I haven’t posted in a while, so this may turn into two entries (or just one that’s long and rambling). First, Excel School had their graduation a few weeks ago. It was great to see all the kids in their robes – they looked so adorable! The school marched around the block, and then the ceremony began. All in all, it lasted about 4 hours, and I got to wear a mushanana, a traditional Rwandese dress. I loved it, even though the skirt was about six inches too long and kept dragging in the dirt (sorry, Pam!). I stayed afterward to talk to the students’ parents and give out report cards, so by the time I got home, it was well after dark. It was a pretty tiring but great day!

P3 singing a song - there's Lydia in the front

With my class during their performance (they were great!)

With Pam, Excel's headmisstress

Some of the kids from my class with their diplomas

Lydia, Moses (the Kings’ Rwandan foster child), and I also dressed up for Halloween and went trick-or-treating at all the muzungu houses – about 10 houses in all. Lydia was Belle from Beauty and the Beast, Moses was a Chinese emperor, and I was a muzungutourist. Special thank-you to Lydia for pointing out that I wasn’t actually in costume, though I like to think I look alittle less ridiculous in my day-to-day life. Moses and Lydia got lots of candy, and Lydia is showing remarkable self-control by saving hers until Sara, Hannah, and Caleb, Jr. come home (at least, she says she is).

Eating at Virunga Lodge

Volcanoes at sunset

Kaile, the visiting medical resident, and me (Lake Rehonda in the background)

Last Sunday I went up to Virunga Lodge with a few people for the day, including the visiting medical resident, the veterinarian and intern with the Mountain Gorillas Veterinary Project, and a few other Americans. The view was, in a word, spectacular. From the lodge you can see six of the volcanoes that make up the Virunga Mountains (thank you, Wikipedia). A few of the six straddle the border of Rwanda and the DRC and Rwanda and Uganda. I’m thinking of climbing one of the smaller ones soon – some of them only take a few hours.

Other than that, things have been pretty quiet around here! Now that the Excel term is over, Lydia and I do homeschooling for a couple of hours in the morning and then usually go to the pool before lunch. Moses is learning to swim, but until he learns, he has a cute little green outfit that one of the cousins donated. We also play tennis when we can, and generally do one or two hours of schooling in the afternoon as well. I went to Kigali over the weekend, and I have to say, it really made me appreciate Musanze. I had a lot of fun and ate some great food, but I realized how accessible things in Musanze are. Everything is within walking distance, and it’s nice and cool here. That said, I think I have the best of both worlds – I can easily ride the bus to Kigali, but can get pretty much anything in Musanze.

So I think that about wraps it up -I promise I won’t take so long to post my next entry! Lydia and I are getting ready to visit the Catholic nuns next door, so my next post may come sooner rather than later...