Today

Just a quickie in real time- am just back from a really fantastic ride to a couple of schools which we’re hoping will host the trainings. We now know who we need to speak with and by when…What wasn’t so good is a couple of the children thought it would be hilarious to fiddle with Amy’s bike so we had to waste 2 hours getting that sorted which was a little irritating to say the least…Anyway, just demolished an omelette speciale and heading home soon. Below are some ramblings from last couple of days :0)

(19/02/09-21/02/09)

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgghh, where is the padded room when you need one?

My acting director, we’ll call him Marc since that’s his real name - rapidly appointed from Health to Education last week - decided to go to the headteacher’s meeting without me! We’d spoken about the fact it would be a good idea for me to go, then he leaves me twiddling my thumbs once again in the office. Annoyed and probably not in the best frame of mind, I wrote him an email underlining my frustration and annoyance- he has since apologised profusely and assured me that it just ‘slipped his mind’. Well I guess, I just have to take his word for it, for now.

Still it wasn’t a completely wasted day. Later on Cecile, a head from a nearby primary school, popped in to say ‘hi’. I’d planned to visit her later to discuss the May trainings, so that was good. Hers is a central school which we’re hoping to use as a venue for two of the days. Anyway, she thinks there won’t be a problem in using her school if all schools attending, about 8, share the cost. The idea is that all schools have a stake in this training and are therefore more motivated to make the most of it. Next week, we’re visiting four more schools to talk about them being the ‘host’ schools too and I guess they’ll all say the same thing. Thing is, though we’ll be making it clear that all schools need to cover the cost for the four teachers + head attending from theirs, I’m not too sure how it’ll actually all work but all schools do have a budget for training so hopefully it will go to plan.

At least I’ll be out a lot on the bike next week which is great, haven’t been on it for ages - am praying for good weather!…They say that rainy season is pretty much here now though and despite glorious sunshine first thing in the morning, there is often a massive downpour come lunchtime so really have to hold my nerve negotiating those roads. Still, it gets me out of the out of the office!

With the internet playing silly buggers, I headed to Butare Friday afternoon. I like it here; it’s a university town about half an hour away with a good market and many more shops than Gik. It’s also got a lovely museum which I’ll visit properly one day - it’s like the Natural History Museum in London. Anyway, today I just popped in buy a few things from the shop before heading to Matar, a supermarket in the centre which sells lots of familiar but expensive foods from back home which I just stare at voyeuristically before heading to the market…To be honest with all the lovely goodies I’ve been sent I’m hardly in need of treats.

So this weekend is my first alone in Gikongoro. Most people are in Kigali for the St Patrick ’s Day ball which has left me to have some quality time with my house and garden. To be honest because Anne-Marie is so efficient (and I’m so lazy), it’s felt quite a novelty to do stuff around the house, I’m even looking forward to growing some veg in the garden now Latislas, my guard(ener), has cleared the weeds- such enthusiasm I’m sure will go by the time Monday comes along but for now, I’ll go with it. Anyway last night, with a certain amount of excitement, I watched my first ever downloaded programme. Some BBC series which I got quite into at Hayley and Charlotte’s …I’m chuffed I managed to sort it all out, had to download all manner of mirrors and copec enabling stuff (see, don’t know what I’m talking about..) and voila, trash tv, great! Well worth the 2 days it took to download…Will look into speeding that up though, any ideas?


So that brings us to today, Saturday…I actually could have slept for ages this morning but had a skype session to keep so wandered up to the office to try to piggyback some wireless. Unfortunately, that didn’t work so had to use the local internet shop where all manner of commotion was going on outside- roadworks, wedding corteges you name it . Still, it was lovely, as usual, to talk so should just feel grateful we can I guess…

Then it was to market. I really have to steel myself for this because you can never just wander quietly through. As if you need reminding, people everywhere are commenting about the fact you are simply there. Such attention still really flusters me so I often come back with more than I wanted and nothing that I needed. But armed with some more vocabulary from my sessions with Moosa, I felt more confident today that my kinyarwanda could get me more than’ 2 avocadoes please’. And indeed, I came back with a cabbage, tomatoes, a pineapple, corn on the cob, carrots, potatoes as well as 2 avocadoes (I just love em) thank you very much - all of which I meant to buy so that’s progress! Oh and I even managed to get a skirt taken in. Can’t believe how cheap it was too, 200rwf (about 20p), good job.

I’m just back from another run. Not as long as the first but just as surprising for the spectators it seems who once again lined the streets for me that is of course if they weren’t joining in. There were about 10 children this time who continued for a good 20 minutes. I should mention this to Marc - being the education director you’re also in charge of sports and culture for the district and thanks to me there’s been a 100% uptake of jogging in the past month…

Tonight I heard voices. No don’t worry they weren’t in my head but as I sat on the balcony, still buzzing from the run it struck me how lovely it was to just sit and listen to all the chatter going on around me. Course, I didn’t understand any of it but it didn’t matter. At home, even if neighbours talked you wouldn’t hear them over the traffic so once again I’m appreciating the contrast - must have been there good hour!