Number Eight: Dress

Since the UAE is an Islamic country, you see a lot of traditional dress in Dubai.  Men wear long white dresses and white or plaid headdresses.  Women wear long black dresses and cover their heads and sometimes faces in black fabric as well.  These things all have names, but as I said two days ago, Arabic is difficult and even though I heard the names of each article of clothing numerous times, none of them stuck.  Anna and I donned these outfits on a couple different occasions.  Once for fun on our desert safari and once in order to be dressed suitably to visit the 3^rd largest mosque in the world (with the largest chandelier in the world). 

While most people dress very western in Rwanda, there are many women who wear beautiful long dresses made of very colorful African fabrics.  The traditional formal attire of Rwandan women is equally as beautiful and equally as long.

The similarity of dress comes in the modesty of both cultures.  The only knees I have seen in 7 months are my knobby ones in the shower and a select few tourists in both Dubai and Rwanda who aren’t exactly culturally sensitive in their packing for vacation.  

Number Nine: Nokia Mobile Phones

In your land of iPhones and Androids, you may not have as much appreciation for this similarity as I do, but maybe if you take yourself back in time about 12 years, you’ll understand better.  Remember your first cell phone ever?  Not the car-phone-in-a-bag or the Zack Morris gigantor-phone, but that first Nokia, you know, with the Snake Xenia game to play when you were bored (or wanting to show off the fact that you had a cell phone).  Now do you recall the standard ringtone?  If not, go to Dubai, or come to Rwanda.  You’ll hear it everyday and everywhere.  In Dubai I was constantly restraining myself from reaching for my cell phone on the bus, in the malls, on the streets, etc.  Every time I heard that chime, I wanted to read my text message.  Unfortunately, Rwandan cell service doesn’t quite stretch to the Middle East…

While many people in Dubai (and even Rwanda) have Blackberries and iPhones, it is obvious that Nokia dominates the cell phone market in both lands.  There are many different types of Nokia phones, but I am of course partial to my version with the built-in flashlight and endlessly entertained by Snake Xenia, Bounce, and Nature Park.  While I had no service in Dubai, I regularly utilized the converter function on my phone to convert both currency and temperature.  (Did you know that 47 degrees Celsius is a blazing 116.6 degrees Fahrenheit?)

Number Ten: Foreign Language

The official language of the United Arab Emirates is Arabic.  The first official language of the Republic of Rwanda is Kinyarwanda.  These are two of the most difficult languages for a native English speaker to learn.  I am definitely a word person, but even after 7 months in Rwanda, I still only barely follow the simplest of Kinyarwanda conversations.  The only conversation I can semi-successfully have (besides “How are you?” “I’m fine”) is the one I have while bargaining with moto-taxis (I’ll provide a sample conversation translated to English so you can follow it).

Me:  Union Trade Center

Moto-taxi driver:  Five hundred.

Me:  No!  Three hundred.

Moto-taxi driver:  (rambling in Kinyarwanda)

Me: (making noises like I am following what he’s saying)

Moto-taxi driver:  Four hundred.

Me:  You’re expensive!  Three hundred.

Moto-taxi driver:  Okay…

Me:  Let’s go!

In Dubai, the only word I learned in Arabic was “hello,” which sounds strikingly like goodbye in Kinyarwanda.  Not knowing Arabic is not a big deal in Dubai, however, as only 25% of the population is local.  The remaining 75% are expatriates and speak mostly English.

Rwanda is pushing for everyone to learn English, but it is a slow and grueling process.  I’m trying to expedite this process, at least for the students who fall under my tutelage.  Slowly by slowly Rwandans will learn English and be able to communicate on a more global scale.

Top Ten Similarities between Dubai and Rwanda

During our three-week vacation from teaching at Sonrise, Anna and I decided to take a little holiday…to Dubai!  Dubai is an incredibly fascinating place, and I would highly recommend a visit there to anyone.  The best description I can give you is that Dubai = (Disney World + Los Angeles + Las Vegas + Manhattan)^infinity and beyond.  It is different than any other place in the entire world.  

Back in April, I authored a series of blog posts on the differences between Rwanda and the US.  In that same vein, I want to share with you the top ten similarities between Dubai and Rwanda from the eyes of an American. 

While I have been relatively silent as of late here in the blogosphere, you can rest assured that you will have a fresh new blog post to read every day for the next ten days if you so desire! 

Keep your eyes peeled for number ten!

A Fun Little Photo Shoot

So maybe you remember me mentioning getting a pair of pants painted from a previous blog post.  You probably thought, she can't be serious.  Well, I was serious.  Thank you, Innocent!  Here's a fun little photo shoot Tom did with me in his backyard in my new painted jeans.  I don't really know how to behave in a photo shoot, hence the awkward faces in most of the photos.  I also don't really know how to re-situate photos in blogger, hence the awkward photo placement.

   

Apparently the "hands on hips" pose is a favorite of mine.  I might need to diversify if I choose to pursue a career in modeling.  (Don't worry.  I'm not going to pursue a career in modeling... And I know you were worried...)

A Thrilling Final Exam

I recently gave my senior one (7^th grade) students their final English exam for the second term.  The final question read as follows:  “Write a paragraph of at least 6 sentences about a famous person.  Make sure your subjects and verbs agree and that you punctuate your sentences correctly.”  I think you will be amused by the variety of the list and the frequency of certain famous people.  Following is the list of all people who were written about more than once (along with the number of times they were mentioned):

Michael Jackson 23

Nelson Mandela 23

Gisa Fred Rwigema 18

Famous People in general 13

Off topic 11

Gandhi 8

Paul Kagame 5

Bob Marley 4

Barack Obama 4

Chris Brown 3

Jesus 3

Martin Luther King 3

King Mutara III Rudahigwa 2

Ben Carson 2

Abe Lincoln 2

Christiano Ronaldo 2

Neil Armstrong 2

Some other notable people I read about include 2Pac, Miley Cyrus, Oprah, President George W. Bush, Swarzenegar Anord, Jesse Jackson, Roald Dahl, and Black Obama (not to be confused with Barack Obama).

Clearly, however, the most fascinating paragraphs centered around the “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson (or if you prefer Mickel Jackson, Meckeal Jackson, or my personal favorite:  Mick Jason).  My students have baffled me.  I’m quite confused about where he was born.  Was it Los Angeles?  Chicago?  South Africa?  Kenya?  And when was he born?  1953? 1958? 1954? 1959?  And his death date?  Was it 2008?  10 January 2010?  25/05/2009? June 25, 2009?  Most perplexing, however, is the cause of his death.  I always thought it had something to do with a drug overdose, but maybe it was nose cancer after all.  Or a stroke.  Or skin cancer.  Or maybe he was poisoned. 

Here are some of my favorite sentences from the paragraphs:

“In America there was a good dancer called MICHAEL Jackson in a small town called CHICAGO.”

“Before he was born with a long nose then they cut it off and replaced it with a plastic nose.”

“When the machine transformed him, it didn’t transform his nose.  Then they gave him another nose after he got nose cancer.”

“Although he was very handsome, he had blood cancer.”

“Another thing is that he is the first black who became a white man.”

“And he died in 2009 of poisoning him but they don’t know they are still searching and they said that his maid was a Rwandan.”

“But some people said that he is alive and others said that he died.”

I do not share this with you to mock my students but to offer some insight into life outside of the good ol’ ethnocentric US of A.

Obviously, the American influence in Rwanda is enormous.  I’ve been given the opportunity to be the only picture of the US that many of these students will ever have outside of pop culture.  What pressure!  I can only hope that I can help diminish some misconceptions.

Another lesson I think we can learn is the importance of filtering the information that constantly bombards us.  You can’t believe everything you hear!  Sometimes your brain is a good enough filter, but sometimes it’s not.  When in doubt, look it up!  We’ve been blessed (and arguably cursed) to have the worldwide web at our fingertips nearly 24/7.  And while we must be careful utilizing it, it can be a valuable resource for deciphering the truth from the lies that we regularly face. 

One thing I’ve learned since moving to Rwanda six months ago is the universality of practically everything.  Human nature is human nature everywhere.  Rwandans are just as obsessed with juicy gossip as their American counterparts.  It don’t matter if you’re black or white.  And stories get twisted as they are passed from person to person causing gross misunderstandings that can get pretty ugly.  Chances are, Michael Jackson misconceptions are not going to cause much strife around these parts, but if I do recall, some terrible things have happened here (and everywhere else in the world) because of “mere” misunderstandings.

Finally, notice, if you will, that tied with Michael Jackson at the top of that list is Nelson Mandela.  These kids admire courage, and that is encouraging.  In a land where courage will take you further than musical talent, I can only hope that my students will start with the man in the mirror to embrace the positive traits of their so-called heroes and heal the world, to make it a better place!

Sometimes I Forget Why I Love This Place

Sometimes I forget why I love this place.  You know, like when the power goes out just as I’m getting to the best part of a movie.  Or when the Internet goes out just as I’m FINALLY catching up with a good friend from home.  Or when it starts raining dogs and cats just as I am getting ready to go somewhere.  Or when I eat something from a restaurant I go to all the time and wake up puking my guts out at 3 o’ clock in the morning.  And then it happens again the very next week.  And the next.  Or when all I want for dinner is a fish brochette, and I go to a restaurant to find that the fish is “finished.”  Or when my entire body is infested with ringworm and then I go for a run for the first time in ages and I get nice and sweaty and come home to find out that there is no water to wash off the stench which inevitably means ten or so more ringworm lesions will pop up on my body causing me more itchy, sleepless nights which in turn give me a cold which makes me grumpy, and no one wants to be around me when I’m grumpy.  Really, though…you don’t.

But then I remember the contagious laughter of the senior class for whom I performed my rendition of a popular Rwandan pop song, “Igipimo.”  And the children who run barefoot down the road with me to keep me company while I run.  And the five magnificent volcanoes that tower over my town. And the hugs I get from my students everyday at school.  And the thousand lush, green hills that surround me. And the enlightening conversations I have with some of the most incredible people in the world.  And the sweet smile of my house girl who has faced more adversity in her life than any of you could even begin to fathom, yet cleans our house with infectious bliss day in and day out.  And the beautiful babies tied on the backs of their hard working mothers.  And the joyous singing and dancing of children at an orphanage.  And the cute little geckos that scamper over the walls.  And the sweetest little bananas and the most luscious pineapples and the most delicious avocados in the world.  And the inspiring artists and the burgeoning art scene.  And the fact that I can wear my Chacos literally everyday.  And the smiles and smiles and smiles that go on for… kilometers.