No Better Time: Winning and Rainbows

I thought things would slow down and I would be desperately bored once Model School ended, but that was definitely not the case this week! On Monday morning two trainees and I began a 4.5 hour trip east to visit some current volunteers in a town called Kibungo. We were all anxious to explore a new part of Rwanda and to see what life as a volunteer in Rwanda is really like.

First observation and favorite thing about Kibungo: LIGHTNING BUGS! There were so many. It reminded me of being a kid in central Texas, where we used to catch dozens of lightning bugs in a jar and just sit around watching them flash.

The volunteer I stayed with was really sweet and made me feel very comfortable in her cozy little apartment. She gave me some delicious tea and bagels for breakfast, and then she made zucchini, banana, and almond pancakes for supper one night! Besides the excitement of delicious food, one thing I was really encouraged by was her ability to communicate in Kinyarwanda. She didn’t seem to have any trouble at all talking with anybody. It was so motivating to see an American use the local language so effectively!

All three of us in my travel group were very excited to spend some time in Kigali on the way back. We hadn’t been to Kigali since our arrival in October, and we couldn’t wait to go shopping and eat at some of the restaurants we hear so much about from other volunteers. When we got to Kigali around 9:30 Wednesday morning, the first thing we did was get ice-cream! I’m sure my mom is cringing at the thought of me eating ice-cream for breakfast, but I have a legitimate argument: I got the mocha flavor! Therefore, it really wasn’t much different than having a cup of coffee at breakfast!

After our nutritious start to the day, we set out to explore the supermarkets. And supermarkets they were! They had everything from toothbrushes to refrigerators to barbeque sauce! You should all be proud, though, that I managed to walk away from our shopping trip with nothing more than a glue-stick. Who knew I had it in me?

For lunch we ate at an incredible pizza restaurant called Sun and Moon. They had white pizza! I didn’t think about missing spinach and cheese pizza much when I left, but my love for the treat was rekindled immediately upon finding it on the menu. (Note: I realize all of this food talk isn't really very exciting from your perspective, but it is a BIG DEAL here so just embrace it!)

Language and tech classes resumed as usual when we returned, and I quickly realized that Nyanza really is starting to feel like a home. We’re leaving soon so it won’t be home for long, but it was just so good to have something here feel familiar.

My great week quickly turned into a fantastic week this morning when I found out that Texas won the Big 12 Championship! I called my friend David Saturday morning (here) and told him to be ready to answer his phone with updates throughout the game, and my roommate had also asked her sister to call us during half-time. Because of the time difference, the game was still happening in Texas when it was already early Sunday morning here. Around 4:30 a.m., my roommate’s sister called and told her Texas was ahead 7-6. At 6 a.m. I called David, and he told me it was 10-6, Texas, early in the fourth quarter. I was so nervous! I managed to fall back asleep for a bit, though, and when I called back at 6:45 David told me we won by ONE point with ONE second left! What an exciting game! I’m kind of glad I was asleep, though, because if I had been watching it I would have been a wreck!

Then, as if winning weren’t exciting enough, David was watching the game with my friends Shelby, Miles, and Patrick, and I got to talk to them for a few minutes! Quite an exciting morning I’ve had, indeed.

Two more weeks of training left, and then we swear in as volunteers! Love and miss you all.