Blogging from Julia's office

So, finally, 2 weeks in, I get around to properly writing my blog. There’s been so much new stuff to take it it’s really hard to know where to start….I suppose the important things are – The people here are all great, there’s a big volunteer community in Gitarama and everybody is so lovely. I haven’t gone in to my work yet ‘cause I’m following Julia around for a while, but when I see what my office and schools are like I’ll write all about them. My house is amazing, it’s really big and I love it. I share with Geri, she’s a volunteer working with YWCA. She’s been here three months so she has a fair idea of how things work, and she’s lovely to live with. I’ve also found a Kinyarwanda teacher, Denise. And I’ve arranged to go to a class in the gym with Julia and Rose, and I’m going running with Julia. So straight away I’ve nice stuff to do! Although running partners aren’t a problem to find here in Gitarama… Yesterday I went for a run, I must have looked hilarious, I had a parade of maybe 10 kids running with me nearly all the time. The kids here are soooo cute! (but they’ll never replace my running buddy Caoimhe J )

I’m in Julia’s office right now, she’s very kindly offered to let me shadow her for my first week. So I’m going to tell you about a typical morning in work in Rwanda:

First, I got up BEFORE the crack of dawn. My alarm went off at 5.30!! Grabbed some breakfast (bananas – I still haven’t mastered the art of using numbers, yesterday I wanted three but asked for 500. But that’s another story.) Then walked down the dirt road outside my house to meet Julia. The journey to work was a 30 minute bus, then a few minutes on a moto to get to the district office in Kamonyi where Julia works. I LOVE motorbike taxis! The countryside here is beautiful, because of all the hills there’s gorgeous views of valleys and hills wherever you go. So we sped past banana trees, children shouting ‘muzungu’, ladies carrying impressive loads on their heads… then we got to the office, but first I had a very important chicken related call to take. (I’m hoping to get three chickens, one of which will be names Gladys, but more about that some other time).

So before you start work here you go around and say hello to everybody and shake their hand or else hug them. I got a few hugs this morning, I like it but I’m just worried that I’m going to mistake the cue and move in for a hug when it’s inappropriate! I just got hugged by the vice mayor, but I’m assuming not all mayors are open to hugs? And actually it’s more a shoulder tap, but I end up kind of being a bit awkward and going too far.  I like the way Rwandans seem to greet everybody, even if it’s just somebody you walk past on the way to the shop they nearly always give you a hello or how are you.  Actually I could write an entire blog entry about greetings, and the various propositions that I get every day. Anyway in Julias office everybody is lovely and friendly, so she introduced me to all her co-workers. Then everybody eats breakfast in the cantine and has a chat before they start working.So now Julia is having a meeting with her boss, the district education officer.  I’m looking forward to seeing the Gitarama office tomorrow, I think I’ll be there once a week or so.

Anyway, sorry this is such a rambling blog. I just wanted to let you all know what I’m doing and that all is well. I miss everybody at home so much!

Mwaramutse! My first blog, which I wrote a week ago but am only putting up now

So, after being glued to Ruairi and Alfred's blog, then Pauline's, then Trisha's, I'm finally writing my VERY OWN Rwanda blog!
I'm in Kigali now, we just finished our first, very intense, week of in country training. It's Sunday morning now, I'm sitting around in my tracksuit. It lashed rain this morning but it's stopped so I'm going to go for a run soon.
I've spent the morning pottering about, painting my nails, cleaning my room, and later I'm going to the market to shop. So basically my life here is pretty much the same as it is in Ireland!!! (Except for in Ireland I don't clean my room)
Nah, of course there's loads of differences. Yesterday I saw a man walking along with six live chickens in each hand.Of course Kigali is different to Dublin.
It's much cleaner.(plastic bags are illegal, nobody eats or drinks in public, I haven't seen anybody smoking or being drunk and disorderly. Once a month everybody mets up to do a big clean up in their area) The people are more polite. They dress more conservatively. They laugh a lot. Often at us. They're lovely. I misunderstood yesterday and went to pay the moto driver 3,000 RWF-
The equivalent of around a fiver. He took 300 francs(50 cents) off me and just looked at me as if to say - you poor eejit.
The bananas are nicer, the insects are bigger. The horrific history is sadder.The language is harder.The sun is hotter and the rain is fatter.
There are no dogs as far as I can make out - Triona and Caoimhe you would LOVE it here :) The children are too cute!! The dancing is beautiful, I'm sorry to say it's a lot nicer than Irish dancing.
So I don't really know where to start describing my first week in Rwanda.There's a lot to tell! My head is tired from taking in so much new stuff.
We've been learning about Rwandan culture so we don't offend anyone,then practicalities like how to light a kerosene stove and how to make sure our water is clean, we've had INTENSE Kinyarwanda lessons. It's tough to learn but really worthwhile, as we saw when Melanie took us around the city.
Yesterday we went to the genocide museum. It's really well done, and a lovely memorial to the people who were killed and their families, but of course it's really really sad. The saddest bit was the childrens room. Actually no, what's saddest is how immediate it is. Everybody in the country has been affected by it in one way or another, and yet we've been warned not to ask questions or expect anybody to talk about it.
When we were in outside we heard somebody crying hysterically, I can only assume she lost people.There are no words for how sad it all is.
After mentioning that it seems flipppant to mention anything else, I think I'll leave my first blog entry at that.Thanks everyone who's been in touch. I miss you all loads!!!!