Well I have finally moved sites. I used to live in Gitarama, Rwanda’s second largest city after Kigali. I liked it there but with 4 other PCV’s, a ton of other volunteer organizations and NGO workers located there it was very crammed with outsiders. I now live in a tiny village in the district of Ruhango, about 1 hour from Gitarama, 2 hours from Kigali. I am the only volunteer and only white person and the first PCV to ever be placed here. The village contains a hospital and about 10 little shops. There is a bus station, a Seventh Day Adventist Church and some primary and secondary schools. There is a University with 1,000 students who live in dorms during the school year (Jan-Oct). That literally is what makes up my entire town. There is not even a market, to go to the market I have to take a 20 minute bus to the next town which is only open on Wednesdays. The town is mostly Seventh Day Adventist, meaning everything is closed on Saturday’s because that is the day everyone goes to church. My house is amazing. In order for my organization to afford it they had to combine my house with the office; to do that they built a wall between my living room and the three bedrooms. So the living room is the office and I still have three rather large rooms. One I have made into the Kitchen, one is my bedroom and the last room contains a huge 100 liter water storage tank and my bicycle. I have electricity but no running water in site. I pay someone to fill my 20 liter jerry cans with water every few days. I have an outdoor shower area. (really just a room with a locking door and a drain). Luckily I brought a solar shower with me to Rwanda so I fill it with hot water and still get to take hot showers. Then my bathroom is in the room next to my shower, also outside. When I first came to look at the house it was just a hole in the ground, a pit latrine. I told them that was fine with me. It’s what I used all throughout training so it really doesn’t bother me anymore. But when I arrived on move in day they had stuck a real toilet overtop of the pit and cemented it in. I have no running water so I have to keep a bucket full of water next to my toilet to flush it but it actually works out pretty nicely.
I am also in the process of completing a $500 water charity project for a primary school nearby. They need a second water tank and I will be trying to get that for them through appropriateprojects .com. The school is 1200 students who travel 2 km by foot a day. There are only 14 classrooms and 20 teachers for the 1200 students. I think they could definitely use a second tank to collect rain water in. The other water source is 300 meters down a steep hill meaning a steep hike up hill carrying the water. Anyway wish me luck and if its accepted my project will be posted online to ask for donations.
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