Family Farewell & Our Swearing-In

In America, at times of increased anxiety, I have a reoccurring stress dream that I own a dog who I then forget to feed. I go about my business completing various dream tasks and then suddenly remember about the poor starving dog that I was entrusted with, at which point I immediately wake up in a panic. Last week I had this same dream, but the dog was replaced with a goat. Not even kidding you. Makes sense, as I am currently in a weird transitional stage where training ends and my service at site begins. Last week we said goodbye to our host families. There was a going away lunch where some volunteers did speeches in Kinyarwanda. Then we "wowed” them with our ridiculous impression of a traditional Rwandan dance followed by celebratory potatoes and Fanta. Good times.

Bre and I at the host family farewell. Twinsies!

It was exciting to finish with the language training and pass the required final test/interview, but separating from our host fams was definitely a bummer. I played one last game of cards with a bunch of  kids crammed into the living room the night before I left, and my host mom made a dish called isombe that I like (it’s like a mash of greens that’s slow-cooked for hours). They gave me a cool piece of igitenge (fabric you can buy at the markets here to have clothes made by a seamstress). And I gave them some photos of the family that I took and then had printed out in town. 

My host familia (Papa Emmanuel, Mama Bernadette, Daniel, Simon Pierre, and Grace)

After leaving the training site we headed off to Kigali where we officially swore in as Peace Corps volunteers in a ceremony at the American ambassador’s residence.That evening a volunteer living in Kigali threw a shindig of sorts, followed by a trip to a local bar which featured a pretty killer mix of American/Rwandan dance music. Otherwise the last 3 days have mostly consisted of purchasing things for my empty house—plastic chairs, food, cooking supplies, etc. And I’ve gotten a chance to try out some coffee shops and restaurants in the area including a killer burger joint, a burrito place where you can order margaritas, and a fancy Japanese spot (which I quickly learned I will never be able to afford again). Tomorrow I’ll be driven from Kigali to my site in a Peace Corps car and then I’ll watch in dismay as they drive away and leave me to fend for myself. Wish me luck, ya’ll. It’s about to get real up in here.