Muzugus Are Us

The past two days have been an eye opener for me.  Muzugus are white people, by the way! Little kids along the roads see us and yell, "Hello Muzugo!"  The contrast between the poor and the privileged is very stark. The inequalities are very shocking.   Chris has shown us an Africa few westerners ever see.  Without sounding politically incorrect, we were the only white people I saw today.

We went to a resort last night called Lake Kivu Serena which reminded me a lot of Hawaii.  Lush tropical plants, nice food, a full bar- and may I say the first gin and tonic I had out since arriving here.  It was like being back in civilization again.

After leaving the resort, we went to the border with the DRC- the Democratic Republic of the Congo-- and there is nothing democratic about it.  It is a lawless no man's land, that the US government recommends Americans not enter.  We did not go in, but we were within a few hundred yards of it. Seeing the military police with AK 47s was unnerving to say the least. No tour buses go here!!

 Then traveling back through villages where people live without running water and electricity was shocking. Each village has a central area with stucco buildings that are brightly colored because the local companies pay them to paint them in their colors. So all you see are bright yellows of the Skol beer brand, bright royal blues of Tigo a mobile phone provider. The colors the women wear are exceptionally bright and beautiful. The homes outside the village are tiled roofed with  local-adobe  bricks walls. No sidewalks, just dirt.

Tonight we are back in Kigali having drinks on Chris's patio, and going to a Trivial Night where many "ex-pats" hang out.  This is ALL so amazing!!!

Rwanda is a rich farming country. If you look closely at the hillside you can see terraced plots of land. They grow everything!

A typical village in rural Rwanda.  Everyone has cell phones.  Notice the woman carrying her child on her back on the right side.

The resort we stayed at last night! What a contrast!

A woman in a rural village.

A Rwandan couple walking along the main road. The cars and buses whiz by, and everyone seems unfazed.  

This is a pretty typical house. Notice their crops grown out front. I was told the broad leaved plants are tobacco.

Rwanda- Hikes, Rural Villages

 It is almost beyond words what this part of the world is like.  I am equally shocked at the poverty, as I am with the beauty of the mountains and farmlands.  Today we did a hike at the Volcanoes National Park.  It was a grueling hike to the grave of Dian Fossey- remember Gorillas In The Mist? This is her story.  I have to confess that I didn't go all the way, but Rob and Chris did.  When I got to 8,600 feet, I knew I was at my limit considering the muddy, rocky trails.  Even Rob, who competes in triathalons said it was the most challenging hike he's ever done.  So, I didn't feel so bad for 'pooping out.' I was guided back by a guide and a Rwandan soldier -since we were very close to the border with the Congo- a very corrupt country.
 I have so much to write about,  but for now, a picture is worth a thousand words.

As I waited for Rob and Chris to return, I had the chance to people watch  in a location I never thought I'd see.  Here a boy leads his flock of goats through the village!

Local children in the village at the base of the hike trailhead help their parents with the family's herd of sheep.

Rob and I at the start of the hike.

These are my hike partners.  The Rwandan soldier spoke fairly good English and told me he has been a soldier for 9 years.  The guy in blue lives in the village and is married with a small child.

Last night we stayed at this lodge. It was down miles of rocky dirt roads. During the night we were awoken by the screams of monkeys, and inside our room was a hissing cockroach.  Needless to say we didn't sleep much.

This woman and child were walking up the road near Chris's apartment.  At first I was snapping photos of each woman I saw carrying something on her head.  Then I realized that this was very common!

Africa is amazing, beautiful,  and sad too!

Rwanda- We're Not in Kansas Anymore

Today is our first full day in Rwanda, and to say that this IS AFRICA, is about as much of an understatement as can be made.  Rwanda is becoming a very successful country with much industry and investments being put into the infrastructure of the country. And they have come a tremendously long way since the genocide in 1994.

But let's face it, it is a 3rd world country, and we three Americans stood out.  So far this has been a remarkable experience, and I'm so thankful to have Chris as our guide.  Otherwise, we'd be lost!


In the 5 months Chris has been here, he has learned his way around, learned enough Kinyarwanda (the native language) to barter, know where to get the best meats, fruits and vegetables, and how to get the people who want to sell us things, to go away.  Rob and I felt like a couple of little kids following closely behind, and dumbly smiling a lot at the native people. They were all very friendly but we were certainly a novelty to them because this isn't where many of the tourists go.

Believe it or not, this is where we bought vegetables for tonight's dinner.  The vegetables cost the equivalent of 60 cents.

At a gigantic open air market with stalls selling everything from fish to fruit to fabric to toilet plungers, Chris is bartering about making napkins and a table cloth from this fabric.  I just stood there feeling totally out of my element.

At this same market Chris is haggling for fruit. Bargaining is expected here.

Look at the beautiful and exotic (for us) fruits available here!

Here is Rob under our mosquito netted bed at Chris's house.

This is a street in downtown Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda.

Amsterdam Day II

The Anne Frank Museum.  The bottom part was the warehouse and now museum with displays and photos of the families who hid there from the Nazis.  The top floors were where they hid for two years and where Anne wrote her famous diary.

Our first stop, on our second day in Amsterdam,  was the Anne Frank Museum.  It was a good thing we bought tickets online because we would not have gotten in otherwise.  Going inside the building that has become so famous was really an outstanding, but also depressing experience.  To be there where Anne Frank and her family hid for two years from the Nazis is hard to really put into words.  Seeing the wallpapered walls reminded me that at one time, these rooms were ordinary places to be.  Brave people hid them there and brought them food and supplies.  During the day they were unable to move around for fear of being heard by the people below.  The annex where they lived, was hidden behind a book case, so when checks were made, the Nazis could not tell they were hiding there.  I can't imagine how depressing and stressful it must have been.  But at the same time, from her writing, we know that there was also a sense of hope that someday this would all be over.  Of course no one except Anne Frank's father survived.  They all died in concentration camps.

As we moved through the rooms and up the narrow steps everyone was silent out of respect for what occurred within these walls.  When I left I felt drained, but also had a renewed appreciation for the freedom I have.  I won't ever forget going there.

The Van Gogh Museum in the Museum Quarter in Amsterdam.

The Van Gogh Museum was wonderful.  Seeing his paintings up close really made me appreciate the vibrant colors he used to create the mood and emotions in his paintings.  His famous work, Sunflowers was on display and was the highlight for me, of the collection.

We walked all over Amsterdam on our second day, for a total of about 10 miles!  I can hardly wait to go back again!

Amsterdam Day 1

Amsterdam is an amazing city.  When we arrived at the city center by train, I knew I would loved it. Most of the buildings are from the 1600s. As we walked along the canals and small intertwining streets we noticed that a great many of them leaned comfortably into their neighbors or bowed out a bit in the middle or seemed to be peering over to take a look at the people passing by.  Considering 

that they have been settling there for 400 years, they are all in beautiful shape. The canals are filled with boats and barges of every color and design.  There are flowers everywhere. There are also pot stores everywhere, cheese shops on most corners  and while some of it was touristy, much of it was not.  We really enjoyed just wandering the streets, looking through the shops and taking it all in.

So many beautiful tulips!

The cheese shops are everywhere and they even have samples!!

There are bikes everywhere!

Right by the train station in central Amsterdam!

Virginia City or Bust

Earlier this summer my daughter Catherine and I spent the day in Virginia City, Nevada. The contrast in scenery as we crossed Kingsbury Grade, leaving the alpine coolness of Tahoe, for the dry barren high dessert of Nevada, was startling.  Mark Twain once said, “Even the devil would be homesick in Nevada.”

Virginia City sprang because of a silver strike in 1859. The Comstock Lode is unequaled in the history of the American West.  Believe it or not, more money was produced in the silver and mineral mines around Virginia City than in the entire California Gold Rush, just ten years before.   Mark Twain got his start there as a reporter for the Territorial Enterprise. Even today, it is not hard to imagine what life was like when this town was a thriving boomtown.

While I am a big fan of American history, being in Virginia City was just good old fashioned fun! We walked along the boardwalk streets, popping into saloons, restaurants, and shops of every type.  Our first stop was for lunch in the Delta Cafe & Saloon.  This is where the famous suicide table is located.  Legend has it that entire fortunes were lost at that gambling table, causing three men to take their own lives! 

 

We enjoyed a “Suicide Mary,” (a gigantic Bloody Mary,) with our lunch!  Oh, why not, we were on vacation, right? We did also stop and repent our sins at the amazing Our Lady of the Mountains Church.  

 And, we even explored the cemetery.

One of our last stops was for a couple of beers at the Bucket of Blood Saloon! A fun day with my Catherine!

View ON the Lake

We had the opportunity recently to go ON Lake Tahoe with our friends who have a 19 -foot pleasure boat. There is a heck-of-a lot to know about owning and operating a boat.  I had no idea.  Even the vocabulary was sort of new- port, (left side), starboard (right side,) bow, (front,) and stern, (back.)  I guess a good reason for the boat direction words must be so there is no confusion  should Moby Dick show up.

Our friends invited us out on their boat twice. One day we went to a place called Skunk Harbor.  You can’t get there, unless you’re in a boat.  Along the shore, are the ruins of a 1920’s era estate.  Imagining the ‘upper crust,’ lolling around in a home they probably considered ‘roughing it,’ was great fun to think about.

Another day we went to Secret Cove.  Here are cabins from the same era that have been ‘grandfathered in.’ No other homes can be built there now because it is US Forest Service land.  They are cozy old-fashioned cabins that must remain exactly as they are.  The grandsons and daughters of the original owners are not permitted to alter them in any way.  No modern plumbing, no modernizing of kitchens.  It is an area frozen in time.

Both times we went, our friends anchored the boat and we dove in for some swimming.  Lake Tahoe is very clear, so even swimming in 12 feet of water, the bottom is easy to see, and the water was nice and warm.

On our second trip, I felt a bit like we had gotten stuck an episode of Gilligan’s Island.  As we were swimming around, enjoying the sunshine….

            “The weather started getting rough,
            The tiny ship was tossed,
            If not for the courage of the fearless crew
            The Minnow would be lost, the Minnow would be lost.”

Out of the blue, the wind picked up, the waves started getting larger, and we hurried back. The boat pitched and rolled and it was a lot like being on a water ride at an amusement park.  Thankfully, I didn’t get sea sick, but if it had taken much longer, I think I would have.  It was comforting to be in the hands of our friend who is an experienced sailor!  In fact, one of the many interesting things he’s done in his life, was to work as a fisherman on the Bering Sea- just like on the show Deadliest Catch. 

So our days ON the lake were memorable, and loads of fun.