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.