Call for Children's Books

Once again I am putting out the call for new and gently used children’s books. An earlier blog entry mentioned that the first ever public library in Rwanda is slated to open soon and is seeking donations. The library is in great part being sponsored by one of the chapters of the Rotary Club of Kigali. There is also an organization called the American Friends of the Kigali Library that is highly involved. The project has been long in the making; I believe almost eleven years now. I met with an American woman who is also a Rotary member who is somewhat of the point person between donors and the library. She was very gracious and toured me around the building, which by the way is beautiful. There are still lots of details left before it is considered finished, however. You can see what the interior is beginning to look like in the above photo.

I asked about shelving, computers, furnishings etc. She indicated that the Rwandan government would be taking care of that, but to her knowledge, they had not been ordered yet. It was her desire as well as the desire of the Rotary Club to be ready for a possible opening at the end of November. She was thrilled about my friend Kristie and her student group wanting to do the book donation and envisions a children’s corner with materials that would appeal to the younger crowd. Kristie and the Livonia High Student Council twice before conducted book drives for organizations in Namibia when we were there in 2009 and have graciously agreed to do so again.

Everyone involved in the project has high hopes about its potential and so do I. It’s exciting to be a part of a first-ever project in this country. Public libraries are such an integral part of American culture and society since the time of Benjamin Franklin. It’s so hard to believe that such a thing has never existed in the country before. Its potential impact could be enormous.
If you’re interested in contributing/participating in any way, just drop me an e-mail at gwenn.laviolette@gmail.com and I’ll get you all of the pertinent details.

Market Personalities

Have been going to the market with my housekeeper. It’s so much less daunting when she comes along because she handles all of the porters clamoring for one to “give me a job” or the boys clamoring to watch the car so no one will walk away with the mirrors or spare tire or any other relatively easily removable part. I tell the 20 boys crowding around us that she’s the lady to talk to and then they swarm her. I know my behavior is lamentable to say the least.

We usually divide up the list into fruits and veggies. She handles the veggies and I handle the fruits. The fruits are always more expensive. I think a lot of it, especially the citrus, is trucked in from Uganda and the apples must come from a long ways away. All in all though, I spend about $26 US on fruits and veggies per week and I come home with pineapples, watermelons, huge avocados, bananas, lettuce, green beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant, oranges, apples, etc..; comparatively cheap to the produce in the US. I guess we just need to embrace vegetarianism and abandon our desires for western style products so that we can live affordably here! Not likely to happen in this family any time soon.

Today I was able to get a photo of my favorite fruit merchant. She’s lovely and always so well put together. I think she overcharges me but then she always gives me a little lagniappe to go home with. I like going to her because she’s so pleasant and exquisitely attired. I’ve yet to learn her name, however. That will be my assignment next week.

Traditional Dancers & Drummers

Breaking up the back and forth banter of the representatives of the two families were a number of traditional performances. These male dancers were accompanied by the drummers seen in the background on the right. Since the ceremony began two hours later than scheduled, it had become quite dark and the sky was also threatening to rain. The rain did hold off and the party continued successfully well into the evening.

The Bride's Entourage

These young people accompanied the "bride" during her introduction to the "groom's" family. Apparently, this ceremony served as the marriage ceremony in the days before the arrival of missionaries and the Christian Churches. So, these families will also have a wedding performed at a church in the near future. I am told that it will be done in Uganda since it is from there that the groom hails. The couple will also reside in Uganda as well.

Too much partying

I looked at the blog yesterday and noticed that it’s been an entire month since I last posted an entry. For shame. We’ve been a bit busy as of recent. We’ve gotten into a routine in sync with the rhythm of the kids’ school. We’ve also been doing a lot of partying!

First, our friends the Magruders, the ones we chased down because of the LSU sticker on the back of their car, hosted a Louisiana Mardi Gras party. Ashley had everything beautifully decorated and served Gumbo, King Cake, and Hurricanes. Gus got the baby in the men’s cake and was announced as King of the Mardi Gras. Except for the electricity being out, it was quite nice.

The Tulane office also hosted a Mardi Gras party on the Lundi before. No Gumbo, but quite nice just the same. One of the ladies that works there but is from Pennsylvania told us that we needed to pace ourselves with all of this Mardi Gras business. Shoot if she thinks two parties is a bit much, she’d never make in New Orleans!

Saturday, our neighbor hosted a traditional “introduction” festivity for his younger sister. This is a traditional ceremony wherein the fiancée’s family comes together with the boy’s family and decide on a bride “price”. The price is negotiated in cows. There’s a lot of back and forth banter as the families are seated opposite each other across a divide that receives the couple once negotiations are completed. It’s a long drawn out process. Since the proceedings started 2 hours late, the kids and Reid got tired and went home, leaving me to save face with the neighbor. All of the proceedings took place in one of the native tongues of the region. Since the boy’s family is from Uganda, I think much of it was in a Ugandan tribal language. Apparently at one point during the banter from the boy’s side, I got offered up as the “bride”. Of course, I didn’t exactly understand what was going on, but being the only Muzungu in attendance, I think it was a way to honor my presence. I’m not really sure. In any event, that should teach Reid to leave me alone at one of these functions again.

During the intervals between all of the talk, there was some very interesting entertainment. Traditional dancers and drummers performed in a variety of costumes. There was a performance of what I understood to be the traditional “cow herders” song that was received with much acclaim by the audience. The fiancée and fiancé were finally presented toward the end of the ceremony in a magnificent parade of costumed dancers and drum music.

Many gifts were given, but not to the couple. The bride’s family was regaled with such presents as a generator, cases of bottled water, a framed photo of the Ugandan King, a number of suitcases, and a rocking chair for the bride’s father. In this case, since the father is deceased, Edward, the older brother (& our neighbor) was the recipient of such a magnificent gift. The best though was reserved for last. The boy’s family had brought live chickens for each of the girl’s “brothers” which were presented for everyone to see. The rooster which had been penned up in a cardboard box the whole length of the day, let out a mighty crow to the great delight of the crowd.

The whole affair was concluded with a candlelight buffet spread. I made a quick exit after that because I had already spent 6 hours there, but the party continued well into the night with dancing. Besides, I was afraid I might get carried away as someone’s third wife or some such…..

All in all it was a beautiful ceremony filled with lots of tradition that was a treat to witness. Our neighbor was very gracious to have invited us and was very attentive to making us feel welcome.

Pictured above: the happy couple, Béatrice and Andrew, sitting center