New week!
But first, the weekend: On Saturday, we woke up very early (3 am) to go to Akagera National Park, on the Tanzanian border.It was absolutely stunning and, as a Safari virgin, I'm really happy with all the animals we managed to see: impalas, crocodiles, giraffes, hippos, warthogs, gazelles, all kinds of birds, zebras, buffalos...The lion and elephant populations shrunk dramatically during the civil war (poaching etc) so it is hard to spot them.The park guide was very helpful and explained that most people who work in Akagera are security personel because poachers still roam around.I think there are only 10 lions left if not less.However, I'm really happy with what I saw.I'll try to post pictures soon.You get an amazing view of Lake Hema, which serves as border between Rwanda and Tanzania.
On Sunday night, all the volunteers had a dinner at this amazing Ethiopian restaurant in the middle of nowehere (it's still Kigali but it weas pretty dark).Basically what you do is order a bunch of things and share.Then you get three giant crepes as well as small ones and a bunch of vegetables (lentils, corn, gabbage,...), sauces (spicy and non-spicy), meat (beef and goat), etc and you just eat with you fingers. It's absolutely delicious and a must-try if you have a good Ethiopian restaurant in your area.Also, getting to the restaurant was quite an adventure.You can use three kinds of transportation here: taxis (mini-buses), cabs (expensive) and motos.Motos are great if you get out of the main roads (plus they are heaps of fun).So imagine 9 muzungus (white people) at the back of 9 motorcycles.I think we provided enough entertainment and dinner conversations for the week.Quite a sight.
Work is going very well.I'm busy all day long so I'm knackered at night but that fine cause I have to wake up around 5.30-6 am anyways.Days start early here because it can get pretty hot during the day (although it is the rainy season).Giving class and doing homework with the kids be challenging: the other day I had to explain Rwandan Pre-history...I know African history but not that well and it's certainly difficult to translate it in Kinyarwandan.
Me and another volunteer found a couple of fair trade shops (craft shops and excellent Rwandan coffee!) around the city and they make quite amazing things (including Christmas stockings made with Rwandan fabrics.I need one of those).Some of these are owned and managed by HIV positive women.The money then goes to struggling families and patients.The HIV epidemic here is feminized since a lot of women were raped during the genocide. The government has done quite a lot to improve access to treatment: free ARV, counseling, testing etc...but access to clinics and treatment in rural areas is still very difficult. And while ARVs are free, bills for other infections and diseases must partly be covered by the patient (10%). Moreover, the stigma is still very much present as well.I know many HIV positive patients not want to reveal their status to their boss for fear of losing their job.
In other news, I heard today that Paul Kagame's political rival was arrested yesterday and later released.Elections will take place in August so this is not a good sign.Despite the fact that Kagame likes to claim that his government is democratic, things like this prove that this is not actually the case.I hope the election will be as democratic as possible.It's difficult to talk politics here...it's a very sensitive subject.I think on the hand, people are grateful for what Kagame did yet I think that they are also aware that there are problems with his leadership.
