A couple of days in Kigali...

From Neuilly to Kigali...

Waking up in posh Neuilly, Europe and arriving in Kigali, Africa in the evening is quite a journey!
6183.9 KM is nothing compared to the cultural distance. How has mankind evolved in such varied directions is actually an incredible credit to biodiversity... and at the same time, it also points towards the similarities of all human beings, regardless of everything...
Catching a taxi from Neuilly to Gare du Nord I spoke to the young driver. He told me about his studies in economics and his desire to travel to South America and to Mecca, one day. Arriving at Kigali I spoke to the taxi driver who is telling me that he is studying tourism management and that his dream is to show his country to tourists from all over the world.


Cheese and plastic bags

Just before landing in Kigali, a flight attendant announced through the intercom that the Rwandan government had recently decided to ban the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags and that all passengers were therefore required to leave their environmentally unfriendly plastic bags onboard. As I heard this, a few thoughts came to my mind: not all developing countries display a total lack of regard for their natural environments, was the Copenhagen climate change conference a success and the total horror that my parents felt when the cheese that they had brought to me as a surprise was confiscated at the border of another country...


Soeur Josephine

Soeur Josephine was waiting for me at the airport. I knew what she looked like, as I had been shown pictures of her, but she did not know what I look like... so she was holding a small sign with my name on it. I had always wondered how it feels to be welcomed in this way - stranger meets stranger through an external, pre-arranged rendez-vous... I spotted her in the crowd in less than 5 seconds, grabbed her hands and exclaimed: Jose Pavis, c'est moi! She responded by giving me a warm hug and said Bienvenue au Rwanda. Soeur Josephine is from the old school, speaking fluent French, but having never learnt English. Rwanda is about to change this... the official language of education is no longer French but English....


From French to English...

Rwanda is about to change this... the official language of education is no longer French but English. So learning English is becoming a priority for many people. It is easy to hypothesise ideological reasons for having done so, but I would not be able to do so...
All I know is that one of the main reasons I find myself in Rwanda is to train teachers raise their level of fluency in English. The Rwandan governement has recently decided to postpone 'back to school day' by almost one month, so teachers can be trained. As I am writing this, I have no idea what their current competence level is. This will be one the very first things I will have to assess when I meet them in a few days at Rugerero.


More on Soeur Josephine...

The day after my arrival Soeur Josephine comes to meet me at the guesthouse where I am staying. Two items on the agenda: mass and shopping. Mass first. We go the the Cathedrale Saint Michel for the service in Kinyarwanda (the previous one was in Swahili) a few languages are thereby selected for each service. For me the experience is about going inside my heart and finding a quiet place there but also to observe the people who are in the church, all beautifully dressed, with a sense of pride and self-worth, a willingness to connect with each other. I am amused by the many small children in their parent's arms making eye contact with each other with a glint in their eyes, but always behaving impeccably and respectfully. There is a sense of harmony and peace in this church. Next to me is Soeur Josephine totallay engrossed in the praying process.
It is clear that she is totally dedicated to her life as a nun. Later on during the day she tells me that she goes and works with poor people wherever the Diocese sends her. She says that she is currently working with handicapped children, that she has opened a sewing school in Muganza to help young girls become self-reliant and not beggars, she says that some years ago she had young children starving to death in her arms and adds that the situation has now improved, she tells me about the Health Centre where she also works and how much this has saved the lives of many people. Josephine is small in physical size and soft-spoken, she is also incredibly strong and driven to help those in needs.
I feel privilleged to sit next to Soeur Josephine at la Cathedrale Saint Michel...