Why is this night different?

We returned from our sunny, care-free (well, somewhat) beach vacation in Zanzibar to the spring holiday season (Passover and Easter) and to a country in the middle of the annual mourning period commemorating the Genocide.

There were rumors floating around Kigali that a Chabad Rabbi would be arriving with Matzah and Kosher wine to conduct a seder.  With only two days to go before Passover, it was finally confirmed that his trip was cancelled and we were on our own to figure out the matzah and seder.  I made a couple of fruitless attempts to contact the Rabbi in Kinshasa (Chabad of Central Africa) to see if he would be our supplier before we decided to just go ahead and make our own.  I posted on the local ex-pat list-serve inviting anyone interested to our seder and a few other seder invitations were posted by others as well.  Nava, Saadya and I spent Sunday afternoon making matzah.  As Nava rolled out here first matzah I noticed the shape quite by accident looked oddly familiar and...voila, we had out African Matzah in the shape of Africa!

Matzah by Nava

On Monday evening we sat down to our seder with two guests, Yaron, an Israeli who is an agricultural specialist here on a private contract working on a project to try to grow wheat and Wendy, an American who is here with "Save the Children" on a 6 month contract. Our seder table was beautifully set with kanga tablecloth from Zanzibar and a mouthwatering charoset that Patricia concocted from native produce (macadamia nuts, cashews, mango, apple and grape juice). There were a few items we couldn't find so we improvised a shank bone and maror.  Saadya led the seder and did a great job.  Nava was sad to find herself once again the youngest but managed the four questions without the benefit of LGA classroom practice.  I had one paper copy of a Haggadah and some pdf files so you'll notice a computer on our table.

Looks like a seder table doesn't it?

Saadya led

Our seder

Our seder disasters were minimal, nobody spilled wine on a white tablecoth and there were no matzah balls to sink to the bottom of our stomachs.   I did make a terrible pilau rice and have now been banned from all future rice making activities.  Funnier than my rice, Yaron wanted to bring some mixed fruit for dessert but when we opened the can it turned out he had bought an industrial sized batch of mixed tropical fruit jam.  Yep, this night was same, different, same.

Friday of that same week was a day-off as Good Friday is a national holiday in Rwanda.  Nava and Patricia went to a Antja, Rob and Yana's house to color eggs.  Antja and Rob are German and British respectively and are here as architects working on a library project, they arrived in Kigali at about the same time as us, coming from 11 years in Uganda.  Their daughter Yana is in 2nd grade at ISK where Nava goes to school.  We had to work very hard to get eggs that are whitish to take on the color since most eggs here are brown (with white yolks!) and I thought to buy food coloring from one of the Indian stores where I got a vivid red, green and yellow. 

Dyed eggs in a Rwandan basket

Then on Sunday we joined this family and a couple of others for a brunch and egg hunt at their house.

Nava on the hunt for chocolate

The brunch was great, good food, nice social atmosphere and plenty of playmates.  The big added bonus is that the yard at Antja's house has some trees that are producing piles of avocado, guava and pomegrantes as long as the local vervet monkeys stay away.  Nava came home with both a bag of chocolate and a bag of avocadoes, Saadya, Patricia and I came home with full tummies and the good feeling of having some social ties.

Jambo, Pole-pole, Karibu (yes, that's nearly our full Kiswahili lexicon)

As I was getting ready to write another posting I was thinking that those of you reading this are probably thinking that all we do is travel around East Africa, take holidays and go on adventures.  This posting will reinforce that belief as we are just returned from a 9 day holiday in Zanzibar, but be forewarned, I promise a very dull posting quite soon about the ways in which we spend most of our days in Kigali (sleep, eat, work, go to school).  Meanwhile, twende - let's go, I've got stories and over 300 photos to share!

About a month ago we decided to use the two week spring vacation period from Saadya and Nava's school to travel to a beach destination in East Africa.  We debated the possibilities...Madagascar, Mombasa,  Zanzibar...the costs, the multiple interests and decided to land in Zanzibar.  Within a week we got just the right set of flights, the right lodgings, a Tanzanian visa and everything seemed to be smooth sailing.  Then about a week before departure we started to get daily notices that our flights were being rearranged by an hour or two first forward in time then backward.  Finally, the day before we were set to leave we were notified that our flight had been cancelled but we could be rerouted and would leave at - ouch, 3:00am (in essence gaining a day in Zanzibar).  All of these flight changes gave us some worry about how travelling via Kenya Airways would be but we arrived timely though tired.  In fact, the U.S. airlines could learn a thing or two from Kenya Airways.  On our first flight from Kigali to Nairobi, since everyone was checked in, we left 1/2 hour early and on both of our flights we were served a small meal even though the flying time was no more than 1-1.5 hours; I'll never settle for a soda and a bag of nuts again!  For Saadya, the trip offered the thrill of flying on 3 new airlines, Kenya Airways, Precision Air and Rwandair.

Yep, here he is, the pride of Africa on his way from Nairobi to Zanzibar

On getting off the plane we were immediately hit by the fact that we had entered a tropical climate.  The long pants and sweaters we needed on leaving Kigali were about to be packed away for 9 days of heat, humidity and a bit of tropical rain.  Our first big schvitz occurred while waiting to get through the visa/immigration line, not because we were nervous about the experience but because it was hot and slow, slow, slow.  Having the visa in advance was not really helpful as we still needed to go through the form filling out, questioning, and fingerprinting process that marks both the entry and exit from Tanzania.  Once out of the airport we were met by an arranged driver and whisked away to our first destination Mbweni Ruins Hotel.  The hotel sits just south of Stonetown and incorporates the ruins of a school built in the late 1800's for freed slaves.

Ruins at Mbweni

Old Chapel from the ruins at Mbweni

The hotel also has a long pier that Saadya liked to sit on and read, a beautiful beach and a very nice pool for Nava and kayaks to explore the Mangroves. 

View of the hotel from the end of the pier

Our first sunset at Mbweni

The location was perfect for our first explorations which included a trip to a spice farm, exploring Stonetown, and a trip to Jozani forest.

The spice farm trip happened on our first full day over the course of a rainy morning.  The rain did not surprise us, April is the beginning of the rainy season in Zanzibar.  The benefit of rainy season travel is that there are fewer tourists and prices for many places are lower.  We hired a driver and ventured off to see how and where spices are grown on "The Spice Islands."  The tour was great fun, our guide on the farm played a typical tourist game with us giving us hints as we moved from plant to plant or tree to tree so that we could guess what was in front of us.  We saw, tasted and smelled nutmeg tree, cardomom, clove, ylang-ylang, peppercorn, vanilla, jackfruit, grapefruit, pineapple, cassava, cinnamon, starfruit and coconut as we wandered through the maze of palms, bushes and trees.  Each of us was given a banana leaf cone to fill with treasures during our walk.  The tour ended with one of the guides climbing a coconut tree and picking fresh coconut from which we drank the juice.

Nutmeg

Vanilla bean

Nava collecting spices

King of the spice tour

The coconut tree climber

Drinking fresh coconut juice

On our way back to Mbweni we stopped at the nearby Kidichi Persian Baths.  The baths are a beutiful building that were constructed by Sultan Seyyid in about 1850 for one of his wives.  During our 9 days in Zanzibar we made an effort to learn a bit of history.  Its a complicated and fascinating history involving trade routes, slave trade and migrations of people to the islands from Portugal, Oman, Persia and the UK.  We paid the caretaker to see the inside and were dismayed to see and hear about how the Tanzanian government, in an effort to make care easier, had whitewashed the building so the coloful Persian designs were gone and the stained glass from the ceiling was removed.

Kidichi

As we drove back to Mbweni our stomachs started making the I'm hungry sounds so our driver took us to a popular local eatery called Laakman's for our first taste of Zanzibar/Swahili food.  I immediately fell in love with the pilau rice and on a later day found the delight of the spice rice.  If I can learn to cook rice properly I now know which spices belong in it.

The following day we explored Stonetown, the large city of the main island of Unguja.  In Stonetown we saw so many other Muzungu tourists that it was hard to believe we were there in the off season.  Saadya was excited to tour the city since, as he often pointed out, it is a World Heritage Site.  We visited all the typical tourist sites learning some important history and seeing the amazing mix of city market area, narrow alleys, mosques and architecture that is part Moorish, part Persian and part Indian. 

Fish Market

Bananas in the market

Spices for sale



A Stonetown alley

We managed to avoid Freddy Mercury's house (yep, he was originally from Stonetown) and ended our day at the Mtoni palace ruins which was the palace  of Sultan Said where Princess Salme was born.  Your very own brief history of Zanzibar (and a recipe for Pilau Rice) can be found at ZanzibarNet.  While we were travelling in Zanzibar, Patricia bought a copy of Memoirs of an Arabian Princess in its original German, read it and filled us in on much of the history.

As wonderful and exotic as Zanzibar, Stonetown and our travels were, we also got some insight into the politics and issues that boil underneath the whitewash that is presented to tourists.  Our drivers told us of the problems of corruption and bribery, the government that makes promises but doesn't come through.  We saw the poverty and the effects of the high rates of unemployment.  We saw trash everywhere as the island has no sustainable approach to dealing with waste disposal.  The 3 hotels/resorts at which we stayed were all owned by Europeans so although we were contributing to the island economy much of our money was making its way back to the western world (except at Chumbe).  At our last hotel, Patricia and I explored by bike the neighboring towns and saw the poor living conditions that those who stay behind the resort walls never see.  In sum, like in most "fabulous" resort locations, the locals are not enjoying the sun, fun and food that we can afford.  This tainted but did not ruin our vacation, better to know and see than to ignore.

Our final day at Mbweni we took a trip to Jozani Forest where we walked through a beautiful lush forest, a boardwalk through a mangrove swamp and visited with the Red Colubus Monkeys.

Red Colubus

Our forest walk

The next morning we awoke and took a ferry for a two night stay at Chumbe Island.  I can't even begin to describe how special the stay on the island was.  Chumbe Island is a privately owned and protected reef sanctuary and forest preserve.  The island is a true eco-tourism site creating a minimal footprint, providing important edcational programming, conducting marine research and protecting the preserve.  We felt as if we were treated like royalty.  Two days of snorkeling, beach and forest exploration, amazing accomodations and gourmet food served always near the beach or in the evening, by candlelight on the beach.  On our first day, within hours of arriving, all 4 of us were taken out snorkeling on the coral reef sanctuary.  Our guide taught us what we needed to know, helped Nava and Saadya and we were off into the amazing watery wonders swimming with beautiful fish (yes, even Nemo was there) and even seeing and swimming with sea turtles.  By the second day, Nava was off and snorkeling on here own (Saadya got sick and had to skip day 2) and identifying the tropical fish as she went along.  If you ever find yourself thinking about a trip to Zanzibar Chumbe Island is a MUST VISIT site.

Chumbe as we approached from the boat

Our bungalows

First floor of one of the bungalows, sleeping quarters were up the ladder

Coconut crab (they only come out at night)

Nava with a fossilized giant clam

Exploring the Chumbe beach

As sorry as we were to leave Chumbe, we were certainly feeling relaxed and begining to get our tans on.

Tanned and relaxed!

Next stop, Pongwe Beach Hotel, a resort renowned for its beautiful beach and infnity pool.  Our goal at Pongwe was to spend our last 3 days roaming the beach and not really going anywhere.  GOOD NEWS, we accomplished this very difficult goal finding it nowhere nearly as difficult as it may sound to you.  Nava spent three days clad only in a bathing suit, creating shell gardens and swimming.  Saadya relaxed and continued to recuperate from his bout of Zanzibaritis.  Patricia and I ventured out on bicycles to see a bit of the surrounding area.  Nava, Patricia and I tried our hands at kayaking. We all walked up and down the beach, hung out at the pool and continued to feast on seafood.  The photos capture some of our Pongwe time but none of the amazing turqoise, purple and blue colors of ocean.

Sunrise walk

Kayaking

More kayaking

Our Zanzibari Bed

Our seashell garden

Nava on the beach wrapped in a Kanga



The view toward the beach at Pongwe

Our exotic Zanzibar journey came to a close with a quick flight from Zanzibar to Dar and another round of fingerprinting as we left Tanzania arriving back to the cool air, the clean streets and the now familiar sights and sounds of Kigali, the place we are currently calling home.

Adventure is out there!

From the title, you might guess that we've watched the movie "Up" a few more times since arriving here and you'd be right.  It may take 8-9 hours but if we stay in Kigali on weekends we will typically download and watch a movie on at least one weekend evening.  Turns out, Kigali is not exactly a hotspot for culture or other evening activities.  There is one cinema which sometimes shows films but with no clear schedule, there are dance clubs which the trendy young-set (including the KHI students) sometimes go to and not much else.  I've more than once asked the students what do you do on weekends, to which they respond, we play, we rest, we visit and some go dancing.  PLAY?  Ah you've fallen prey to the mistake I often make, Rwandans have difficulty pronouncing the "R" sound they are not playing, they are praying.  We have even heard a few people tell us they "play god on Sunday."   Since we can't play god, we work very hard to find exciting things to do in town and, as often as we are able, we get out and look for the adventures.

In Kigali, this past Wednesday, Patricia, Gwenn and I ventured into the offices of Gahaya Links.  Gahaya Links was founded by two sisters after the Genocide to train rural women in crafts so that the widows could generate some income.  We met one of the sisters, Janet Nkubana who told us about their work.  Initially they focused only on basket weaving, now they create jewlery and are branching into tailoring/sewing work.  The center continues to train women in handicrafts and provide a fair wage for each of the items the women produce.  Many of the women who work or train in the center have HIV/AIDS and they are able to come to Gahaya without facing some of the difficulties and stigma they would elsewhere.  Janet was the recipient of a USAID grant some years back that allowed her to attend a trade show in Europe.  She made some contacts there and now Gahaya Links products can be purchased at Macy's (Rwanda Baskets at Macy's), via Oprah, and in some other shops in Europe.  Janet showed us this month's Marie Clare which features a handbag with the Kate Spade label on it which is actually a Gahaya Links made product (Kate Spade...by Gahaya Links).  We toured the Kigali based workshop and bought a few items to bring back to the states.


Paper bead making  at the workshop (paper recycling in Rwanda!)

Jewelry Construction

Baskets

Baskets and wall hangings

We hope to see a few more cooperatives and workshops before we leave Kigali but Gahaya Links is certainly one of the more succesful and larger examples.  Through their training and connections Gahaya provides wages to women both in the city and in the rural regions who might not otherwise have sufficient money.

This past weekend, we traveled to Kibuye by Lake Kivu and stayed in the most amzingly gorgeous setting at the Cormoran Lodge.  Lake Kivu is a large and very deep lake that is part of the Albertine Rift.  It defines the border between Rwanda and DRC.  The drive out to the lake is along a very windy and mountainous road.  After this drive, I suspect Rwanda might be better named land of a few hundred thousand hills or maybe land of high mountains, with windy roads.  It is a beautiful drive but as the driver somewhat exhausting and for us, it dumped us on a windy, rutted, rock filled dirt road that felt like it just couldn't be right, especially since we weren't driving a 4-wheel drive car.  Luckily, the reward at the end of all this tricky navigation was a private and exquisitely laid out hotel with amazing views, a great room, a little beach and a good restaurant.  The lodge is built on a hillside with individual buildings all constructed from wood.  Inside each building, the rooms and even the bathrooms are gorgeous, nice woods, large tub, local stone inlays and a balcony on which to relax.  I started playing with the panorama mode (as you'll see below) on our camera so you may get some sense from the photos of the expanse and setting.

The view from our room

Cormoran Lodge

Our room with a view

View of the mountains that surround Lake Kivu

Saturday, when we arrived was sunny and warm.  Our room is the one in the photo above that is the highest of all the buildings.  We settled into our room, Nava, Patricia and I changed to swimsuits and spent the afternoon at the beach and on the dock.  Patricia took a swim in the rather cold waters.  Saadya mostly stayed in the room since he is not a beach person but he did enjoy wandering the property which includes beautiful trees and gardens.  The trees produce the fruit from which our breakfast jams on the next day were made (I could eat homemade Guava jam every day with a lake view).

The beach (Nava and Patricia on the left)

In the evening we sat on the balcony of the restaurant enjoying both the meal and the view.  Saadya and I ate Lake Kivu fish in the spirit of our water adventure. We returned to our well appointed room with games from the office and full bellies.  Since we needed an extra bed, Saadya got the on the floor mattress which was placed in a tent to give him a pretty cool version of a mosquito netting.

Our room as we prepare for evening

Aside from some noisy partying folks the overnight stay was fantastic.  And even those noisy folks (at least the ones below us) got their just due when we stomped around our room in the morning and oops, dropped a few heavy items on the floor.  Breakfast included fresh bread and jams made from the local fruits.  We left Cormoran and drove into Kibuye where we took a boat ride for an hour to see a bit more of Kivu.  Admittedly we could have hired a boat at Cormoran but the cost was unbelievable and the boat was a typical western motor boat.  We got to ride on a sort of dhow with a motor.  At about the halfway point, we were met near the shore by a guy on a moto who our "captain" had called to bring more fuel.

On the boat

Loaded with fuel, we cruised around the lake as a storm approached, seeing the birds and islands.  The islands had some cows on them which our captain told us had swum over from the mainland.

Just as the day started to get rainy and stormy we took off in our car and drove back to Kigali renewed and refreshed from our Lake Kivu and Cormoran Lodge visit.

This week marks the beginning of the Genocide Memorial period for the country.  Thursday and Friday will be formal memorial days but the period of mourning lasts for the entire 100 days to match the time period of the Genocide.   We aren't really sure just what will occur during this time and how the period is marked.  On Friday when I went to the Serena for instance I was told the gym would be open for all of April but that there would be no formal classes (aerobics, toning) for the entire month since they don't play music.

Saadya and Nava have a two week vacation from school and KHI is off as well.  Like many ex-pats, we will take leave of Rwanda for some of this time and are off to Zanzibar later in the week.