February 21: Saying goodbye

Today was a very satisfying but difficult day. We went to visit the Gashora Girls Academy in the morning and walked around their campus. We rode bicycle taxis on the way there. What a blast that was! The guys peddled us for such a long ways that we felt bad for them.

We next went to visit the Gashora Medical Centre and donated toothbrushes, glasses and miscellaneous items.

After that visit, we all met at the Covaga to visit all of the workers and weavers to say our goodbyes. I read them a poem I'd written about our trip and the men and women gave speeches and sang songs. Many smiles and tears.

 Later we had lunch back at the hotel so we could give gifts and clothes to the men and women of the Covaga. Again, more goodbyes and more tears. We took the bus back to Kigali for dinner.

Some pictures of the bike rides and celebrations:

We finished the day off with a fantastic dinner at Heaven Restaurant in Kigali. Three course meal with wine. It was a great dinner to finish off the trip. I especially want to thank Tricia and Sandra for making this trip so special. Your humour and enthusiasm made this adventure so much more than I had ever imagined.

Tomorrow we will spend the day in Kigali exploring before our flights home. We're sooo not looking forward to this.

Thanks to everyone for your comments and I hope that you've enjoyed these little notes from my trip. Rwanda is truly an amazing place, and the people are even more amazing. If you ever get the chance to come here, I promise you that you won't be disappointed.

"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do." ~ Helen Keller 

Todd Drake
DWC Volunteer Participant
Rwanda, February 2014

February 9: Exploring Kigali & Settling In

We stayed in Kigali last night and got the chance to meet with the people we will be working with. The rooms in the hotel we large but very few furnishings. There was a tub but no shower. Some of the other rooms had no running water though.

We had boiled eggs, potatoes and coffee for breakfast. We all climbed in a small van to go to the main city so we could get our water we need for the two weeks. We had a chance to walk around and get a taste of what the city is like. The buildings are quite new and the streets are very clean. The city is much larger than I had imagined. Many people travel on motorcycles and the streets are crazy with drivers passing each other at any opportunity they get. One thing that struck me was that almost everyone was dressed so nicely. There were a lot of people who carried cell phones. The people were so eager to say hi or smile as we walked by.

We visited the Genocide Memorial and it was a an extremely emotional experience. So many lives were lost needlessly. The Rwanda's have been able to overcome this atrocity and move ahead with their lives. I'd suggest that if you get a chance, learn as much as you can about the genocide. It's hard to believe it happened only 20 years ago.

Next, we traveled to Gashora where we are working on our project. The resort we are staying at is very pretty and is situated beside a very large lake. We each have our own rooms. It's a 12' x 12' room with only a bed and a resin chair. We had a traditional dinner of rice, potatoes, vegetables and chicken. They grow pineapples in the fields beside our rooms. They were delicious! There bathroom facilities are extremely outdated. Sometimes no water and mostly cold water.

The beer here we found is very good. Primes is the name. They come in large 720ml bottles. Probably had too many last night!

The group enjoying a beer together

The team we are with is a lot of fun. Our Rwandan helpers are so funny and helpful. They all know at least three languages. Their English is very good. 

All of the food we've had so far has been quite bland. Not a lot of spices are used and the meals contain a lot of starch. Most families only eat once per day. Lama, head of Building Bridges with Rwanda, said that cooking is more of a chore for them so there's not a lot of effort put into the cuisine. He compared this to the European countries where they love to cook and eat.

It's about a 2km walk to the place where we are working on the Covaga Innovation Centre project. It has rained both nights, but seems to clear up in the morning.

Well, it's time to head out and get some breakfast before we walk to out to the job site.

Todd Drake
DWC Volunteer Participant
Rwanda, February 2014

October 12: Cultural Tour Day

Good afternoon friends,

For some of our group it is our first full day in Kigali, Rwanda. A day for sight seeing and a cultural tour before we head to our build site tomorrow. Our team members that were here already visited the Genocide Memorial yesterday and highly recommended it to us.

Visiting the Genocide Memorial was very humbling as well very emotional. Learning that women and children were targeted first was very heard to hear. The images we viewed were heart breaking. Many stories of how the women were raped, infected with HIV, beaten before being killed as their young children watched before they were killed. Our hearts went out to the deceased as well as the survivors. We cannot imagine the trauma the survivors must be living with.


The Mass Grave sites


The Garden of Reconcillation


Wall of Victims Names

We all sat quiet and still after the 1 1/2 visit to sit and digest what we had just heard and saw during the visit. The memorial gardens are beautiful and an amazing tribe to those who lost their lives. So glad we had the opportunity to visit it and truly understand what caused the Genocide and how they have overcome those tragic days.

One of my favourite cultural experiences is have the opportunity of visiting a local market where artists sell their crafts. We found the Caplaki market this afternoon.


Visiting the local artist's market. Yes I still wearing the same clothes as my luggage still had not arrived. My luggage arrived 24 hrs after I arrived!


With team mate Julio and local women


The market was made up of little shops where each local sold their goods. Many spoke English and French.

Tonight is our first team dinner where we will discuss the week ahead of our build in Gashora, Rwanda. We will head there tomorrow and have the first look at our job site! We are all anxious to see the village, meet the local people and get to work.

Will update you tomorrow once we arrive in Gashora tomorrow...

Marianne Thompson
DWC Participant
Rwanda, October 2013