I have been in Burundi for only three days and already feel quite at home here in the capital city of Bujumbura, or “Buj”. It feels like a relatively sophisticated city with some good restaurants and hotels, internet cafes, banks etc., though most of the sidewalks are dirt. There are no traffic lights, but the generally flow of traffic is reasonable and doesn’t shine a candle to the chaos of Freetown’s streets.
The Village Health Works (VHW) office/accommodation in the Kinanera III neighbourhood is located about 10 minutes from town and is very comfortable. As I sit on the verandah (with lights and Wi-Fi!) on this balmy Saturday night, I hear lots of children playing and some action in the local community pool, very pleasant.
I arrived with Dziwe Ntabe MD who is the medical director of VHW. We have attended meetings together these past three days and it has been a good way for me to feel immediately integrated into the team. Meeting Deo’s Uncle Nestor who is the in-country director of VHW and his brother Peter has been wonderful. Both are lovely individuals and immediately welcoming and gracious.
Power cuts occur often in Kinanera III and Dziwe and I have been frequenting cafes with power and WiFi to do computer work. Dziwe knows all the spots to plug into outlets and where the coffee is excellent!
This afternoon we managed to have a bit of a break and I waded in Lake Tanganyika. The distant shores of the Congo were shrouded in fog and it seemed more like a huge ocean (second largest lake in the world). Fun to see the locals congregating for some weekend R&R.
Tomorrow we head up to Kigutu, two hours south of Bujumbura, in the mountains where the VHW Community Clinic is located. I am eager to be there.
Helen
Dziwe at Botanika office
Peter & Nestor
Dziwe & Helen on shore of Lake Tanganikya
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