The Dry Season has returned

Well, the dry season is here with a vengeance and Judy and I are off on the road again! The tarmac roads in Rwanda are amazing and are kept in much better condition than the roads at home, but as soon as you leave the tarmac and hit the dirt tracks it's a different story. The one in the photo has been upgraded since last year and it's now wide and with a fairly smooth surface. But as you can see when a vehicle passes by the dirt flies and you get covered in a fine red dust. In the next photo you can see Judy on the bike in front - sorry about the wing mirror in the middle of the picture. When you leave these roads the travelling gets really tricky because the earth is so dry and the small rocks and stones move about under the wheels of the bike. At home we would call it a goat track.

This term we are up in another of the Northern sectors, carrying out training on Methodology and Lesson Observation skills. We stay at the Priests house for two or three nights every week because the journey is too long to do daily. Even when you get to the sector some of the schools are a really long way out. We can't wait to go and visit one particular school which is a long moto journey and then a walk up and down a mountain for almost one hour. I haven't found anyone who has visited it yet!Judy and I think of it as a mythical school where a headteacher invents the names of pupils and submits examination papers etc. Anyway, I'll let you know if we make it up there and back.

 Rongi Sector is one of the most remote parts of the district. There is no electricity at all, even in the Sector offices - only a few solar panels with enough energy to charge everyones mobile phones (lifesavers, here and very essential)The Education officer and the headteachers have to travel down to the next sector or to Muhanga to charge their laptops. It isn't possible to use  a desktop.

From our viewpoint on the back of the bikes we see this amazing project. As you will know Rwanda has many many steep hills and in the heavy rains the soil gets washed away so there are many projects to create terraces to retain the soil. But I have never seen a project as big as this one. All done by hand and everyone working together in the heat of the sun. Apparently the dry season will last until April when the rains will start again. I don't remember it being as dry as this last year, but I had only just arrived, so maybe I didn't notice.

Anyway, a cheery goodbye from the guys and thinking of you all in the cold dark winter, but spring is coming soon.


Lots love, Tricia