rwanda: amazingly unafrican

i arrived yesterday in kigali, the capital of rwanda (pronounced "rhonda" like my middle school hairdresser). it is an amazing drastic change from western tanzania to rwanda. the arid, treeless plains of tanzania morph into pitched, forested green hills (hence "the land of a thousand hills"). immediately french is the second tongue spoken in the streets. shabby mud houses along the roadway turn to small, well-kept houses with small shrubs and manicured little patches of grass. i would not have believed it without seeing it, it's "un-african." the roads are orderly, plastic bags are outlawed, seat belts are worn, and motorbikes are required to provide helmets to passengers, it's very striking. rwanda has instituted a national program where once a month all residents are required to perform a day of service.




the professor that i'm working with from appalachian state university and i went with one of her former colleagues to visit her son at boarding school. the school is near volcanoes nat'l park in northeastern rwanda, two hours from the capital of kigali (pronounced chi-gali).

the children attend this boarding school from 12 years old to 18. they aren't allowed visitors but once a month. we had our bags searched to assure that we weren't giving them contraband food.
they attend classes from 5 am to 8 pm with an hour lunch. the curriculum is tough. i looked over the lesson which is all in english and i couldn't answer many of the questions, which isn't saying much but still...


in the background of is karisimbi volcano, of dian fossey fame. the climate is cool and foggy (gorillas in the mist). notice solar panels for water purification and rainwater collection.


every inch of open space is utilized in this small country roughly the size of maryland. during the rainy season it's green and lush and abruptly turns to brown during the dry. looking out over the landscape you see bananas, cassava, beans, sorghum.