Rwanda 101

Transportation
Every corner you turn in the city is filled with moto-taxis, regular car taxis, and buses. Keep in mind the currency exchange is 1 Dollar = 690 Francs. And to each form of transportation, its own!

One bus ride to downtown is around 200 Francs. 

Pros: Cheapest

Cons: Most packed and doesn't drop off exactly where you want to go. 

One moto-taxi ride to downtown is around 700 Francs.

Pros: The most entertaining, the quickest, relatively cheap. 

Cons: crazy drivers, all drivers have one helmet for all passengers, rumor of drivers drinking & driving, most dangerous 

One car taxi ride to downtown is around 4000 Francs. 

Pros: Shelter from the outside, sits multiple people comfortably, delivers right where you want them too

Cons: Expensive

Overall con is that almost no one speaks good English so communicating where to go is relatively hard! EWH(the organization I came with) does not recommend the motos, but they are the funnest! I just know not to ride in the dark nor in the rain! Reducing the risks! 

But regardless of wherever you go, if it is a walk-able distance, you will see people walking! No matter the time of day, the streets are pretty busy!

Food
So a typical Rwandan meal includes:

White rice

beans

cooked banana

cacava

flavorless pasta

Some meat (usually goat or beef, hardly ever chicken)

I tried liver here for the first time! Not my favorite...

African Tea (hot milk and tea) 

and some fruit like papaya, pineapples, or passion fruit

Never fresh veggies!

Overall food is pretty bland, after a week of eating it we decided we needed to explore more! So typically we go to restaurants such as: Meze Fresh(kind of like chipotle), Sole Luna (italian), Chinese restaurant, fancy restaurants near downtown, African Bagel Company (great bagel spot) 

People
No matter where you go, you will always be the center of attention. Little kids run down the streets towards you, yelling "Muzungo" or "Give me money"! At first its pretty amusing, but after awhile its nice to have some peace and quiet.
Women carry their babies wrapped around their backs all day. At our home stay, the mom might be doing chores or just standing around with the little one year old knocked out on her back.
Everyone is usually extra nice to you if you speak kinyarwanda towards them. They really do appreciate you making an effort in learning their language.
After the genocide, the number of handicap people increased drastically and you can see that very

Fashion
On a regular day basis, walking down the street you see half of the women dressed in traditional African cloth and the other half in regular western clothing. Everyday wear is pretty conservative here, you will never see women wearing anything above the knee or exposing shoulders  (no tank tops or shorts). 
Women and men walk around with head wraps to hold whatever they are transporting on their heads, i have seen them carry bananas, jugs of water, mattresses, chairs, etc...

Landscape

Northeast = plains (this is where the safari is)

Northwest = volcanoes and mountains 

Southwest = Lake Kivu (the lake that connects the Congo and Rwanda) 

South = Jungle 

But no matter wherever you go, there are hills everywhere. So to travel from one place to another, be prepared to move around the hills. And bring a paperbag, many people get motion sickness. But on the positive side, there are breath taking views wherever you go. 

Weather
I don't miss Texas weather. Its never above 85F nor below 70, every day all day. We have even had rain showers like three times. The only real downside is that the malaria carrying mosquitoes thrive here! But the government gives every single person a mosquito net for free to combat them. Considering malaria is in the top 10 cause of death, the mosquito nets come in to great use! 


Language
So everyone speaks Kinyarwanda, like 35% speak french, and less than 10% speak English. In the past couple of years, the official language went from french to english. Kinyarwanda is tone language, so the way you pronounce things can change what you say. My vocabulary includes how to give directions and how to bargain! Pretty much all you need to know to survive here.

Quick Cheat Sheet: 

Good morning- Waramutse

Good afternoon- Wiriwe

Thank you- Murakoze

How much?- Nangahe

Too much- Ni menshi! 

Here- Hano

Yes- yego

No-ohya

Where? -he he

Slow down- Bohoro

Turn right - kata iburyo

Go ahead- comeza 

So a typical conversation to try to get home on a moto goes as follows: 

Me: Kicukiro? 

Moto: Yego, he he?

Me: ETO (the name of our school)

Moto: Yego (hands me the helmet)

Me: Nangahe? 

Moto: igihumbi (1000)

Me: Ni menshi! Orororo! (Orororo is kind of like saying "ouch that hurts")

Me: Maganarindwi (700)

Moto: *laughs* yego! 

Me: Murakoze! 

If you are curious about anything else, just leave a comment and I will respond! 

Thanks and Gig'Em