13 September 2005


Now that I’ve got my first story up and published, I thought it would be a good idea to get a second one out there. So, here it is: http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0505175.htm

That Belgian priest may be my ticket here, since that trial, once it starts, is going to last for a long time. Who said there were no stories here?

And, to top it all off, the Dallas Morning News says that it wants a story from me from Burundi. How cool is that? Well, it’s so cool that it means I don’t have a choice; I have to go.

That’s easier said than done. I’m working on getting the UN to approve me going down to Muyinga, where the refugees are returning to in Burundi. We seem to have had a miscommunication, but at least we’ve had that miscommunication done now, not when I tried to get on the bus. Once I get to Miyunga, I have to find my way to Bujumbura, again, easier said than done. I thought that I would be able to bum a ride from UNHCR (the refugee agency), but that may not be the case. I may have to hire a driver. Between CNS and the Dallas Morning News (from which one can get the acronym DaMN), I think my expenses are covered. I’ll keep my loyal readers posted.

Meanwhile, back in Kigali…. I’ve made contact with the local English language paper here, which is independent of but tied very close to the president. I may do some work for them, I may not. But the court reporter is going to keep me posted on interesting trial (which are all done in Kinyarwanda, not French. Good for Rwanda, bad for Evan). And the political and investigative desks are going to give me a hand. All I had to do was e-mail an editor whose contacts were in the paper. See, all you have to do is ask and look pathetic.

I’ve started taking the minicombi buses that I’ve written about before. It’s quite liberating; I can get anywhere in Kigali for about 200 francs, which is about 40 cents. Taxis were running me between $4 and $6 a pop. I’m usually the only umuzungu on the bus, which can elicit a few stares and laughs. I don’t mind. I’ve got someplace to be. Rather than a dinger, like on a New York City bus, people knock on whatever metal they can find to get off where they want.

The buses can probably safely hold about eight people. They don’t run until there are 14 passengers, a driver and a conductor. You really get to know your neighbors on these buses.

But each has its own personality. I was on one today that had fake leopard skin seats and blared calypso music. Others make their ceilings look like a kitchen floor from the 70s, with the rollout tiling all over the place.

And back to wildlife. I forgot to mention that I have seen a monkey near our house, on one of my soul-crushing runs. And there were goats knocking on our neighbor’s gate. Seriously, it looked like they wanted to get in.

It has not started raining here yet. But it’s only a matter of time. I think the lack of sun – we won’t really see it once the rain starts – may be hard to take. But we’ll make it through. We always do.

So, that’s about all from here. Talk to everyone soon.