Friday, April 30, 2010

We have eggs!!!!!

Today was such an exciting day. I traveled to Kigali last night to go to the bank so today I could be ready for getting all the supplies to make chicken food. Solomon met up with me in Kigali and we went all over the place getting the necessary ingredients…I still learning more about raising chickens than I ever thought possible. There was one point today as I was standing in the back of the truck that we rented for the day and looked out at the busy market…I’m truly in Rwanda was all I could say. I felt like I was experiencing the lives of Rwandans as they went out buying things. It really felt surreal. Travels to buy things in Kigali are definitely some of the most stressful times for me. I never know what kind of adventure and most of the time frustrations I will have…the prices are always changing and things just take longer. I had a family over tonight to help me celebrate my birthday.

I love living here and experiencing all that this journey has to offer but that being said, these past few days have been challenging for me. The transition back to Rwanda from Israel was harder than I expected. It was so easy to be in Israel and here things are just so different. The mindsets are just not the same…things take a lot longer, I feel that things don’t happen unless you look over it yourself and remind people many times, and people will say yes and come to find out later they didn’t mean it…just to name and few. I’m trying to slow myself down and adapt to work in this culture but it’s not always easy. I let it get to more these past few days (and the lack of sleep doesn’t help either). Now that I’m caring for the lives of animals, things become a little more urgent. Guess what…the hens layed the first eggs this week!!!!!!!!!!

In the process of these frustrations, I’m also learning so much. It’s now after midnight and my birthday. I’m 25…that’s so crazy and hard to believe! It’s nice to be able to have transitions like this to think about what the future might bring, things to accomplish, and just about life in general. I definitely want to continue working on my patience for living in a different place and creating a zen so things don’t bother me so much.

I continue to learn small lessons from Solomon. He has such a great trust in people and truly is able to see good in everyone. On the farm, we have 5 teams and each team has a leader. I decided this week to have weekly meetings with the leaders just to check in and see how everything is going. Solomon and I learned from one of them that some of the workers are not working hard. When the leaders say something to the other workers, they say Solomon is not around or you can’t make me work. Solomon told the leaders to tell him when it happens and he will send the worker home for 1 week and when the worker returns we’ll see hard he/she works. Not having a job is definitely good motivation to work hard next time especially since finding a job here is so challenging.

Experiencing all the Ups and Downs

Today was such an exciting day. I traveled to Kigali last night to go to the bank so today I could be ready for getting all the supplies to make chicken food. Solomon met up with me in Kigali and we went all over the place getting the necessary ingredients…I still learning more about raising chickens than I ever thought possible. There was one point today as I was standing in the back of the truck that we rented for the day and looked out at the busy market…I’m truly in Rwanda was all I could say. I felt like I was experiencing the lives of Rwandans as they went out buying things. It really felt surreal. Travels to buy things in Kigali are definitely some of the most stressful times for me. I never know what kind of adventure and most of the time frustrations I will have…the prices are always changing and things just take longer. I had a family over tonight to help me celebrate my birthday.

I love living here and experiencing all that this journey has to offer but that being said, these past few days have been challenging for me. The transition back to Rwanda from Israel was harder than I expected. It was so easy to be in Israel and here things are just so different. The mindsets are just not the same…things take a lot longer, I feel that things don’t happen unless you look over it yourself and remind people many times, and people will say yes and come to find out later they didn’t mean it…just to name and few. I’m trying to slow myself down and adapt to work in this culture but it’s not always easy. I let it get to more these past few days (and the lack of sleep doesn’t help either). Now that I’m caring for the lives of animals, things become a little more urgent. Guess what…the hens layed the first eggs this week!!!!!!!!!!

In the process of these frustrations, I’m also learning so much. It’s now after midnight and my birthday. I’m 25…that’s so crazy and hard to believe! It’s nice to be able to have transitions like this to think about what the future might bring, things to accomplish, and just about life in general. I definitely want to continue working on my patience for living in a different place and creating a zen so things don’t bother me so much.

I continue to learn small lessons from Solomon. He has such a great trust in people and truly is able to see good in everyone. On the farm, we have 5 teams and each team has a leader. I decided this week to have weekly meetings with the leaders just to check in and see how everything is going. Solomon and I learned from one of them that some of the workers are not working hard. When the leaders say something to the other workers, they say Solomon is not around or you can’t make me work. Solomon told the leaders to tell him when it happens and he will send the worker home for 1 week and when the worker returns we’ll see hard he/she works. Not having a job is definitely good motivation to work hard next time especially since finding a job is so challenging.

Friday, April 23, 2010

A Lesson on Strength and Happiness

While I was in Israel, I had the opportunity to think about my goals for when I return to the village…both personal and professional. I realized that some of my best times in the village come when I get to spend time with the girls in my family.

It was so great to return to the village…it feels so good to be back! It’s also very difficult. One of the kids in the village drowned in a lake over the vacation. It hasn’t been easy but there have been memorials for him. It was also a difficult time for the kids because it was Genocide Awareness Day over the break. Most all of the kids lost family during the genocide.

Last night I went to the house of my family for family time. There were only a few girls at the house and I went into one of the rooms. One of the girls was in bed and I sad on her bed to talk. I asked her about her vacation and she began to tell me her genocide story. I just sat there as her story began to unwind. She was a baby during the genocide. She was one the back of her mother when someone killed her. I was told that if she was a boy, they would have also killed her. She had a brother that was killed. Can you imagine being on the back of your mother while she was killed? Over and over she told me about how confident that she feels...she's definetely one of the strongest person that I have ever met. She began to talk about where she gets her strengh and her desire to make something of her life...it was so inspiring.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 3.5yrs since I was last in Israel! I was very excited to return and see many of my friends. I arrived in Israel at 4am and when I left the airport I hopped on a train and went straight to Be’er Sheva…the place where I used to live in Israel. It was wonderful to be there again, it felt as if I had returned home. I have such great memories of being there! My seminar in Jerusalem began on Sunday. It was nice to meet other people on my fellowship that are living in other places around the world. Monday was Yom HaShoa…Holocaust Remembrance Day. We had a great discussion about how to forgive when you have experienced such atrocities. We made some connections to the experience in Rwanda…it was a very interesting conversation…I’m going to write another blog on this soon. After the seminar I spent a day with Gilboa who had my position in Rwanda last year. He took me to the Kibbutz where he grew up. I learned a lot while I was there. I got to ask lots of questions about cows and the technology that they use on the Kibbutz. They have been organic since the 60s. They grow bugs in greenhouses. They sell both good and bad bugs. The good bugs help the organic plants and the bad bugs are food for the good bugs. I also got to go hiking with my friend Amos. We went to this place that has limestone caves.

Seeing great friends and eating LOTS of ice cream…who could ask for more!

At the end of the seminar, they asked each of us to present a story, song, poem, picture, or activity. I took the song that I wrote at our first seminar in December that was in NY and changed the words. It's to the tune of Wagon Wheel. Here's the song:

I’m living in Rwanda the land of 1,000 hills
There are some frustrations but mainly thrills
Reflecting on my time
And thinking my placement is quite right!

I’ve been here for 3 months
Ready for more
Planting the seed and watching it grow
Excited for this adventure

Chorus:
So, I’m going to teach the youth, teach them well
Give them hope, I can tell
Hey, we’ll have a good time
Teach the youth, help them grow
Teach the youth what they want to know
Hey, we’ll have a good time

Comin’ to Rwanda from the USA
Working on the farm all the day
Cultivating and Planting
Growing and Picking

Oh, I work with wonderful kids in Family 7
Hanging out in the house or having dance parties
Also, drinking too much tea
To livin’ the good life in Agahozo

Chorus

Walkin’ round the village, what a wonderful place
Creating big new projects
w/ chickens and cows
Working with Rwandan staff
To riding on Solomon’s bike

And I’ve shed lots of sweat, but it’s been lots of fun
Caring about these children
Is the vision of everyone
Tikkun Olam
Creating the leaders of tomorrow

Chorus

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Check this out!!!!

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/03/31/eveningnews/main6351616.shtml

Click on this link to see a clip from CBS News on the village

Friday, April 9, 2010

Adventures in Addis!!!!

Sunday was Easter so there were very few things that were open. We went to a church and then to the Addis International Film Festival. We saw the most amazing documentary about Youssou Ndour… a Senegalese singer and percussionist. His story was inspirational. His strong Muslim upbringing and family values inspires his music. It you get a chance, look him up or listen to his music.

The next day we went to museums and out for a traditional Ethiopian meal. Just figuring out the bus system (or I guess in our case, the lack of being able to figure it out) is tiring. The drivers shout out their destinations and you have to listen carefully. People then fight to get on the buses. The first museum we went to was on the Addis Ababa University. It talked about traditional Ethiopian people throughout the lifecycle. It started with childhood and ended with death. I learned lots of interesting things but there was a lot of reading to learn everything. After the museum, Lily and I sat in an outside café and read the Lonely Planet’s history of Ethiopia. Ethiopia has a rich history and is the only African country that wasn’t colonized, a fact that all Ethiopian are proud about. We also learned that the Rastafarian religion originated in Ethiopia from one of the Emperors. We also went to the National Ethiopian Museum. It was nothing special but it houses Lucy who is estimated to be 3.5million years only and one of human’s distant relatives. At night we went to Habasha, an Ethiopian restaurant that has traditional music and dancing. It was a lot of fun and all the honey wine made it even better!

On Tuesday, we went to Entoto Mountain. We had another adventure trying to find the right transportation to reach it. In one day, we were on a total of 7 different buses. On the bus that finally brought was to the mountain, we met a man that said he would show us the area. As we walked up to the top of the mountain we learned that he’s a painter and has an art gallery at the top of the mountain. The gallery was housed in what looked like a large box but when we went inside, we saw beautiful paintings…I was very impressed. He took us to see the view of Addis from the mountain. On the way back to Addis we stopped in Shiro Meda. This is where people come for traditional Ethiopian clothing. I was excited to find a place where women who were firewood carriers make scarves. A woman who carries firewood usually walks around 12-15miles per day and only makes about $12 per month. The project is trying to help these women so I was glad to buy some scarves. Lily was in search of a dress and we went into about 100 stores to find the perfect one. As she went into some of the last stores, I sat down and was offered a beer from some of the store owners and then Lily found her dress! We were both happy!

For our last day, we traveled east of Addis to Debra Zeyit. It’s filled with beautiful lakes. Our waitress from the night before recommended that we go to this resort there. We arrived at the resort in a horse cart. The resort was beautiful, situated on one of the lakes. We walked in and they asked us if we had a membership. I felt that this place was way too fancy for my usually travel. They had a very reasonable day membership that included lunch, kayaking, and swimming in the pool. It was a great last day of our trip. The food was amazing and we got to relax.

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Ode to the Sprice Juice


(Just a note only the most special things in my travels get an ode including toilets and nice people.)

So yummy and delicious….3 and sometimes 4 layers fruit juicy pulp excellence! Each sprice juice master has his own style of making a juice. The classic is a bottom layer of mango, then strawberry, avocado (sometimes the order of strawberry and avocado are reversed…but I like the strawberry under the avocado so you can eat them together), and mango on top. Sometimes the strawberry or avocado are left out...that was a sad sprice. I even had one with a little surprise on the bottom…pineapple! I averaged about 2 a day while in Ethiopia…pure mouth bliss. Check out the picture!

Tour of the Village...check out where I live!

I wasn't able to post on the internet but I wrote blogs and had the chance to post them today on Passover and part of Ethiopia. I'm going to add more stories and pictures from Ethiopia. I landed in Israel today!!!!!

I also put my a slideside of the village. Check out Tour of the Village in the picture area. You can click on the picture and it will tell you what it is...now you can see where I live!

Arrival in Ethiopia

I arrived in Addis Ababa late Friday night. It was awesome to meet Joy who’s another JDC volunteer working in Ethiopia. The next working we got up and went for breakfast at a café close to her house. That’s where I fell in love…with an amazing drink that is. It’s a juice that has 4 layers, 2 of mango, 1 of strawberry, and 1 of avocado. I’m not going to talk about it too much because there will be a whole blog devoted to its deliciousness! After the café, I visited one of the places where Joy works and one of the JDC’s projects in Ethiopia, the Mother Theresa Clinic. When we arrived I got a tour of the facility. There were many people there of all ages with a variety of sicknesses. I was impressed with the general cleanliness of the place and attitudes of the people. After the clinic I went on a driving tour of Addis with the JDC’s driver. I knew very, very little of the history and culture of Ethiopia. It was awesome to have my own personal tour and chance to ask lots of questions. It’s currently a holiday here. It’s Easter and people here go all out for the celebration. People here do not eat meat for the 55 days leading up to the holiday. Night is the first time that they are able to eat meat. I saw the funniest sight as 40 people were pushing and shouting as they we trying to buy a live chicken out of the back of a truck. I saw many statues commemorating battles and past kings. I went to a touristy area and walked into the shops. Outside the stores there were many young kids selling gum. I enjoyed seeing this and was happy to give them 5birr for the gum. There are so many kids begging on the streets here and it’s nice to see some learning to work hard for money and not to beg. Most of the stores had grass all over the floor and I got confused by this. I found out that’s it’s a traditional Easter decoration. There were so many cows just walking on the street that were being sold for the holiday. I also saw many sheep. They were not there to be sold; they are the most environmentally friendly lawn-mowers! What an awesome sight to see! The man that I was with spoke wonderful English and I learned a lot about the country and Addis.

At night I went out for traditional Ethiopian food. I have to say though that I’m not a fan of injara, the traditional spongy soft flat bread. I did really enjoy the other food…and of course I bought another sprite juice. After dinner I went to a hotel to check my email. I was getting ready to leave and they invited me to stay for a traditional coffee ceremony which is part of the Easter celebration. They told me it would start in 20 minutes and in true African fashion it began over an hour later. It was ok though, I was entertained by a man from Japan doing card tricks and talking with workers at the hotel. For the ceremony incents were burned, they roasted the coffee beans over a small fire, and we ate lots of popcorn! From talking with someone the ceremony seemed like a way to bring people together. People invite other into their homes for the ceremony and visit many friends at their homes to take part in the ceremony.

When I arrived back at the house, Lily had arrived…Happy Birthday Lily!!!!!

Sometimes I Just Want to be Invisible!

Before I left for my trip, Solomon and I had dinner together in Rubona. I was tired after as I walked home. I was walking slowly with my head down thinking about my upcoming trip when I heard loud squeaky voices yelling….hello, hello, hello! I turned around and saw 3 young girls around 10 years old running after me. They ran up to me and began talking to me in all the English that they know. I enjoy these encounters but they become exhausting. I can’t go anywhere in Rwanda without being shouted at. Sometimes I just want to be invisible. I wish that I could take Harry Potter’s invisible cloak and just drape it over myself whenever I just didn’t want to be seen. I think one of the reasons that I’m most looking forward to Israel is the ability to just blend in and become invisible in a crowd. I think that it’s official…I never want to be famous…I don’t want people always watching me.

Chag Pesach Sameach!

Pesach is one of my favorite Jewish holidays for many reasons….for the traditions, emphasis on learning, and the food. This year had all of those aspects which made for a wonderful celebration.

I arrived in Kigali on Friday and went to a presentation that one of my friends worked on for work. He was doing research on child headed households. I arrived a little late but had the opportunity to hear testimonies from some people. The one that touched my heart the most was this 14 year old who looked in his 20s who was responsible for 6 kids…he’s a kid himself and having to watch over others.

On Sunday afternoon we began cooking. It was fun hanging out with Lily, Mara, and Suzie as we cooked. They did a wonderful job shopping and preparing for the event. We were cooking for 30 people with no oven, just a 2 burner stove, and a small propane camping stove. Every task was organized and determined what would be cooked at which time. Most of the cooking was done on Monday afternoon. I cooked stir fry, a sweet carrot dish, and cabbage salad.

The seder was wonderful. We had such a diverse group of people. We had a visiting family from NYC (they helped to give the sedar a warm family feeling), an Israeli student from U of Michigan and 3 of her friends, 4 Israelis living in Kigali, a Jewish friend from Canada, a Jewish man from Holland, 3 of my non-Jewish friends in Kigali, an Israeli scholar, and the volunteers from the village. Mara created a wonderful Haggadah and the sedar also included traditions from different people’s families. The sedar had such a warm feeling and I enjoyed it very much! The food was also delicious and the wine flowing.

We also had a wonderful sedar the second night. It was just a few of the volunteers and the family. We drank a little wine and did some of the main aspects of the sedar. Someone began to ask questions about the 4 children and we spent the rest of our time in a great discussion.

To next year in Jerusalem….