Bitese Rwanda?

The Best of Rwanda Summer 2009

Thanks to a very generous birthday present, I was able to visit the gorillas in Virunga National Park.  As you can tell from the photos, the one hour we spent with the Titus group was incredible.  Before starting our trek, the guides provided strict instructions about keeping one’s distance from the gorillas.  The key is that they don’t provide those same rules to the gorillas!

Special thanks to Jennifer and Jamie for taking pity on the poor grad student and giving me a lift to the trailhead, and congratulations on the recent engagement!

Yesterday morning, I traveled to Butare to meet with Albert Gasake.  I thought it would be just the two of us, we would do a quick interview, and I would be back in Kigali for a late lunch.  Much to my (pleasant) surprise, however, Albert introduced me to his whole gang, the Executive Committee of DUHARANIREKUBAHO.

DUHARANIREKUBAHO, meaning “Fight for Survival,” is an organization founded by and for orphans of the 1994 genocide.  Founded by Albert, who is now the coordinator, and his colleagues in 2004, DUHARANIREKUBAHO has over 245 members throughout the country focusing on using skills and income generating projects to “take back their lives.”

The mission of the organization is three-fold: to provide a network for orphans of the genocide so that they can help one another overcome trauma and other difficulties; to remember the genocide through yearly commemoration activities and prevent future atrocities; and to assist members in building their skills and generating income.

To get to DUHARANIREKUBAHO’s small one-room office, Albert and Patrick (a member who joined the meeting) took me through La Planete Cyber Cafe which I later learned is a buisiness of DUHARANIREKUBAHO, run by its members, to generate income.  In addition to La Planete, DUHARANIREKUBAHO also has agriculture projects and a bee-keeping/honey making business to benefit its members.

Albert and Patrick led me into the office where Fiacre, the vice coordinator; Denise, the secretary; Siraar, the auditor; and Dominique, the production manager; patiently waited for our meeting.  The group introduced themselves and were eager to hear more about my work with Survivor Corps and tell me about the structure and projects of their organization.

Patrick took an album off the shelf and gave me a photo-history of DUHARANIREKUBAHO’s growth.  The images captured commemoration activities, events with trauma counselors - DUHARANIREKUBAHO works with ARCT-Ruhuka to provide counseling to their members - as well as sports and other fun competitions.

After our meeting, I had a chance to do a few interviews which I will post here as I edit them.  I also gave Albert a very quick tutorial on blogging after he gushed about how much he liked my blog.

I couldn’t have asked for a warmer welcome from Albert and DUHARANIREKUBAHO.  It was exciting to learn about the great work they are doing and to see how the members are helping one another to “rise above and give back.”

You can really never have enough of ENOUGH.  So, I was delighted when my former ENOUGH colleagues, Candice and Sarina, arrived in Kigali for a few days before taking off for the DRC.  We were supposed to go with Bryan to Jinja, Uganda for some serious “wild on the Nile” rafting, but due to time constraints and a few rescinded car offers, we had to alter our plans (as some might say, TIA!), but we managed to have a fantastic time.

On Friday, we took off bright and early with our driver, Emmay, for Akagera National Game Park in eastern Rwanda.  Led through the park by our guide, Diana, we saw everything there was to see (minus the elephants).  Giraffes, and zebras, and hippos, oh my!  Oh, and some crocodiles, impalas, monkeys, baboons, topis, waterbuck antelopes, reedback antelopes, and bushback antelopes.  Not bad for a day’s work.  We finished off the day with a relaxing meal at Heaven; and it really was heavenly.

Saturday did not go exactly as planned.  I learned late Friday night that the next day was Umuganda (“contribution”) - a mandatory morning of service that occurs every last Saturday of the month in Rwanda - and buses, motos, and taxis do not run as everyone must participate in Umuganda.  I called Sarina and Candice to inform them that our trip to Kibuye would be slightly delayed.

I went for a walk during Umuganda and found myself quite unnerved by the absence of people and traffic on the streets.  The few cars that passed by were immediately pulled over by the police, ticketed, and forced to remain parked until Umuganda ended.  During Umuganda, everyone - from the President to government officials to those living in small villages - is supposed to particpate in projects such as cleaning the roads, doing upkeep on public property, or clearing grass around the roadways.  I have read that it is also a time for the public to speak with government officials on a casual basis, but I have not figured out how often this really happens.

Anyway, around noon, our bus finally left for Kibuye, and took us on a most nauseating and uncomfortable ride.  Squished into a tiny matatu for three hours that raced down tightly winding mountain bends was a recipe for disaster.  Within three hours, we had two pukers.  The driver was kind enough to slightly decrease the speed with each round of vomit.

Stepping off the bus, we were able to recover quicker than expected as we were surrounded by beautiful views of Lake Kivu.  Shortly after checking into Hotel St. Jean and enjoying a Primus on the hotel balcony, we were greeted by my first Rwandan rain storm (or rain for that matter) since I arrived in June.  We waited out the storm over dinner at Hotel Bethanie.  And then we waited.  And waited.  And waited.  Four hours later, our food arrived, we gobbled down our “sizzlers” and pasta, and headed back to the hotel.

Sunday morning was overcast, but by 11am the sun was coming out and we headed out on a boat ride to Amahoro (“peace”) Island.  The ride was a good chance for Candice to confront her fears after a treacherous ride on Lake Kivu during her last visit to Congo, and a perfect opportunity for us to soak in the gorgeous views.  The island was stunning and I only wish we had had more time.  But alas, our nauseating ride back to Kigali called… and that was one ride we didn’t want to do at night.

When we returned to Kigali, I said goodbye to Candice and Sarina as they headed off to the DRC today.  Be sure to check out some of the awesome work they are doing with their “Raise Hope for Congo” campaign.

See all the pics of our adventures in Akagera here, and photos from Kibuye here.

After a six hour bus ride with a driver who was having a love affair with the horn, Bryan, Laura and I arrived in Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, for the next part of our journey.  Bujumbura was so similar, yet so different from Kigali.

The people speak Kirundi - which sounds like Kinyarwanda to an ear that understands neither - and French - the language from which Rwanda is trying to move away.  The streets, like Kigali, are packed with women carrying fruit baskets on their heads, motos that pay no mind to pedestrians, and adorable children asking for amafaranga (money).  The city itself is what I imagine Kigali looked like a few years after the genocide; far from developed, but making impressive progress after years of war and ethnic strife.  The security situation, unlike Kigali, is still quite unstable and we were given strict instructions not to remain on the streets after dark.

While we only had a day and a half in Bujumbura, with Laura as our trusty tour guide, we had a chance to see the best of what the city has to offer.  After we got ourselves oriented (and of course, fed), Laura took us for a walk down to Lake Tanganyika.  We positioned ourselves at a fancy hotel for the best Primus I’ve yet to taste, some hippo watching, and a delicious pizza dinner.

The next day, Laura had a full day in store for us.  We visited the Musee Vivant, a small zoo-like facility where the rules against cruelty towards animals have clearly not been enforced.  Caged crocs, snakes, leopards and monkeys greeted us as our guide poked them with sticks.  They also had a replica of a traditional village hut, where I got to grind maize and Brian could barely fit inside without knocking off his head.  I guess this explains “Big Man,” the nickname given to him by the Burundians.  Following Musee Torture - I mean, Vivant - we visited the Bujumbura market where we were tossed through the crowds and yelled at for taking pictures.  There was only one place left to go, la plage.  So, off we went to Bora Bora - a little slice of heaven in the middle of Bujumbura - where we enjoyed some serious R&R, Primus, and a dip in the Lake for Bryan.

Before dinner, we got to meet up with Robert, Survivor Corps’ Africa Program Associate, and Mendi, the Advocacy Project’s Africa Director.  We chatted about our fellowships and got a chance to hear a bit about what they are doing.  Finally, we took off to Khana Kzana to celebrate Laura’s “birthday.”  Minus a somewhat eventful cab ride home, it was a great day and an exciting trip.  Our time in Burundi (and a USHMM podcast with Peter Uvin that I listened to before visiting) sparked my interest in the country.  Thanks to Laura, I’ve got a few new books on my wish list, and I am looking forward to learning more about how its complex history compares with Rwanda’s and how it fits into the overall region.

**Bujumbura photo album here.