Muraho!

WOW. This trip has been an unreal experience so far. I absolutely cannot believe that we are so blessed to be able to come here and do what we're doing.

I don't know where to start! Right now we're in Gisenyi and are done working with the Great Ape Trust. We hiked in the Gishwhati Forest for four hours in the rain yesterday to get a feel for what the organization is trying to do. Three guides led us and told us many things about the environment. We even heard the chimps several times! The hike definitely showed how awesome our group is because we had to deal with flash flooding and bridges being washed out, and of course, all of our clothes being soaked! It was such a cool way to see a Rwandan rainforest.

THE KIDS in Gishwhati are beyond adorable. They yell, "Muzungo, Muzungo!" when we drive by and run after our jeep. We introduced them to bubbles the other day... they kept saying, "Mange, mange!" when we held the blowstick to their mouths which we found out means "eat" haha! They are so great.

Last night was one of the best nights of my life and a great way to wind down after a long day. The Rwandans in the village started off by singing their national anthem and then we taught them the "hokey pokey," twinkle, twinkle little star and itsy bitsy spider. They laughed so hard! After we sang, I asked if they would teach us some of their songs and dances. A huge party ensued right then! They ALL knew their country's songs word for word and each had a specific dance. AMAZING. They taught us what to do and laughed because it was unnatural to us. It bascially looks like a big bird stretching its wings and stomping its feet in a certain pattern. We were all jumping and singing a song we had learned in our preparation class at the end after the sun went down.

One of our guides, Gerard, gave us all Kinyarwandan names! Mine is Mukudwa which means "kind or compassionate." We now introduce ourselves that way by saying, "Nitwa ____." Everyone says we are true Rwandans now! The people here are so welcoming and absolutely everyone waves. I'm just having the time of my life while immersing myself in such a different culture. It doesn't seem like we're working at all. (Although with everything we raised, the head of Great Ape Trust said it was enough to feed 22 people for a YEAR! So exciting!) All the tangible donations were MUCH appreciated and the hygiene items were a perfect addition to the health clinic.

Tonight we are staying in a hut in the capital city, Kigali, which is a huge upgrade from the tents we stayed in the last two nights. It rained all night! We also haven't taken a full "real" shower since being here. The rain counted as ours yesterday, and the first full day here we rinsed off with a bathtub nozzle (freezing!) We also haven't used a real toilet! At the Great Ape Trust field and research center the bathrooms consisted of a hole in the ground! It just really shows how blessed we are to have the luxuries we do.

More to come! We are sharing minutes on computers at an internet cafe. These are the only computers I know of here! Crazy.

Love you all and thank you again for your support!! Keep us in your prayers!
Kayla