This area of the country is incredibly beautiful. We drove through three hours of mountains and Lake Kivu itself is well above sea level. The hotel itself was slightly questionable, and my roommate Rachel and I got moved to a different room after the toilet started leaking in ours and flooded our bathroom. Our shower then did the same thing to our second room's bathroom.
The weekend was a time for myself and the students to relax while staff members spent time placing students in month long practicum assignments for October. Lake Kivu has a large methane bubble underneath it, which make swimming dangerous in some places, but also makes it impossible for fish and other animals to survive, making swimming in the safe spots much more enjoyable.
Saturday we went hik
ing on "Bat Island". This island lived up to its name! About 5 minutes into the hike we began to hear the shrieking of bats and approached a tree that contained literally thousands of them. Our Rwandan guides began clapping and even throwing rocks into the tree which sent thousands of bats flying into the air over us. After surviving that encounter, we trekked the rest of the way up the huge hill of Bad Island, and enjoyed the view from the top. Through the fog we could see the outline of the mountains of the Congo. Throughout the hike we were puzzled to find cow droppings along our path, even up towards th
e top. I am still not exactly sure how they manage to climb the rocky hill, but swam to the island as well!I also did a lot of reading. I am working through a book called A Thousand Hills, which is an autobiography of current Rwandan president and former rebel army leader Paul Kagame, and also a broader overview of the history of Rwanda. I am realizing that to be most effective here, I must understand the history of Rwanda, the genocide and how it has effected the people even today. I am hoping this book will help me do that.
The thing that has struck me most in my first few days in Rwanda is seeing evidence of the reality of conflicts that I have only read about. Not only were the genocide memorials incredible evidence of the horrific events of Rwanda, but as we drew closer to Kibuye we saw a convoy of UN peacekeeping vehicles headed to the Congo. These conflicts are very real as well.
A few specific prayer requests:
Some of you may have heard about recent riots in Kampala, Uganda. While this is far from us, the Go ed students are supposed to be heading to Kampala in 2 weeks, and a couple of our staff members this week. Please prayer that these riots will be resolved and that the FH members in Kampala will be safe.
When the Go ed students leave in two weeks, I will be alone with one other staff member and a housekeeper living on the compound. All of you know me well enough to know that I am very much a people person, and I am somewhat concerned about the amount of time I may be spending by myself in the evenings. Please pray that I will be comfortable with this time, and use it to rely on God as my foremost companion and best friend in a way I have never had the opportunity to before.
Thank you for all of your continued support! and for enduring through this abnormally long post. I love you all!
Hillary
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