Life on Earth

(edited/updated: 2/25)

1. Lack of Rubbish: The country, urban and rural, is amazingly clean of rubbish like plastic bags and excessive packaging. Apparently, the government has banned plastic bags, and that might explain why I kept seeing people carrying little paper bags that I mistook for a national program to “Pack your own Lunch to Work”. The ban, like many of the government’s blanket laws, has its drawbacks.
2. Hand-shakes and Greetings: I lost count at 10. I’m not sure if there are certain social rules, or if it is all just at the whim of the individual. I did notice that when I met a stranger they typically lightly shook hands with the right while using their left hand to touch their own forearm. I also saw lots of hugging and cheek kissing. And of course, the ever popular fist-to-fist, and pumping of the chest once to show heart.
3. Small Country: Everyone knows everyone! Or, so it seems to the outsider. Just watching on a street corner one sees people bumping into old friends at a consistent rate. When I mentioned who I met in this meeting or that to someone, they often would know the person. The rule that we are 6 removed from knowing everyone is more like 2 removed in Rwanda. Rwanda is 26,340 KM2 with a population of 8.2 million. The most densely populated country in Africa at 320 people per km².
4. Right and Left Sided Automobiles: Rwandans drive on the right side of the road, but have a mix-match of vehicles with steering wheels on either the right or the left. It is a point of concern when imagine a car with right sided steering wheel trying to pass a dowry along a twisting mountain road. The visibility, already a concern, is amplified. An interesting history can be found in Denis Seguin’s article, “The right side of the road.” Also,related, Rwandans actually have and follow a front seat seatbelt law!
5. Mzungu (white man): The call is loud and proud. I could be flying by at 60mph and undoubtedly someone would catch a glimpse of me and call out, “Mzungu!”. I don’t believe any offense is intended, but it does sound strange when someone wanting to practice English comes up from behind and calls out, “white man!”
6. Pace of Life: Things move slow in Rwanda. If the majority of people made a sustainable living, I might call it a Take Back Your Time dream state. I’ve been in other countries that move at a slower pace, and in those places it is typically associated with a certain lack of initiative. In Rwanda, I felt that people just weren’t in a rush. It is best not to rely to heavily on the timescales if a local was setting up the schedule. One of the first English phrase people learn is, ” no problem”, which works nice for a commonly used word meaning the same thing, ntakibazo.
7. No Dogs: There is little sign of the four legged creatures. I heard a few bark behind walls, but the only dogs on the street that I saw were roadkill.