Kigali
Is it really January? I think I have weather lag, which I’m defining as a condition similar to jet lag but instead of a struggle around time it is a struggle with the climate. Yesterday it was 86 degrees here and it felt much hotter in the sun. I just can’t get the weather and the month to match in my mind, especially when I keep getting emails from Massachusetts about snow days and delayed openings.
We have all started some new routines. Saadya and Nava started school on Monday and it seems to go well for both of them. Saadya has remarked often about his class make-up which includes students from many countries both in and out of the African continent. Nava seemed to find a fit for herself quite quickly and already, on the second day of school went on a play date with a classmate. I have started my work at KHI, met my colleagues and met some students. I’ve learned some of what I need to get by but that learning will go on for months.
Monday I had my first experience with Rwandan government bureaucracy as I started my application process for a work visa. Eugenie, who works in the Public Affairs section of the U.S. embassy, had helped me prepare for the process by telling me about the list of documents I would need for my visa (criminal background check from my local police, CV, diplomas, transcripts, letter documenting work schedule from KHI, etc.). On Monday we pulled together all of my documents and then I went to Rwanda Revenue to pay the 50,000RWF for each visa ($1=590RWF so about $85 x 3). The line at the office was incredibly long, it would have been hours of waiting which Eugenie explained had something to do with national exam results being posted for students. She asked an embassy driver to take me to an alternate office; we drove all over the city stopping at 3 different offices until we found one that would accept visa payments. At this particular office when I asked the official about payment he insisted on sifting through my application. He looked at and commented on each document claiming that my diploma copies would not suffice since they were not originals and that many of my documents lacked “stamps”. I kept on explaining that I really only wanted to pay the fee. Finally, after he had looked at every page and had reordered the packet he pointed to an office across the hall and told me that I could just go over there and pay. After paying I returned to him and he said that he didn’t even review these types of visa applications, only business venture applications and mine needed to go to immigration/emigration. The next day Eugenie brought in my application with the payment receipts and then called me stating that I had a few problems. First, I don’t have Saadya and Nava’s birth certificate and their passports will not suffice to show that I am their parent (who knew?) and second, my diplomas are clearly copies and they want to see the originals (which are hanging in frames in my office). I’m now working on a resolution, I’ve placed a call to the mayor’s office in Northampton (thanks Karen!!!) where they have produced and scanned in a document that attests to the fact that I am Saadya’s and Nava’s mother and that we all live together (with the appropriate stamps and seals) and then a notary at the embassy will put stamps and seals on my diplomas (because my official transcripts which have registrar stamps and show the degrees just won’t do). I could probably have a side business here stamping pieces of paper with a seal that says “official”.
We have moved into our new house and it is nice to settle in. We have two American housemates who will be leaving Kigali after completing a year of work here. They are lovely women, Emily and Chalee who have been so helpful in showing us the ropes. We not only benefit from having a house they have also already hired the house staff (night guard, day guard, housekeeper) so we don’t need to do any searching on our own. The house is comfortable. Many ex-pats here live in luxury, we prefer to live in comfort, at some point I’ll post some photos to demonstrate the difference.
Patricia went on an overnight adventure to Nyungwe Forest National Park. She was put in shock by the cost of the adventure (pay for driver, pay for guide, pay to enter the park, pay for each trail on which you hike). Nonethless, she describes a great adventure including the canopy walk which goes over the top of the rain forest, birding, seeing 3 different types of primates and walking some children to school through a tea plantation in the early morning. I will get to Nyungwe at some point as well.
My great week’s adventure has been starting my teaching at KHI. I’ve now had two class sessions. Teaching is done in modules or as we call it in the U.S. blocks. My first module is on biostatistics with the 3rd year physiotherapy students. Elias, who is manages day to day functions in our department gave me the briefest outline for content and I set up my first days’ teaching plan. It appears that scheduling is week by week since the department can never be assured of teaching space which is at a premium at the school. At this point, I’m not even sure when my module ends, though I think it is in 2 weeks. I am supposed to teach for 5 credits which is 50 hours of content but Elias tells me that a good part of that time should be students doing individual work. I do get to use slides via PowerPoint as a guide while talking so that is quite helpful, I wasn’t expecting access to a data projector. On my first day, Elias introduced me to the class and to the two students in the class who are the class representative and my class “helper.” I’m still learning exactly what their roles are but every time I go to erase the chalk board from all of my scribbling the helper gets up and does it for me (or some other student who notices). Apparently, erasing the chalk board is something I should not be doing. On the second day when only 20 of 28 students showed up and most were late, Elias scolded the class representative for not having a full class and showing respect (note that he was present and on time so apparently part of his role is to pass along information from the department to the class).
I am using content from my teaching at SC (imagine how overwhelmed I would be if I wasn’t) but as I look at my slides for similar lectures at SC I realize just how much I have to adapt. For instance, could I possibly talk about percentiles and explain it through their experience taking SATs or GREs? I’m also not yet sure just how much PT terminology these students know and most of my examples incorporate clinical studies from the U.S. After being introduced by Elias on my first day I start talking and immediately hit my first mistake. I speak too quickly! These students are struggling with English and mine is not the English they hear every day. In fact, these students probably did their secondary (HS) studies in French, started their BS studies in French and then, when it was decided to switch to English had a semester of intensive English studying and then continued on the road to their BS in English only. Along the way in these first two lectures I seemed to make other cultural mistakes, my jokes often fall flat, I asked each student in the class his/her age to use as an example for teaching descriptive statistics and they seemed taken aback, I keep trying to erase the blackboard on my own, I ask questions about material that nobody seems to feel comfortable answering or, when they do it comes to me in a whisper. In my first lecture I introduced the “muddiest point” concept to the class (they thought this was a very funny idea). Now 2 lectures in, it seems they like to raise their hands and announce what is muddy (everything!!!). I’ve got to figure out how to manage this content. I’ve asked Elias for permission to observe some of the other faculty teaching and I will ask one of my colleagues here to observe me and provide some insight about how better to handle the classroom.
On Friday when I walked out of my lecture and was doing some finishing work, I noticed that the faculty seemed to have changed out of their work clothes into more relaxed attire. Elias was wearing shorts, Jeanne was in jeans, something seemed amiss and they were all about to leave. Jeanne came to the end of the hall where my desk is and announced we were leaving for a party, “it is not optional.” We boarded the KHI buses and the entire faculty of all departments drove off from the campus to the grounds of the Gahinga guesthouse which is in another district of Kigali. There everyone gathered to celebrate the New Year. Although I had to leave early the party was rather elaborate with a meal, music, games and dancing. I’m not sure how late it went into the evening but the men were enjoying their beers (it is unusual for women to drink in public) and I suspect everyone stayed late.
Today is the last Saturday of the month which is Umuganda. Each month, on Umuganda one adult from the house must join in a district based public work effort (street or neighborhood clean up, road building, etc.). The entire city participates and if you are out on the streets not participating you could be stopped by police, questioned and fined. A notice came to our house but since it is written in Kinyarwanda we aren’t sure where to go for our neighborhood project. Hopefully, next month we will participate. This afternoon we have hired a driver so we can do some shopping to get the house supplies we need. Tomorrow we’ll try another pool at one of the Kigali Hotels.
