there are two beds in the house but they are very old and I’m not sure I would trust the mattresses or what might be in them!). Anyway, there was no real problem – Bosco was quite amenable and there really is very little that needs to be done with the house.
Over to Gisagara and we started dismantling Tina’s bed and loading the chairs, armchairs, cupboards and everything else onto the truck: I didn’t think it would be possible but Ephraim handled it all really well. The only thing we argued over was the small bedside table – for some reason VSO had only given us one and Bosco was under strict orders to bring it up to Gitarama, so I’ll have to nag VSO for a replacement at some stage because I don’t have anything else that will do in its place. Then off to the District Office for me to teach my class and for Bosco to draw up a contract between the District, VSO and Grâce for the house.
The class was another desultory affair: everyone was knackered (it was a REALLY hot day), Francois more than most as he had had a really hard week. I explained to the class that I would be away for two weeks and that we would discuss when I got back whether we would divide the class in three for the three teachers or what. Enoch (the other teacher present this day) didn’t seem to be sure either. On the one hand, if we do a 3-way split, it means I have to teach every day, but the classes are only for three months, until early January and I am not doing a whole lot else at the moment anyway, so it might be as well to have something concrete to do, give the day a shape, so to speak. I’m not very hopeful of our chances of making them all fluent – few people attend two classes in a row and they are all genuinely pretty busy, but we’ll see how it goes!!
Back in Butare I invited Francois for a beer (rarely have I seen a grown man more in need of a beer!). It was a really good move – he was pleased to be asked and over beer and brochettes we had our first real chat about my job and what things he would like me to do. We have agreed that the first aim is to do a training course in January or early February for all primary and secondary principals in the district on planning: five-year plans, annual plans, monitoring and evaluation and so on. All schools are supposed to do this and apparently virtually none here do. However, Francois seems to think this will need a three-day conference, which seems a bit OTT to me but it’s early days yet. He was also keen for me to come with him next week inspecting the secondary schools during their exams but that isn’t going to work because of my Kigali commitments.
He headed home, I dropped my stuff and headed to the Faucon for a nightcap. I had started reading Silas Marner that morning on my Palm Pilot and decided to see how far I could get with it. Not actually enjoying it as much as I expected I have to say (not a patch on Austen) but it has some nice things in it. This particular line really jumped out at me:
Every man's work, pursued steadily, tends ... to become an end in itself, and so to bridge over the loveless chasms of his life.
Hmmm, quite. Alfred’s going to love that one! Sitting in the Faucon was really nice, I felt for the first time a real sense of belonging and being at home – it may have been the way the barman simply brought me my large bottle of large Mützig without even asking what I wanted – that always makes you feel at home!
Anyway, saw Jean and Jean briefly (they were heading to the Faucon night-club) but not me, no thanks! Home and bed, off to Han & Mans’ party in Gasarenda tomorrow!!
SATURDAY
This always happens when your stuff is in three different places at the same time. I packed my phone charger and my Palm Pilot recharger in my suitcase so they are sitting out in Gisagara now! I will be calling out on Monday morning to drop off the stuff I am not bringing to Kigali but I’m not sure my phone will last that long. Well, maybe somebody in Gasarenda will have a Nokia recharger – I really don’t feel like shelling out for a new one. I hope the Palm Pilot holds out until I finish Silas Marner – he has just found the kid on the hearth and the mother has been found dead and Godfrey thinks all his prayers have been answered. Anyway, not the end of the world.
Had breakfast and then decided to cut my hair as I was feeling really hot! I set the razor for 10mm which is RATHER short but it is worth it for the relief. Of course, I then realised I had left my hat in the District Office after my English class, so I am probably going to get sunstroke today!!
I am about to go off and try and find something for Han and Mans before grabbing the bus to Gasarenda. Think I’ll wear my pineapple shirt from Las Vegas for the occasion! Next post will probably not be until either Sunday night or Monday night depending on how things go.
......
Met Soraya and Beate on the way to the bus so we went up to Gasarenda together, collecting a few more people en route in Kigeme. It was a really great party (see pictures at end!). I had some really interesting chats with old friends, also met a Canadian girl called Julie who has been here for quite a while (not with VSO any longer): her parents are Eritrean and she says Rwandans constantly think she is Rwandan! Han and Mans were in good form (it was Han’s birthday) and there must have been about thirty to thirty-five people there. Chatted to Cathryn Devine about the Troubles and Strabane, Soraya about food (as usual), among other things, to loads of people about the American elections and the ongoing trouble in the Eastern Congo, and so on and so on. I also arranged with a number of people to attend and help out with training courses (education planning and Resource Creation). Best of all, Berthe was there, a Dutch volunteer who came with us but who I hadn’t seen since our training (admire the picture of her beautifully designed salad!).
Lunch was fabulous (interesting what you start craving once you are on a Rwandan diet – there was a tuna-fish salad that everyone was avidly consuming, even people who don’t particularly like tuna fish, because tuna fish is rare and expensive here!) and plentiful, as was the wine, beer and even whiskey. Later we went down to a local night-club (The Pasadena) which was .... well, loud is the best word. We did get food (brochettes and baked potatoes which were good) but the music wasn’t exactly appealing. Then ten of us got into our hired bus and headed off for the Christian Boarding House in Kigeme where we were staying. A really really nice day and lots of friends I hadn’t seen in a while.
OBSERVATION: MUSIC in RWANDA
The music here is crap (sorry, but that’s the only word and Albert Reynolds said it was OK to use it). As Jane Keenan said (degree in Musicology from TCD) she had to pick the ONE country in nall of Africa with no real indigenous musical tradition. Bad hop-hop, the usual chart hits and ENDLESS BLOODY CÉLINE DION!!! Alain gave me about 2GB of assorted African music and it is fabulous stuff, especially the stuff from Mali which I reall like, but here ... nothing.
OBSERVATION: THE WORLD IS A BLOODY SMALL PLACE
Mans Schram’s brother Henk works in the same office as my brother Brian in Munich, the European Patent Agency (or is it EPO?).
OBSERVATION: ELECTRICITY
Andy took a risk and plugged in his DVD player without a surge protector. Bad move. Remind me never to do that. Anyone reading this and thinking of coming to Rwanda – bring a surge protector!!
OBSERVATION: STOKE CITY 2 ARSENAL 1.
That’s it. I could add Chelsea 5 Sunderland 0 but that would be gilding the lily.
SUNDAY
Early-ish start: hot shower (well, hot water poured into a bowl and poured over oneself but that’s still a really nice feeling) and then breakfast. When we went to pay the bill they said it was RWF4,200, not the RWF4,000 we had expected. It’s a tiny difference but you do get so fed up with people trying to rip you off all the time. Eventually we paid with rather bad grace, only to find out later from Amy that RWF4,200 was actually the right price all along, that’s what she had negotiated with the guesthouse! Ouch – telepathic apologies winging their way to the manager!
Tina, Joe, Steve, Beate, Berthe and I then headed back to Butare and had a drink at the Faucon. Checked my post – The Economist (so it does take just under ten days) and ANOTHER LETTER, again as Gaeilge! Go raibh míle Bláithín agus is féidir brath ar an bpost anseo maidir le rudaí a sheoladh chuig an tír seo – tuilleadh sonraí sa ríomhphost atá le teacht!
Steve is staying with me in the Ineza tonight, while Nidhi and Amy will come down later and stay with Jane and we all plan on going out to the Chinese restaurant tonight. At the moment it is pouring down from the heavens and has been doing so for at least two hours so I hope it lightens up later.
One interesting thing that happened yesterday: Joe had his pocket picked on the bus on the way up to Gasarenda. He had taken out his wallet to pay and then put it back in his pocket and, jsut a minute or two later, noticed it was gone. He made a huge big fuss about it and people were checking around and in the bus. Then (if I remember the story correctly – Joe will correct me if I got it wrong) a girl in the crowd had a word with the driver. He looked around the crowd and then dived into it and grabbed a guy who turned out to have Joe’s wallet! So, heartening that things turned out that way and they they took the initiative to get the wallet back. Made me just a little more conscious as well of where my wallet is and how easy it might be to lose it!
Got back to Butare and spent the afternoon rebuilding my website. Now that I am going to buy a modem, I hope to use my website for pictures and other bits and pieces that don’t really fit into the blog. That is presuming the modem is going to be able to upload high quality images but we can but try. Went out to the Chinese Restaurant with the gang (Steve, Heloise, Thom, Nidhi, Jane and Jean). Food was unusually slow coming and I regret not ordering soup as a starter as it was really good! Found myself coughing a lot again – if this keeps up I am going to get it checked out (though quite a few others have had the same problem since coming here because of the dust).
MONDAY
So, checking out of the Ineza time! Seems like ages that I have been living here ... and it is! Almost four weeks in this little room! Dropped some stuff out to Gisagara, met the guard Alexandré (you are going to be hearing a lot more about him, I suspect) and paid him his RWF15,000 for November and also agreed that he was willing to do stuff like shop, fetch water and run the generator when and if it arrives. Went to the District Office but my hat wasn’t there – that’s the last I am going to see of that, I suspect! Then off to Kigali to buy my modem! Yeee-hah!
Thank you very much to all of you who helped me to reach and exceed my fundraising total. I am continuing to fundraise for VSO for the next short while, so if you or anyone else you know feel like contributing , please go to www.mycharity.ie/event/ruairi. Murakoze cyane cyane!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment