National Performance Dance Troupe

The performance that kicked off the Inauguration ceremonies was definitely one-of-a-kind. All the performers were dressed in the whitest white I’d ever seen, bordered by woven geometric designs in really bright colors. All the women had these white ribbons/ropes tied around their heads that made them look like Aida or something along the lines of Nubian princesses. Then, they all had bells on their ankles that they rang by stamping around.

I have seriously never seen any dancing as extreme as this was. The dancers were bending over backwards and standing up again in a heartbeat. They waved their arms around and kicked their feet up… I imagined them losing their balance every other second, and yet they managed to pull it all off without much trouble at all. For their finale they did this one dance where they all jumped like 10 feet in the air, and managed to land exactly on the beat. I thought that was damn impressive… until they did it about 400 times in a row. Then I was just astounded. I couldn’t believe none of them passed out!

Simultaneously, the other half of the troupe was drumming and singing in order to create the music for the event. They were as interesting to watch as the dancers.

First Day of Work

Woah. Let’s just say that I will NEVER walk around without a camera again. Who would have thought that my first day at work would probably be one of the most amazing cultural experiences of my life? What an IDIOT I was to not bring a camera. ARG! I apologize to all you blog readers out there who have been commenting on my distinct lack of photos as well… I will do better, I promise.

Anyway, what did day one have in store for me, you ask? Ha! Well… here goes.

The first few hours were boring bureaucratic stuff. I read a bunch of documents about the overall structure of the organization within the context of Rwanda, all the other partners and their roles, what the Healthcare Expansion Framework is, etc, etc blah blah blah. I also got a phone (yay!) and ate a croissant (yay!).

Then it was time for a field trip. Basically the entire CHAI group (all 5 of us) got in a little van-car-thingy and drove about two hours east outside of the city of Kigali. Apparently, a training center that is kind of the first really big project that Partners In Health and the Clinton Foundation have spearheaded together, was being inaugurated. This was particularly interesting to me since I worked so closely with Maya in Nicaragua, who was designing exactly the same kind of thing – a convention center / office / training facility / dormitory–esque space. The center itself is on the same land as one of the hospitals CHAI and PIH renovated together. I approached the space with a particular eye for sustainability, since that’s what I’d been so focused on in Nicaragua. I figured out soon enough, that was NOT one of the objectives of PIH nor the Clinton Foundation in terms of this building, but it was nevertheless, a beautiful space. Apparently Paul Farmer, the founder of PIH, has a side-hobby of landscaping, and you could totally tell. The entire space was landscaped beautifully with plants he’d imported from various parts of the world. There was a pond and a waterfall in the central courtyard, and rock gardens in every open space (that, at least, is totally sustainable).

The inaugural proceedings were impressively interesting as well. Granted, there were a whole bunch of VIPs that had to give little speeches, but that becomes an interesting exercise in attention when some speakers are speaking in French, others in English, and still others in Kinyarwanda. The mayors of both the district we were in, and the neighboring one gave their two cents. Then there was the director of Partners in Health for Rwanda, Mike Rich. Then there was Paul Farmer, the founder of Partners in Health, the Ambassador to Rwanda from the United States, and the distinguished and honored guest, the Minister of Health in Rwanda. The list went on and on. It was cool to meet/see all these veeps on my first day of work.

I also got to meet a whole bunch of expats from all different NGOs that had something to do with the center. Obviously there were several clinical workers from PIH, but also there were people from USAid-funded projects and smaller local NGOs. There was lots of chatting, mingling, and socializing. The best parts of the proceedings, however, were the bookends – performances by a dance troop and by Burundian Drummers. I’ll talk about those in separate entries, since they were awesome in their own right.

Anyway, we had this fancy schmancy inauguration. I got home around 8pm, after a two-hour drive home during which I slept almost the entire way. I guess I’m still adjusting to the time difference.

The Journey Home and an Art Gallery

So after Bourbon Coffee Erik and Amy and I split up to do random things. I was left alone in the middle of the city to wander around, get lost on purpose, and finagle a way home again. I discovered a few things, one of which was that a super-cute pair of shoes that looked to be about Payless quality was being sold for US$100. I guess that settles whether or not I’ll be buying any shoes while I’m here. I stopped by the supermarket, which is like a super Walmart because it sells food and TVs and office supplies, and basically whatever you could possibly want. However, unlike Walmart, it’s DAMN expensive. The yougurt was selling for about $5 for half a liter. Boxes of cereal run in the $9 range. The cheapest bottle of wine I could find was going for $12, and the whiskey was $100 a bottle!! Ugh… being broke is so annoying sometimes.

Anyway, I wandered the streets and found that two left turns actually brings you back to your starting point… so this’ll be interesting trying to navigate the city. Then, against all recommendations, I took a motorbike (they’re about a tenth the cost of a cab) back to the house. That was an experience since I didn’t realize HOW much French I DON’T know, and the driver didn’t speak a word of English. Erik had written explicit instructions on the back of a receipt (albeit, in English, so I’d understand) with landmarks and left turns all delineated, but once we got to the last main landmark in town, and I had to direct the driver myself, I was hopeless. I couldn’t even remember the word for “pond” or “road”. Seriously… I’m screwed.

With some luck, and a few questions to passers-by who spoke both English and Kinyarwanda, lots of gesticulating and a bunch of false starts, I made it back to the house. A quick shower and a change of clothes (it’s COLD here man, I needed a sweater desperately) I went to meet Erik again. He had a painter-friend who wanted to show him his studio. Oh my god… WAY cool. It’s a little space that acts as a studio and art gallery for about 12 painters. Some of the stuff in there was SUPER amazingly good. I’m jealous I’m broke and can’t buy any – especially since they’re running for only about $300. Erik wants to outfit his house with a bunch of paintings, and boy did we come to the right spot. It was also cool because a bunch of the artists were just hanging out there, and you could talk to them and ask them questions about their work and whatnot. One guy was even nailing together canvases on frames. I was really impressed. Erik mentioned that I was amazingly lucky to see something like this studio on my first day in town only because there’s not a lot of artists around – especially not any good ones – and he’d apparently been looking for something of the sort for the last several months. Anyway… the plan is to go back and make friends. Maybe they’ll even give me a class or two.

After that it was dinner with a bunch of British expats… pesto pasta that tasted remarkably like pesto. I was impressed.

Bourbon Coffee

So even though we don’t get internet in the house, we DO get it at the local hangout; a Starbucks-like café called “Bourbon Coffee”. The service here might compete with Bluefields for the worst in the world, but the couches are comfy, the coffee’s good, and there’s electricity plugs everywhere to hook up your computer. Right now they’re playing reggae music, so I’m being brought even further into my Nicaragua nostalgia, but the fact that I’m speaking English with the waiters and actually kind of chilly is reminding me that I’m here instead.

The clientele are ALL expats. I hear French, English (both American and British), Spanish, Dutch, German… I’m definitely in an international environment, that’s for sure. Everyone also has a little computer with them… most of them are Mac’s, I’m happy to note. I totally feel like I’m in Brooklyn, to be honest.

Outside it’s rainy. Boo. According to the locals, we’re in the rainy season even though the rainy season is supposed to end mid-January. The weather patterns seem to be changing everywhere you go the world. Rainy season means either a torrential downpour for a few hours each day followed by Ithaca-like overcast skies the rest of the time, or intermittent misting all day… it depends on who you ask. So far today, it’s been the torrential-downpour kind of day, but now it’s misting. I think I’m gonna assume both parties are correct, and it depends on what time of the day you’re napping.

The music’s changed to hip-hop now. Yup, I’m in New York.

The café here is sitting inside a mall-like structure that has a bunch of little stores and a GIANT supermarket. I’m going to take a little tour of the place later, when the café here becomes boring. Since I’m paying more than a dime a minute for internet service, I might peace out soon.

And we’re back to Reggae again.

So earlier today I went to a little general store called T-1000 or something like that. It’s got everything. I bought a surge protector, some hangars, and changed some money. There was a little boy that stood outside with a humongous umbrella (when I say humungous, I mean the diameter was probably about 8 feet or so) who walked me to the car like a princess. He smelled like pot and his eyes had trouble focusing, but I guess his job is boring enough he looks for other ways to entertain himself.

First Impressions

The Smell – There’s something so specific about the scent of tropical air that makes me feel so completely at home. I stepped out of the airplane and the smell of lush-ness just enveloped me. Mommy, you told me I’d be overcome by an impressive waft of heat, but that didn’t happen. I was actually quite comfortable in my jeans and leather jacket, but it felt like a clear summer night after a day rain, when the steam starts to come off the earth and the greenness of the world almost turns into a taste it’s so thick on the air.

The Moon – I don’t know if it’s just the fact that traveling again has me reminiscent of Nicaragua, but Maya, I send a shout-out to ya. The first image I had of Rwanda was a valley of lights crowned by a giant full moon. You know how intimately aware of the moon we were in Nicaragua. I get the feeling it’s going to be very similar here.

The House – It’s giant. It’s more giant than my house in Jersey. It’s got weird light switches all over the place, with no apparent rhyme of reason. My room is giant. I have a KING-sized mattress. I’ve never had a King before. I also get a closet and desk. We have a big giant living room that looks like no one ever sits in it. There are 4 long couches arranged in a square and a huge dining table that seats 10. There’s also a cat. Yay! She was insanely curious of all my stuff as I unpacked it, and had to sit in every single one of my bags and climb all over my piles of clothes. I suppose she was sniffing out my potential. I’ve already found a few of her special spots, and now, as I type this, she’s sitting on my desk (which is huge) right next to me, purring away. Word. To Do: Make a friend… check.

The Electricity – Yeah, this is gonna be interesting. The airport had four power surges, or outages, or whatever they were, in the hour or so that I was there. The people in immigration didn’t seem to have issues with it, and every time the lights went out, they pulled out their backup lamps within 13 seconds. A few minutes later, the lights would come back on, and all the backups would promptly be shut off. Now I’m sitting in my new giant house in complete darkness, because yup, the electricity’s out again. I see my computer battery will be put to good use.

The water – we have a water heater!! I actually took a HOT shower when I got in. Yes… and I mean HOT. I scalded myself all over my stomach. It’s still red, and I took a shower about an hour ago. Ow.

I’m pooped. I’m passing out.

The Flight

So I’m gone again. This flight was relatively painless. Nothing was delayed, and I only had a bit of turbulence a few times. I actually got two meals on both legs of the flight (which is debatably good or bad, depending) AND the seat next to me was empty both times too.

Hanging out in Brussels for a few hours was interesting. I had forgotten how distinctly European people can look. All the women were super tall, with short cropped hair cuts and a very euro-esque bone structure. They were all blonde too. What’s with the blondeness? There was actually a group of about 15 SUPER-platinum blonde (and natural to boot), freckled girls in their 20s on my flight to Kigali. Andy… I thought of you. I wonder what they’re doing here in Rwanda now… and how people are reacting to them. Seriously, even I couldn’t look away.

Tilke and Marissa, a shout out to you both. I impulsively bought the 2nd book in the Twilight series while in the airport in Newark, and was infinitely happy with my purchase. I finished the 600-page book before landing in Kigali, and was able to leave the thing on the plane for the next poor soul imprisoned there for eight hours. To all of you who are prejudiced against the series, you can shut it. I haven’t been that riveted by a book in a VERY long time, and even though it wasn’t nearly as good as the 1st, I’m still planning on reading the other two when they come out in paper back. I wonder if there’s a bookstore here that sells NY Times bestsellers in English.

And So It Begins Again

That's right... I'm on my way to another whirl-wind adventure.  This time I'm going with the Clinton Foundation, and it's not to Latin America, but to Africa.  Yup... time to break out those French skills I've managed to squish so way down in the depths of my brain, they're probably sitting somewhere near my stomach (not to say my stomach has brain cells in it.... ok... gaa... bad image). 

AAnnnyyyway.  So yeah, I've replaced the stolen camera from my last trip, injected myself with a live culture of the Yellow Fever, boostered up on Polio, gotten hoards of cash in $100 bills dated after 2003, washed and folded and re-stored in the basement all my clothes, and given notice at the temp job I was using to occupy myself.  Things are falling into place, and even though this time I only have a few weeks to prepare instead of a few months, I may actually be ready on time.  For all of you friends based near Philadelphia, I'll be having one last climb at Go Vertical on Tuesday the 3rd, and for those of you in NYC, I'll be in for Happy Hour at Verlaine on Wednesday the 4th.  Then it's run home, zip up the bags, cancel the phone and netflix services, and off on a 22-hour flight across the world to being a new life again.

Wish me luck, and try not to forget about me.