Saturday, March 27, 2010
Kris Allen and TOMS Shoes
Kris Allen and the TOMS shoes group arrive in Musanze tonight and the week officially begins! We have a busy week including several shoe drops, filming video footage all over Rwanda, lots of group dinners, and even Kris coming to help me teach a class at Sonrise! I will give more details about the week later....
Thursday, March 25, 2010
CSI Rwanda
This is a long one, so be ready…….You may have read the New Times article I posted last week about our break-in and amazing recovery of our stolen possessions. I wanted to elaborate more on the experience, as it was truly one of the most humorous, random situations of my life. I will try to recount the details the best I can, but I don’t know if I can truly relate just how absolutely hilarious and unbelievable this whole experience was. I don’t know how else to explain it but that God was just looking out for us.
So it all started when I was suddenly awakened early one morning by Peyton, one of my roommates. He comes in my room and calmly says, “Anna, I think we’ve been robbed”. Sure enough, 4 laptops computers (one of them being mine), a camera, Kindle, iPod, backpack, and a host of other random things in our house had been stolen. The back door was wide open, so we assumed that either we forgot to lock the door or someone had a key to the door. We immediately call the police, and they quickly come over to do an assessment of the robbery. The most humorous part was when the Rwandan police officers break out the fancy camera and measuring tape, taking pictures of the empty spaces where the items were stolen and measuring the distance that the robbers had to run between the house and the outside fence. I’m not really sure what they were going to do with that information, but at least it appeared that they were performing a legit crime scene investigation to the frantic muzungus. And then the police made me get a bag and a piece of paper so that they could gather evidence, which was a huge rock that the robbers left in the place of our computers. Of course we wouldn’t want to tamper with the evidence because, you know, the fingerprint technology is really advanced here. I spend almost the entire day at the police station, describing in detail what was lost and telling them everyone that we know in town. And then I go home, fully expecting that I will never see my precious laptop with years of memories in pictures, important documents, and favorite tunes stored on it.
The police performing their high tech investigation....
So fast forward one week, after all of us had completely given up hope of ever seeing our possessions again. And here we get to the really humorous part of the story. So we are getting ready to leave for school, and Kelly gets an email from one of her friends in the US. Her friend had gotten an email from this random guy in Rwanda who said he thought he had her laptop and to call him. (Totally random that the friend was involved, just happened that this guy opened her laptop and emailed the last person who had emailed her). We quickly dial his number and find out that he does, in fact, have Kelly’s computer. Someone had tried to sell him this computer and when he opened it, he found all of Kelly’s information, pictures, etc. He was actually an honest man (miracle #1) and felt he should help Kelly get it back. And then he tells us that the man he bought it from has 8 other laptops, which we figured most likely included our other stolen laptops (miracle #2). He said that if we would come to Gisenyi (about an hour away) that he would try to help us reclaim the other computers. So I dial the police commander on speed dial, explain the situation, and an hour later we are on our way to Gisenyi in a car with three muzungus and an undercover cop. I am driving the car and flying in Rwandan terms; we only get pulled over two and a half times on our way. Lucky for us we have a policeman in the car that casually waves to his fellow officers, and we continue on our way.
We arrive and meet our tipster, John Isaac, at a nice hotel in Gisenyi (better there than the black markets in the Congo, which is what I was expecting). After a round of sodas and some causal getting to know each other talk, he brings out Kelly’s computer and gives us additional information about the whereabouts of the man who sold him the computer. While he is calling the man and planning to meet him to look at the other computers, the District Police Commander of the entire Northern Region of Rwanda, whose name is Rogers and happens to be our neighbor, is continuously calling me to get the latest info and give me tips on how to handle the situation without blowing our cover. I won’t go into all of the details, but here is when the day gets really interesting. Over the next few hours, we literally carry out a covert, undercover mission in the middle of Africa to recover our stolen goods. Several events happen in these hours, including a few meetings with the local police, a drive by house spotting where the stolen goods were being kept, and a hunt for a certain red car around town. At last, I perform a sly “drop-off” as our undercover cop and new friend go to meet the suspect at the local bank. The three muzungus in the Honda Accord try to look as inconspicuous as possible as we are hiding out in the bustling downtown trying to spy on the events happening in the bank. Meanwhile, the police bust in the bank and arrest the suspect (and our new friend John Isaac as a ploy), and we are called back to the police station to identify our property. Unfortunately the other computers ended up not being ours, but the guy said that he knew exactly where our other computers were. He was working with another guy who had bought the computers from the actual robbers, so we perform another undercover operation all over again trying to get the next suspect in line. After a long day and a lot of bonding time with the Rogers and John Isaac, we hunt down the other perpetrator who brings us back one more computer and several other small things that were stolen (down to the ink pens). Because these guys were not the robbers but just the buyers, they were very cooperative with the police in order to get off easy. However, my beloved computer was still nowhere to be seen within my own vision; therefore, I still had no hope of ever seeing it again. After all, the guy told me that my computer had already been sold in the black markets of the Congo, probably the most corrupt country in Africa.
And two days later, Rogers shows up at my door with my white HP laptop in hand, with every picture, document, and song intact. I just knew that if my computer happened to be retreived, it would for sure be cleared of any identifying information. But no…..here I am with my computer in my hands, typing away as though I never lost it in the first place. The whole experience was very surreal, and, as I emphasized in the article for the New Times, I am thankful for the hard-working efforts of the Rwandan police forces.
Sometimes God really does have a sense of humor. We are thankful for the recovery of our stuff, and occasionally laugh and ask ourselves whether it really happened or we just dreamed it all. We now see the Police Commander often, and he often assures me that I did a great job carrying out our mission and driving the "undercover" car:) We made several really good friends out of the deal and have a great story to tell our grandkids someday!
So it all started when I was suddenly awakened early one morning by Peyton, one of my roommates. He comes in my room and calmly says, “Anna, I think we’ve been robbed”. Sure enough, 4 laptops computers (one of them being mine), a camera, Kindle, iPod, backpack, and a host of other random things in our house had been stolen. The back door was wide open, so we assumed that either we forgot to lock the door or someone had a key to the door. We immediately call the police, and they quickly come over to do an assessment of the robbery. The most humorous part was when the Rwandan police officers break out the fancy camera and measuring tape, taking pictures of the empty spaces where the items were stolen and measuring the distance that the robbers had to run between the house and the outside fence. I’m not really sure what they were going to do with that information, but at least it appeared that they were performing a legit crime scene investigation to the frantic muzungus. And then the police made me get a bag and a piece of paper so that they could gather evidence, which was a huge rock that the robbers left in the place of our computers. Of course we wouldn’t want to tamper with the evidence because, you know, the fingerprint technology is really advanced here. I spend almost the entire day at the police station, describing in detail what was lost and telling them everyone that we know in town. And then I go home, fully expecting that I will never see my precious laptop with years of memories in pictures, important documents, and favorite tunes stored on it.
The police performing their high tech investigation....
So fast forward one week, after all of us had completely given up hope of ever seeing our possessions again. And here we get to the really humorous part of the story. So we are getting ready to leave for school, and Kelly gets an email from one of her friends in the US. Her friend had gotten an email from this random guy in Rwanda who said he thought he had her laptop and to call him. (Totally random that the friend was involved, just happened that this guy opened her laptop and emailed the last person who had emailed her). We quickly dial his number and find out that he does, in fact, have Kelly’s computer. Someone had tried to sell him this computer and when he opened it, he found all of Kelly’s information, pictures, etc. He was actually an honest man (miracle #1) and felt he should help Kelly get it back. And then he tells us that the man he bought it from has 8 other laptops, which we figured most likely included our other stolen laptops (miracle #2). He said that if we would come to Gisenyi (about an hour away) that he would try to help us reclaim the other computers. So I dial the police commander on speed dial, explain the situation, and an hour later we are on our way to Gisenyi in a car with three muzungus and an undercover cop. I am driving the car and flying in Rwandan terms; we only get pulled over two and a half times on our way. Lucky for us we have a policeman in the car that casually waves to his fellow officers, and we continue on our way.
We arrive and meet our tipster, John Isaac, at a nice hotel in Gisenyi (better there than the black markets in the Congo, which is what I was expecting). After a round of sodas and some causal getting to know each other talk, he brings out Kelly’s computer and gives us additional information about the whereabouts of the man who sold him the computer. While he is calling the man and planning to meet him to look at the other computers, the District Police Commander of the entire Northern Region of Rwanda, whose name is Rogers and happens to be our neighbor, is continuously calling me to get the latest info and give me tips on how to handle the situation without blowing our cover. I won’t go into all of the details, but here is when the day gets really interesting. Over the next few hours, we literally carry out a covert, undercover mission in the middle of Africa to recover our stolen goods. Several events happen in these hours, including a few meetings with the local police, a drive by house spotting where the stolen goods were being kept, and a hunt for a certain red car around town. At last, I perform a sly “drop-off” as our undercover cop and new friend go to meet the suspect at the local bank. The three muzungus in the Honda Accord try to look as inconspicuous as possible as we are hiding out in the bustling downtown trying to spy on the events happening in the bank. Meanwhile, the police bust in the bank and arrest the suspect (and our new friend John Isaac as a ploy), and we are called back to the police station to identify our property. Unfortunately the other computers ended up not being ours, but the guy said that he knew exactly where our other computers were. He was working with another guy who had bought the computers from the actual robbers, so we perform another undercover operation all over again trying to get the next suspect in line. After a long day and a lot of bonding time with the Rogers and John Isaac, we hunt down the other perpetrator who brings us back one more computer and several other small things that were stolen (down to the ink pens). Because these guys were not the robbers but just the buyers, they were very cooperative with the police in order to get off easy. However, my beloved computer was still nowhere to be seen within my own vision; therefore, I still had no hope of ever seeing it again. After all, the guy told me that my computer had already been sold in the black markets of the Congo, probably the most corrupt country in Africa.
And two days later, Rogers shows up at my door with my white HP laptop in hand, with every picture, document, and song intact. I just knew that if my computer happened to be retreived, it would for sure be cleared of any identifying information. But no…..here I am with my computer in my hands, typing away as though I never lost it in the first place. The whole experience was very surreal, and, as I emphasized in the article for the New Times, I am thankful for the hard-working efforts of the Rwandan police forces.
Sometimes God really does have a sense of humor. We are thankful for the recovery of our stuff, and occasionally laugh and ask ourselves whether it really happened or we just dreamed it all. We now see the Police Commander often, and he often assures me that I did a great job carrying out our mission and driving the "undercover" car:) We made several really good friends out of the deal and have a great story to tell our grandkids someday!
Monday, March 22, 2010
St. Patrick's Day Ball
Last weekend we attended the annual St. Patrick's Day Ball at the Serena Hotel in Kigali, the nicest hotel in the country. Every year a group of Irish people in Rwanda put on this huge formal event to raise money for an organization working with children with AIDS in Rwanda. We dressed in our most formal attire, ate the best meal we had eaten in a while, and danced our little hearts out to the native Irish band. I met people from literally all over the world that are living in Rwanda, and everyone has an interesting story of what they are doing and how they got here. There is quite a large group of expats here in Rwanda, and it makes for an interesting evening to gather in one room the random variety of people who share the common bond of living in Rwanda.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Borrowed Talent Video
Here is the link to a new video featuring all of our Bridge2Rwanda team (aka "borrowed talent") here in Rwanda. You get to see us all in action here in Rwanda!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vE6U9yY-JAg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vE6U9yY-JAg
Saturday, March 13, 2010
New Article in The New Times
Here is my second article published this week in The New Times, which is the national newspaper in Rwanda. I will try to blog more about the details of this particular event this week....the story is quite humorous and unbelievable how it all worked out.
"I published an article several months ago in the New Times about the warm reception I received from Rwanda as an American volunteer and how the people have so graciously welcomed me into this country. However, I have had a string of what some might call “bad luck” in the past few months, including a bout of sickness, a minor car accident, and most recently a significant theft from my house. The latter caused all of my Rwandan friends to immediately apologize, as they seem to feel personally responsible for this incident because it happened in their country, by their own people. I just laugh and respond that the very same thing happens all the time in the United States. In fact, it can happen anywhere in the world, but the difference rests in the way these cases are dealt with.
Nonetheless, I want to share this story with the people of Rwanda so that you can be proud of your fellow countrymen, not ashamed. The incident happened a couple weeks ago, when we awoke in the morning and discovered that our house in Musanze, which accommodates seven American volunteers, had been robbed during the night. Significant amounts of electronics were stolen, including most of our laptop computers. Of course we were upset about losing our computers, but the real price was losing years of pictures, documents, classes, and other important information that we have stored on our computers. Immediately the Musanze police were at our house to perform a thorough investigation of the evidence and report the stolen goods. I later learned just how thorough that investigation was carried out, including any possible suspect taken in for questioning and tips sent to the nearby border patrols. I all but gave up hope after a couple of days, assuming that the computers had immediately been cleared of all identifying information and sold in a neighboring country.
Exactly one week later, we received a tip that the computers had been sighted in Gisenyi, still intact and very likely retrievable. So we set off on an adventure with an undercover policeman and the Regional Police Commander in the Northern Province to recover the stolen possessions. The Musanze and Gisenyi police forces worked diligently to make sure the mission was successful. To my surprise and excitement, two of our computers were returned that very day and the rest were hand delivered by the Commander two days later. Even the less significant items, such as flash drives, phone chargers, and ink pens, were given back to us.
I share this primarily to commend the Rwandan police forces and the attention they devoted to this case. From the time that we reported the break-in, we were contacted nearly every day to give an update regarding latest information. As we had given up hope of recovering anything at all, they took it as their personal responsibility to make sure the case was solved. I can assure you that this same case would not be treated so seriously in America. It is not that we don’t have good policemen in the US, but they would not be so concerned about a few meager electronic devices. In fact, a couple of years ago my car was broken into, in which two windows were busted out and the contents in my car were emptied. When the policeman came to make the report, he told me that there was really nothing that could be done if they caught the perpetrator that very night because the local jails were overcrowded and the theft was considered a minor offense. I was stunned that one could get away with such an offense so easily, especially in a country that claims to have a fair justice system.
My experience in Rwanda was quite different. The police demonstrated the utmost concern and took their job seriously to insure that all of our belongings were returned. The Regional Police Commander in the Northern District, Rogers Rutikanga, exhibited great professionalism, genuine concern, and overall character in our dealings with him. An investigation of the details is still underway, and we have been assured that they will not rest the case until justice is implemented.
Some may say that I have had “bad luck” in the few short months I have been here, but I consider it just the opposite. My luck has actually turned out to be quite good. Not just because our computers were miraculously returned untouched, but also to have witnessed firsthand the hard-working efforts and integrity of the Rwandan defense system, a system that appears to be fair, efficient, and authentically concerned."
"I published an article several months ago in the New Times about the warm reception I received from Rwanda as an American volunteer and how the people have so graciously welcomed me into this country. However, I have had a string of what some might call “bad luck” in the past few months, including a bout of sickness, a minor car accident, and most recently a significant theft from my house. The latter caused all of my Rwandan friends to immediately apologize, as they seem to feel personally responsible for this incident because it happened in their country, by their own people. I just laugh and respond that the very same thing happens all the time in the United States. In fact, it can happen anywhere in the world, but the difference rests in the way these cases are dealt with.
Nonetheless, I want to share this story with the people of Rwanda so that you can be proud of your fellow countrymen, not ashamed. The incident happened a couple weeks ago, when we awoke in the morning and discovered that our house in Musanze, which accommodates seven American volunteers, had been robbed during the night. Significant amounts of electronics were stolen, including most of our laptop computers. Of course we were upset about losing our computers, but the real price was losing years of pictures, documents, classes, and other important information that we have stored on our computers. Immediately the Musanze police were at our house to perform a thorough investigation of the evidence and report the stolen goods. I later learned just how thorough that investigation was carried out, including any possible suspect taken in for questioning and tips sent to the nearby border patrols. I all but gave up hope after a couple of days, assuming that the computers had immediately been cleared of all identifying information and sold in a neighboring country.
Exactly one week later, we received a tip that the computers had been sighted in Gisenyi, still intact and very likely retrievable. So we set off on an adventure with an undercover policeman and the Regional Police Commander in the Northern Province to recover the stolen possessions. The Musanze and Gisenyi police forces worked diligently to make sure the mission was successful. To my surprise and excitement, two of our computers were returned that very day and the rest were hand delivered by the Commander two days later. Even the less significant items, such as flash drives, phone chargers, and ink pens, were given back to us.
I share this primarily to commend the Rwandan police forces and the attention they devoted to this case. From the time that we reported the break-in, we were contacted nearly every day to give an update regarding latest information. As we had given up hope of recovering anything at all, they took it as their personal responsibility to make sure the case was solved. I can assure you that this same case would not be treated so seriously in America. It is not that we don’t have good policemen in the US, but they would not be so concerned about a few meager electronic devices. In fact, a couple of years ago my car was broken into, in which two windows were busted out and the contents in my car were emptied. When the policeman came to make the report, he told me that there was really nothing that could be done if they caught the perpetrator that very night because the local jails were overcrowded and the theft was considered a minor offense. I was stunned that one could get away with such an offense so easily, especially in a country that claims to have a fair justice system.
My experience in Rwanda was quite different. The police demonstrated the utmost concern and took their job seriously to insure that all of our belongings were returned. The Regional Police Commander in the Northern District, Rogers Rutikanga, exhibited great professionalism, genuine concern, and overall character in our dealings with him. An investigation of the details is still underway, and we have been assured that they will not rest the case until justice is implemented.
Some may say that I have had “bad luck” in the few short months I have been here, but I consider it just the opposite. My luck has actually turned out to be quite good. Not just because our computers were miraculously returned untouched, but also to have witnessed firsthand the hard-working efforts and integrity of the Rwandan defense system, a system that appears to be fair, efficient, and authentically concerned."
Monday, March 8, 2010
Well, hello Mr. Worldwide Web....
Over the past few months in Rwanda I have had the opportunity to meet and interact with some very interesting travelers from around the world. Many of these travelers are sent over by Bridge2Rwanda on insight trips as friends, donors, etc. Most people pass through my little town of Musanze to hit the two most famous sights in the area, the legendary mountain gorillas (not guerillas) in the Virunga Mountain Range and the renowned Sonrise School (where I am blessed to teach) which has been featured in several books and movies. I have met the likes of many millionaires, CEOs, investment bankers, medical specialists, journalists, non-profit and NGO workers, and just plain interesting travelers. It creates interesting dynamics of being here in Rwanda, as I am working in one of the most poverty stricken areas in the world and am often entertained by and introduced to some of the wealthier people in the world.
For example, a couple weeks ago I met the inventor of the worldwide web right here in Musanze, Rwanda. No, not Al Gore. The real creator of the internet. The guy who changed all of our lives as we know it. The engineer who transformed the world’s ability to network, communicate, and spread information. The very reason that you are reading this right now.
And in a couple of weeks, our B2R team will spend an entire week entertaining and working on a mission with Kris Allen, the homegrown American Idol who put Arkansas on the map (of course after Bill Clinton, who is the only reason that anyone here has ever heard of Arkansas). We are joining forces with Kris to do a considerable project with the trendy but philanthropic TOM’S shoes organization. We will be distributing shoes to children at Sonrise and in our beloved village, as well as 30,000 other children in Rwanda.
And who said I was going to be off in the middle of Africa, away from civilization and the excitement of modern life? My life is way more exciting here than in the US….
Here is a picture of me with the former President of Rwanda and his family. I teach his daughter at Sonrise, so he feels a personal responsibility to assure that I am taken care of in Rwanda!
For example, a couple weeks ago I met the inventor of the worldwide web right here in Musanze, Rwanda. No, not Al Gore. The real creator of the internet. The guy who changed all of our lives as we know it. The engineer who transformed the world’s ability to network, communicate, and spread information. The very reason that you are reading this right now.
And in a couple of weeks, our B2R team will spend an entire week entertaining and working on a mission with Kris Allen, the homegrown American Idol who put Arkansas on the map (of course after Bill Clinton, who is the only reason that anyone here has ever heard of Arkansas). We are joining forces with Kris to do a considerable project with the trendy but philanthropic TOM’S shoes organization. We will be distributing shoes to children at Sonrise and in our beloved village, as well as 30,000 other children in Rwanda.
And who said I was going to be off in the middle of Africa, away from civilization and the excitement of modern life? My life is way more exciting here than in the US….
Here is a picture of me with the former President of Rwanda and his family. I teach his daughter at Sonrise, so he feels a personal responsibility to assure that I am taken care of in Rwanda!
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