Village Visits

Sunday evening consisted of dinner in and the arrival of Pili (our duck) and Dennis. Since the next ‘to-do’ on Dennis’ list was building our Musanze chicken coop, he headed off to the market to buy materials with our guard. They got back a bit after dark with lots of materials and began construction on the coop with the help of my head lamp (the only thing that I thought would keep the hammers and nails out of fingers). This was a three day endeavor, but before it was finished being constructed, chickens were running around our yard with the duck (who was super excited to have ‘friends’ finally!).

 Monday brought me out for breakfast to our favorite spot, because I needed to go to the printers in town for surveys (taking over for Dennis), but there was a printers right next to our tea place, so I decided to stop in and try it. An hour and a half later I left with my copies, and a bit worried that my USB had a virus. They had been rebooting (and reinstalling everything on the computer attached to the printer, and that meant that I was waiting until finally the gentleman who owned the place went to print next store and then came back to copy in his own shop. It was pretty funny and a test of patience, but in the end all was finished and I made it back to the house in time to meet the crew, but their plans had changed- all were already gone, so I needed to make my way to GS Rugarama on my own. Should have been relatively easy with a knowledgeable moto driver, but in a moment of ‘oh he needs the 75 cents more than I need to sit on a cramped matatu’ I decided a moto ride there would be nice. I should have gotten off instantly, when I realized we weren’t going the normal direction, but I thought maybe there is another way that I just don’t know. Nope, he had no idea- first he took me to a house, I gave him directions again, and he headed back to town (good start until he went past the road to cyanika again). I started getting really annoyed here, because he kept saying “yes- I know” and yet really clearly had no clue where he was going. I made him pull over before he wasted any more time and before I could just get off and walk away I called Aime thinking- this is just a Kinyarwanda-English miscommunication. Aime explained more about where I was going and how to get there. I finally felt reassured, though a little annoyed that it was going to be so much more than the 75 cents which I initially rationalized the ride. We headed off again and things went relatively smoothly, until Gahunga where he slows down and pulled over. At this point, I had been following the angle on the volcano nearby and knew we had at least another mile to go. It was almost 1:30 (my meeting time) and I couldn’t tell him to just keep driving- and without fail soon as I called Aime again the phone was out of airtime! Classic- so after getting off the bike and walking away, I hop scotched between little shops until someone finally had MTN airtime. Finally, we continued on and arrived- after Aime paid him more than he deserved or had said he would charge, we were off to our meeting. The kids of the village gave some comic relief, and so by the end of our visits, I was feeling much better and far less frustrated at my own decision to moto to them.

Our site was successful and the surveys were almost completed, but getting home was definitely a relief. It was a bit short lived though, because as soon as we got home we were running around trying to catch chickens. We’ve come up with names for a few of them Carly Rae Jepsom, Muzungu, Igi(soro), and Gus is the cock. There is only one left to be named, and we’ve had 3 eggs laid! The guard at our house bought them some sorghum to eat and with the water dispenser that Eamon bought, they were all set for a good night in our back kitchen (since the coop wasn’t ready yet). I was glad that the chickens were pretty quiet at night, but in return, we had a pack of howling dogs! C’est la vie et une bonne nuit!

On Wednesday, tea and printing went much more smoothly (since the computer’s printer had been reinstalled). I was in and out in no time and headed home to the latest chicken fiasco. Getting five chickens in a coop when they are convinced you are going to kill them is no easy endeavor. Dennis and I spent about an hour chasing the chickens around the yard devising different strategies for capturing them. These chickens flew and ran faster than either of us had expected! Luckily we had time to chase the chickens around before our afternoon surveying session, but it did take far longer than necessary! Our house girl must have thought Dennis and I were the funniest things kibitzing each other with the squawking of almost caught chickens going on for an hour or so while she did some needle point.

In the afternoon, Dennis and I met Aime and Aloys to head to Kanyendara for another round of baseline surveys. The bus ride went by quickly, and we got off only to hop onto motos. Some moto rides are smooth and enjoyable with their fabulous views, but others are not quite as pleasant. Some result in mostly bumping up and down just clinging to the plastic handle on the back of the moto so as not to fly off. I am certain walking the road was quicker on the way back from the community, but didn’t mind paying to get there when I saw the drivers giving rides to the village kids when they left the village. So generous and sweet that you can’t help but like the driver. The rest of the village’s kids went running off behind the moto, and were hollering so much you’d have thought that there was a free donation!

Kanyendara is one of the communities in the worst shape that I have seen since my arrival. There are snotty noses and dirty clothes in all of the poor villages, but at the same time not all villages look quite as desperate for help. From swollen bellies, patches of hair missing and they were biting off the outside of corn stalks to suck on the insides for as a snack. The children in communities often have different reactions to muzngus coming into their villages, and it’s interesting to me to compare and contrast them. In most of the villages, the children are exuberant upon your arrival, and want to play non-stop. Then when you try to get to work is where things change. Some kids understand that is when they sit at a distance and watch. For others, the kids look on and keep creeping toward you as you conduct surveys. For this community, the latter was the case, and the kids kept creeping closer until one of the adults caught sight of it and came toward them with a stick. None of the kids were hit, but just like with the sheep and goats the kids whacked to keep in line, the kids recoiled instantly. After about an hour of watching me as their only amusement, the kids took to other things. Some of the kids began a dodge ball meets tag game that involved the kids pelting each other with the tennis ball and then diving after it to be the next thrower rather than blow recipient. The kids all seemed to be having so much fun and yet all I could think was- ouch, but then again, that’s how I feel about paintball. Sounds like nothing but a good way to get welts!

Clearly the little ones were having fun, and no one was crying so I just kept watching as they tired of one game and moved onto the next. Over the kids playing was the beautiful volcano, Murhubura, and when they switched to soccer (with a ball made from tarp scraps) I couldn’t help but notices how much the volcanic nature of the region plays into their lives. Rather than goal posts, the kids used two volcanic rocks to mark the goal region. Not only does the rock make for a relatively dangerous goal post, it makes for poor harvests (due to a lack of soil) and an almost impossible task of digging pit latrines. There are almost no landslides (which are common in other parts of the country), but this little bit of security clearly comes with a cost. 

First impressions of communities are often similar, but in this community, the patchwork clothing and baby butts showing said a lot about just how desperate they were. Within 20 minutes, I had begun to register other things like the separation that I had seen among a few other communities of men and women. Not a few here and there in their friend groups, but specifically all men on one side and women on the other. They talked about the community service projects they do as a community (building schools and roads) and about the cooperatives they were part of. I don’t know how well this community works together, but there is a saying that was often repeated in our interviews that “working with others lets you learn from others.” Sentiments like this allow for more collaboration, and therefore more trust if honestly believed in.

As we finished up our interviews, the kid flicking soda pop tops at the wall finished to come say good by along with the many little ones. Then, Aime, Aloys, Dennis and I headed back to the main road on foot in order to hop in a matatu (apparently called a twegerane in Kinyarwanda or a squeeze when translated to English). This was highly humorous as I sat on top of Aime’s lap in order to fit some 20+ people into a van made for 14. Amazing the conditions, but luckily for us we didn’t just get left on the side of the road! Never know when the next car will be by, and if it’s squeezed too many people in already, then fitting another 4 isn’t easy! We got back to Musanze with a bit of time to spare before I met with Jeanne of the Ubushobozi cooperative. I wanted to hear more about her work and the direction she was hoping to take the coop- in addition to just getting to know a few more expats a little better!