Friday, October 21, 2011
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Visas and Sad Departures
Today I went back to immigration to pick up my visa. I got a text message telling me my visa was ready for pick up and it was all very straightforward. A lot of the people waiting with me were the same people I waited with last week so there were some nods and smiles of greetings everytime someone new came in and took their number. I only had to wait an hour this time and then I was able to leave passport in hand. Now I am here in Rwanda legally. Hurrah!
Today I also said goodbye to Maddy, one of my housemates. She is going back the the US for two weeks and gets back three days after I leave here. I'm sad that she is gone and the rest of my time in the house will be a little lonely. I still have Dora, who I love, but she works all day and then has school in the evenings so she often does not get home until 9:30 or 10:00 at night. So I have the house mostly to myself.
I am really excited about this weekend. Ashley, a friend and classmate doing her research in Uganda, is coming here to Kigali. She finally got her visa today as well. We haven't decided exactly what we're going to do while she's here but it will probably be a lot of hanging out and relaxing. Hopefully the weather cooperates. We may do a day trip to Gisenyi, a lakeside tourist town near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. (don't worry mom, we won't cross the border...) I'm also excited because Katherine, a friend I met last time I was in Rwanda will also be coming back next weekend. Hopefully she can hang out with Ashley and I a little and I'm looking forward to catching up with her and hearing about her adventures.
I only have two weeks left here in Rwanda - TWO WEEKS!!! and there is still so much to do. If I think about it too much I start to get discouraged but I'm still confident that I can get most of the data that I still want to get. I have not been feeling 100% the past two days so I am hoping that I feel better quickly. It is not fun wandering around the land of a thousand hills looking for not very descriptive addresses when you are not feeling well! And, now the power is out and my battery is dying so I will post this in the morning :)
** The power was out last night for more than three hours all over my area of Kigali (Kabeza) and most of Giporoso as well. This is the first time the power went out for that long when it wasn't raining. I had almost forgotten how unreliable the electricity used to be here because it has been so good lately. Now I'm in Bourbon at the MTN Center in Nyatarama to type up my last two interviews and enjoy some yummy coffee. Looks like it should be a great day!
Today I also said goodbye to Maddy, one of my housemates. She is going back the the US for two weeks and gets back three days after I leave here. I'm sad that she is gone and the rest of my time in the house will be a little lonely. I still have Dora, who I love, but she works all day and then has school in the evenings so she often does not get home until 9:30 or 10:00 at night. So I have the house mostly to myself.
I am really excited about this weekend. Ashley, a friend and classmate doing her research in Uganda, is coming here to Kigali. She finally got her visa today as well. We haven't decided exactly what we're going to do while she's here but it will probably be a lot of hanging out and relaxing. Hopefully the weather cooperates. We may do a day trip to Gisenyi, a lakeside tourist town near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. (don't worry mom, we won't cross the border...) I'm also excited because Katherine, a friend I met last time I was in Rwanda will also be coming back next weekend. Hopefully she can hang out with Ashley and I a little and I'm looking forward to catching up with her and hearing about her adventures.
I only have two weeks left here in Rwanda - TWO WEEKS!!! and there is still so much to do. If I think about it too much I start to get discouraged but I'm still confident that I can get most of the data that I still want to get. I have not been feeling 100% the past two days so I am hoping that I feel better quickly. It is not fun wandering around the land of a thousand hills looking for not very descriptive addresses when you are not feeling well! And, now the power is out and my battery is dying so I will post this in the morning :)
** The power was out last night for more than three hours all over my area of Kigali (Kabeza) and most of Giporoso as well. This is the first time the power went out for that long when it wasn't raining. I had almost forgotten how unreliable the electricity used to be here because it has been so good lately. Now I'm in Bourbon at the MTN Center in Nyatarama to type up my last two interviews and enjoy some yummy coffee. Looks like it should be a great day!
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Weekend Musings
I had a dream last night that I got home and realized that I couldn't use any of my interviews and that all the data I have collected here is wrong or can't be used. It gave me a little bit of a panicky feeling and now I'm looking over my interview transcripts thinking "is this right? is this what I want? What can I do with this?...." I only have two weeks left in Rwanda and I have A LOT to pack into that time. Hopefully I get it all done and I can talk to everyone I need to talk to.... then I get to spend a week in Ethiopia with Fiona and I won't think about research at all. Looking forward to the return of my sanity!
Another thing to look forward to is next weekend. Ashley is a friend and classmate who is doing her research in Uganda right now. Originally she was going to come hang out with me this weekend but due to visa issues that has been postponed until next weekend. I'm looking forward to showing her my favourite things in Kigali and to have someone to eat with at Indian Khazana, the best Indian Restaurant on the planet. If I can get enough done and talk to enough people this week then I am going to Uganda for a few days to hang out with her before I leave. I really hope this works out because it sounds like her time in Uganda has been really interesting and I have never been there. I'm going to have to get really annoying with the people I want to talk with so that they just agree to meet with me to get rid of me!
Yesterday morning I had a very productive meeting but it was pouring rain so I got soaking wet trying to get there. Then of course I had to wait almost 2 hours before she could actually meet with me, but that is the way things are. While I was walking from my house to find a taxi I ended up walking with a little girl on her way to buy cooking oil. She shared my umbrella for a few blocks then went into a shop across the street. We didn't talk to each other at all, just walked together for a little while trying to stay dry, then we waved as went our seperate ways. It was one of the highlights of my day.
Another thing to look forward to is next weekend. Ashley is a friend and classmate who is doing her research in Uganda right now. Originally she was going to come hang out with me this weekend but due to visa issues that has been postponed until next weekend. I'm looking forward to showing her my favourite things in Kigali and to have someone to eat with at Indian Khazana, the best Indian Restaurant on the planet. If I can get enough done and talk to enough people this week then I am going to Uganda for a few days to hang out with her before I leave. I really hope this works out because it sounds like her time in Uganda has been really interesting and I have never been there. I'm going to have to get really annoying with the people I want to talk with so that they just agree to meet with me to get rid of me!
Yesterday morning I had a very productive meeting but it was pouring rain so I got soaking wet trying to get there. Then of course I had to wait almost 2 hours before she could actually meet with me, but that is the way things are. While I was walking from my house to find a taxi I ended up walking with a little girl on her way to buy cooking oil. She shared my umbrella for a few blocks then went into a shop across the street. We didn't talk to each other at all, just walked together for a little while trying to stay dry, then we waved as went our seperate ways. It was one of the highlights of my day.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Random Stories from Kigali (part 3)
I'm sitting in a new coffee shop in Kigali (new to me...which means it is less than 2 1/2 years old) trying to upload pictures to my thanksgiving post which is now three days late and has taken WAY too much effort to do. They are playing french Christmas caroles....
When I was coming to Rwanda I got confused trying to navigate the new visa application process (again, new to me... I think it has been in place for at least a year...) so instead of getting a visa that would be good for my entire visit here I got a simple online 30 day visa. So easy! Only took 3 days! Never mind that I didn't have it printed when I got to customs so I had to show them the form on my laptop like a Muzungu idiot. Anyway, the only hiccup to this plan is that I am here in Rwanda for 46 days. Not 30. So I need to get an extension of my visa. I had been told that this was an easy process and compared to the confusion of the original application process with the embassy in Ottawa dodging my calls and not picking up the phone no matter how many times I called, it was an easy process. It just involved me going to the immigration office three mornings in a row.
The first day I got delayed going and didn't realize that you can only hand in visa applications in the morning. I would still have had time except someone directed me to the wrong office (somehow I missed the big "VISA APPLICATIONS" sign above the correct door...) so by the time I made it to the correct office it was too late. So yesterday I returned and was there by 9:30am. I got my number - 3090.... now serving 3054.... lovely. So I waited in line for two hours for my turn. I nodded to some of the people who were there the day before and stared at the tv in the corner playing something about volcanoes without any volume. Finally it was my turn and the immigration agent told me that actually, because you're staying with a Rwandan we need a copy of their identification. When I told Dora this she was very confused because none of the interns who have stayed with her in the past have ever needed a copy of her identification, but those are the hoops so we jump through them.
I went back early this morning. For the third time in a row. I smiled at some familiar faces - at least I wasn't the only person jumping through hoops! The immigration office is starting to feel homey. I know which seats squeak, (the one by the window has a pokey thing in the backrest) and I know the powerpoint slideshow on how to get your number and stand in line quietly off by heart. This time I only had to wait 45 minutes and the time flew by. I spent it staring at the picture of President Kagame hanging on the wall trying to figure out if he was sitting crookedly or if the picture was crooked in the frame.... Finally it was my turn and the immigration agent remembered me from yesterday (or maybe from the day before...) so he quickly pulled together my documents and entered some info into the computer. Success!! I should be able to pick up my visa on monday and have a nice day.
Now I'm at Magda Cafe and I check my email and apparently I have two seperate visa applications being processed... with two different tracking numbers.... neither of which have my name spelled correctly...
Someone noticed that it isn't Christmas yet and changed the music. Now I'm listening to Dolly Parton.
When I was coming to Rwanda I got confused trying to navigate the new visa application process (again, new to me... I think it has been in place for at least a year...) so instead of getting a visa that would be good for my entire visit here I got a simple online 30 day visa. So easy! Only took 3 days! Never mind that I didn't have it printed when I got to customs so I had to show them the form on my laptop like a Muzungu idiot. Anyway, the only hiccup to this plan is that I am here in Rwanda for 46 days. Not 30. So I need to get an extension of my visa. I had been told that this was an easy process and compared to the confusion of the original application process with the embassy in Ottawa dodging my calls and not picking up the phone no matter how many times I called, it was an easy process. It just involved me going to the immigration office three mornings in a row.
The first day I got delayed going and didn't realize that you can only hand in visa applications in the morning. I would still have had time except someone directed me to the wrong office (somehow I missed the big "VISA APPLICATIONS" sign above the correct door...) so by the time I made it to the correct office it was too late. So yesterday I returned and was there by 9:30am. I got my number - 3090.... now serving 3054.... lovely. So I waited in line for two hours for my turn. I nodded to some of the people who were there the day before and stared at the tv in the corner playing something about volcanoes without any volume. Finally it was my turn and the immigration agent told me that actually, because you're staying with a Rwandan we need a copy of their identification. When I told Dora this she was very confused because none of the interns who have stayed with her in the past have ever needed a copy of her identification, but those are the hoops so we jump through them.
I went back early this morning. For the third time in a row. I smiled at some familiar faces - at least I wasn't the only person jumping through hoops! The immigration office is starting to feel homey. I know which seats squeak, (the one by the window has a pokey thing in the backrest) and I know the powerpoint slideshow on how to get your number and stand in line quietly off by heart. This time I only had to wait 45 minutes and the time flew by. I spent it staring at the picture of President Kagame hanging on the wall trying to figure out if he was sitting crookedly or if the picture was crooked in the frame.... Finally it was my turn and the immigration agent remembered me from yesterday (or maybe from the day before...) so he quickly pulled together my documents and entered some info into the computer. Success!! I should be able to pick up my visa on monday and have a nice day.
Now I'm at Magda Cafe and I check my email and apparently I have two seperate visa applications being processed... with two different tracking numbers.... neither of which have my name spelled correctly...
Someone noticed that it isn't Christmas yet and changed the music. Now I'm listening to Dolly Parton.
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