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This past Friday, we had the day off from Kabuga High School (KHS), and just were teaching at Girimpuwhe. What a great way to end the week. The Girimpuwhe class is so much fun.


Each day we start the class off with greetings. We go around in a circle saying “Hello, how are you? My name is…” Repetition is a great tool, and each day there are new students coming, so it is nice way for them to join in. Then we move onto review, which currently consists of colors, number 1-30, body parts, and shapes. Whether its our modified version of “Simon Says”, home made flashcards, or just talking and practicing, all of the students get a lot of practice, and certainly more comfortable with Sophia and I. Ward Brook Association provided sodas for everyone on Friday to congratulate everyone on a long week of hard work.





Each day we start the class off with greetings. We go around in a circle saying “Hello, how are you? My name is…” Repetition is a great tool, and each day there are new students coming, so it is nice way for them to join in. Then we move onto review, which currently consists of colors, number 1-30, body parts, and shapes. Whether its our modified version of “Simon Says”, home made flashcards, or just talking and practicing, all of the students get a lot of practice, and certainly more comfortable with Sophia and I. Ward Brook Association provided sodas for everyone on Friday to congratulate everyone on a long week of hard work.

On Saturday, we were invited to a wedding along with Erika (our Rwandan mother) and her family, Eliya and Linda (2 of her 4 brothers and sisters) and Maria or Mama Maria (Erika’s mother). We made it to the end of the ceremony which was at a church in Kanombe. Although Kanombe is not far from the compound, it took longer than one would think. Because the road to Kanombe only really goes to Kanombe, it is not looked after, and it is not paved. Therefore, the entire road is covered in massive potholes that even us Vermonter’s cringe at. The road is so bad that the minibus taxis have started driving off the side of the road, which has now made for a three-lane road. In general the paved roads are pretty decent in Rwanda. If you choose a dirt road, you will always be in for a very bumpy ride.
So the wedding was fun, very different from a traditional wedding here. The wedding was not a traditional wedding though (a traditional wedding would be held at the bride’s home, not a church). There was a lot of talking and blessing, the bride and groom signed their marriage papers and were sent out to their cars, decorated with ribbon of course, by singers and dancers on either side of them.

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The reception was held at President Habyarimana’s old estate, which is also where his plane crashed into after being shot down, which was the unofficial start of the genocide. Again, the bride and groom were led in by singing and dancing, and were poured Fanta (orange soda) in their wine glasses. Again there was a lot of singing, dancing and talking. They cut the cake under a huge stream of confetti, and then served it to their guests (passing a plate around with napkins, for each person to take a piece). The cake was good, more like sweetened bread, although the frosting tasted like the frosting we know. Instead of one big cake, there were many medium cakes shaped in squares, like baskets, and other Rwandan symbols. Erika and family did not feel like staying to the end, and it was already dark, so we headed home early. Not to the complaint of Sophia and I since we couldn’t understand a word they were saying.


The same was for Sunday, when we attended church with Erika at the Zion Temple. It was unlike anything we had seen before. Instead looking like a classic church we would know in America, it was more like a great hall, with two stories, packed with at least 1,000 people. We arrived early, and were able to hear/see the chorus (as well as others) singing and dancing. Afterwards there was a ton of talking. The total service was about 3 and half hours. Although we did have a translator, we both were guilty of zoning out from time to time.
Over the weekend we also made it into town, mumudgi, Kigali, to buy some coat hangers for our room. We found that we just didn’t have enough floor space. Going to town is always an experience. There are so many people in one small area, and that is where we see most of the other Mzungu (white people). There are so many tiny, as well as large, shops to peer into.

So we were planning on uploading this yesterday but there was a very big rainstorm and none of the cafes were functioning. The rain was so hard and heavy that we were both awake for an hour at night unable to fall asleep with the sound of the heavy rain on our tin roof. But today (Wednesday) we were up early and at KHS by 8:00am for our Senior 1 class. Since last Thursday, our class has doubled in size, about 15 to 30 students, and they are a handful! One student today brought in some very inappropriate reading material, and so we had to take him to the Head of Discipline. We aren’t sure what it is going to happen, they said they do not tolerate that sort of thing, but they are going to have a meeting with his parents. As the headmaster said, “you have only been here two weeks, how are you already taking these risks?!” Other teachers have also spoken about his disruptive behavior in their class, as well as disrupting classes that aren’t even his own. There’s one in every crowd I guess…

But our classes were good. We had our first class, and then another one after a break. We are working on Parts of Speech, nouns, verbs, adjectives, and they are getting better everyday. We have them reading very simple books, one sentence per page, and picking out the nouns, verbs, and adjectives on each page. We also had them reading aloud. With such a big class it is hard to keep everyone focused, but they do a good job for the most part.

So life continues here in Rwanda. We are learning as much as we can about everything. We try learn at least one new word a day and seem to be successful. Yesterday our new word was “Vuba” which means quickly. We can count to ten and let our minibus driver know that we want to get going. We are also learning how to deal with cockroaches and cold showers. Hopefully as time continues to pass, we’ll continue to improve. Hobe (hugs)!

(Cariste, our cook, sifting beans at the compound)