A Little Retreat

Last week started just like any other. Monday was a busy day at the hospital, as usual, with an influx of patients coming in with countless ailments. The women’s area was so overpopulated that we had filled every bed and some patients were obliged to lie on the floor. Fortunately, there is nothing life threatening to any of the patients at the present, so after treating their infection, high blood sugar, or anxiety, most are happy to return to their family.
I am currently working with Dr. Louise King, alternating each day between the men’s and women’s ward. As I headed to meet her on Tuesday, she received a call from Dr. Caleb King asking if I would like to accompany him on his trip to Lake Kivu for a meeting. As one of the 5 great lakes of Africa, I was not about to turn down this offer. I must have gone back and forth from my apartment to the King’s house at least 5 times to assure I had brought everything I needed. Our first stop on the way to Lake Kivu was in Kigali so Dr. King could run a couple errands.
Things usually take longer then expected here in Rwanda. If someone tells you we are leaving in 20 minutes, feel free to get in one more chapter in your book and have a quick cup of tea, all with time to spare. Even in the hustle bustle metropolis of Kigali, the only thing you can set your watch to is the time in which people leave to go home. We stop at the immigration office to check on the status of some visas, then over to the offices of a couple non-government organizations to find money for our social fund at the hospital, and finally we chat with an architect about the design of a hydroelectric project Dr. King has been working on. All this takes a good four hours and we have a 2 and 1/2 hour drive to arrive at our final destination. Although the darkness came early on during our drive, the roads were in good condition and we made it safely to the guesthouse.
The next day Dr. King leaves early in the morning to his meeting and Caleb Jr. and I are left with a rented boat and a whole day to do as we please. The boat ride was beautiful and we were able to just see the silhouette of Congo in the distance. The workers at the desk warned us that the water was cold, but we are right on the equator and it was very refreshing even at 9 in the morning. Caleb Jr. and I wandered to the local market and bought a little candy to munch on while watching a movie on my computer. By the time Dr. King returned, we had built up a nice appetite and the lunch of grilled tilapia really hit the spot.
It was nice to get a change of scenery for a couple days from Shyira and do a little bit of sightseeing here in Rwanda. I plan on spending my Thanksgiving meal with my fellow countrymen at the American Embassy in Kigali and can’t wait to meet other people and hear their stories of what they’re doing here. I will be spending the weekend in Kigali and then back to the grind Monday.