Mama wacu

4-18-10
Host Moms Visits…

I just realized that 7 weeks into this and I haven’t even really mentioned my host family yet. So, this blog is dedicated to Mama Rosine and Mama Hirali. Upon arriving to Nyanza for training we were immediately given a host mom or host family. This family is to serve as a resource to us for pretty much anything. They teach us Kinyarwanda, serve us food and drinks, teach us about their culture and we teach them a little about America in exchange. For the most part, host moms are the word hospitable in human form…at least in Rwanda. From the moment you arrive, they hug you, sometimes kiss you, sit you down and then bring out tea, milk, a fanta or drink of some sort for you. No meeting or get-together (regardless of how informal it may be) is legit unless there is some milk, tea or fanta or all of the above present.

Anyway, my mom is Mama Rosine. She is around 44 and is married with one Child named Rosine who is 14. Mothers tend to take on the name of their child…hence “Mama Rosine.” Sarah and I have had some good and some unusual experiences there. Mama Rosine is very hospitable but sometimes a little over bearing. I find it hard to leave when I want to and it usually ends up that I leave when Mama Rosine is good and ready to let me go. About a month ago, Sarah and I were visiting and right before we were about to leave, she brought out what looked and smelled like Rwandan Banana Beer. Now, we had previously been warned about drinking the banana beer because part of the process of making it is that it has to ferment in the sun for 10-14 days which is not sanitary by any means. Many people get sick from banana beer. Anyway, I asked Mama Rosine if it was beer to which she assured me, they are Christians and they don’t drink beer. So, as any newcomer looking to integrate into a new community would do, I drank it (at least 1 or 2 small sips of it). After all, I did not want to disgrace her or seem rude. Sarah managed to take a fake sip because she was already feeling sick. Needless to say, it was banana beer and a few days later my stomach decided to get pretty mad at me…enough sad. Anyway, that was my first and last experience with banana beer. There are many other experiences with my mom but we can talk about those later.

One another occasion at Sarah’s moms’ house, we decided to help her cook. We showed up, walked out back to the kitchen area and began peeling potatoes. She then brought out a massive cow liver. So…picture this big red, floppy, jiggaly piece of meat on a plate. Luckily, we cut that dude up and fried the mess out of it (southern style). Breanne and mom you probably would have loved it. However, it definitely was some kind of different. We will just leave it at that. On another food note, things just seem to have different textures here. For example, back home my favorite thing to eat is chicken. I love me some chicken…any kind. Sadly enough, I have given up on the chicken here. They serve it 3-4 times a week here but it is impossible to chew. I will chew a piece of chicken to the point that my jaws feel like they just got into a fight with Mike Tyson and eventually I just give up and spit it out…I know that is gross but you try and eat it! So, please don’t take your chicken for granted…for me please…cherish it every time you sit down to eat that nice big piece of juicy, tender bbq chicken....think of me and enjoy it even more. That is all I ask!

On a more serious note, this has been a pretty tough week, especially for Sarah. This training can be so emotionally draining at times. I can’t really explain it but cramming your brain with an insanely difficult language, struggling to integrate and find your identity in a foreign place where you know very little, eating a diet that is completely different from anything you would ever eat back home (and your stomach constantly disagreeing with is), trying to understand a culture that is so precious and complex yet terribly scarred from years past and living with 11 other people in the same house can be fairly taxing and stressful at times. Well…then again…maybe I can explain it. Anyway, most of you that know me know I am pretty mellow and laid back so it hasn’t been as bad for me. I tend to fly by the seat of my extra long pants. I know that Sarah is tired though. However, she is doing amazingly well. I am so proud of her. She is so strong and passionate. You can throw her right in the middle of a throng of 250 Rwandan children and she comes into her own and just shines. It’s quite a site to see.

In other news, bed bugs are at large and are a threat here in Rwanda. A couple of girls came down with a bad case of bed bugs over the past few weeks (that sounds weird). They itch like crazy and usually take 3 weeks or so to get rid off and leave your legs looking like a connect the dot game board. Turns out they live in the wood in bed frames so you are encouraged to set your bed frame and mattress out in the sun once a week for a day. This supposedly kills them along with soaking the bed frame in boiling water…crazy I know. So the phrase “don’t let the bed bugs bite” really comes into play here. Also, two other girls decided to get amoebas recently when they had some alleged bad food from a restaurant in Butare. This was very unfortunate for them as this is a pretty serious thing to get. They pretty much have missed two weeks of training due to being very sick and taking very strong antibiotics. They are doing better know however.

Oh this is crazy and kind of sad. On the way out of town today we passed 4 guys carrying on their shoulders an ingobyi (traditional ambulance) with someone in it. Sadly, this was someone who had recently passed away and they were carrying them from the hospital through the middle of town to their home where they will be buried. This was just another eye-opener to how foreign this place is and the reality of life and death. It was so weird. Here they were carrying this person through the middle of town while people continue to go about their daily business routines. Anyway, I wasn’t sure what to feel about that.

Anyway, on a happier note, we will be official Peace Corps Volunteers 14 days from today. Once again…it is hard to believe how fast time is flying by. We will be spending about a week in Kigali for swear-in before we leave for sites. Hopefully we will be able to indulge in good food, hot showers and high-speed internet before it gets ripped right back out of our hands for the next two years. Good times to come!

Well, this blog is now more than long enough. I hope I didn’t bore you! Also, if you guys have any specific topics you would like us to write about during the next two years please comment and let us know…cultural things, daily activities, education, etc. We will be more than happy to try and accommodate that. Besides, this journal is really for you anyway. As always, we miss you all and enjoy getting emails or Facebook messages from you. Please email us or if you want, send a letter. Those are always nice to get. Also, if any of you are interested in visiting Rwanda over the next two years, you have a place to stay and a free tour guide. I can assure you, you will not be disappointed.

Be blessed!

Mr. and Mrs. Tall!