New Friends

One of the best parts about our time in Rwanda is all the people we’ve met, spent time with, and so been able to know.  The lists includes ExPats from various embassies, people involved with NGOs(Non-government organizations), a variety of young interns, Rotarians (a new ball of wax for me, my Dad is a member of Kiwanis), folks from Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, and of course Rwandans. 

Some we’ve spent more time with than others, but there were a few folks who went out of their way to welcome us and make us feel at home.  First are Jenn and Alex.  Jenn, a Rotarian, is the Rotary Club liaison to the US Embassy which was responsible for the Fulbright which got us here; she and Alex met us at the airport, took us to the grocery for the first time (where I learned about Rwandan francs fast by buying that $12 box of cereal!), introduced us to the Rotary club, and made our transition so easy. 

We also became fast friends with Gwenn, Reid, and their children.  Gwenn provided us rides so many times, had us over for dinner (Reid makes a mean beef stew), included me in the fabulous shopping trip (for which Marty *thanks* you ;>), and we worked together on the library’s records – she is an archivist at heart, which is high praise in my book.

But we didn’t want to only meet and mingle with other ExPats and in this we were lucky to meet Evoud.  You may remember that he drove us to Akagera and Nyungwe.  On the return from Nyungwe, he invited his to his home for lunch where we met his wife and two children.  What a blast.  His toddler son was a ball of energy and kept us all hopping.  His daughter (age 7) is learning English in school and showed off her reading skills.  When I brought out my iphone to show pictures she took to that like a duck to water.  I felt bad having to pry it out of her hands when we left.  We had a wonderful lunch and had a lovely time.  You could not find a more attentive host than Evoud.  I was drinking beer – Primus – and whenever the level of my glass dropped, he filled it up.  I think I had two of the liter sized bottles!  What an experience.  Below are a few pictures.

At Park View Courts we met Beryl, currently working as one of the receptionists.  Beryl and her family are from Kenya, and moved to Kigali about a year ago.  We talked to her many times as we were coming in and out and she invited us to meet her family over dinner: mother Rachael, and brothers Bryan and Qollins.  We had a marvelous time – we talked about Africa, Rwanda versus Kenya, education, books, food, the economy, the genocide, I don’t remember it all.  But we laughed a lot.  And what a dinner, Beryl and her mother kept bringing out dishes until the table was covered.  And while African food, it was a bit different than what we’d had before – more spicy for one.  We took pictures (see below) and now we are connected on facebook so we can keep in touch.