Monday morning we said goodbye to the noisy neighbors and non-existent mosquito nets of the Target Plaza hotel in Kigali and set out west to Lake Kivu and Children’s Village Kigarama. The first trial of this odyssey, and the true test of our special reasoning skills came when we tried to fit our team and excessive amounts of luggage into a small taxi/civic to drive to the bus station. Our team is becoming very close.
We took the bus to the end of the line in Kibuye and caught motos (motorcycle taxis) from there to the orphanage.
The dirt road was rocky and we bounced along through the scenic verdant hills neighboring Lake Kivu. A half an hour into the trip my moto driver hit one rock too many and we had to pull over in a small town to fix a flat. While we were waiting, a group of kids saw my ukulele poking out of a bag and Andy and I pulled it out for impromptu concert number two, this time for twenty or so people that came out of neighboring shops to encircle us.
We arrived at the orphanage in the late afternoon nearing sunset. Some of the caretakers helped us carry our bags in from the motos and we were showed to rooms where we will be staying. Andy dropped off his bag in the room and left with the words “I’m going to go check on my babies”. I followed shortly after to see Andy surrounded by a crowd of 2 year olds grabbing his legs and reaching up to him as they called his name in chorus.
Victor gave us newcomers a tour of the facilities which include several house-dorms, each with its own rainwater catchment system and kitchen, a water purification system, pens for animals, and expansive orchards which produce fruit for sustenance and sale. Many of the projects that the orphanage is currently developing are focused on gaining financial independence and sustainability. Although there is work to do, it’s apparent that the orphanage has benefited from thoughtful planning and its partnership with outside organizations.
Our first day was spent coordinating with Victor and his people to figure out logistics. We plan to focus on testing the cleanliness of their water sources, efficiency of the cook-stoves and may potentially need to coordinate stove repair. Wear and hard usage has caused damage to the pumice insulation of some of them. In addition, we will be investigating ways to protect the buildings and electrical systems at the orphanage from lightning strikes, and will be actively providing educational opportunities.
Interesting thoughts:
“Poverty is not an intellectual exercise”
“Standard of living is not the same as quality of life”
It’s easy to conserve water and shower quickly when you shower with ice cold water.
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