Play time!!

 It’s not all work here, we are very fortunate to have our weekends free to explore and relax. Kibogora is very close (an hours walk) to a ‘resort’ that was built by missionaries in 1944. It is called Kumbya and it was built as somewhere for missionaries of all denominations to be able to come to. It is very basic, with a few buildings for each denomination, a big church hall and some store rooms. We do not have the key to these but we can access the site and go by the lake side to relax in the sun with a picnic or go swimming and play with the Frisbee. It is like a little bit of Eden, to look over the lake and see the green hills of Rwanda on one side and distant shadows of the Congo on the other. It is so lush and green and almost Mediterranean looking at the terraced fields and the cypress trees – you can forget you are in Central East Africa. It is truly beautiful and is home to some otters and kingfishers as well as other wildlife.

 

 

By the shore of Lake Kivu we are starting to plan other adventures as well. We have seen lots of bikes around the area and are thinking of buying or renting some to explore a bit further. The only thing stopping us is the rainy season and crazy truck divers but we think we will go for it. We are also starting to plan a holiday to Uganda at the beginning of December, travelling through different parts of Rwanda on the way – it will be great to see more of the country as we have mainly kept to Kibogora and an hour’s walk around it

 

 

n other news we have also acquired a piano!! The missionaries who were here in the 60’s - 90’s were very into their music and gradually 3 pianos were brought out here – including a baby grand!! During the war they all (along with most of the furniture in the mission) went missing but amazingly afterwards, when they were rebuilding, all 3 found their way home. The only thing amiss was that the legs of the baby grand had been sawn off and replaced the wrong way round (bizarre). We don’t have room for that one but we have a nice little upright piano in our living room now – a little out of tune but then again that may well be my (Marie’s) playing.

 

We have also found a ping pong table on the mission too! Before the war the compound had a team and went to national competitions. They play for fun now and we now have a key to the equipment box so Matt has started teaching me how to play…I got beaten by one of the local’s 11 year old daughter my first time…not something I will forget!! Matt on the other hand, has some serious skills and that ‘small’ competitive streak has started to emerge! Along with table tennis Matt has also got involved in the local football team. He is playing each Sunday afternoon and has even been given his own kit. The pitch is somewhat different from those that he is used to – rather than the occasional divot, in some places there are holes big enough to fall into, which adds another exciting dimension to the game!