Yesterday was a holiday -- election day. A day in many countries that warrants getting the hell out of town as quickly as possible. If there were elections in Kenya last week, for example, I think I would have skipped the Nairobi leg of the trip or at least skipped town before they took place.
Not here, though. The day was peaceful and totally calm. It was such a nice day so I decided to take a walk. A couple of hours later I ended up at this quaint little pond. I just took in the breeze and people watched for a while.
These little kids were screaming and jumping around in the water. I think it was pretty cold (even for them!) because they would dive in head first and then come squeeling out immediately.
As I walked by the houses, people would look at me so curiously and surprised. It kind of reminded me of my time in Zambia, in the township where I worked (M'tendere), where a lot of the folks were so shocked to see me walking through. Rwanda is very much like Zambia, and very different from Kenya, or even Tanzania, in that way. Kenyans and most Tanzanians are much more accustomed to seeing foreigners around. In Kigali tourists are totally non-existent so the only foreigners you see really are people working for different NGOs and such that are stationed here.
The little kids almost whisper as I pass, "Mzungu," (white person/one who travels) as if a strange festive float just rolled down their street.
And then I smile big and wave, "Bon jour! Sa va?"
And they blush and smile big too, as if they were just caught sneaking a cookie before dinner and respond, "Sa va bien."
There's a shyness, a curiosity, a gentleness that I sense here.
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