Uganda!

Since there is no school on in Rwanda at the momemnt, I decided to take a short vacation to our neighbouring country of Uganda. Kampala is a much larger city than Kigali and has a huge mall with a movie theatre (!), lots of traffic and the pollution that goes with it. I did all the touristy things including a safari at Murchison Falls and Whitewater Rafting in Jinja! It was fantastic and I met a lot of really interesting fellow travellers (people as well as elephants, hippos, rhinos and giraffes) Good times!

Workshop in Nyamata

The teacher's in my sector were too busy for workshops this month (national exams, English training from the gov't and vacation time) so I went and helped out some of the other VSO volunteers in other districts in Rwanda. For 2 days, I went to Byumba and stayed with fellow Canadian Shala. I helped her and Collette at 2 different schools. In the evenings, we debriefed with beers and chocolate;) This week, I was at Nyamata with Mary (another Canadian!) and we had a very busy 2 days with 40 teachers each day! I learned a great deal from both sets of workshops and have tonnes of ideas for the new semester in January. Thanks gals for letting me get in on the action!

Gorilla Weekend!

One of the main reasons people visit Rwanda is to see the almost-extinct gorillas of the mist, that are now protected thanks to efforts of the Rwandan gov't & conservationists like Dian Fossey. I am not a tourist here but I have to say, my visit to the Gorillas was one of the top 10 experiences of my life! I went with another VSO volunteer and his cousin. We stayed overnight at Ruhengheri, the village at the base of the mountains, where the gorillas live. We had to walk about 30 minutes to find the gorillas basking in the sun. After awhile, they started to move, and we tracked them with the help of the guide. One came right towards us and grabbed my butt, like a typical adolescent male (which he was). I will NEVER wash those pants! Many pictures were taken during our 1 hour and 10 minute visit with these amazing creatures but I only have room for a couple here...HIGHLY RECOMMENDED EXPERIENCE!!!

New Workshop

In Rwanda, the school semester ends in October with local and national exams. This is followed by 2 months vacations where volunteers are sometimes scrambling to do training or taking their own holidays. My latest workshop with the teachers in my district is a 2 hour training called 'Songs and Games for the Classroom'. It gives teachers some tools for making the classroom more active, participatory, and child-centered. It also means that tone-deaf, artistically challenged me has to sing and draw in front of teachers who are much better singers and artists than I'll ever be. I think I am actually an inspiration because the teachers look at my drawings and think 'well, I could do a MUCH better job so why don't I?'. I have already seen some improvements in the schools I visit. One of the songs I teach is 'Alice's Camel' which causes much hilarity amongst the teachers. The games I teach are a memory game (involving my drawings on a rice sack) and math bingo. The teachers love them both! Here is me showing my Pictorial Alphabet to the teachers.

Bees in my Bonnet

A couple of weeks ago, I came home to find part of my ceiling collapsed along with a huge beehive and a bunch of dead bees (there were still some live ones around to cause me trouble as well). Luckily, I found some community members to help me clean the hive (and honey) out of my ceiling and now it only remains for my ceiling to be fixed and the room painted so it no longer has honey leaking all over it. The community members were eating the honey straight from the hive that had been in my ceiling for months and months. When they offered me some, I said "oya, murakoze" - no thanks. I'll stick to the honey you can buy in the store, thank you.

Some of you know that a couple of days later I found out that my cat that was living with my ex (and also 21 years old) was put to sleep. It was a difficult week for me and I appreciate those of you who offered condolences. Here is a picture of the beehive that is outside my house now.

Birthday Weekend!

For the first time in my life, I spent my birthday in Africa (although it is not the first time spending my birthday overseas - had 2 birthdays in Cambodia). My friend Epi, another VSO volunteer from Canada, and I went to Gisenyi which is on Lake Kivu in the northwest part of Rwanda. It has nice beaches and feels like you could be on the Meditteranean! We spent Friday and Saturday night there and came back to Kigali on Sunday where I had a lovely dinner at the Serena Hotel with another volunteer friend, Portia. All in all, it was a pretty decent 41st birthday! Here is a picture of me relaxing on the beach - still a young naive 40 year old....and by some strange coincidence, this is picture number 41 in my gallery!

VSO Family Dinner

Early September saw the arrival of 19 new VSO volunteers to Rwanda (unfortunately, none of them coming to my district). They had a week and a half of In-Country Training followed by the VSO Family Dinner, where all VSO volunteers are invited to meet the new volunteers, have a free meal (including alcohol!) and watch some fantastic entertainment by local Intore dancers. The new volunteers seem keen to start their new placements - some are short term (3 - 6 months) and some are here as long as 2 years. Most are in the Education sector as Management or Methodology 'experts' and some are in disability. All seem like excellent additions to the VSO family in Rwanda. Murakaza Neza, new VSO volunteers - I hope to work with you all in the near future!

Back to work!

I've now been back in my placement for 2 weeks & doing workshops as well as classroom observations with the teachers in my district. I have facilitated my "Strengths & Weaknesses of Muhura Schools" workshop in 8 schools & now only have 1 school left. This workshop runs from 2 to 3 hours where I present some of the strengths & weaknesses I saw in all of the schools I visited (hence the title). Afterwards, the teachers work in small groups to find solutions to the weaknesses. There is a fair bit of acting on my part as I demonstrate some of the weaknesses (like shouting 'you!' to a student instead of using names) so the teachers understand why something is an issue & could easily be changed. I also teach a couple of songs (yes, I sing in front of the teachers) and a game (Simon Says) so the teachers can see how easy it is to incorporate these things into their classes.

As I have no pictures of my workshops yet, I will post a picture of beautiful Zanzibar - I place I highly recommend you visit if you get a chance....

Holiday in Zanzibar

My 1st vacation from my placement in small-town Rwanda was to the exotic spice island of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania. The adventure started with a 28 hour bus journey through the plains of Africa, followed by a pick pocketing incident in Dar es Salaam in which my cell phone was taken far, far way. My traveling companions were Collette & Shala, 2 awesome VSO volunteers without whom this experience wouldn't even be worth discussing. We spent some time in the labyrinthine Stonetown where each side alley lead to more & more interesting sites plus endless shopping opportunities! We took the local transport called a Dalla Dalla to the popular beach area called Nungwi where we stayed 2 nights before heading to the beautiful, tranquil Kendwa Rocks. We swam, beached, ate, drank, & danced the night(s) away for 4 days before heading back to Stonetown for more cultural experiences & shopping. I think the attached picture is a fairly accurate representation of how we spent most of our vacation. Cheers!

Waiting, workshops, & more waiting

Trying to do workshops with teachers during the most important exams of the semester was probably not the wisest move, but yours truly will definitely know better for next time:) I mentioned in an earlier post that I was observing lessons & giving feedback in the schools in my sector. I noticed that all schools had some common strengths & they also made the same "mistakes" - the areas for improvement were very similar! This is how I came to create the "Strengths & Weaknesses of Muhura Schools" which is about 2 1/2 hours long. So far I have facilitated this workshop at 3 schools with a fair amount of success (ie. nobody booed me or threw tomatoes at me) and hope to do 2 more this week. I say hope because schedules have a way of changing at last minute here (like 8:30pm the night before a workshop) but we just have to learn to take things slowly - buhoro, buhoro as they say here in Rwanda!

When I am not visiting schools in my area, I am often in Kigali sharing information (and good times!) with other volunteers. The picture above shows a group of the education volunteers deeply involved in their group activity....

Canada Day in Rwanda

Had the awesome opportunity to help with a workshop in another district called Nyanza with the 2 Mels (Melanie & Melissa). It was a very long day of teaching students & teacher-training - not to mention the extrac-curricular activities such as the 3 legged races! Thanks to the Mels for letting me participate as it was a great learning experience & a good time was had by all. Check out the picture of me with some of the students - they oughta be in pictures!

Canada Day happened to fall on the same day as Indepence Day in Rwanda. I celebrated our nation's birthday in style at the Canadian ambassadors house in Kigali. My team won the Canada Day quiz & won cool pens - I even got a temporary tattoo to show my loyalty to my country!

Schools Visits

In my sector there are 9 schools. Within only 1 month, I've managed to visit all of them & do at least one session of classroom observations. It has been educational to say the least. I have noticed that there are similarities in teaching styles that occur in every school. I am currently creating a workshop based on both the strengths and weaknesses that I have seen in the educational system. All the teachers are quite enthused & very happy to have someone assist with English pedagogy. I am happy to report that Rwanda has some very dedicated teachers who only want the very best for their students. This picture is of one of the schools in my sector - one of the few that is actually within walking distance of my house!

All work & no Play... not for me!

Things have finally started rolling workwise in my placement - I've visited all 9 schools in my sector & have started giving small feedback to teachers. But every weekend, there is another side to Kelt that comes out - the side that needs to cut loose and party the night away! There is always something going on in the capital city of Kigali so that is where I end up most weekends. This past weekend was a festival put on by VSO volunteers in Gitarama where we all had to dress up. Check out my crazy costume!

Muhura - my new home in the boonies

After over a month in Rwanda, I am finally in my house in Muhura, in the Gatsibo District of Rwanda. It is in the Eastern Province by Akagera National Park. Muhura is 45 minutes off the main highway, on a pot-hole filled dirt road. There is limited access to electricity and running water. The first trip to Kigali took me almost 4 hours - 2 hours by moto - mostly because we went after it had rained. The way back was quicker. There are nine schools in this small town and they are the ones I will be visiting first. Eventually I will go to schools in other towns in the district. Already I have gotten to know my neighbours and have walked the entire length of the town (45 minutes at a leisurely pace). It is beautiful and very quiet in Muhura. It is also surprisingly cold - especially in the mornings! It will take a bit of getting used to after being in the big city of Kigali for almost a month...

Workshops

Well, I have been in Rwanda 3 weeks and still don't have a home but have been staying with another volunteer, Epiphanie, and doing workshops with her for new Rwandan teachers. The workshops are aimed at making classrooms more child-centred and to use more than 1 learning style when teaching. There has also recently been a switch from French as the lingua franca to English so many of the teachers also need a lot of training in English methodology. It was hard work but by the end of the week we were like well-oiled machines and I now feel like I could do a successful workshop on my own or with another volunteer any time!

In Rwanda!

AFter flying for almost 2 days straight I finally arrive in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda and my suitcase, with my whole life, is not there. Thankfully the local VSO office is very helpful and I get my suitcase intact 2 days later. Thanks goes also to my roomate Mary for lending me some fresh clothes until my own stuff arrived. We start training in our small group of 6 almost immediately. Everyday there are some Kinraywandan lessons as well as other helpful information about how things work with VSO in Rwanda. We get to do some shopping and site seeing (the Memorial Centre is a particularly important visit to understand a bit of the history of the country) and of course we get to vond as a group. I am the second youngest in the group with the oldest being Alan at 75 who has been volunteering with VSO for many years and has some great stories. Wim, from Amsterdam is the baby at 36 years of age! We are excitedly (and sometimes tiredly) absorbing as much as we can in a short period of time. We are staying at a lovely guesthouse called Amani, which means peaceful (althought when the roosters crow in the morning it's not very peaceful).

One week to go!

As hard as it is to believe, I leave for Rwanda in one week! My flight from Kelowna to Vancouver to Amsterdam to Nairobi to Kigali leaves on April 11th and I finally arrive on April 13th, probably EXTREMELY jetlagged. I still (probably) have to buy a helmet here in Canada but I think I just about have everything else ready. The pictures show the difference between the helmet I am required to buy (for $200) for insurance purposes and the ones everyone will actually be wearing in Rwanda (which cost around $30). Nothing like looking like a complete tourist to blend in! Oh well, I've always prided myself on being unique!

Unfortunately, one big isse is that I have been have lower back problems lately, which my chiropractor promised would be fixed before I leave (better hurry up, Dr. Jeff!) I've looked over my paperwork several times, and probably will several more times before I leave. Like a good girl scout, Kelti likes to be prepared!

Difficulties finding Solar Polared Devices

As I might not have reliable electricity all the time in Rwanda, one of the other CUSO-VSO volunteers suggested that a solar powered device for charging cell phones might be beneficial. I was also told they were easy to find - even Canadian Tire has them! Well, not the case in small-town Kelowna! I looked everywhere and was dismayed to discover that the sunniest province in Canada (and supposedly one of the Greenest) has very little in the way of solar powered resources! Canadian Tire only had huge solar power panels for golf carts and such. I asked every sales clerk I could find and they all sent me somewhere else. Finally, I ordered one on e-Bay for $7 from Hong Kong and it works well for my Cambodian-born mobile phone (which should work fine in Rwanda) but not so much for my i-Pod (it actually seemed to be draining it of energy at one point!) I saw a Kodak solar charger at London Drugs for $35 and bought it, knowing I could return it if it didn't work. It does seem to work okay for my i-Pod, but takes eons to charge up via solar power. I will probably hang on to it as a back-up energy source as my mobile phone will be my most important and reliable communication source in a country where even the poorest folk have them.

SKWID training in Ottawa

What is SKWID training, you ask? It has nothing at all to do with squishy sea creatures and everything to do with preparing for volunteering with CUSO (which is happening for me in about a month!) For 4 intensive (and sometimes intense) days, we learned more about disadvantage & diversity, conflict management, and the art of facilitation. It was great to meet volunteers from all over the world, especially the 3 lovely ladies who are also going to Rwanda at the same time as me. This was also an opportunity for me to tour Ottawa (and Quebec!) and have a small reunion with some of my former classmates from YK (known to outsiders as Yellowknife).

One of the more unique tourist "attractions" in Ottawa are the feral cats that live by the Parliament building. Some guy build a little house for them and ensured funds that would keep them well fed and comfortable. As you can see from the attached pics, they seem to have a pretty nice life! I even considered shipping my own kitty over to hang out while I'm away in Rwanda! Just kidding, Koby, I'm sure Grandma and Grandpa Giles LOVE taking care of you!

On vaccinations and other preparations

So there is still enough time left before I leave that the whole 2 year adventure in Africa hasn't really become "real" to me yet. What is definitely making it more and more real are the number of painful, bruise-causing, wallet-emptying needles I have to endure. So far, I have been given an injections for typhoid, measle/mumps/rubella, meningitis, yellow fever and my 1st of 3 separate shots for rabies (at $170 each)! Luckily I already had the vaccinations for Hep A & B, as well as tetanus or I would really be bawling like a baby. This, of course, doesn't take into consideration the complete (and I mean COMPLETE) medical exam, the forced dental examination and following painful and expensive filling, and eye examination with double-vision, flashing-light causing drops, and months of malaria and pregnancy preventing pills I have yet to purchase. Did I mention I have to buy a motorcycle helmet because I will be riding on the back of a moto to get around most of the time? Well, at least all of these appointments are getting me out of the house and a few steps closer to my goal - And according to the eye doctor, my vision should return to normal in 8 short hours, so it's all good. Check out the funcky sunglasses they gave me to wear after my appointment - stylish!

Why am I doing this? Am I completely crazy?

Those of you who know me well know that I am a bit of a non-traditionalist. I have already spent 2 years of my life volunteering in Cambodia, why in the world would I want to do it again?

I returned "home" to Canada after almost 2 years as a United Nations Volunteer in Cambodia to a global recession and no jobs in my field of Adult Education ANYWHERE. Being unemployed for several months gave me the opportunity to reflect on what I really wanted out of life. It reaffirmed my need for a career (rather than a job) which gives me a sense of purpose while allowing me to travel and share my skills with those who really need it at the same time.

CUSO-VSO is quite well-known in Canada for sending volunteers to assist in developing countries throughout the world. For more information or to donate to CUSO-VSO, please go to http://www.cuso.org/.

I still have a couple of months until the start date of April 14 and still have a training in Ottawa where I'll meet other CUSO-VSO volunteers and learn how to be the best volunteer I can be. The position is a Basic Education Methodology Trainer which means I will be sharing best practices in education with teachers in rural Rwanda. I have done a great deal of research into this incredible country but still have a great deal to learn! Wish me luck!