Internet Outage!

Well, we experienced our first long-term Internet outage so have been without a connection since Sunday evening.  The hotel is switching ISPs and there are troubles (sometimes things are the same everywhere).  So, we temporarily relocated to the Bourbon Café.  No, we have not begun drinking heavily; the Café is Africa’s answer to Starbucks.  Except, it is loads nicer!  Your coffee (a grande this am for me) comes in a lovely pot, with a side container of hot milk, and a tasty little cookie to boot.  Plus the service is AWESOME.  I tell you, we love this country.

Most important bit of news: Marty’s guitar arrived and we picked it up on Sunday – YEAH.  Plus we hear that several other folks brought instruments over here: another guitar, keyboard, and drums.  I sense a future jam.

Previously I mentioned sticker shock.  Here’s the scoop: The local currency is the Rwandan franc with an exchange rate of 600 francs to $1 (one) dollar.  This means you carry around A LOT of money, particularly as this is almost entirely a cash economy.  It also is not a ratio to calculate easily (how well can YOU divide a number by 600?).  But Jenn provided a great tip, which should help avoid the purchase of a $9 (ahem, I think the price was closer to $12) box of cereal.  You take off the last three digits and double what is left.  That’s a bit more than is correct, but it gives you a ball park figure.  For example: if something costs 5,000 Rwandan francs it is roughly $10.

According to an Embassy staffer, this is culture where people stare.  What that means is a blank look, eyes open, no blinking.  But it I don’t find it bothersome, as, quite frankly, I’m constantly looking around at everything/everybody and doing a bit of staring myself.  Also, I’ve found a big smile goes a long way – people usually smile right back.  Mainly it depends on who you’re dealing with.  Those working in the service industry and used to foreigners don’t find us unusual.  It’s more the “man in the street” that stares.  And why not?  We look different and I’m certain pretty odd to them.

There are no street signs.  I don’t mean the signage is not good, I mean there aren’t any – nada, nope, non-existant.  People navigate by landmarks and I guess eventually learn the roads.  So directions include the section of town, a landmark, and the number of streets or houses to pass to get to the location.   

Yesterday we met with Ambassador Stuart (Stu) Symington.  He is very, very interested in the Kigali Public Library and we hope that with his influence and connections we’ll be able to move the project forward by getting the necessary government officials involved.  Security was much tighter for this Embassy visit as we were visiting the Ambassador himself.  Tomorrow is the security briefing where we’ll receive our own badges for limited access.

HUGE news flash: Rwanda has Coke Zero!  We have been at several places where it was listed on the menu, but never available.  Monday we were at the Bourbon Café and lo and behold, on the menu AND available.  Marty had at least two.  Plus, the grocery near the Bourbon Café must recently have received a shipment, as we found a slew on the shelves; we almost wiped out their stock with our purchase.

Next up: More Pictures!