Sunday, January 4, 2009







So, after a minor fiasco at Logan airport (United Airlines wouldn't let me check my luggage) I had to leave behind a box of books I had intended to give to the Institutehere. I flew on to DC, then Rome, then Addis Ababa (Ethiopia - at over 7000 feet!) and then on to Kigali. The whole thing took about 24 hours.








Kigali itself is at about 5000 feet and maybe 50-100 miles south of the equator.
The temperature is pretty moderate, highs around 80 and lows around 60. Rwanda
is (justly!) called the Land of a thousand hills. The city is built on several hills, each
about as big as the hill on which Cornell sits. I get my exercise just walking up
and down them checking out the city. I'm living in a guest house on the campus
of KIST (Kigali Institute of Sciences and Technology) about 100 yards from my office.
Pictures of the guest house, my academic building and a view of the city are
above.

I'll be teaching an algebra class here. It supposed to start tomorrow, but I'm told
that not many students show up for the first week. The course schedule was only published
online today and most students don't have the internet. Most students can't afford books,
there are no texts here. They learn only from notes.




6 comments:

  1. Awesome! I look forward to reading it often. If you need anything doen here it I-town, let me know!!

    Adam B

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  2. Dude, you seriously have a blog. I feel the earth opening beneath my feet. Expect pictures giving us a visceral feeling for quaffing banana beer! The setting looks quite nice. Once KIST opens up for the new term, find out if they have any local shipping connections to retrieve things from the nearest port city without additional fee.

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  3. Wow, Ravi, pretty neat. Unfortunately, I guess I won't be visiting you in February, but thanks for sharing your experience. Keep posting. (How 'bout some pictures of you?)

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  4. Your bungalow looks very nice. Post some more pictures of the locals and surroundings. I'm glad you're having fun!

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  5. This is great stuff;I like the wry humor in the comments;it is good to see the kids after mznungu
    That is what is great about the kids..their lack of inhibition; the soccer pictures are really clear;Keep posting pictures of the local scenery,houses,people,and the landscape;I feel like I am touring the country with you...Ram

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  6. Uganda must have been a welcome change from Rwanda....for one thing more familiar English is spoken;a more bustling Kampala than Kigali;More things to see and do;In short,a livelier place to be in.
    You must have had a ball whitewater rafting!.
    The bust of Gandhi is impressive.I did'nt know that his ashes were dispersed in the Nile.It was good that the P.M.of India unveiled the bust.
    The pictures of the kids in school in Uganda are really nice.By the way,what Ph.D. thesis problem did you suggest for the student who asked the question?
    See you soon back in the U.S.

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