Ms. Terry's Blog

Well, it’s been two weeks at site and I think things are progressing well. I’ve already found an umodozi (tailor) and got a new shirt made. I can make it to the market and back without getting lost, and I found a good bakery and a boutique that sells big bottles of Coca-Cola. I’ve also met with my headmaster a few times and I am looking forward to the school year. And, of course, I’ve had the pleasure of cat-sitting Lucy. She is quite the snuggler. Also, those two weeks included Christmas. I honestly don’t remember Christmas Eve or Christmas that well, as I was hit with a bad bout of diarrhea and stomach cramps. I spent most of the holidays in bed, but I did travel on the 23 rd to see other PCVs in my region. We had a good meal and marveled at the beautiful Lake Kivu. And so 2017 is coming to a close. I hope everyone has a wonderful 2018! My living room My kitchen My bedroom, with an appearance by Lucy My yard/laundry area My ...

It’s official! I am a Peace Corps Volunteer! We swore in on Tuesday, December 12 th and moved to site on Wednesday! This will mainly be pictures from swear-in, as my site is still a bit of a mess. I still have some organizing and cleaning to do! If you want my new address (aka if you want to send me snacks) just ask!   Nigel giving a speech in English. Lia giving a speech in Kinyarwanda. Sydney giving a speech in English. Tarsheen giving a speech in French. Kai giving a speech in French. Alexi giving a speech in Kinyarwanda. Before swear-in! We're Volunteers now! The milkshake I had after swear-in.

Well, that’s it! In the past week, I and the other trainees have finished model school, passed our language exams, and said thank you to our host families, teachers, and the amazing staff that have seen us through Pre-Service Training. And now the time has come. On Tuesday, December 12 th , we will swear-in as Peace Corps Volunteers, and on the 13 th , we will move to our new homes. Here’s to the next two years! Jess and I with our Kinyarwanda teacher, Gerardine! We passed! Blaine and I reppin' the SEC! College t-shirt day! Me with my host Papa! Joelle and I choreographed our amazing American dance to Thriller! Last day of Model School! Jess and I with our Rwandan co-teacher Hawa!

It has been another super busy week! We had another great week of Model School, followed by a belated Peace Corps Thanksgiving on Saturday (yesterday). In between all of that, we’ve had dance practice. We will be performing a Rwandan dance at our host family farewell party and our swearing in, and we’ve finally decided on “Thriller” by Michael Jackson for our American dance. And I’m helping to choreograph. Now, I’m no dancer, but it’s been really fun coming up with the dance! Only one more week of training left, then it’s off to Kigali and site installation! My Superlatives! Our Thanksgiving Dinner

What a week it has been! So many things to do, so little time! This week marked week 1 of model school. That means the all of us Peace Corps Trainees got to teach in Rwandan schools for the week. Now, school is currently out here, so all of our students are volunteers who wanted to come in and learn more. Think of that, students who are actually excited to learn, even on break! Plus, all the students who attend receive a notebook and pen, which is a big draw when school supplies are scarce. My partner and I were paired with a local Rwandan primary teacher, and it was incredible to be back in the classroom! Even with between 80 and 95 students on any given day, they were still some of the best behaved students I’ve ever had. I taught about hygiene and health, concentrating on food groups and healthy eating for the first week. Do as I say students, not as I do. Now, as any teacher knows, kids carry a lot of germs. And sometimes you get sick. For me it’s usually just ...

We have three full weeks of training left. Next week and the week after we have model school (so excited!), then there’s one week of wrap up before we head to Kigali to swear in! Our time in Rwamagana has been fast and slow at the same time. Days dragged on (especially all day language class!), but the weeks flew by. I feel like I finally have a routine here, but I am also super ready to swear in and head to site. I will definitely miss the other trainees, but I think it’s time for us to leave the nest. In addition, over the past few weeks, I have been buying things for site and, thankfully, my list is starting to dwindle. There are few things I will definitely have to get in Kigali, but I’m hoping I will have enough move-in allowance money to spring for a toaster oven (just think of the possibilities!). And there have been a few comments about starting really early, but I must remind people that I spent about 3 months packing for college, 2 months packing for...

Yesterday (Saturday), I was able to return to Kigali for a very different reason than last week. This time, the other trainees and I were able to visit the Kigali Genocide Memorial, which acts as as a memorial, a place of information concerning the 1994 Genocide Against Tutsis, and a mass grave for 250,000 individuals. It was an overwhelming visit. In addition to information about the 1994 genocide, the Memorial also featured an exhibit on other genocides, such as the Holocaust, the Armenian genocide, etc. The most moving exhibit featured profiles of child victims, some as young as 9 months. Overall, these exhibits reminded me just how much we as people have yet to learn from our mistakes, and we desperately need to. After the Holocaust, there was a theme of never forget and never again. Well, it happened again, several times. And though some may feel “removed” from these events (it happened so far away, well, I can’t do anything about it, it’s not my problem, etc.), I think w...

So, I thought I had an ear infection. My ears hurt, they felt like they were full of water, and I couldn’t hear well. I called the Peace Corps Medical Officer and he told me to come to Kigali to look. I left training Tuesday around 2 PM and got to the medical office around 4 PM, where I waited for 30 minutes. Turns out, I didn’t have an ear infection, just a lot of buildup and was given some ear drops. BUT because it was getting late and the doctor wanted to check again on Wednesday, I got to stay overnight in Kigali! It was amazing. I had a hot shower, I ordered some pizza, and I watched a ton of America’s Next Top Model. Then, because no one could take me back to training until noon on Wednesday, I was able to order more food (chicken strips, fries, and honey mustard this time) and talk to some of the lovely volunteers who are about to finish their service. It was worth the ear pain. In other news, we had a small Halloween get together and heard from the amazing US Ambas...

Last week, I had the opportunity to visit my future wait and I officially cannot wait until December when I return. My site is located in the sector of Mubuga, in the district of Karongi, in the Western Province. My closest town is Kibuye, located on the shores of the beautiful Lake Kivu. I will be teaching at GS Mubuga in the primary school. Right now, the plan is to teach a combination of English, math, and ICT, while doing teacher trainings, running English Clubs, and working on some longer term projects such as organizing the computer lab and hand washing stations.   As far as my living situation goes, I live in my own separate house in a convent with eight nuns, who are the bomb. And I must say, I have a pretty nice set up. I have three bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen area, multiple sinks and mirrors, and, best of all, a flush toilet and (cold) shower! Plus, I have a little yard with a big water tank, and the nuns have a fridge and an oven in their...