Weekend Adventures

It was another weekend filled with new adventures.  Just when I thought it would be very quiet, Emmanuel offered to take me to see the rock that commemorates the meeting of Stanley and Livingstone.   This is south of the city but not too far.  It is, as named, a rock.

Emmanual at the Stanley / Livingston rock

  However it is at the edge of a beautiful inspiring plain, very fertile land, not far off from Lake Tanganyika. Bujumbura is a rapidly expanding city and there are many new 'quarters' (neighbourhoods) being built to house the ever increasing population.  As I looked over the beautiful plain, there are the scars of new roads being built for new residences.

 Emmanuel said that the Belgians had protected the plain but no more.  They admittedly did not have the pressure of exploding population Ina tiny land mass.

After eating another goat kabab, we returned to the city and looked for hippos.  I saw a glimpse of one In the lake but it submerged before I could take a picture.  We returned later I the early evening but they darn animals were not cooperative.  Instead, we ate the little fish that are native to the lake.

These tiny fish were incredibly tasty! Easpceially with the Amstel...

Evening fishing on the lake.

We also drove to the order of DRC.   The road there is atrocious on the Burundi side and is being worked on slowly to bringitto the minimum status required of the Great Lake countries (Rwanda, DRC and Burundi).  The border crossing makes the crossings into Mexico look sophisticated.

Very skinny cows on the road to DRC

There are vendors on the road side, on the Burundi side, shacks which are the immigration and customs offices, and a rackety gate.  Lots of police.  We walked a cross the little creek to the DRC side where Emmanuel introduced me as a Canadian.  The DRC agent asked where my visa was.... Emmanuel suggested later that greasing the palms with a little cash would have worked too!

What surprised me was the buildings and landscape on the DRC side.  They were well constructed, clean, not filled with vendors and landscapes as cared for and maintained.  If we were to run a parallel, Burundi side was Mexico and DRC side was like the United States.

Sunday, we went to the centre of Burundi, to Gitega, to an end of mourning ceremony for Anselme's mother in law, who had passed away.  This involved a Roman Catholic church service with a bit of a memorial! and incredible singing.  It was followed with and short gathering with drinks (Amstel, coke, Fanta) and the donation of envelopes to support the costs of the whole process.   There wasa huge crowd there, and I was the only Mzugo.  (However, there was one other person with vitiligo!).

Sports Day at Jardin Publique

Because it is summer school, BES wants to make sure that students have fun times and not just be in class.  Today, parents dropped off their children at the ‘Jardin Publique’, a large open facility with lawn and basketball courts and rudimentary playground equipment.  The oldest boys did not come; I suspect they attend only to perfect their English and wish for more intensive class time.

About twenty children partook.  We played some of the same games as we play in Canada… my version of Duck Duck Goose (Duck Duck Dinosaur / Duck Duck Airplane / Duck Duck Anything) and the Dragon Train game.  These kids are very competitive and love a good game.

It was hot, and I was thankful for a kiosk that sold Coca… a bargain here at 800 francs (equivalent of about sixty cents).  Ladies were cleaning up, collecting leaves, which you see in the large bags on their heads.

Cleaning leaves a full time job

Spes, one of the teachers, tells me that last year they had 80 students in summer school.  This year it is extremely low, with only 20.  There is still hope that more will come next week.  Public school is just ending today so more may show up. 

The atmosphere as a teacher is much different here.  Lahdia left early to pray (it is Ramadan); Claudine left for her sister’s dowry.  Eric came later to school.  In truth, this is working fine with the overwhelming teacher/student ratio! 

Emmanuel drove me back to the residence. On the way, we were stopped by police as one of the politicians was to drive through and no one can be on the road when that happens.  I snuck a picture as we were stopped before Emmanuel suggested that it was a bad idea.

It is now the weekend.  Gabriel, a teacher, is taking me to church on Sunday, and tomorrow afternoon I will go to see Livingston and Stanley’s meeting place with Emmanuel. 

Football.. a universal sport

Playing my name game

They love the swings