South America

So, I just got back from my South America adventure. I started in November and over the course of 36 days I visited Ecuador (including the Galapagos Islands), Peru, Argentina, and Brazil. And it was awesome.

I went with a different company this time, Contiki, and was super impressed with the whole experience. Our hotels were nice and centrally located. Our tour managers were incredibly organized and full of recommendations. And both the included activities and optional excursions hit everything I wanted to see. It's hard to pick a favorite activity or place because we saw so much and every experience was so unique. Of course, I did particularly enjoy all of the animals we saw (including tortoises, sea lions, iguanas, crabs, penguins, llamas, alpacas, monkeys, and so much more).

In addition, since Contiki is not an American company like other companies I have previously toured with, I had the opportunity to travel with people from all over the world (well, the English speaking world). There were people from Canada, England, Saudi Arabia, India, Australia, South Africa, and New Zealand, as well as a few other Americans like me. It was amazing to spend time with them and learn not just about the new places we were visiting, but also about their own countries.

Overall, 10/10 definitely would recommend!

Ollantaytambo

Kicker Rock

La Boca

Galapagos Islands

Tena, Ecuador

La Casa del Arbor

Colca Canyon

Buenos Aires

Escadaria selaron, Rio de Janeiro

Banos, Ecuador

Sugarloaf Mountain

Iguassu Falls

Galapagos Islands

Rocinha Favela

Polo Day in Argentina

El Mitad del Mundo

Lima

Christ the Redeemer

Lake Titicaca 

Cusco

I did tip him.

To the jungle

Machu Picchu

A Strategic Retreat

So, I've been back home for about a month and half now, and it's been awesome. I have been subbing across Memphis, as well as tutoring and baby-sitting. I'm leaving for a South America trip in 31 days.

I like to think I made a strategic retreat from Rwanda and the Peace Corps, leaving about two months before my official Close of Service date. The work I did with my students and other teachers was very rewarding, and we got a lot done. We had great teacher trainings, established clubs for primary and secondary students, and, of course, completed the Computer lab grant.

However, aside from those experiences, my time in the Peace Corps was not amazing. There was the broken ankle, the house break in/theft, the issues with my bank account which prevented me from even accessing my living allowance, and the death of my beloved cat, Tunda. Plus, Peace Corps is the worst organization I have ever worked for.

All of these things have caused me to label Peace Corps as the worst experience of my life. I don't regret it because of the aforementioned work that was accomplished, but there were just a lot of big "bad luck" experiences which in turn made the little things that much worse. And I think my situation is unique. Many Peace Corps volunteers have incredible, life-changing journeys, and they make lasting, sustainable change.

And I will say some of my biggest issues come from the Peace Corps itself. They do not respect the work or privacy of volunteers, and they just don't care about their volunteers. I have debated sharing all of my thoughts in a public forum, but it was cathartic to put everything on paper and I do want my thoughts to be known. That being said, here are my thoughts on Peace Corps:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lv69DsZlq19enB1jL8KHCR_iT91fzT7b/view?usp=sharing

Anyway, I came home for my mental and physical help, and I stand behind my decision 100%. It's been great to be home (despite the Vols' lackluster football season) and I look forward to sharing my future adventures.

South Africa and Zimbabwe

I've been back at site for about a week and I though I'd finally post about South Africa and Zimbabwe!

So, first of all, both South Africa and Victoria Falls (in Zimbabwe) are beautiful. In South Africa, Cape Town and the area down at the Cape of Good Hope are incredible. And of course, all the animals we saw on the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe and on our safari are majestic.

I will say this about South Africa though: I still saw a lot of division and separation. Apartheid ended many years ago but the country is not as integrated as I thought it would be. I guess the same thing could be said about the US, but we also openly discuss our issues (most of the time). I got the sense that wasn't always the case in South Africa.

But anyway, it was still an amazing trip. We started in Johannesburg, which has all the historical and cultural hot spots so to speak, including Nelson Mandela's house. Then we went up to the stupendous Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, where we also did a river cruise and visited an elephant sanctuary. Then we went to Cape Town, and ended our stay with a few days of safari on the Karongwe Private Game Reserve. I am pleased to say that we saw a leopard on our safari. That was the only one of the "big five" animals we were missing from our Tanzania safari last year.

And along the way, we met a number of excellent people, including our knowledgeable guides/drivers/trackers as well as our fellow travelers, who were visiting from all over the world. It's always cool to interact with other people from all walks of life.

Anyway, I've posted all of my pictures on Facebook so here's just a few I really like.

Cape of Good Hope

Sunset on the Zambezi River

I ate a worm!

Outside Soweto

The majestic Victoria Falls

In Cape Town

The penguins!

Our safari crew!

With Jock

Snack time!

Snack time with mom!

Another one down!

Well, it's exam week here in Mubuga. I'm not needed during exam week so that means term two is over for me! To fill my time, I've been cleaning, preparing to go to South Africa, and watching Stargate SG1.

I also thought it would be a good idea to try and walk from my site to Kibuye last week. That's about ten miles. I made it halfway then got a ride, and I was very tired and very sore. I did get some beautiful pictures though, and I think I'll try the other half this week!

Anyway, now that break is upon us, I will meet my mom in South Africa in about a week and a half! Then it's back for term three!

Some pictures from my long walk:

The view of school from my house

My house

Bus stop at my village

Those hills though

Lake Kivu and Mount Pointy

A random waterfall off the main road

The coffee washing station

We finished the grant!

I had a meeting this week at the Peace Corps Office in Kigali to turn in receipts and close out the grant. That means we are officially done!

We will continue to have teacher trainings to practice new skills and learn about our new equipment, but I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone who donated.

With your help, we were able to buy three desktop computers, a projector, speakers, and all new furniture for the computer lab. We were also able to rewire the computer lab so now there are more outlets for teachers and students to use. This space is now more functional and teachers are learning how to use all of the new equipment.

Thank you all so much!

Teacher Training

Dad's Rwandan Adventure

So, this past week was our first week of break between Term 1 and Term 2, and my Dad was able to visit!

I went into Kigali on April 6th just spend the the weekend with a friend. April 7th marked was the 25th Commemoration of the Genocide Against the Tutsis so I wanted to go early to avoid disrupting anything and to make sure I could get a bus. My dad arrived on the 8th and I went to pick him up at the airport!

We spent most of the week in Musanze and the Volcanoes National Park, which are both in the Northern Province of Rwanda. We did the golden monkey trekking, took a visit to the Gorilla Guardians Cultural Village, went canoeing, had lunch with another volunteer, visited the Dian Fossey exhibit, and explored some caves. Overall, I think it was a really good trip and we did a lot of really interesting things. I personally liked the golden monkeys the most, if only because they were so cute.

Over the weekend, we went back to my village. There's not a lot to do in village, but we did take a quick trip to Kibuye, had dinner with the nuns I live with, and got dad fitted for a hand-made shirt. He flew home yesterday, April 15th.

I'm staying in Kigali for a couple more days, then I will return to site! School starts back on Monday, and I'm ready to jump in with teaching and teacher trainings!

I also watched the new episode of Game of Thrones. Very important.

Grinding millet. It is traditionally a "woman's job."

Taking it all in!

He made friends.

In the caves!

After canoeing!

Getting fitted for a shirt!

We got to be royalty at the cultural village!

The End of Term 1 and Grant Update

Hello all!

Well, we are almost at the end of term one. This week is review week, then we have exams and marking. It has been a bit of a whirlwind of a term, as we've had several schedule and staffing changes. But we're set now and should have a routine going into term two! I teach/co-teach/observe about thirty sections a week (mostly primary four with a few primary five). We also have weekly English Club for primary students, Girls Leading Our World/Boys Excelling Club for secondary students, and teacher training. Everything has been going well so far! Although we still need to work on spelling and handwriting, as usual. Here are some pictures from the term:

The Galentine's Day bunch in Kigali!

Kenya vs. Rwanda during Galentine's Day Weekend! Rwanda won!

Just about to do some head-to-head word recognition competition!

Reading in English Club!

As far as the grant goes, we are back working on it! I don't want to mention how long it took to get my funds back or how long it took for someone to respond to my numerous emails/messages about if I could actually start using the funds, but we're making progress! I went to Kigali last week and picked up three desktop computers, a projector, and speakers. We have the computers and speakers set up, and I'm looking for a different cable for the projector. But we start teacher training next week! Thanks again to all who donated!

Making progress!