I'm in Rwanda!

Except for the fact it took over 24 hours to get here... SO much easier getting into Africa than London! :)

First off, the reason I am in Rwanda is to intern for a non-profit called ZOE Ministry.

My friend from Duke, Maddie Pongor and I are going to three cities, Kigali, Gitarama, and Butare, in Rwanda where ZOE Ministry has been active since 2004.  ZOE assists youth in Rwanda as they work to rebuild their lives and develop independence after loosing their parents in the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, AIDS, or abandonment.  Some of their parents were murdered while others died later as a result of events that took place in 1994, such as the spread of HIV/AIDS through rape.  A million people were killed in this country, which is about the size of Connecticut, so it really impacted every aspect of life in Rwanda.  ZOE is trying to empower orphans so that they can live on their own.  Their project was envisioned and made possible by the executive director of ZOE Ministry, Reverent Greg Jenks, and an incredible Rwandan woman named Epiphanie, with whom we will be working closely.  ZOE teaches orphans essential life skills such as cooking, maintaining good hygiene, sexual education, and methods of obtaining a salary.  Their methodology is entitled "Giving Hope" and is explained in fuller detail on ZOE's website:  www.zoeministry.org.  When the programs began in 2007, hundreds of orphans filled out a survey about their lifestyle, family life, and financial situation at that time.  Now, ZOE wants to find out how much of an impact their program has had on the orphans' lives.  Maddie and I are going to research ZOE's activities by way of surveys, interviews, observations, and interaction.  We are staying for about 6 weeks in Rwanda and will arrive home on August 3rd, my birthday!  Hopefully, by that time, we expect to have enough date to write a thorough report.  ZOE will use this report as a self-evaluation as a way to let potential donors understand their program so hopefully ZOE can expand its program and continue to touch the lives of many more communities in Rwanda.

Sorry if that was a bit heavy... Here is what I have done thus far!  I first took a flight to Washington, DC (about 1.5 hours) then a flight to Brussels, Belgium (about 8 hours), and then I met Maddie in Brussels (she was already in Europe) and together we took a flight to Kigali, Rwanda (8 hours).  When we got there it was about 7pm Rwandan time and 1pm Charlotte time.  We were supposed to stay in Hotel Rwanda, but plans changed, and we decided to go right to Gitarama (we are planning to go back to the hotel soon though).  Since the seasons are different here, it gets dark around 6pm... Although it was supposed to only be a 1 hour car ride, half-way there, our car started making cracking noises, and we swerved off the road... Hmm, great.  I had been traveling for over 24 hours, and to say I was exhausted doesn't even begin to describe it.  As the two men who do not speak English, tried to fix the car, we talked to Epiphanie.  The major road in Rwanda has only 2 lanes, and is surrounded by what Americans would call-jungle.  there are barely any lights (actually there are none, except for a tiny keychain flashlight Madds had... good job Maddie!); therefore, we were sitting in a jeep, on the side of the road, in pitch black-we had been in the country for no longer than an hour.  Well someone was supposed to pick us up in no less than 30min, but after an hour and a half, miraculously, the men had fixed the car, and we made it home safely.  Not going to lie, I was holding Maddie's hand the entire time.

We got to the guest-house which is simple and beautiful.  We are supposed to sleep in mosquito nets, but the ones here are not so great so we basically have a tent we sleep in over our bed.  We sleep in sleeping bags-We feel pretty cool doing it :)  So far we have eaten rice, beans, bananas, and potatoes for dinner last night and lunch and dinner tonight... I think we are going to go through my massive stash of Power Bars, Goldfish, and Sour Patch Kids PRETTY FAST... Oh well.  We are trying our best to remember to take our Malaria pills and vitamins (no worries, mom), wear shoes at all times, keep our mosquito tent zipped, and most importantly, drink only bottled water-including to brush our teeth.  So far Maddie already forgot and used the sink water.  Oops!  After emptying her bag, a nailpolish fell out and some-how spilled all over the floor and the wall-we tried cleaning with nail polish remover, but it ate up the wall and floor... Obviously we've already made a mess... so typical.

A really generous American lady (who has great-grand children) moved here 2 years ago to start a house for children.  She runs the guest-house where we are staying.  The children that live with her (about 15 girls and 15 boys) were orphans, but she adopted ALL OF THEM!  She told us after visiting Rwanda, she could not leave, and felt it was God's will for her to make Gitarama her home.  Understandably, the children just adore her, and we are honored to get to stay with her ENORMOUS family.  

Okay that was long... I promise I will do better to keep them short.  Miss everyone.  We have a good amount of down time in the evenings so keep me updated on everything at home and elsewhere.  I would love to hear from everyone!

Love,

Jessica

PS.  Maddie doesn't eat meat... SO when they offer us something that niether of us want to try I HAVE TO EAT IT... ugh.  WELL at least she ate the mayonnaise with fries that they were SO excited to give us (supposedly as Americans we are supposed to love that).  BUT she doesn't eat candy so I get my 2 pound bag of sour patch kids all to myself and of course all the LOCAL chicken, cow, fish I could ever hope for.

PSS the French took Maddie's $100 water purifier light-savor looking thingy... NOW we only have 6 hour water tablets, but hey, if I was here alone... I would have no back-ups.  My mom and I were not too enthusiastic about buying cool water gadgets, we were more into exploring the REI store, and getting North Face stuff... And (if you know me, you would agree) my FAVORITE part of preparation, was buying children's gifts... I have so so much stuff to hand out, I can't wait!