Kigaliaround

Greeting from Kigali, Rwanda! I have been amazed at how much development has occurred in this country over the past few years. I’m not going to lie, I was not expecting to see the Wal-mart equivalent Nakumat open 24 hours a day sitting next door to the popular Starbucks equivalent called Bourbon after Bourbon Street. Speaking of coffee, although I’m not a coffee connoisseur, the coffee here has been quite phenomenal and might turn me into a regular drinker. If you’re asking yourself, man, I would love to get my hands on some Rwandan coffee, look no further. Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee House sells absolutely delicious fair trade coffee directly from Rwanda and my friend Chelsea works there. Don’t worry if you don’t live in Atlanta, you can order it on-line. It’s quite interesting to go halfway across the world and still feel so much familiarity. Americanization?

We are staying at a beautiful Catholic mission called St. Paul’s. It is maybe half a kilometer (I’m going to write in the metric system because A) the English system is stupid and B)I better start getting used to it) to the center of Kigali. St. Paul’s is a very interesting place to stay. The Mission served as a safe haven during the genocide 15 years ago. Two thousand people took shelter on the grounds and possibly even the bed that I am sleeping in tonight. If you travel a quarter kilometer, north of the mission you will run into the now extravagantly nice Hotel Milles Collines (Hotel Rwanda). If you decide to look south toward the curving hills, maybe 2 kilometers in the distance you can imagine the RPF marching through the outskirts of Kigali. It is 15 years later and Rwanda has a very new face.

The sun is shining and there are many smiling warm faces around. There seems to be an infestation of falcons that fly about the surrounding area performing sweet in-flight maneuvers, keeping me distracted from training. The climate around Kigali has been quite hot while the showers have been so cold. The city has been a generous place.