In order to facilitate your ability to picture where I am, I thought I would include a couple of photos as well as an explanation of where I am living and working.
Kigali is a city of 900 000 people. Rwanda really is the “land of a thousand hills” so the city is a series of hills and valleys. The way that I am able to identify where I am (and I think the landmarks that most people use) is by looking out for the roundabouts. There’s a very large one in Centre Ville (downtown) that spins you off in various directions. Close to it is Union Center, where there’s some expatriate stores and the good coffee shop, with the nearby tourist centre. About 6 blocks (10 minutes by foot) heading south from there is KHI where I work. East down the hill, past the presidential residence and the Rupublika restaurant is Kiyovu, the neighborhood where I live. My guesthouse is about a 25 minute walk from KHI, mostly because you have to wind your way down the hill. Dibal says there’s a short cut, but since I get a ride each day he hasn’t shown me yet. Other than that I don’t know too much more about the city in great detail because Centre ville, the guesthouse, and work are my three main destinations.
The guesthouse where I am staying is owned and operated by KHI. It is for volunteers, guest lecturers and other visitors to use while they are guests of KHI. Kiyovu is a very expatriate area of town and where colonialists must have settled. The mount-royal of Kigali, if you will. These days there are a lot of guesthouses, government bodies (such as the CIDA office/guesthouse) and homes of wealthier Rwandans or people who have settled here. The roads are paved and although the streets are dark at night it seems very safe. Almost every property (I say property because there is often more than one house) has a large gate with security guards. We have two guards stationed at all times. I’m really not sure how necessary this really is, but security is everywhere in this country, even at the entrance of KHI. I guess considering there was a civil war and genocide a mere 14 years ago it makes sense. When you come in my gate there is a steep driveway that leads to the house. The house is beautiful and very large and if you’re having trouble picturing a colonial house just think of Babar. The more I actually think of that show the more I realize how politically incorrect it is…
Anyways, sorry, back to the house. There is a large living room with couches and a TV that has 3 channels but I have yet to watch it. There is a dining table and it would actually be a really nice place to throw a party. There is a door leading to the kitchen, which is spacious with many cubourds that lock (I think the security guards and houseboys tend to take the food that is left out). There’s a microwave, freezer, fridge… lots of great kitchen supplies and the stove does not emit electrical shocks! Across from the bathroom is the room that I used to stay in, and a half bathroom. I chose to move upstairs so it would be a little quieter.
On the top floor there are 6 bedrooms. One of them is a master suite with an en-suite bathroom and walk in closet. That room was a little too much for me to handle so I have the small room in the corner. It’s cozy and quiet and a good place to set myself for six months. The room with the door to the veranda was inticing, but Dibal told me that I would get sick of pe
ople walking through my room to get out there, which I think is true. There are also two full bathrooms upstairs, but only one of them has a shower in which you can stand (the other one has a hose and you squat in the tub to avoid getting water everywhere). And yes, there is a pool and large satellite, but as you can see they're not in working order. I like to call the pool "Malaria central".
I have an open-door policy with the other girls and I might give them one of my keys so they can come over any time. Right now there are three other guests: Dibal, who is from Nigeria and works in the Biomedical Laboratory Science department (BLS in the future), Franco, a doctor from Canada evaluating a program he started here three years ago, and Simba, who is from California/Canada/Originally Uganda and just started this week permenatly in the Nursing department (he’s a psychologist).
Kigali is a city of 900 000 people. Rwanda really is the “land of a thousand hills” so the city is a series of hills and valleys. The way that I am able to identify where I am (and I think the landmarks that most people use) is by looking out for the roundabouts. There’s a very large one in Centre Ville (downtown) that spins you off in various directions. Close to it is Union Center, where there’s some expatriate stores and the good coffee shop, with the nearby tourist centre. About 6 blocks (10 minutes by foot) heading south from there is KHI where I work. East down the hill, past the presidential residence and the Rupublika restaurant is Kiyovu, the neighborhood where I live. My guesthouse is about a 25 minute walk from KHI, mostly because you have to wind your way down the hill. Dibal says there’s a short cut, but since I get a ride each day he hasn’t shown me yet. Other than that I don’t know too much more about the city in great detail because Centre ville, the guesthouse, and work are my three main destinations.
The guesthouse where I am staying is owned and operated by KHI. It is for volunteers, guest lecturers and other visitors to use while they are guests of KHI. Kiyovu is a very expatriate area of town and where colonialists must have settled. The mount-royal of Kigali, if you will. These days there are a lot of guesthouses, government bodies (such as the CIDA office/guesthouse) and homes of wealthier Rwandans or people who have settled here. The roads are paved and although the streets are dark at night it seems very safe. Almost every property (I say property because there is often more than one house) has a large gate with security guards. We have two guards stationed at all times. I’m really not sure how necessary this really is, but security is everywhere in this country, even at the entrance of KHI. I guess considering there was a civil war and genocide a mere 14 years ago it makes sense. When you come in my gate there is a steep driveway that leads to the house. The house is beautiful and very large and if you’re having trouble picturing a colonial house just think of Babar. The more I actually think of that show the more I realize how politically incorrect it is…
Anyways, sorry, back to the house. There is a large living room with couches and a TV that has 3 channels but I have yet to watch it. There is a dining table and it would actually be a really nice place to throw a party. There is a door leading to the kitchen, which is spacious with many cubourds that lock (I think the security guards and houseboys tend to take the food that is left out). There’s a microwave, freezer, fridge… lots of great kitchen supplies and the stove does not emit electrical shocks! Across from the bathroom is the room that I used to stay in, and a half bathroom. I chose to move upstairs so it would be a little quieter.
On the top floor there are 6 bedrooms. One of them is a master suite with an en-suite bathroom and walk in closet. That room was a little too much for me to handle so I have the small room in the corner. It’s cozy and quiet and a good place to set myself for six months. The room with the door to the veranda was inticing, but Dibal told me that I would get sick of pe
ople walking through my room to get out there, which I think is true. There are also two full bathrooms upstairs, but only one of them has a shower in which you can stand (the other one has a hose and you squat in the tub to avoid getting water everywhere). And yes, there is a pool and large satellite, but as you can see they're not in working order. I like to call the pool "Malaria central".I have an open-door policy with the other girls and I might give them one of my keys so they can come over any time. Right now there are three other guests: Dibal, who is from Nigeria and works in the Biomedical Laboratory Science department (BLS in the future), Franco, a doctor from Canada evaluating a program he started here three years ago, and Simba, who is from California/Canada/Originally Uganda and just started this week permenatly in the Nursing department (he’s a psychologist).
At work, I am splitting my time between the BLS (biomedical laboratory sciences) department and the Nursing department. For BLS I'm not doing much yet, and it looks as though I might just be an extra set of hands which is a little frustrating. However, I love working in Nursing. The dean is a really nice lady and excited to have me. I usually teach two or three mornings a week. The course is Nursing of Adults 2, which is the medical/surgical theory on diseases of the nervous system, endocrine system, skin, ears nose and throat, eye, and immune system. I have to finish it all in five weeks, which is going to feel rushed because explinations take so long due to some language barriers. All the students are supposed to be able to speak english well, but the reality is that it's their third lanuguage (after Kinyarwanda and French). I have 43 students in my class and 15 of them are male. So far they're attentive, polite, and very eager to learn.
2 comments:
you say you have room for guests.. ill havta start savin up now! :P
hahah kel\ is actually kelsey macphee
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