Monday, January 17, 2011

Amahoro!

.. Meaning peace in Kinyrwanda or the house that I lived in during training.  

Greetings from Rwanda!! I’m sorry that it has been a while since I last blogged. 

I had an enjoyable Christmas with the other PCTs.  On Christmas Eve, we did a white elephant gift exchange and I received a sweet Obama plastic shopping bag with Obama’s smiling face, the White House, an American flag, and the phrase “Yes We Can.”  It was one of several Obama gifts, including some hats with his name.  After the white elephant, we had a talent show, dance, and dinner.  I sang “You and I” by Ingrid Michaelson with 2 friends, one who was playing the ukulele.  My house also sang “I Just Can’t Wait to Be King” for kicks and giggles. 
I also had a nice birthday.  It was fun to have had the chance to celebrate in another country.  The highlight of my day was gathering with 4 other Peace Corps Volunteers and one Fulbright Scholar for lunch. Later on, I had dinner with a kind Rwandan family. 

In December I remember thinking…nothing like the smell of freshly machete-cut grass!  (I have not seen a lawn-mower since I’ve been in Rwanda, instead people cut grass with machetes.) I have to admit that at first it was a little bit jarring to see, but now it is becoming more normal to me. 

Living in a post conflict country was probably the thing that concerned me most before coming to Rwanda.  So far, it has not been as challenging for me as I thought it would be.  This could be due to the fact that my interaction with Rwandans is more limited during PST (pre-service training). Once I have developed more close relationships with Rwandans, I am sure I will hear more personal stories.  Something that has helped me living in this context has been the resilience of the Rwandan people.  For the most part society is keeping its focus on the future instead of dwelling in the past.  Since they have the strength to stay optimistic, I am trying to the same. 
Our training did not have very much focus on the genocide, but rather on the language (Kinyarwanda) and technical training for our teaching positions.  We have gone to two Genocide Memorials since we have been here.  Shortly after arriving, we went to the memorial in Kigali where 250,000 people are buried.  Later on during training, we went to the Murambi Genocide Memorial in the Southern province which was a much more difficult experience.  Many Tutsis fled to this former school during the genocide because they were told they would be safe there.  Unfortunately that was not the case and around 45,000 Tutsis were murdered.  The Murambi Memorial was much more challenging for me because there are around 20 rooms with bodies on display.  These bodies were found in a mass grave and preserved with lime.

Rwanda is a beautiful country and it saddens me that it is only known because of its painful history.  Rwandans affectionately call it the Land of a Thousand Hills.  Nyanza, where I lived for training, definitely has beautiful rolling hills.  It is impressive to see the way the hills are terraced for agriculture.  The north of Rwanda has volcanoes and gorillas, which I am hoping to see before I leave.  Rwanda is fertile and grows delicious pineapples, bananas, and avocados. I fear that I will not be satisfied with these foods once I get home because they are much more flavorful here.  The main exports of Rwanda are coffee and tea.  Another fun fact about Rwanda is that it is in the Great Lakes region of Africa, which makes me feel more at home knowing that a lake cannot be too far away.  Obviously these lakes aren’t quite as great as Lake Superior, but I will be continually disappointed throughout my life if Lake Superior is my golden standard. 

An update about my life…  The end of training was by far the busiest with intensive language (4-5 hours a day), teaching, and lesson planning.  It was also very helpful, as it gave me the opportunity to try teaching in a Rwandan classroom.  I am feeling more comfortable with language as well. It is still a challenge but Rwandans are encouraging and are even impressed when I can say good morning or good afternoon.
Once training was concluded, we traveled as a group to Kigali and participated in a swearing in ceremony on January 3rd.  It was held at the US Ambassador’s residence, which was beautiful.  There were speeches given in English, French, Kinyarwanda, and music for the occasion.  We were served delicious American food afterwards. 
I moved to my village the day after.  My house was not ready when I arrived, so I stayed with the couple that I had stayed with during site visit.  I recently moved into my house, so I am still getting settled.  My favorite things in my house right are my kerosene lamp and my radio.  I can even listen to Voice of America (thank you Douglas) and BBC!  It has been quite a bit adjustment going from living with around 70 Americans to being the only American in a village, but as they say in Kinyarwanda “buhoro buhoro” which means little by little. 
Last week school technically started, but rather than teaching teachers gave supplemental exams for students that had not passed before.  Classes are starting this week, but all of the students have not yet
arrived.  My S4 students (10th graders) might not come until February because they have not received the results for their exams to know whether or not they have passed.  Regardless, I have been enjoying getting to know the other teachers at school and answering their questions. 
Something that makes me smile is that some children are learning my name throughout my village.  “Umuzungu” is the Kinyarwanda word for white person and I hear this word daily.  I am trying to teach the children that although I may have white skin, my name is Allison and not umuzungu.  It feels like an accomplishment when they call me by my name.  I also think I have identified a good person that can tutor me in Kinyarwanda.  Hopefully we can start next week or sooner.

Thank you for all of the kind birthday wishes.  I appreciate the love!