This Monday started the week off right. Besides trying out J
Lynn’s, a hidden café that sells bagels, one of my VCU professors, Dr. Jamison,
came to visit another VCU student, Megan, and me. After talking for a bit
during our one hour lunch break, we quickly made arrangements to meet up again
for dinner. Megan, Katie (our roommate), and I made our way to Heaven, a local
restaurant ran by an American couple, to meet with Dr. Jamison. We sat down in
the charming little restaurant and had a great dinner. Alongside our beef
fillets and Japanese plum sorbets, we exchanged great conversations about our
experiences in Rwanda. I wanted to share a few topics that we talked about.
1. Changing genocide ideology
When I first brought up the topic of going to Rwanda to my
family, they all were in shock. “YOU, out of all people, want to go to RWANDA?
Did you not hear about the genocide that happened there?” Before coming here, I
do admit that I’ve been quite spoiled. It’s inevitable when you were born and
raised in the suburbs of Washington, DC. I’ve also heard of the genocide and
yes, I did watch the infamous Hotel
Rwanda before coming here. However, with an open mind, I convinced them by
telling them how eager I was to go and how much I wanted to help improve health
care. I’ll be honest and say that I was a bit nervous coming to a different
country alone. Like many others, I wondered how the genocide had affected the
country as well. Indeed, I was scared for any crimes that may happen when I got
here. However, after being here for three weeks, a lot of my initial
perspectives have changed. Living with the locals have made me realize how much
stronger Rwanda has become post-genocide. For example, there is the
Reconciliation and Unity Village. At the village, each house has a prosecutor,
survivor, and refugee living there in order to spread forgiveness and create
harmony amongst those affected by the genocide. Dr. Jamison also talked about
how a man confessed to a woman that he had killed her entire family. The woman
forgave him. It’s amazing to see how much effort is being put into forgiving
and trying to rebuilding the country. There are also many signs around Kigali
that say “Fighting genocide ideology.” Rwanda has definitely grown stronger
after the genocide. Everyone I’ve met has been so friendly and welcoming. I
hope that more people will be able to visit Rwanda and see how peaceful this
place is.
2. Expanding horizons
During our dinner, Dr. Jamison talked about the hotel having
a broken AC. He continued saying: “I can’t believe I was that guy who would complain about having no AC!” It made me think
about my own experiences. The first night here, I took my first cold shower. I
remember biting my lip as I held the showerhead above my head. After spending
three weeks here, I’m happy enough to even have running water now! I’ve gotten
used to taking cold showers and actually started to enjoy them. I don’t really
mind not having AC either since the weather here is absolutely gorgeous. The
temperature is highest mid-80s and drops to mid-60s at night. Also, there is
low humidity every day! It’s definitely a nice change from the hot and humid
weather in DC. If I could take anything back home, it’d be the weather. I’ve
assimilated nicely into this new culture and I am happy. I’ve noticed that I
don’t really use my electronics that much either, unless I’m contacted family
and friends. One of the many things I’ve learned here is to live simply. I
realized that I don’t need fancy electronics or constant internet access to
keep myself happy.
3. Where’s the trash???
Ever since I got here, I’ve been constantly amused by how
little trash, let alone trashcans, there is on the street. There are these
gutters that can be up to 5 feet deep on the side of every road to probably
catch the water during the rainy season. Since it’s the dry season right now,
there’s nothing there. There will be an occasional lady in there sweeping the
dirt away though. I also learned that plastic bags are outlawed in Rwanda. I
think about what will happen if America decided to outlaw plastic bags…I’m
pretty sure the roads will be even more littered than it already is! I don’t
even know where all the trash at my homestay goes to. I know that they burn
their trash…but where does it get stored in the meantime? If anyone can answer
my question, please let me know. J
Dr. Jamison, Megan, Me, and Katie enjoying our dessert at Heaven.
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