Day 4—December 31, 2011
The Rwandan national flag, flying in front of Akagera Game Lodge.
Happy New Year's! Or, as Rwandans would say, “Umwaka mwiza!” We rise early to pack up our things for what will be a two-night getaway at the Akagera National Park. On our way we are to stop at the town of Kayonzya to meet with a local youth group and join them in some celebratory song and dance.
The sun is out at last, a welcome change after three days of persistent fog. Over some scrambled eggs and several cups of our favorite deliciously spicy Rwandan tea, we are finally able to make out the outlines of the houses and paths of far hill facing the CUP (Center for Unity and Peace).
Enjoying breakfast on the veranda of CUP overlooking Kigali.
Rwandan tea--a delicious way to start the day!
All are in good spirits as we drag our bags down the rock filled driveway to the van. We watch as members of the CUP staff engage in the Tetris-like excercise of stacking the luggage in the backseat. Amazingly, it all fits, and we are on our way.
Ready to leave for a day of meeting new people and making new friends.
Bouncing along the muddied paths down into Kigali proper, we notice people working on the sides of the roads everywhere. Men, women and children alike causally tote machetes. People leave their laundry
out to dry as they work, roadside.
Laundry drying next door to an adobe house.
Father Philbert informs us that today is one of many regular days of service mandated by the government. We immediately and universally agree that this is a great idea and should be implemented back home. Seeing a row of women sweeping the edge of the dirt road launches us into a discussion of the merits of mandatory community service.
In Kayonza, we are greeted with open arms by local pastors, young people and crowd of children, all of whom have taken time out of their day of service to meet us. The Japanese delegation with REACH Rwanda is also in Kayonza, and some of them are already whirling around with a local dance group when we arrive.
Traditional dancing at Kayonza. Wonderful!
REACH Rwanda provides the mixed Hutu and Tutsi community of Kayonza with a place to meet and celebrate together in the form of an expansive soccer field and brand new youth center. In the corner of the dirt field, two long white tents are set up perpendicularly to form a square staging area for the groups performing. Outfitted with an electrical keyboard and modern speakers, the setup is impressive and shows a great deal of effort. Energetic boys of all ages chase after a soccer ball at the distant end of the field as the crowd of young children close by watch the dancers performing and move to the beat themselves.
As the boys playing soccer crawl under the back flap of our tent, we realize that they have been using a coconut as soccer ball. A boy reminds Brandy to return with a real football for him on her next visit to Kayonza.
The boys and their soccer ball.
We have fun with the kids, too!
Giving out lollipops to the children. Fun!
A confident and well-spoken young boy with a charismatic smile approaches a number of us in turn, asking us about ourselves. He is disappointed to learn we are not from the UK and do not know his sponsor. It is clear that he is comfortable meeting foreigners. We wonder how often Americans make it out to Kayonza.
More boys having a great time!
After an exchange of official greetings and a group prayer, we sit down with the Japanese delegation to enjoy more performances by several local choirs and dance groups. The happy voices of these young people are easy evidence of the vibrance and spirit of this community and serve as a hopeful sign after all that we learned about the 1994 genocide.
Traditional singers and drummers.
This is one of the wonderful, beautiful children we've met here in Rwanda.
The children walk us to our van as we depart. We are sad to leave.
The road to Akagera is beautiful and lively. It passes through a breathtakingly lush valley and is lined with people and colorful, modestly constructed homes. The strength of the Rwandan people continues to strike us as we see women strolling the roadside at all hours of the day, carrying heavy loads on their heads, and men pedaling past us with building materials lashed to their bicycles. Everyone expresses disbelief at the number of pedestrians visible anytime we are driving along these rural roads.
We stop for a lunch break before heading into the national park.
We enjoy another traditional dance performance over a wonderful poolside dinner at the scenic Akagera game lodge, overlooking Rwanda’s lakefront border with Tanzania.
After dinner, we gather to reflect on what was an inspirational day and to celebrate once again the possibilities of the year to come.
Once again, Happy New Year!
~ Caroline Merck, Boston College law student
Today's photographs were taken by Caroline Merck and Annalise Nielson.
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