Burundi

We got back on Monday from long weekend visiting our friends Jim and Karri in Bujumbura, Burundi.

It was a 7 hour bus ride from Kigali to Buja, but the bus was pretty nice. I mean, it was titled Belvedere Bus Lines, you can't get much classier than that.

We had no troubles at the border, and since we had made friends with a group of people on the bus, we know that if we had had problems, they would have had our back. This group was hilarious. At one rest stop everyone piled off the bus to get roasted maize (corn cobs) and goat shish-kabobs, at 8:00 in the morning! When they got back on the bus the leader of the group walked up to Melissa, snapped off half of his roasted maize, and handed it to her. They clearly wanted to take care of the white folk.

Bujumbura is located on the shore of a huge lake. When approaching the city you are driving in the windy hills, and then suddenly everything flattens out and you see the city on the edge of the lake. It is the flattest piece of land I've seen in East Africa.

We arrived at the station to find Karri waiting for us. Karri was in my cohort at Eastern, and since there was only 11 of us in the cohort, we got to know each other real well. It was really good to see her. We walked to their local coffee shop to meet up with Jim, and then on to their offices. It was great to see what life has looked like for them for the last 6 months. Karri and her husband, Jim, both work for World Relief. Karri works in their microfinance bank, Turame. And Jim works with them doing various ministry-related jobs, teaching music, preaching, working with youth, etc.

We caught a cab to their house, freshened up, and then headed out to Khana Kazanas, an unbelievable Indian restaurant that just relocated to Buja from Kigali. I ordered some sort of green goo (on the owners recommendation) and it was to die for.

Saturday we went to the beach and played volleyball ALL AFTERNOON... it was glorious. There were about 30 expatriates that had gathered to play a tournament. These people were from the U.S., France, Austria, England, Spain, Australia and plenty of other places. It was shocking to be around so many white people in one place. I suffered a bit of reverse culture shock (Why aren't there any Africans around like I am used to? Why is so much English being spoken?) but then settled in as the tournament began. The team Jim and I were on came in third, just beating out Melissa's team. We had a blast.

That night we ate at a very cool new restaurant on the beach overlooking the water. A thunderstorm rolled in over the lake and we got to just sit and experience the storm while we waited for our food. It was a great night.

Sunday we went to church with Jim and Karri and we got to hear Jim preach. He gave a great and challenging sermon and Melissa and I really appreciated worshiping there with that group.

After church we went out for some amazing pizza (something we really miss) and then crammed 9 people into a Toyota Camry (plus a guitar) to get home. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening talking and catching up with Jim and Karri. It was so great to just chat late into the night.

We grabbed some tea and croissants early the next morning and hopped back onto the trusty Belvedere for our trek home. Besides the 30 minute delay due to a roadblock (caused by a car that was lodged under a semi), we had a smooth and uneventful ride home. And stopped again at the same place for maize and goat kabobs... this time we expected it and bought some Fanta.

We had a great time with some great friends, and fortunately they are coming in a couple of weekends to visit Kigali.

Goma

Two weekends ago we traveled to Goma, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), to attend a wedding of a f/Friend of the Thomases. It is a 3 hour drive from Kigali to the North. The northern province of Rwanda is beautiful, it is where Akagera Park is (where the gorillas live) and where you can catch a glimpse of some impressive volcanoes.

We arrived in Gisenyi, a Rwandan town that is on the border, and met up with the group of pastors that we would travel to Goma with. We walked across the border (with no problems) and got picked up on the DRC side by someone from the wedding.

Goma, even though it directly borders Rwanda, is a very different place. It was clearly more impoverished. It was a dirtier place, and was constantly bustling with chaos. I noticed myself become physically uncomfortable once we crossed the border. It made me see how safe I have come to feel in Rwanda.

We first went to the legal/civil ceremony. This was held at some government offices and it was a communal gathering of about 7 couples. We waited there for hours, just watching some drunk old women play a drum and sing, all while being watched ourselves by at least 20 children standing less than a foot away from us. It was an interesting experience.

Then we made our way to the church for the religious ceremony. We got hauled up on stage to sit with the pastors. It was very interesting being the "guests of honor," even though we knew no one, especially the bride and groom. They even had us stand up and say hello from America. So America, you have now said hello to 150 people in Congo.

After the ceremony (which was full of dancing, drumming, sermons, and yet again, staring children), we walked to a school nearby for the reception. We were served a meal (just the white people and the pastors). After we ate we watched the bride and groom cut the cake, pour Fanta in each other's mouths, and then play "Simon Says" with the DJ. It was all very surreal mix of Western and African customs.

We had to hurry back to get across the border before it closed for the night. We had no problems getting back across and we were thankfully back in Rwanda.

We stayed in a great guest house that night and visited Gisenyi Friends Church the next day (and yet again, were asked to sit on stage).

The trip to Goma was a great experience. It is a place that has always intrigued me since it has been in the news so frequently over the years. I'm just glad we made it home to Kigali safely.