Camilla in Rwanda: My first time in a police car...

Well it seems that here in Rwanda the one thing you can expect is the unexpected. Had a good morning on Friday teaching at the TTC, I’m really getting into my job and I think I was well matched to working in a training college. I love the fact that I am doing some regular direct teaching of students and as you all know I love drawing, marker pens and making things so I am in my element with making a resource centre. That afternoon we had to gather for an impromptu rescheduled meeting ‘under the big tree’ with lots of police officials who had come to talk to the students as part of drugs awareness week. It was in Kinyarwanda but luckily for me a college tutor translated so I knew the gist of what was being said.

Afterwards we went to the local bar for beer and brochettes with the police officials and as the light began to fade and the police officials left I excused myself so I could try to get a moto to Rwamagana to see my VSO Rwanda mum and dad, Steven and Mary. As the police sped off I mentioned to the principal that I was going to Rwamagana. Out came his mobile phone and he called them back to give me a lift. No one thing I know for sure is that police in England would never do such a helpful deed. So I squashed into the middle of the police pick up truck and conversed with the chief of police about drug prevention laws in the uk and how college lecturers from England talk too fast for around an hour. As we slowly went along the bumpy dirt road to Rwamagana in the dark and my head kept hitting the top of the truck I couldn’t help but think ‘How did my life get so weird?!’ I am hitchhiking in the dark in the middle of Africa with the police and talking about drugs. It was quite funny turning up at the hotel to meet Steven and Mary in the police car...it certainly turned a few heads!

The next day there was a big volunteer gathering at Jambo beach, which paradoxically is not a beach. There is no sand for starters. It is a little place on the lovely lake Muhazi where one can sit, drink a beer and enjoy trying to get a photo of the rather shy Ugandan great crested crane. Some people (not vso) were brave enough to swim in there, but apparently the lake is full of Bilharzia and as I don’t particularly want horrible little worms burrowing their way into my bowel I stayed sipping beer on the bank. It was great to swap stories and have a good laugh about our different experiences, despite getting soaked waiting for a bus on the way back! Talking of which the bus from Kayonza to Rwamagana was interesting to say the least. It had no lights and couldn’t seem to go above 20 miles per hour, I swear it had half its engine missing. It was practically empty which is not the norm for here which was very strange, but it took us to where we wanted to go.

Here are some photos of Lake Muhazi

VSO Rwanda volunteers old and new. Most of whom are living in the Eastern Province like me.