Relishing Rubavu

This past week I was with 30 other PCVs from my class at an "in-service training" (IST) conference. These events can feel a little tedious, but -- perhaps as consolation -- they're typically held at very desirable locations. Our IST was in Rubavu, also known as Gisenyi. In Rwanda's burgeoning tourism industry, this spot is one of the highlights. It's on the shores of Lake Kivu, touching Goma in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Our hotel was gorgeous, tucked up on a hillside overlooking the lake:

It came with many amenities. As wonderful as it all was, though, there are constant little reminders that it's still the developing world. Let me illustrate this for you:

- The hotel was quite sizable...
but the layout was incredibly confusing. We commented that it resembled an M.C. Escher print -- stairs, stairs, everywhere.
- There was a large, professional billboard down by the road, thanking you for visiting Rubavu...
or, as the case may be, "Rubava." Close.
- All around the hotel, the walls and railings shone with bright, crisp paint...
which rubbed off on your clothing if you happened to lean against anything.
- There was high-speed wireless internet...
which stopped working after the first day, supposedly because after a bit of lightning the staff didn't know how to reset the router.
- We had a color TV in our room...
which only got four channels. (Some rooms got fewer or none, though.) And the batteries in the remote were all corroded, so I had to replace them with my own.
- We also had a phone...
but not all the rooms did, so you could only call certain people.
- The beds were large, with many pillows...
but they were more foam than a "real" mattress, so that your body digs a nice a little valley each night.
- There was a net hanging up for protection against the ubiquitous mosquitoes...
but only a single net, in between the two beds. And no screens on the windows, so skipping the net was hardly an option.
- There were private showers with great water pressure...
but the drain would always stop up, so usually you were standing in water up to your ankles while you bathed.
- The hotel provided flip-flop shower shoes...
but the left and right didn't match -- in pattern, color, or even size.
- Over the sink was a fancy-looking glass ledge...
but you didn't dare place anything on it because it quite easily slipped out of the wall.
- The bathroom boasted deliciously hot water...
but no shower curtains, or drains in the floor, so you had to constantly navigate through a huge pool on the tile floor every time you wanted to use the toilet or wash your hands.
- There was maid service each day, and they mopped up those floors...
but there was only one key to each room, so you had to track down the head maid every morning and give her your key, or else your room wouldn't get cleaned. And the pool would grow.

I'm not saying I didn't enjoy my stay, though! In particular, the food was amazing. I'm used to cooking for myself on a single burner, so it's usually a one-pot affair. But here we had a fabulous all-you-can-eat buffet for each meal! And on the first day, we arrived early so we ordered food from the hotel restaurant. I had a Nile perch (capitaine) filet, fresh from the lake, in a pepper cream sauce. I'm pretty sure it was the best food I've ever had in Rwanda.

We also got one afternoon free to have a little picnic down on the beach. The beach is very clean with nice sand, but it's pretty narrow. Abruptly, lush grass and thick trees disrupt the landscape. I tried to capture a pic of this as I lounged in the driver's seat of a PC car (don't worry, Washington, I wasn't driving!). Also, a shot of fellow Mauritania PCVs Ashley and Michele with PC staff Kassim, Assinath, Claudine, and Alphonsine:




A few of us went out on a little "speedboat" (I use the term loosely), and although we got splashed a fair amount, it was a good time. We scooted right up to the Congo border, and I was amazed at how posh it looked on the other side! Goma is said to have really cheap markets with lots available, since nothing is regulated there -- the upshot of having a government in shambles, I guess.

Here's me in the back seat of the boat with PC staff Alphonsine again and PCV Chris, and in the second pic the hills behind me are Congo:



All in all, a fun week spent with friends, and now I'm equipped with concrete new ideas to tackle the second term of school.