Beth in Uganda: Fieldtrip to Rwanda

This last weekend, we (Jeff, Josh, Renee, and I) went on a field trip to Rwanda. It was a "field trip" because the purpose of a field trip is to learn something. At least, that's what I always tell my students...and I certainly did learn a lot on this one.

So, what did I learn...
1) Jeff has not lost his American sense of time. He said we were four minutes late when we left Friday morning at 6:04am. We were on a "strict" schedule all weekend and then found out we were actually an hour early for everything since Rwanda is in a different time zone than Uganda! Jeff also managed to cut off an hour and a half from the 10 hour car ride home because of his mad dodging skills around huge potholes and vehicles of all sizes.

2) Rwanda's genocide was a huge tragedy that the rest of the world turned it's eyes away from until too late. A once peaceful place was divided during colonialism, and hostilities intensified in the years after independence. Nearly 1 million people died in only a few months' time. We visited the Kigali Memorial Center and two churches where mass killings took place. Pretty intense, but helpful in understanding the history of the country.

3) Kigali is one of the nicest capitals in Africa. No kidding! After the genocide, money was given to Rwanda to help rebuild itself. A little late, but at least it looks like the money was used the way it was supposed to be used. You look around and see nicely paved roads, registered taxi/boda drivers, manicured roundabouts, etc. It felt safe. People seemed to work hard and move faster than some of their neighbors in Uganda.