It costs sixteen cents to use the toilet here.

A Ugandan priest, a nun and a group of Americans walk into a convent.

Okay, this isn't the start of a joke. It is, rather, what the beginning of our day looked like on the morning of arrival. We learned a few memorable things from the English-speaking priest, ranging from the necessity of carrying tissue paper around in your pocket (both as a form of protection from theft and a convenient way to wipe your nose) to the fact that all Americans have been to hell and back (facetiously, of couse), even though this guy is better traveled than the rest of us.

 One of the nuns at the convent, washing the floor outside of our room. 

And so begins our adventure. After 18 hours of recycled air and upright sleeping, the stay at the San Francois de Assisi was most welcome, and even if the Ugandan priest didn't like the place much, we found it to be nothing short of quaint, as we slept under the glow-in-the-dark Jesus on the wall and were greeted by small nuns walking about. We plan on staying at the convent for two more nights, so prepare for more updates to come on the dramatic and exciting lives of Catholic nuns.

Michael shows off the only way to possibly play a uke the right way: by making the classic ukulele face. 

Today, since we hadn't a single Rwandan Franc to our names, we all took a leisurely 2 mile stroll to downtown Kigali. Now nothing screams "Hey, look at me" more than an American walking down a Kigali sidewalk except for, of course, five Americans. And if you ever happen to forget how much you really stand out, there are always small children there to remind you politely as they scream "Amazungu!" (white person!) at you every time they get the chance, or take pictures on their while you wait on the sidewalk, without even bothering to be subtle about it. But just as Michael  had to stand up tall to use the urinal at the coffee house bathroom (the average height for males here is a bit taller than expected), we are adjusting to the new surroundings.

Logistics is the name of the game today. We exchanged money, got our phones up and running, and did some planning, all within the first half of the day. Later on will be spent touring the city, a much-needed event since a good amount of time will be spent there over the course of our stay in Rwanda. As for food, so far we haven't been exposed to much. Before breakfast this morning I had visions of a traditional Rwandan spread laid out before us, as we sipped on the finest coffee. Instead we got omelettes and bread. And a banana. So a little anti-climatic, but enough to assuage our hunger. Tonight, we will meet up with Serge, a charismatic friend of ours from Rwanda who has been a valuable resource so far, and Willy, our wonderful host from Village Makeover, for dinner. I'm already preparing my stomach for this wild culinary adventure. Or I can just get french fries. Either works just fine for me.

The gang at dinner (without Jordan), just before things started to get crazy. 

-Steph