Pictures taken in May, 2012

Northern Province (hills created from plates compressing)

Esonga Division 1 (light blue) playing at main stadium near our house

Front steps to our house (a bit of a climb!)

Our banana tree

Road in front of our house

This man's job was to keep hitting the rocks to break them up to fill the road in front of our house.

Ezekiel ("Izzy") our 'guardian' drying the new boots we bought for him

Me standing beside the fake elephant outside Nakumatt department store

Inside the Kirimonko (Remera) Market

A lovely, cheerful mother sorting potatoes with youngster tied to her back

The Potato Section (Irish and Sweet potatoes plus Cassava).  Hooks hang down from roof to weigh the big bags of potatoes.  

Fruits and vegetables behind the potatoes.  I was standing on a stool to take this shot while waiting for shoemaker to fix a leather seat for us.

The shoemaker fixing our leather seat.  He fixes shoes that we would through out in the "West".

Pool at the Hotel des Milles Collines (formerly the Hotel Rwanda where the Americans were evacuated by helicopter and left their native admin staff surrounded by Hutu army forces)  

Yusuf's 18th birthday at the Bourbon Cafe at the Kigali Towers downtown.

Yusuf's birthday while waiting to be served.  Zain is happy and relaxed during a very active 'retirement' in Rwanda.

Recent Pics of our New Rental House

This is our new rental house in Remera which is closer to Yusuf's soccer training beside the Amahoro Stadium.  It's a bungalow.  Master bedroom on the far right.  Living room between the two pillars.  Front door in centre behind purple bush.  Dining room behind window to left.  Outdoor table and chairs in front of dining room windo.  To far left is another window for a small room off the kitchen used for storage and ironing.

In this picture of the living dining area, the front door is on the left.  (You can see just the right edge of it.)  The holes above the door are set in concrete and screened from the outside.  The air blows freely when the wind blows but the temperatures even at night are very mild. I've never felt a chill here although the native people wear acrylic fleece and lined, waterproof jackets.  I guess this is the beginning of winter here i.e. May - Oct.!  We all sit down to eat in the formal dining room.  There is no eat-in kitchen.  It's quite lovely!  The furniture came with the house and is very heavy, solid wood.  I can barely move this love seat myself!  There are two single chairs and a 3-seat sofa.  We sit there after dinner with a hurricane candle burning and pretend this is our 3 million dollar cottage in Muskoka.  Definitely, it has a rustic feel to it with the comfy seating and soft color scheme.  I love it because I believe it belongs to a Rwandan lady who lives in Ottawa or Montreal.  I really appreciate the feminine design aspects contrary to the first house we lived in.

This is the transition to the kitchen with a hall to the right taking us to the back door.  Right again is a long hall to the bedrooms and bath.  Second door to hall from living room.  This huge China cabinet was in the dining room.  I had it move by about six local guys so we could use it for books and other storage.  It was so heavy but looks beautiful from the front door entry.

We purchased this LG top load washing machine for about $400.  It is hooked to both hot and cold water.  The hot water tank is elevated on the top left of the picture.  This machine has a pump for flushing dirty water out through the dark hose on the upper right of the machine.  Actually, I think that is the drain going from the wall into the floor on the ground to the right.  There are settings for the water level and also for various types of clothing.  There's also an "air dry" feature but I haven't tried that yet since we hang everything to dry on a wire clothesline.

This is the single water tank which is filled from the city supply by gravity and also comes into the house by gravity via the which pipes.  We shut off the water to have a tap fixed and no one seemed to understand why the water pressure became so low.  I finally guessed that there was air in the lines.  After doing a charade with "Izzy" to explain, he turned on the tap on the lower left of this picture to blow out whatever air he could.  Finally, the two hot water tanks have pressure again!  There's one tank outside serving the laundry, kitchen and the common bathroom.  The second tank is in the master bath.

Here is Yusuf sleeping under his mosquito net.  He has a lovely wooden clothes cupboard and a window with a desk underneath.  Very cozy!  His suitcases are piled on top of the wardrobe.  I found out from "Izzy" that he continually sprays outside the house for "critters" like cockroaches and big bugs.  This morning I found a cockroach upside down outside at the back apparently stunned by something like DDT.  As I was entering the back door after resolving the air in the water pipe problem, I spied a huge black winged insect on the edge of the door.  Izzy jumped to destroy it.  He explained through charade that that think could take a big piece out of a human leg and he went to get his insecticide container with a hose connected to it.  He showed me that it was empty and that if I were to give him $15 (10 thousand RWF), he would get more of the liquid to be able to ward off those dangerouse insects.  I hope that includes salamanders because I found one on a wall last week but before I could return with an oven mitt and paper bag, he had vanished!

Shipping Personal Vehicle to East Africa

Shipping a personal vehicle to Africa is not for the faint of heart. We were warned not to even think about shipping our car to East Africa.  The reasons included risk of the ship being hi-jacked by Somali pirates and all the corruption at the ports.  Well, I knew that if the Somalis managed to get hold of Zain’s car, that he would go directly to Mogadishu and simply get it back from the pirates or whomever they might have sold it!   

Turns out there was a significant backlog of shipments from Oman to East Africa.  Our car, which was in a shipping container by itself for obvious protection against bumps, scrapes and temptation for thieves of any description or orientation, left Toronto mid-February on a train to Montreal where it was shipped possibly to Antwerp.  From there, it arrived in Salalha, Oman where it sat in a backlog to East Africa. 

I recommend installing a GPS to track the exact global position of the vehicle (we didn’t) because no one else will be able to tell you where your car is at any given time.  I recall that the ship finally arrived in Dar Es Salam April 10.  It seems that it took nine days for it to be unloaded because our car didn’t start getting cleared by customs until about April 20.  Part of the problem was that the Bill of Lading said “cargo” which the port people thought meant the whole container.  Therefore, the “cargo” got piled with all the other containers rather than being unloaded as intended.  The shipping agent back home should have identified the “container contents”  to be unloaded in Dar Es Salam. 

The Clearing Agent in Dar Es Salam, whom we had to pay another sum of USD in advance, finally got the container moved and unloaded.  The bonded driver started out with the car on Friday, May 2.  However, the Clearing agent failed to give the bonded driver our original Purchase Invoice from Canada to prove at the Rwanda border that we didn’t steal the car before heading out to Africa. 

That’s when the driver called Zain at 8:30 Sunday a.m. in a panic asking in some kind of broken English for the Purchase Invoice.  Obviously, the Clearing Agent at the port cleverly gives out only the owner’s cell number to drivers for after hour emergencies.  Zain managed to call the General Manager of the company in Dubai because Sunday was a work day in the UAE.  He told Zain that all the documents would be with the agent in Dar Es Salam but we’d have to wait until Monday a.m.  In the meantime, the driver called back to say he was leaving the car and going back home to Dar Es Salam.  Zain was quite irate at this point because, if a man ever loved a car, Zain loves his 2002 Mercedes C320.  Picture it parked by the side of the road at a remote border crossing in the jungle.

In very simple English, Zain ordered the driver to stay put and get a hotel room.  By now, Zain had called the second Clearing Agent in Kigali who rose to the occasion.  Through all of this, the driver had not been given enough money for gas and Zain had to give the Clearing Agent in Kigali money for about another half tank of gas.  The Clearing Agent in Kigali proceeded to the border crossing to resolve the issues which included taking a copy of the Purchase Invoice which had been sent to us by email from Dar Es Salam.  It turned out that the original Purchase Invoice was sitting in a completely different Clearing Agent’s office in Kigali.  When we changed Clearing Agent way back when to save a few hundred dollars, the original Clearing Agent was supposed to courier all the documents to the Clearing Agent in Dar Es Salam.  They didn’t.

Once the car was in Kigali, the next challenge was to make sense of the Customs Clearing charges particularly when we were told that “that’s the way it is”.  Fortunately, Zain found a professional firm that would take care of everything including a proper invoice, American style, for a good sum less than the “that’s the way it is” scheme.  Even still, the Clearing Agent in Kigali said they needed proof that the shipper in Canada had been paid.  It seems that they didn’t understand the original wire receipt from our bank showing the details.  Finally, after going directly to Customs with the issue, the well informed Customs people told Zain that it was quite enough proof. At least because we have a two-year Residence Permit, there was no Customs duty on the car nor the pots and pans, books, and boots that we had packed as personal items.

It’s May 6 and Zain is proudly driving us around in his lovely car.  “Izzy” which is Zain’s short version of Ezekial, the name of our grounds person, also proudly washes it by hand early every morning.   We pick up a lot of red clay due to road construction near our house.  We have an International Traveller licence plate, third party local insurance and international auto insurance which I purchased before leaving Canada.  Insurance for the car here is almost half of what it would be at home.  We still need to get a certificate from the Motor Vehicle Licence place which probably involves a quick check to ensure that the car is roadworthy.  All is good that ends well.

Zain driving out through gate of our new house in the freshly washed car.

"Izzy" watching with pride!

Shopping in Kigali

The Red Rooster building in City Centre looks like a Chinese Imperial palace with wide porcelain tiled stairs rising up through the centre.  What a gold mine for the Chinese investors!  Zain said that they brought “all of China here with them” referring to all the “dollar store” loot on the shelves.  We picked up some excellent cutlery, a fine aluminum cooking pot made in India for $7, a couple of fantastic LED study lamps that I’ve never seen even in Canada, three stems of artificial gladiola for $2 each, and a lovely porcelain Chinese tea mug with Lily of the Valley flowers tastefully imprinted for $1.25.  There are some very good quality cooking pots and utensils made from Chinese stainless steel and some copper.

 

The fresh tropical fruit and vegetables (green peas, green beens, sweet bell peppers, onions) are very tasty with lots of fibre.  We soak them in a water solution of  sodium dioxide for 20 minutes before putting into the crisper of the fridge.  (I don’t want bacteria-laden soil or bugs in my fridge.)  In addition, I like to peel everything but don’t bother with the lovely plum-shaped tomatoes which look like they’ve been washed already.  We have a garden growing in the back from which our grounds person, Ezekiel, brought me the finest, juiciest cabbage already trimmed of the large leaves.  I cored it and blanched it with a little salt.  We’ve directed him to plant cucumbers, tomatoes and carrots.  Yusuf explained to me that Ezekiel grows things there on his own in case no one rents the house.  (You see, we feed him three meals a day of whatever we eat plus pay him $66 CAD per month for night watch, controlling the front gate, landscaping and fixing little things.  Also, he lives in a painted cement apartment which is part of our house at the back.)

Other groceries include butcher shop beef and lamb.  The chicken has an odd taste or, I should say, is tasteless and a little tough.  The first chicken we got was about $5 but must have been running around too much because the meat was dark and tasty but there really wasn’t any meat on the poor bird!  Then we bought a juicy chicken which our dinner guests informed us was “hybrid”.  (That meant ‘neutered’ or a capon.)  It was like what we were used to in Toronto fresh from the farm from our local butcher but was also the same price as at home e.g. $7.  Instead, we buy reasonably priced frozen Talapia filets which I believe come from Lake Victoria (the same as for Doctors Livingston and Stanley) - lovely, lovely white fish like halibut.  Fruits include papaya, green Granny Smith apples from South Africa, loads of short, sweet bananas, and passion fruit.  Packaged household goods are reasonably priced for local brands from Kenya.  Any brands of packaged goods e.g. soap, from the UK or US are the same price as at home. 

The best is the fresh, whole grain bread!  For starch, we also have round potatoes which make wonderful French Fries (remember that the French/Belgians were here before us)!  I steamed some cassava and carrots yesterday, mashed them with white rice and added some flour to make it all stick.  I seasoned it with salt, pepper, garlic, ginger and cumin.  Then I made small patties and fried them lightly on our gas range in a little oil.  Everyone loved them!  For extra energy, Yusuf ate them with packaged red beans in tomato sauce. 

For dinner, we went to an inexpensive hotel restaurant that Zain had already checked out with some business friends.  Yusuf and Zain had mushroom soup served in a large European white bowl on a plate.  I had a fresh salad of cucumbers, sliced tomatoes, very finely sliced white onions, four black olives (a little shrivelled), and a dressing of olive oil and vinegar.  Then came the breaded Tilapia shish kabob on sticks.  I had thick, folded Indian bread (Chapatti) which I shared with Yusuf.  Yusuf and Zain had French Fries which we told Zain he wasn’t allowed to eat.  He pushed them over to Yusuf who was too full to eat all of them.  Nothing to drink because the main attraction other than beer is very sweet soda pop.  Actually, Zain sneaked a lemon Fanta into the order.  I had two sips which was quite enough for me and Yusuf finished it off.

I learned from reading some history about Rwanda that cow’s milk is very popular here.  I think this originated when the area became “pastoral” with Tutsi herders arriving from the north.  In fact, there is always a lot of fresh milk (whole, two percent) in every little or big grocery store.  It is sold in whitish plastic bottles like you find at Mac’s Milk in Toronto.  However, there is a tight plastic insert under the twist cap.  It is extremely difficult to remove.  I have to pry it with a sharp knife and then get out the  pliers to pull it out. (I brought a home toolkit from Toronto.)  At least I know that no one has tampered with it!  Our favourite beverage has become African Tea which can be enjoyed any time of the day.  Take more milk than water, heat on the stove with a tea bag, slices of ginger and add a little honey.  Brew for a bit and you have a very nutritious drink for about three people that warms the bones in cool, damp evenings of the tropical highlands of Rwanda.

You might know that coffee is the most lucrative crop in Rwanda because unlike most other coffee growing regions of the world, there is never any frost here.  I love a good cup of filtered coffee, no more than once per day, with a bit of milk and half a teaspoon of sugar (or not if I’m being really good!). Rwandan coffee tends to taste like really fresh French Roast coffee.  The regular Rwandan tea has such a sweet flavour on its own with a bit of milk.  I’ve never tasted such delicious tea!

We have shopped so far only at little grocery shops and the large Kenyan department store called Nakumatt run very efficiently by Indians.  Zain even has a frequent shopper number there and it seems the more he buys, the more the computer discounts his total purchase!  We picked up a copy of desks half price and a solid wood chair for me with lumbar support that matches one of the desks.  Zain then found the Trident furniture store run again by Indians in Mugerwa to the south of the city where he had to wait for his car to clear customs.  He got a lovely light yellow leather executive swivel chair for himself half price, a small swivel chair for Yusuf and a small, narrow computer desk for Yusuf.  The owner delivered the items himself in a passenger van and the installer came shortly afterward to put everything together.  I have yet to explore one of the local open air markets.  I brought minimal summer clothing with me which has been fine but I was hoping to pick up some African cotton and have some outfits made e.g. skirts and tops.  Thankfully, everything we need is affordable here. 

Camp Kigali

Welcome to Camp Kigali!  It’s us against them...mosquitoes, cockroaches, and wall-climbing salamanders.  Thank goodness the ants sensibly go about their business outside.  The water from the storage tank that is fed by the city looks a lot like the Muskoka River – acidic brown.  As the expert at Mountain Equipment in Toronto advised Yusuf and me, as long as there’s no “crud” in the water, we can just add sodium dioxide or boil the water to eliminate any parasites or bacteria.  Well, that’s reassuring.  Only problem is that I am suspicious about drinking water that I can’t see through perfectly.

A large salamander gazing straight at the night light on the ceiling of our outside front entrance.

Some time back, we visited a Moroccan family that is running a school here funded by the Kuwaiti Foundation.  It’s open to all children.  (That’s were Yusuf first got bitten by a mosquito on his thumb but we didn’t worry much because he’s taking anti-malaria medicine.)  The place was essentially a mosque, school and house with goats, chickens and a couple of sheep on the edge of the city.  Apparently, the cow and calf died along with the pigeons and rabbits.  Damn those parasites! 

"Open door" living out on the farm!

Anyway the two young children were quite healthy despite an “open door” concept which included unobstructed entrance for a chicken and flies.  Of course, where there is manure within walking distance, there will be flies.  However, at Camp Kigali, it’s quite a simple procedure to just swish the flies away from the food before they land.  I spoke in French to the hostess and host and Zain spoke in Arabic with the host.  Yusuf just listened and sat politely being more of a visual-spatial kind of guy anyway.  All of a sudden, our host grabbed at my knee!  Before I knew it, he had plucked a huge African mosquito from my thick linen gown and flicked it onto the floor – dead or alive, I know not which.  I was quite shaken having seen those ghastly mosquitoes on television and knowing that the females can transmit malaria.

Our host assured us that his children never get bitten by mosquitoes and never get sick (despite the open-door living conditions).  So I needed to investigate.  The house was very clean except for unvacuumed carpets so I figured the children were allergy-free.  Everyone had a mosquito net for sleeping.  They buy fresh food from a local market.  They boil their water and THEN let it drip through ceramic filters in a professional stainless steel drum.  That was it!  A double process was required for the water treatment.  I could no longer drink the brownish water at our own place water even if it was treated with sodium dioxide. 

The Morrocans had taught me that it would be much safer to use two processes i.e. boil the water and then filter through porous ceramic.  (Of course, no one here can afford sodium dioxide and I haven’t even seen any for sale in the better department stores.)  I remembered that one of the portable water filters at Mountain Equipment had a plunger that let one force the water through a porous ceramic cyclinder.  I think it cost $70 but I figured then that I didn’t need it.  When I went home, I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of drinking sodium dioxide including the residual parasites and bacteria that it was supposed to have killed.  Zain, a chemical engineer, assured me that the chemicals were safe to drink but I just couldn’t consume any more brown water.  So, we’re back to buying spring water which is sourced in Kigali from the famous Gasabo springs.  Too bad the city can’t just connect the springs to the city water supply. 

Zain and I have agreed to purchase one of the stainless steel tanks with ceramic filters which as a large reservoir at bottom which catches the drips from the ceramic, candle-shaped cylinders – usually three per unit.  Problem is that it takes a while for the water to filter through because gravity is the only way the water will filter through.  Will probably cost about $70 at the huge Chinese department store here called T2000 at the The Red Rooster building.  However, it will process a lot more water than the hand-held one for the same price back home.  If any of you go camping, I think the porcelain cyclinder concept with the plunger would be ideal with or without sodium dioxide as a pre-treatment.