Nope, I haven’t died.
On day one of meeting my host family here in Kigali, Rwanda, however, I
did attend a funeral. An old woman in
the town had died so my new sisters walked me to the family’s house that night
to pay our respects. The roads are steep
and rocky and muddy and the nights are dark with few streetlights. But that didn’t stop the massive amount of
people walking around and chatting on the streets. You greet with a friendly “Muraho,” if you’remuzungu
(white person) like me, or with “Wiriwe” if you’re familiar—both mean hello in
the national language, Kinyarwanda. Then
hugs, kisses, high fives, handshakes, or all of the above are exchanged. I met uncles, I met neighbors, I met church
friends, I met school friends, I met random children who just wanted to shake a
muzungu’s hand. African hospitality—it’s
for real! It’s one big community family!
The “funeral,” if you can call it that, was beautiful. Everyone in the neighborhood joins together
one evening under a big tent in the yard of the mourning family. People trickle in leisurely and pull up a
plastic chair to chat with fellow neighbors.
It wasn’t sad at all; just reserved, which is normal for soft-spoken
Rwandans. But there was lots of smiling
and happy chatting, and soon singing as the church choir practice let out and
all the choir singers joined the gathering.
It was so wonderful—listening to the lilting cadence of the harmonized
Swahili and Kinyarwanda songs, sitting with my new hosts who introduce me as
“sister,” finally experiencing this place I’ve been dying to go to for years.
For those who don’t know, I’m here in Kigali, Rwanda with a study abroad program to learn about
post-genocide restoration and peacebuliding within the context of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. It will be four very intense months of learning, learning, learning, with trips to memorials, guest speakers, and processing workshops. The culmination will be a month-long independent research project, where we will have free reign to pursue a research topic of our choosing (WHOA). I’m here with 23 other American students, all studying some combination of peace studies, international relations, politics, and human rights. They’re the most incredible people, coming from all over and bringing so much knowledge, experience, and wisdom. We attend class 5 days a week near downtown Kigali, but rather than sit in class all day, the program prides itself on the value of experimental learning. Of course we hear lectures (from a range of very qualified teachers and professionals in Kigali), but we also go out and talk with people and visit the places we’re learning about.
post-genocide restoration and peacebuliding within the context of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. It will be four very intense months of learning, learning, learning, with trips to memorials, guest speakers, and processing workshops. The culmination will be a month-long independent research project, where we will have free reign to pursue a research topic of our choosing (WHOA). I’m here with 23 other American students, all studying some combination of peace studies, international relations, politics, and human rights. They’re the most incredible people, coming from all over and bringing so much knowledge, experience, and wisdom. We attend class 5 days a week near downtown Kigali, but rather than sit in class all day, the program prides itself on the value of experimental learning. Of course we hear lectures (from a range of very qualified teachers and professionals in Kigali), but we also go out and talk with people and visit the places we’re learning about.
I moved in with my host family just recently. My mother we call Mama Jimmie, after her
first-born son Jimmie. She’s beautiful
and so nice—we can barely communicate since she speaks only Kinyarwanda and
French, but she makes up for our verbal silence with so many hugs and
smiles. I have seven siblings—Erneste, Gisele,
Yve, Ariane, Angelique (or Safari), Leonel (Kuru), and Kevine—although whether
they are siblings or cousins or aunts or adopted children is definitely a
mystery to me! I room with Ariane, who
is my age and speaks very good English.
Some others in the family speak good English as well so it really hasn’t
been too hard to adjust in terms of language.
I really want to make an effort to learn more French and Kinyarwanda,
though—it’d be nice to be able to speak with my host mom!
So it is 9 of us, plus the housegirl Angelique, who live in
the house. But always coming through are
neighbors and friends—Mama Bijoux and her daughter Bijoux, Axelle and Patrick,
Jan, Charles, Mama Dan, and the next-door neighbor kids, Dan (who is 3 yrs) and
David (who is 3 mos.). Dan is the
cutest—I gave him some markers when I arrived and he’s been drawing and hanging
out with me ever since! He uses every
chance to tell me the English words he knows: “school bag,” “bottle,”
“pencil.” Baby David comes and hangs,
too, and we feed him mango and coo at him—everyone loves having a baby around
:)
The house is in a district of Kigali called Nyamirambo,
about 45 mins by bus from school.
(Although most of that time is spent waiting since the bus doesn’t leave
until it’s entirely full.) The house is
situated in a small compound of sorts, with a gate from the muddy road
outside. The kitchen is outside in the
back, with just two little grills for cooking.
All the water from the faucet in the yard must be boiled first before
cooking with it or drinking it. The
bathroom situation is the most drastic change, as it is outside and literally
just a hole in the floor. The shower is
a bucket. For hot water, you have to
boil it on the outdoor grill thing.
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