tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58431772329404554442024-03-06T00:07:36.982-08:00Spring '09 in RwandaRavi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-29201394638469096682011-01-22T15:58:00.001-08:002011-01-22T16:27:34.572-08:00*How* did the elephants cross the road?So, we're were in Murchison National Park and came <br />across about a dozen elephants. They were maybe 50 yards<br />from the road. Water was on the other side so they<br />had to cross it, but we were sitting there gawking<br />at them. Over the next 5-10 minutes they formed and<br />implemented a strategy. Here they are:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPmwcgaSSpUPmZH4wr6EGTBPIRWSWP7TfzgBkIkMCg3soENugSP4_Vee9I5-GmeomkFgh5IW6gUfsM-_aexA1zQOhP5VwHR9-uX4rf_C6oCsafpniI7HlVjYTwiUjb4EXxsgIvBnkMzhZY/s1600/P1030894.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPmwcgaSSpUPmZH4wr6EGTBPIRWSWP7TfzgBkIkMCg3soENugSP4_Vee9I5-GmeomkFgh5IW6gUfsM-_aexA1zQOhP5VwHR9-uX4rf_C6oCsafpniI7HlVjYTwiUjb4EXxsgIvBnkMzhZY/s320/P1030894.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565165820981542498" /></a><br /><br />They bunched together in a tight group and headed<br />for the road. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6v_X1PENCBMSnn18jAJv2_mNBbaPJozNoKxe2qXTMec4oBkt4RIcNQVNDGmcjWmLN3RzmDnn5SR1HMqfCLviGdgioWMlgL5fo8vDCE4CjvVoYSMGRGXAg2qAjNLhF3eUKVt3y4PQAuDby/s1600/P1030913.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6v_X1PENCBMSnn18jAJv2_mNBbaPJozNoKxe2qXTMec4oBkt4RIcNQVNDGmcjWmLN3RzmDnn5SR1HMqfCLviGdgioWMlgL5fo8vDCE4CjvVoYSMGRGXAg2qAjNLhF3eUKVt3y4PQAuDby/s320/P1030913.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565166665160611330" /></a><br /><br />First they sent an adolescent across. The flapping ears<br />are supposedly a warning.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlHClCgN1sYg5Agj_GwjLiBphCoUAcBeGoYKrYqmxrsaf91L4q_GXVocQ6cPIwVf3FzXY5ixljDnsQdVfLkCExFAe0RwBRKxFWE3JFqww5QQveeUXR6iCQ6TZaB9J_qdGUXAUr-LBef6xY/s1600/P1030923.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlHClCgN1sYg5Agj_GwjLiBphCoUAcBeGoYKrYqmxrsaf91L4q_GXVocQ6cPIwVf3FzXY5ixljDnsQdVfLkCExFAe0RwBRKxFWE3JFqww5QQveeUXR6iCQ6TZaB9J_qdGUXAUr-LBef6xY/s320/P1030923.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565166673067140802" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Then the mothers came across shielding the babies from us.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisChtUW1vX7zf4hltE-GqSnfbrvgM7RfoSfWjEwXrbB1L6HixYp2k2ocdeuEKGikFRLjnZY3XFDLudeNM9Kz9xGAdbJyR_CYNVRegBqulnSosSBWcI8rOiW9D1RZnCE1AYVxOkutwpEcf6/s1600/P1030927.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisChtUW1vX7zf4hltE-GqSnfbrvgM7RfoSfWjEwXrbB1L6HixYp2k2ocdeuEKGikFRLjnZY3XFDLudeNM9Kz9xGAdbJyR_CYNVRegBqulnSosSBWcI8rOiW9D1RZnCE1AYVxOkutwpEcf6/s320/P1030927.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565168017401335330" /></a><br /><br />The last one was an adolescent too.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizEjGwo5vJGejZ8Y1RBTKtfJVx6B2krAbGHNHSSCwaShKD_huAhQ_6BaWx7g4coOLF142UTKpewqw2bTVqdMbXgWOwCqb4zTG_qXheCM06VFoN35A5dbBRIp0oALjNP54SBVyUWIcv4c0-/s1600/P1030929.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizEjGwo5vJGejZ8Y1RBTKtfJVx6B2krAbGHNHSSCwaShKD_huAhQ_6BaWx7g4coOLF142UTKpewqw2bTVqdMbXgWOwCqb4zTG_qXheCM06VFoN35A5dbBRIp0oALjNP54SBVyUWIcv4c0-/s320/P1030929.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565168019451195154" /></a><br /><br /><br />Finally, when they were across the road one of them stared<br />us down and made sure we didn't follow them into the tall grass.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh816yKKPqwONyMzx7HaVs6gvjvv9ZnhJe4EDq7fdmroQvZZt7Iw-p3X7KhUPwY3f33I1gJGo6Gau9AXnwxZXEyoAiAB3jkd17kfxjabNDB_axREgaSEjxJzUBCll_AbBiVyvU9YNjNao86/s1600/P1030931.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh816yKKPqwONyMzx7HaVs6gvjvv9ZnhJe4EDq7fdmroQvZZt7Iw-p3X7KhUPwY3f33I1gJGo6Gau9AXnwxZXEyoAiAB3jkd17kfxjabNDB_axREgaSEjxJzUBCll_AbBiVyvU9YNjNao86/s320/P1030931.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565168025719154898" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Later on we saw this bird<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQaaQqKMpjFHH0TrB6ESpEna7_29rLueajeFc2M_IjLgJdMXfb20MTKVdwLvu_-iC8ObITD_xTacwmSW2v7BkiooBuZV6x6jyXjFlzpY9JyqYiW7uaEQH48UELg2rrwMr-dXULqejKpkkM/s1600/P1030958.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQaaQqKMpjFHH0TrB6ESpEna7_29rLueajeFc2M_IjLgJdMXfb20MTKVdwLvu_-iC8ObITD_xTacwmSW2v7BkiooBuZV6x6jyXjFlzpY9JyqYiW7uaEQH48UELg2rrwMr-dXULqejKpkkM/s320/P1030958.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565169374197794466" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />and these lions. I got out of the car to take pictures of the<br />elephants, but stayed inside for the lions!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUAgi476Hgl-Z2nqA1qdBArVKD5VOc9923kpdabd4qY4pLk4t-XYRS-lsa6NkChlqbqapYnDnodzEkgKDbR_UYEQDqsi3WbppdEqjigGCCA3M_71cOS_ZBjvVsTmTkXqugwgBCzdHGhjKc/s1600/P1030989.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUAgi476Hgl-Z2nqA1qdBArVKD5VOc9923kpdabd4qY4pLk4t-XYRS-lsa6NkChlqbqapYnDnodzEkgKDbR_UYEQDqsi3WbppdEqjigGCCA3M_71cOS_ZBjvVsTmTkXqugwgBCzdHGhjKc/s320/P1030989.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565169381077780466" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjixTXU_wlYiIjJZmGc8yibY0mdqu7pkQ1TCYDyd_Ky0Lue_7gU-Bnuw6nWoAKd4Xx7ape5tCC_EEQKtfh1SpVpPWi1rCHxjGGs_6baLY3uIP9cPw96ntV2lTm3QwF8bNSvjUnNmAD5Bmrr/s1600/P1030988.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjixTXU_wlYiIjJZmGc8yibY0mdqu7pkQ1TCYDyd_Ky0Lue_7gU-Bnuw6nWoAKd4Xx7ape5tCC_EEQKtfh1SpVpPWi1rCHxjGGs_6baLY3uIP9cPw96ntV2lTm3QwF8bNSvjUnNmAD5Bmrr/s320/P1030988.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565169380019046658" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidNWK5cKyRJMBic9xTlxh9Z9jX7vmRNwRgr2grVADTnKf29yEGrZZzE266PzfCyA3XuFSli0KRwtoLTH7RzaRmWfilFsFXcok6-R4XfdnNigtNE5k-KEP4Qem97fKd50PZy2EHLFSz6Yyd/s1600/P1040001.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidNWK5cKyRJMBic9xTlxh9Z9jX7vmRNwRgr2grVADTnKf29yEGrZZzE266PzfCyA3XuFSli0KRwtoLTH7RzaRmWfilFsFXcok6-R4XfdnNigtNE5k-KEP4Qem97fKd50PZy2EHLFSz6Yyd/s320/P1040001.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5565170958247314610" /></a>Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-62518232229538199992011-01-18T05:52:00.000-08:002011-01-18T05:58:06.788-08:00UgandaIf anyone is actually reading this, I have not <br />disappeared. Just went to Uganda where I don't <br />have a fast internet connection and can't upload <br />pictures.<br /><br />I went to Murchison Falls National Park. On the <br />way we stopped at a rhino rehabilitation project <br />that has the only rhinos in the country. Three are <br />recent babies, one is named Obama as he has a <br />Kenyan father and American mother! At Murchison I <br />saw kob (National animal), water buffalo, giraffes, <br />elephants, a couple lions and all sorts of birds.<br />Pictures and a cool elephant story when I get home <br />this weekend.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-8081652773398943502011-01-06T04:35:00.000-08:002011-01-06T21:03:34.940-08:00So I leave for Uganda tomorrow. I haven't posted much as what <br />I've been up to is only interesting to me, walking around, <br />seeing people, doing math.<br /><br />I ran into a few of my algebra students from two years ago:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibdhl2XQ382xq24G_UOucAbASTuSlN3RNXR8s1ni6G13Un6vJMBOPBtEb-PdTssHV0ACFgO24KhnxgIOEfjIJVTvLf0X0sIH7zjEI0IolkV9R-z-dqVsVF5h0iCwmqM3P9D14q0qElX1I6/s1600/P1030659.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibdhl2XQ382xq24G_UOucAbASTuSlN3RNXR8s1ni6G13Un6vJMBOPBtEb-PdTssHV0ACFgO24KhnxgIOEfjIJVTvLf0X0sIH7zjEI0IolkV9R-z-dqVsVF5h0iCwmqM3P9D14q0qElX1I6/s320/P1030659.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559054631695067298" /></a><br /><br />It was fun seeing them again!<br /><br />So how do you get around town? Well, there are minibuses <br />and moto-taxis. The minibuses are the size of a small van. <br />They have a driver and conductor then they squeeze in 17 <br />passengers. There are (an increasing number of) bigger<br />buses too, but none the size of what we have at home. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhihkr4RFLC9YJw0v4D0ey09KJ5Ea7hErjQ0i9ZzSk5azIGuxENTuUxiZcd0wUKKflpA56-p5vtJXYQHd8bnIc3R3UoEjnjFlB4C8vSJPD7idQhGgbyq2PmAU4o-lQTgPqLLpT41-TB3Zeb/s1600/P1030674.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhihkr4RFLC9YJw0v4D0ey09KJ5Ea7hErjQ0i9ZzSk5azIGuxENTuUxiZcd0wUKKflpA56-p5vtJXYQHd8bnIc3R3UoEjnjFlB4C8vSJPD7idQhGgbyq2PmAU4o-lQTgPqLLpT41-TB3Zeb/s320/P1030674.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559061454425431298" /></a><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX9T2uRVMkaUnbmPG9sGYd8QZoxul0K5h7GTYDdGF-UtKrpHnoUjjuRxnAtmEWqf1NmBjGLYM_cRteN84ti3-hyqQd1xcxBPoJOKaRCmk-23AOxAExJeG_6XtNv9BiYRScH1OyWm8jTXHM/s1600/P1030680.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX9T2uRVMkaUnbmPG9sGYd8QZoxul0K5h7GTYDdGF-UtKrpHnoUjjuRxnAtmEWqf1NmBjGLYM_cRteN84ti3-hyqQd1xcxBPoJOKaRCmk-23AOxAExJeG_6XtNv9BiYRScH1OyWm8jTXHM/s320/P1030680.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5559061459925019778" /></a><br /><br />You can hail a moto-taxi almost anywhere and go anywhere <br />in town, up to 4 miles away for less than $3. The minibus <br />is about 30 cents, but obviously takes a lot longer. Also,<br />if it empties out too much at a stop, they may wait til it<br />fills up some before going on. Two years ago I did not see a <br />single woman as either minibus driver, conductor, moto-taxi<br />driver or cab driver. In the last two weeks I have seen at<br />least one of each.<br /><br />A correction to two years ago: I said Gandhi worked in Uganda.<br />It was South Africa. I have no idea why they built a bust of <br />him in Uganda and scattered some of his ashes in the Nile there.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-72001403367436174932010-12-29T06:32:00.000-08:002010-12-30T12:55:55.830-08:00KibuyeSo I haven't done much exciting, but figured I'd post anyways.<br />I did go to Lake Kivu in the west for a couple days. I visited the town<br />of Kibuye (not on the Congo border mom and dad, so I did not go to<br />Congo this time). Kibuye is stunning. I stayed at a small hotel right<br />on the water:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAeYQwb-W9aFP9u8POIHghS1iANEud-cdX_zqMJijyzp4r5rCdQEyvNCxgIIErvPbboOoEliaiWrPdNBEjD_plIuqjJSQq5TfkPOQ-w-J4nO_oV-yePYiN4xbr3wcl6o1aKV2Mhx6y0TEE/s1600/P1030576.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAeYQwb-W9aFP9u8POIHghS1iANEud-cdX_zqMJijyzp4r5rCdQEyvNCxgIIErvPbboOoEliaiWrPdNBEjD_plIuqjJSQq5TfkPOQ-w-J4nO_oV-yePYiN4xbr3wcl6o1aKV2Mhx6y0TEE/s320/P1030576.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556118116933043010" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />Here's the view from my porch:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtkpH6PR8djHFdZZwUmGRVJjrSn6Yu3svch-MkuzicD14fvxdr5xkWG2oYcWFhWiNg1jEvN4tOgMmVTT9Cw4uU-gxM5TmD6ROuxEmmdhsnCx8lYV9myo1DhY_glW7dCCF6NQmreyJy9KV/s1600/P1030560.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtkpH6PR8djHFdZZwUmGRVJjrSn6Yu3svch-MkuzicD14fvxdr5xkWG2oYcWFhWiNg1jEvN4tOgMmVTT9Cw4uU-gxM5TmD6ROuxEmmdhsnCx8lYV9myo1DhY_glW7dCCF6NQmreyJy9KV/s320/P1030560.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556577455479789410" /></a><br /><br />So I took a boat ride out to Napolean island (named so because it is <br />shaped like his hat). It's funny how your mindset changes with location.<br />There were no oars in the boat and I asked what they do when the motor fails.<br />They said you can call for help. Of course the motor failed. But you just<br />sit back, relax, enjoy the water instead of wondering how this can happen.<br />They got it running, it failed again, they got it running, it failed,...<br />you get the picture. <br /><br />Lake Kivu is interesting - not many fish species, because of the methane gas<br />being released from beneath it. The notion is that this leads to periodic<br />extinctions. Also, the guys driving my boat were complaining the fish are<br />not as big as they used to be. On the flip side, they're building a huge<br />plant to generate electricity by burning the methane. Should bring $$$ into<br />the local economy.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-23877890582540569302010-12-22T13:11:00.000-08:002010-12-22T13:14:23.398-08:00Two years laterI'm back, but this time only for a month.<br /><br />My flight was delayed a few days because of weather<br />in Northern Europe, but I made it here ... with my luggage.<br /><br />Substantial posts to follow in a few days when I've actually<br />done something interesting!<br /><br />RaviRavi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-63277403528100482082009-05-25T19:23:00.001-07:002009-05-25T20:50:56.933-07:00Out of Africa...Ok, so I left Rwanda on April 28th and went to Lebanon to visit<br />Kamal (a grad school buddy) and give a talk at the American <br />University in Beirut. The campus is stunning, maybe nicer than <br />Cornell's. Kamal's office overlooks the Mediterranean. Mostly<br />I hung out with Kamal and talked math. I did visit Byblos, a place<br />where people ave lived for 7000 years. The pictures below are <br />from there.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyH8BStHiOEnL1QcDrgdgh3f9dS1-pELBYUNuDabBTYfmeNoTSMtlZRfQrClGZnVJKw4eZT_8H1Gf59UYVw53YwXNiXIoJMl1MFgoDjFX3kBmxqiFiuJtUocShCcLsJo5mvgiem6IIz8Kr/s1600-h/P1010440.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyH8BStHiOEnL1QcDrgdgh3f9dS1-pELBYUNuDabBTYfmeNoTSMtlZRfQrClGZnVJKw4eZT_8H1Gf59UYVw53YwXNiXIoJMl1MFgoDjFX3kBmxqiFiuJtUocShCcLsJo5mvgiem6IIz8Kr/s320/P1010440.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339958248883687698" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGdo-iKMMvjghLfhx5VH0nFnanAOPY1V0DVm1fRBbg3YVWGglXsPvyQKNea2cGK0Ngrh1SHlUelnVy2ug7pFTyICb-Zj7cfVEV6jLupKa4-jD9tHVS1Kk_ZW8NtuZqFenLrZjI5N_7FwZg/s1600-h/P1010448.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGdo-iKMMvjghLfhx5VH0nFnanAOPY1V0DVm1fRBbg3YVWGglXsPvyQKNea2cGK0Ngrh1SHlUelnVy2ug7pFTyICb-Zj7cfVEV6jLupKa4-jD9tHVS1Kk_ZW8NtuZqFenLrZjI5N_7FwZg/s320/P1010448.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339958246203866866" /></a><br /><br />We stopped at a seaside restaurant as well. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkT8Y1VTxl-iwC_sHOdwSNC9iNOa8hYqCFczvUZ1N7xz1fkYec6QGrtlZm-rdkPUzLErVpBSAvrI7aqIz_cBMe9v0SxBEZgcXLXS8VlL9xEBDIQJaoGFC9f2yNhFmIxMIz2WGzrMXh5DZI/s1600-h/P1010412.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkT8Y1VTxl-iwC_sHOdwSNC9iNOa8hYqCFczvUZ1N7xz1fkYec6QGrtlZm-rdkPUzLErVpBSAvrI7aqIz_cBMe9v0SxBEZgcXLXS8VlL9xEBDIQJaoGFC9f2yNhFmIxMIz2WGzrMXh5DZI/s320/P1010412.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339957276143874402" /></a><br /><br />After 6 days there I went to Ethiopia. I spent two days in Addis<br />Ababa, then spent a day in Gonder and a day in Lalibela. Both towns<br />are a few hundred kilometers north of Addis. There are some beautiful <br />old palaces from the 1600s in Gonder. In Ethiopia there are guides <br />everywhere. The guide in Gonder took me to a church as well and invited <br />me to an English class he taught in the evening. We ended up coteaching it.<br />It was a lot of fun. First time I taught English!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSDgPHnfNB5ebdmnPbmNvqEdvhNZmFtx4w4W8dzeltW95whjhDaqIf5VAx35n9gCGHPOXaLvKxqbOk6hy8711uFS7XKB3NQtXS2XfXyMrowyO3U85mQJpP0fSha4KEtNPer3VM2dSan-1/s1600-h/P1010503.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcSDgPHnfNB5ebdmnPbmNvqEdvhNZmFtx4w4W8dzeltW95whjhDaqIf5VAx35n9gCGHPOXaLvKxqbOk6hy8711uFS7XKB3NQtXS2XfXyMrowyO3U85mQJpP0fSha4KEtNPer3VM2dSan-1/s320/P1010503.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339959617858004530" /></a><br /><br />Lalibela is amazing. About 800 years ago they carved, in the solid<br />mountain, 11 churches underground. All in 23 years. The place is up <br />in the Simien mountains at 9000 feet. <br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfrAHszUP1JqVUnhbIKC6Wz7jGxlrCZb_vZFnynP-jQpPtzFRIRWP6rmZG6K3fnWL4GqJ6KrXNLYHRKQPfpwTWNr5atEKaQg9HJ7ThBHigCk-L-bWgb319_DmZJwGklkFBM9xoIQNh8hy2/s1600-h/P1010596.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfrAHszUP1JqVUnhbIKC6Wz7jGxlrCZb_vZFnynP-jQpPtzFRIRWP6rmZG6K3fnWL4GqJ6KrXNLYHRKQPfpwTWNr5atEKaQg9HJ7ThBHigCk-L-bWgb319_DmZJwGklkFBM9xoIQNh8hy2/s320/P1010596.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339959629928653490" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXnKTaEbZU0BeKejbi0HPVVQHs9fb8ejhvPSVCkvfQ4oLiA6qj0lgTSr4p9X_laa8DP_SZVN0dgMidC5b0pPjfDk4bdmNBC91BxsB2fhOpoEwevTnF_LJFW6hKFH9Mb7Oqbg9r8CTI0NB/s1600-h/P1010593.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisXnKTaEbZU0BeKejbi0HPVVQHs9fb8ejhvPSVCkvfQ4oLiA6qj0lgTSr4p9X_laa8DP_SZVN0dgMidC5b0pPjfDk4bdmNBC91BxsB2fhOpoEwevTnF_LJFW6hKFH9Mb7Oqbg9r8CTI0NB/s320/P1010593.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5339959618373322018" /></a><br /><br />Anyways, in between the trips to Gonder and Lalibela and <br />flying back to the US that was 5 days in a row on airplanes. <br /><br />The whole term was a great time, and I am done with posting, at<br />least til my next trip to Rwanda. Anybody who wants to see more<br />pictures should swing by my office. I have over a thousand.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-25300456673289215732009-04-26T06:29:00.000-07:002009-04-28T02:05:38.093-07:00Heading outWell, I leave Rwanda today. I'll go to Beirut for six days <br />(and visit Kamal for those of you from grad school) then<br />to Ethiopia for six days. Then I go to New Hampshire to visit <br />my brother and parents for a few days and to NYC to see my <br />first game in the new Yankee Stadium (will they give up 22 <br />runs again?) and finally to Ithaca in mid-May.<br /><br />So I will miss lots of things about Rwanda. The first that <br />comes to mind is being a rock star to children when I walk <br />around some of the non-rich (=poor) neighborhoods. They get <br />so excited and happy when they see a mzungu. They really like <br />it when I shake their hand, or return their offered fist bump. <br />One time a little three year old girl saw me and ran out to <br />give me a big hug. <br /><br />I have tons of great memories. Certainly the trips that I've<br />already mentioned here (I can't bring myself to use blog as <br />a verb) I'll remember for the rest of my life, but there are <br />many little moments. Like the time when I was in this very <br />poor neighborhood and it started to poor and these people who <br />ran a tiny store in their house invited me in during the rain. <br />They didn't have anything I wanted to buy, and it rained hard <br />for maybe half an hour, so I left a small amount of money on <br />my chair when I headed out. It was still raining some. A <br />couple hundred meters down the road the girl chased me down <br />barefoot through the rain to offer to return the money. These <br />people had pretty much nothing and they I knew I was rich. <br /><br />Seeing children in Goma running around in a group of 5 laughing <br />and screaming and realizing that one was riding on a bike with <br />no back wheel while the other four holding up the back of the <br />bike and serving as the back wheel. This made my both happy to <br />see them have fun and sad they probably never will have a proper <br />bike.<br /><br />Or watching the moms carry babies papoose style. It looks like <br />it would be uncomfortable for the kid, but they seem pretty happy.<br /><br />Riding the minibuses. These are the size of old VW van. They <br />carry the driver, conductor and about 17 passengers. They don't <br />leave until they are full and if half way through the run they <br />are too empty they'll just wait at a stop til they fill up more.<br /><br />The birds and flora in the city are just so different from home<br />that I am constantly amazed.<br /><br />I'll miss my guy on the street with one leg who makes his living<br />selling postcards and batiks. He always says hi to me, but never<br />pesters or pursues me if I say `not today'.<br /><br />Ok, this is getting too long and pretty soon I can talk to anyone<br />interested about this in person.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-20221560941912601462009-04-19T09:30:00.000-07:002009-04-20T07:56:58.313-07:00UgandaLast week I went to Uganda. I was on a program called Teach <br />and Tour Sojourners. The idea is they get profs from the west <br />to come and give lectures. Everybody at Cornell got invited to <br />come a couple months back and since I was in the neighborhood <br />I went. I gave about a dozen lectures at high schools, <br />universities and one primary school. More in a bit.<br /><br />I also went to Jinja, a couple hours east of Kampala and went <br />white water rafting on the Nile (the `Tour' part of `Teach and <br />Tour'. This was fantastic. You cover about 30 kilometers. It's <br />mostly smooth, but there are about 8 or 9 rapids, some of which <br />are very tough, grade 5. At the end we got out and walked the <br />rafts around a grade 6 rapids to do the grade 5 one beneath it. <br />The first thing they do is basic safety stuff. You practice <br />flipping the raft, how to get out from underneath it if it does <br />flip etc. Then you go on some pretty easy rapids. No problems. <br />You think the day will be easy. The rapids get more interesting. <br />At one point I was thrown out of the raft. At another we were in <br />a calm strong downstream current. No need to paddle. No need to <br />stay in the raft. We all jumped out and floated down the Nile in <br />our life jackets at the good clip of 5 mph or so for 10 minutes. <br />Later a storm came in and was blowing upriver. There was <br />practically no current. When we didn't row, we went backwards. <br />Then the rain really came down and it was freezing. We pulled <br />over to the river bank. What do you do in a cold rain on the Nile? <br />Jump in the river to keep warm! The water was great - it was just <br />the rain that was cold. The last rapids was crazy. I don't know <br />what happened except we flipped the raft 2 seconds into it. It was <br />terrific! Afterwhat seemed like 30 seconds (probably < 10) my jacket <br />brought me up. All in all we were on the river for 6 hours. No <br />pictures as I don't have a waterproof camera. I would have lost it <br />when we flipped anyway!<br /><br />Before the trip, which starts at `The Source of the Nile' I visited<br />a shrine to Gandhi. He worked in Uganda for a while.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpAuVrLpvm6ZcbxTwvLSSIbOnbPS-fffcG7M6YAccwo2s3WqX5DMUXvXT_VIy_boQWCd6vOwY6Kyu9Tda1BA8H45CQ61IoFNkCD2MGLcuK8d5eeDUgyNDje-WgV8xnbsCshgr4mNFPE-R/s1600-h/P1000849.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIpAuVrLpvm6ZcbxTwvLSSIbOnbPS-fffcG7M6YAccwo2s3WqX5DMUXvXT_VIy_boQWCd6vOwY6Kyu9Tda1BA8H45CQ61IoFNkCD2MGLcuK8d5eeDUgyNDje-WgV8xnbsCshgr4mNFPE-R/s320/P1000849.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326443353999229714" /></a><br /><br />Now for the `Teach' part. I gave about twelve lectures while <br />I was there, mostly at high schools and universities, but one <br />at a primary school. A main point was to explain that there are <br />math problems we don't know the answer to, as many people don't <br />realize this. I used the Goldbach Conjecture that every even number <br />is a sum of two primes as an easy to explain example, though I don't <br />like the problem very much. Primes are for multiplying, not adding! <br />I explained that to get a Ph.d you have to solve a problem that has <br />not been solved. When put this way it took them aback. Then I did <br />the History of Fermat's Last Theorem thing. At the end of the talk <br />I asked if they had any questions. It was my turn to be taken aback. <br />I got asked by a high school student for a Ph.d problem. I also got <br />asked all the hard math problems they had, integrals, the area of a <br />trapezoid from the elementary school kids. It was not what I <br />expected, but the whole thing was very fun! A couple pictures are <br />below. I am, as usual, covered in chalk.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokHjeVtxO1bZ7sLQHTaHs-Ja73lDJ6XWKCyrGnUILxYd2Cy-Wr7OoHaDTsZw0ifQH64EiO00-Hd6TbhY55cRD9vTI4AZQSxVQygU0Vp8uK1OnO3G97CcjepXJ5edyuD6XR7cj3LB9BoL0/s1600-h/P1010010.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokHjeVtxO1bZ7sLQHTaHs-Ja73lDJ6XWKCyrGnUILxYd2Cy-Wr7OoHaDTsZw0ifQH64EiO00-Hd6TbhY55cRD9vTI4AZQSxVQygU0Vp8uK1OnO3G97CcjepXJ5edyuD6XR7cj3LB9BoL0/s320/P1010010.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326443864817674354" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFF15CAG8vb6Ycf9qP90dCoe0dTBMhr2xaunTptnuf4C3vaxLvi128yKraZNYCIX9Mu3QYlTgfus5TNmomfrvnI2PFA5XVu1XlzpIdYaZK8buXIUA763UXmwSFVq4WO3WZIFYl_j-gj9ra/s1600-h/P1000998.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFF15CAG8vb6Ycf9qP90dCoe0dTBMhr2xaunTptnuf4C3vaxLvi128yKraZNYCIX9Mu3QYlTgfus5TNmomfrvnI2PFA5XVu1XlzpIdYaZK8buXIUA763UXmwSFVq4WO3WZIFYl_j-gj9ra/s320/P1000998.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326443366730333602" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisUTGF5bMOaprvWLyz1BsoL4Lu7Fr9THbRIGT-Yr-cZH6u3N3HOe57h0LVPu4MAvK4ChfPAr6RcW1oTKF7BhpriyBvtXky5hekSTGZ6eIT6RmIOxoXBuzLC5lSX4cV5AgUQKJWHApQ-tZ5/s1600-h/P1000974.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisUTGF5bMOaprvWLyz1BsoL4Lu7Fr9THbRIGT-Yr-cZH6u3N3HOe57h0LVPu4MAvK4ChfPAr6RcW1oTKF7BhpriyBvtXky5hekSTGZ6eIT6RmIOxoXBuzLC5lSX4cV5AgUQKJWHApQ-tZ5/s320/P1000974.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326443356643341890" /></a><br /><br />Finally check out the bird below, They are EVERYWHERE in <br />downtown Kampala, which is a much bigger and busier city <br />than Kigali. There are skyscrapers, fast food places, and <br />since it was a British colony, English works there. It was <br />nice to able to talk to people. Also, the students had an <br />easier time with my lecture because English is their second <br />language, not third like in Rwanda.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRV33gB2vQzjEsLDtCeb6W2vO3YbL5sjNUI915Eaef4Hw1rmWTGCrJ-vCNDstQZ78yZeCQkHWfkpjiEm_CF5SW56bH1jS5pi85qytsvtsXa4a4u3OjbAsK9PcgfmY5XsZgyibuSXegdkE5/s1600-h/P1000959.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRV33gB2vQzjEsLDtCeb6W2vO3YbL5sjNUI915Eaef4Hw1rmWTGCrJ-vCNDstQZ78yZeCQkHWfkpjiEm_CF5SW56bH1jS5pi85qytsvtsXa4a4u3OjbAsK9PcgfmY5XsZgyibuSXegdkE5/s320/P1000959.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326443358532821650" /></a><br /><br />Things are winding down. I have 8 more days in Rwanda, <br />then I go to Beirut and Ethiopia for 12 days then back home.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-52230704922203768892009-04-19T02:45:00.001-07:002009-04-19T03:39:42.805-07:00Butare, Burundi and backA few weeks ago I went back to Butare, this time to give a lecture <br />at the National University there on the `History of Fermat's Last <br />Theorem'. After that I took a bus to Bujumbura, the biggest city <br />in Burundi. It was about 5 hours on windy hilly roads. Not for those <br />prone to carsickness. As the bus came into Bujumbura on a four lane <br />city street, traffic was backed up in our two inbound lanes. The bus <br />driver solved this problem going into one of the outbound lanes. <br />When a policeman whistled for him to stop the driver just screamed <br />at the cop and continued. I really wish I understood what he said!<br /><br />Bujumbura positively bustles compared to Kigali. It reminded me of<br />Bombay. In town there is a huge covered market, maybe the size of <br />two football fields. It is completely filled with vendors selling <br />stuff from food to suitcases. I bought a suitcase to bring home <br />all the stuff I have bought here. I got it in Burundi because <br />prices are lower than Kigali. The vendor started out at 45000 <br />francs and I ended up paying 30000, about $24. He was probably <br />very pleased with the deal.<br /><br />I went to a beach on Lake Tanganyika and just hung out. It was very <br />pleasant. I also went for a short canoe ride on the lake. The lake <br />is one of the rift valley lakes, remnants of the geological thingamjig <br />that almost split Africa in two. I think Bujumbura is about 2000 feet <br />above sea level, but parts of the lake go below sea level. And it's <br />ringed by mountains that must go 3000 feet above it.<br /><br />I mostly spent my two days walking around, soaking up the <br />atmosphere. While walking down by the port area I saw a couple <br />hippos hanging out in the water. It was weird seeing them in a <br />heavily populated area. From reading someone's blog I heard the <br />university was up on a hill, so I walked up towards some big <br />buildings, half on the road, half on trails. Up there I found a <br />restaurant with an amazing view of the city and the lake. It was<br />incredible. The only reason I don't mention the name is that I would <br />rather mention that I had what was truly the worst margarita of my <br />life there. It was basically straight lime juice. But check out the <br />view. The covered market is on the left.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhubMq2AXqy4Z-CgUQrmcaceeviHW69b8GN0qzTDC6DRTFZ-zkpkolwru-smiulZ64VriHYJqYHxkBBCW3m4nsonA4pIVfARWTmpC-IkObSOaYI33DtpSn4ANZt-838IvB6VwwVrSwYS85p/s1600-h/P1000768.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhubMq2AXqy4Z-CgUQrmcaceeviHW69b8GN0qzTDC6DRTFZ-zkpkolwru-smiulZ64VriHYJqYHxkBBCW3m4nsonA4pIVfARWTmpC-IkObSOaYI33DtpSn4ANZt-838IvB6VwwVrSwYS85p/s320/P1000768.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326337267216942290" /></a><br /><br />I did walk up to the university. Like Cornell it overlooks the town <br />and the lake. Unlike Cornell a guard tells you to put away your <br />camera before you enter the grounds. Just beneath the university <br />is this place:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRQuNfB3NgILPtorW8HjbP-bSo2qoBLyCaghT26_LoJFMMUANyKaLJpfKDYNP789fSWTa5XLHmuEhOKyyUQNQybHGbBcGj1qHN_qievGlFfuiiW_nHG2-ALtyifW8fO_HsE_e6MOtrWPl/s1600-h/P1000773.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvRQuNfB3NgILPtorW8HjbP-bSo2qoBLyCaghT26_LoJFMMUANyKaLJpfKDYNP789fSWTa5XLHmuEhOKyyUQNQybHGbBcGj1qHN_qievGlFfuiiW_nHG2-ALtyifW8fO_HsE_e6MOtrWPl/s320/P1000773.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326337271543698002" /></a><br /><br />I think it has something to do with independence. After I took the <br />photo a guard came up to me and told me not to take any more <br />pictures. That seemed to be his entire job: Sit up in a place where <br />there might be five tourists a day and tell them not to take photos.<br /><br />Finally, to those who think Obama is a socialist, I should point out <br />that anyone who so cravenly trades on his fame to sell his image for <br />profit has to be a capitalist.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEUla4-AypY80c0SCt5juK-sz3NOmgg0GPbZRN3fo8xMxYLcMqsKQIckDZUF9qpgEU4QDOe6ggABRg8uk2mRuYYQcG0fdkKpFsr7HYTBeRaJ_1HFIGO5j5E2hX-yDQZe72Gf5r0XNNa8DF/s1600-h/P1000790.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEUla4-AypY80c0SCt5juK-sz3NOmgg0GPbZRN3fo8xMxYLcMqsKQIckDZUF9qpgEU4QDOe6ggABRg8uk2mRuYYQcG0fdkKpFsr7HYTBeRaJ_1HFIGO5j5E2hX-yDQZe72Gf5r0XNNa8DF/s320/P1000790.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326337278841066482" /></a><br /><br />In Uganda the next week I saw a car plastered with pictures of the <br />guy that was the `Obama fast food mobile'. I wasn't able to get a <br />picture!Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-18644258468363124552009-04-06T21:48:00.000-07:002009-04-06T22:31:35.264-07:00April 7thFifteen years ago yesterday the plane carrying Presidents <br />Habyarimana and Ntaryamira of Rwanda and Burundi was <br />shot down as it approached Kigali airport. Prime Minister <br />Uwilingiyimana, next in line for presidency of Rwanda, <br />was killed along with ten Belgium peacekeepers. I believe <br />these last two actions were taken 15 years ago today. <br /><br />The west decided to withdraw forces, paving the way for <br />the genocide. Over the next 90 days between 500,000 and <br />1,000,000 people were murdered. That's between 5% and 10% <br />of the country.<br /><br />Today is a National Holiday in Rwanda. In fact the entire <br />week is a Week of Mourning. There will be ceremonies <br />throughout the country. I hope to go to one at the main <br />football stadium today, though I'm not sure what will be <br />open, especially in terms of public transport.<br /><br />I remember reading about violence in Rwanda back in '94, <br />but remember thinking of it as `normal African internal <br />struggles'. I don't know if it was my apathy or if the media <br />dropped the ball or both.<br /><br />Recently while waiting in a line on campus a student asked <br />me what I thought of Rwanda. He thought the west only knew <br />Rwanda through the genocide and asked whether my views had <br />changed after living here. I told him it was hard for me to <br />give an assessment because I had no base point. People here <br />seldom talk about it, and I'm certainly reluctant to bring <br />it up. My total conversations with people here about it might <br />come to 20 minutes after 3 months here. So I don't know <br />`what part' or Rwanda and Rwandans the genocide comprises.<br /><br />Recently I was meeting some people and there was a person <br />with them. It is customary here to shake hand with whomever<br />you meet, even if they are meeting one of the five people<br />you are with. We shook hands, but I don't think we spoke. <br />This person was Damas Gisimba, one of the Heroes of the <br />Genocide. He hid 400 people at the Gisimba orphanage in <br />the Nyamirambo neighborhood of Kigali, just a few kilometers <br />from KIST. <br /><br />Google or youtube Gismba and heroes of the genocide. Whether<br />it be text or video be prepared for some uplifting but disturbing<br />stuff.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-30760856597481325672009-03-29T11:08:00.001-07:002009-03-29T11:40:25.622-07:00GraduationSo even though the graduating students finished their finals back<br />in September, KIST just had graduation last week. I have no idea why.<br />I went, but since first class of math students graduates next year I<br />didn't know anybody. This is me in my gown.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC2dO4uO8RcPG6ECYbOZNlqjZEBe8Njvt6yq3ghtXnMm8HkNIKJVihC5bSI6Wiz2EGa36p6-wT4ZltRSWgZ7ITMU6Jo9-jEnH0L1IkZ2TlqZbUFy8mOTdPgKcBYmFl4GU26Q4Q95Y68ycr/s1600-h/P1000658.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC2dO4uO8RcPG6ECYbOZNlqjZEBe8Njvt6yq3ghtXnMm8HkNIKJVihC5bSI6Wiz2EGa36p6-wT4ZltRSWgZ7ITMU6Jo9-jEnH0L1IkZ2TlqZbUFy8mOTdPgKcBYmFl4GU26Q4Q95Y68ycr/s320/P1000658.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318675554758993522" /></a><br />Ok, here's a better picture of me.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1hR78nTywgD_kOjezkm3YDEqfY-qKuYfBUjXJiAEH46X-GlftxVH4TI1sh7wyg6FkXAVrKBJph4lWBCg9rrTFqmMEcnekPDwuGsmDiibqR5r-_ijYhKYBINQk0qvnuF3FAK89S7jrXjLM/s1600-h/P1000663.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1hR78nTywgD_kOjezkm3YDEqfY-qKuYfBUjXJiAEH46X-GlftxVH4TI1sh7wyg6FkXAVrKBJph4lWBCg9rrTFqmMEcnekPDwuGsmDiibqR5r-_ijYhKYBINQk0qvnuF3FAK89S7jrXjLM/s320/P1000663.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318675558643321090" /></a><br /><br />I was tempted to steal the gown - the red would be nice at Cornell <br />graduations. Mom, dad, unfortunately those lessons about stealing<br />being wrong ended up sticking, so I don't have a nice gown. <br /><br />This is your fault.<br /><br />They had the Kigali police band <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2AeaG_NQHKr4BPTFZLLgEnIvSN3_amFoanSVaRwMOxn9hm_xZ0w3TjVBd1onP3OcVY-JCDFIZFghy7OK7P26jImrSfzQg8aDcRke9N-5jCT22dEP5a9-fKc5tIO1GhTtI_bp7aBBl3aID/s1600-h/P1000674.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2AeaG_NQHKr4BPTFZLLgEnIvSN3_amFoanSVaRwMOxn9hm_xZ0w3TjVBd1onP3OcVY-JCDFIZFghy7OK7P26jImrSfzQg8aDcRke9N-5jCT22dEP5a9-fKc5tIO1GhTtI_bp7aBBl3aID/s320/P1000674.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318676136222800706" /></a><br />and a student dance troupe as well.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj29YSoWwBKjo5lg6KNsGnzORnW4QmNL6GJ_3Z_Hud6r2chqT6r2tdXak-LAXiKiiqGNP8xOVhRI4-HyW8BGGlIsk9UagbPBf3SuTWbRpRpPYKUtWhUZ_BEfcLT1SXtVXwm6YE_yzsukcqF/s1600-h/P1000683.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj29YSoWwBKjo5lg6KNsGnzORnW4QmNL6GJ_3Z_Hud6r2chqT6r2tdXak-LAXiKiiqGNP8xOVhRI4-HyW8BGGlIsk9UagbPBf3SuTWbRpRpPYKUtWhUZ_BEfcLT1SXtVXwm6YE_yzsukcqF/s320/P1000683.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318676645010080834" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLE2E5SwDLjdfU_NWefiKdZLz7awyw5o5xAQuf_pmhQt5QrhtdN-YHOwj8jzNkwh3mKWReVZcP3sQ1yf5UmlWz6qgTQRNCW3BVnTrCEXaV9ddU-jKKaXPacJoqrTYP-u5-aN6fLPbBK7xS/s1600-h/P1000678.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLE2E5SwDLjdfU_NWefiKdZLz7awyw5o5xAQuf_pmhQt5QrhtdN-YHOwj8jzNkwh3mKWReVZcP3sQ1yf5UmlWz6qgTQRNCW3BVnTrCEXaV9ddU-jKKaXPacJoqrTYP-u5-aN6fLPbBK7xS/s320/P1000678.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318676142845211122" /></a><br /><br />So I have not really had much time to do anything too exciting<br />recently. I give my final in a couple days. After that I go back<br />to Butare to give a lecture at the National University and then<br />I'll travel some in the south. Then I get back for the first day<br />of the National Week of Mourning marking the beginning of the <br />genocide. There is no school that week. Things slow down quite <br />a bit in town. Then I go to Uganda for a week, mostly to be a <br />tourist but I'll be giving a lecture a day for a week or so. For <br />those of you who are profs, if you want to come to East Africa <br />at your own expense and lecture, contact Teach and Tour Sojourners <br />(TATS). They'll arrange for it. Every Cornell prof got an email <br />from them a month or two ago, and since I was already here I figured <br />I may as well do it. <br /><br />Hopefully I'll have more interesting things to post after these<br />trips.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-36489759272305982432009-03-18T11:15:00.000-07:002009-03-18T11:54:04.146-07:00Butare<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYoEABK24X4YEyWjHvP78Rc9khjvaBWWtP7V4ZrYa50b3lIb21vBuv41XiE3g6fceaDxqeqoiSnWRgEk4iQQR15xYh4AHorgJtcdUQgMvUPHUMgmF__CtwQERr5dLBP248u5rTcRt25oJM/s1600-h/P1000440.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYoEABK24X4YEyWjHvP78Rc9khjvaBWWtP7V4ZrYa50b3lIb21vBuv41XiE3g6fceaDxqeqoiSnWRgEk4iQQR15xYh4AHorgJtcdUQgMvUPHUMgmF__CtwQERr5dLBP248u5rTcRt25oJM/s320/P1000440.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314594092133976066" /></a><br />Hello,<br /><br />Not a whole lot to report. I gave an exam last week and was <br />busy with grading it. And a colleague was sick so I took his <br />game theory class. That was fun - hadn't thought about that <br />stuff since I took the class in college. <br /><br />The week before I went to Butare - that's where the National <br />University of Rwanda is. It's a couple hours south of here. <br />Butare is a much smaller town than Kigali. It's also spread <br />over many hills but here in Kigali the valleys are filled with <br />slums. In Butare the valleys are mostly undeveloped. It's very <br />pretty. I finally got to go to a museum after two months here! <br />(Not counting genocide memorials.) I did once see a sign for a <br />Natural History Museum a couple kilometers from the guest <br />house at KIST and have twice gone to look for it, but I never <br />found it. Anyways, there's a nice museum in Butare (a gift from <br />Belgium to commemorate the 25th anniversary of independence). <br />Here it is:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiki1CqipOGq6miHSnWnUZLyuShrp5L6nM55zqyzPz6iKqBqXEKQJy8IrEXjAleba99VXot0wjaRdgXNjXV-1Ir_RArtkuvsdG9gQyaqOIoQkvFdxAF__n0xqGcz9OxG9muZbQgpmPBz-qs/s1600-h/P1000486.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiki1CqipOGq6miHSnWnUZLyuShrp5L6nM55zqyzPz6iKqBqXEKQJy8IrEXjAleba99VXot0wjaRdgXNjXV-1Ir_RArtkuvsdG9gQyaqOIoQkvFdxAF__n0xqGcz9OxG9muZbQgpmPBz-qs/s320/P1000486.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314595176926338674" /></a><br />They don't allow photographs inside, but there's a a botanical <br />garden behind it. I've put up a bunch of pictures of fauna in <br />previous posts. This is the flora edition.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjIb-BzD9DH4mcgQYGPcVr1rBTakLxr22x2GbdOWiLjQt96E574Gbkl0izNAJde2HVPPWjngnjjiSSoe_6HsC6Dx1uARaZEkFuivfaJmE5c-ijNSuK1mhGSgnQe-QicKVcgsNqXzwPa4H/s1600-h/P1000507.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjIb-BzD9DH4mcgQYGPcVr1rBTakLxr22x2GbdOWiLjQt96E574Gbkl0izNAJde2HVPPWjngnjjiSSoe_6HsC6Dx1uARaZEkFuivfaJmE5c-ijNSuK1mhGSgnQe-QicKVcgsNqXzwPa4H/s320/P1000507.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314595188443430946" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6AfYibOwTWbi4AgTzSMhLkYa5sNnFN2AVNL0s9l04Qtb43Df7_ZWLrCuqupsLDzRlRHxSHhohNpqujI6yCrOYNiv5kS9f3lrFnlOIPZ9NQXKM16p4QG9Y65nb_pJXJITf-TG246UtIqR2/s1600-h/P1000478.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6AfYibOwTWbi4AgTzSMhLkYa5sNnFN2AVNL0s9l04Qtb43Df7_ZWLrCuqupsLDzRlRHxSHhohNpqujI6yCrOYNiv5kS9f3lrFnlOIPZ9NQXKM16p4QG9Y65nb_pJXJITf-TG246UtIqR2/s320/P1000478.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314594102888133842" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGsPVG-mjN8BJh1mWqGEphwycZ9MNtR0CUBwp6rswTAkVRDa-RNIGUm8HSMp3JAZ2RUuWgGsFn452TXBXq-oMLpMH_2hbYfLELxtSPdbF6nFSNam-mjlnBede_suevwzYOlwXuvMTs3FR/s1600-h/P1000513.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyGsPVG-mjN8BJh1mWqGEphwycZ9MNtR0CUBwp6rswTAkVRDa-RNIGUm8HSMp3JAZ2RUuWgGsFn452TXBXq-oMLpMH_2hbYfLELxtSPdbF6nFSNam-mjlnBede_suevwzYOlwXuvMTs3FR/s320/P1000513.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314595198114811298" /></a> <br />Before going to Butare I went to Gikongoro (the city has a new name <br />now - I forget it) to visit a particularly sad memorial. It is in <br />an area very near Nyungwe National Park. The setting is stunning, <br />with steep hills that are terraced for farming. It's very incongruous <br />to think of what went on in this gorgeous place 15 years ago. <br /><br />I saw this bird there. Click on the photo to check out its tail!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkIMwBjBElMVK5PLMcN4PEUG7BGyHu4l3oSRz6XM91O42u5ir4EdVsIpnbEAYeX8sWzxWAmvTe1E15JJzNf4E6Kxw5NhPDGTyp8r9l4JqGnhe58D8x1tI2-VJOv76amMU_nK-9QnpZ0GG/s1600-h/P1000426.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkIMwBjBElMVK5PLMcN4PEUG7BGyHu4l3oSRz6XM91O42u5ir4EdVsIpnbEAYeX8sWzxWAmvTe1E15JJzNf4E6Kxw5NhPDGTyp8r9l4JqGnhe58D8x1tI2-VJOv76amMU_nK-9QnpZ0GG/s320/P1000426.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314594085731433890" /></a>Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-56202074421521913582009-03-06T20:01:00.000-08:002009-03-07T02:17:44.304-08:00The Volcano<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOzJCmWXKsrKplf2a2SzSdUz72CvFKm376VoBXiQCjg6kItBDlthPp-TlrrXS9roLEKEI7N3QifwvWGttgGf9SAl0s3OEE0RNbIYZNFAXZfpYrMc2iJd4-9G9xLSR54ebHvira8O0RruT/s1600-h/P1000425.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieOzJCmWXKsrKplf2a2SzSdUz72CvFKm376VoBXiQCjg6kItBDlthPp-TlrrXS9roLEKEI7N3QifwvWGttgGf9SAl0s3OEE0RNbIYZNFAXZfpYrMc2iJd4-9G9xLSR54ebHvira8O0RruT/s320/P1000425.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310296709747715170" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg19ffCKq1-gmGK-0tIejkaVKLlIoX-pbflSxwXMynU-Hq6nE2FOM2wnbY0vLfYmeQ4nBRrF22JADE_1Ym_RyXpc2R1rgMFjTmfx6zH1rHtZmoAaO7563bnK8UIF1uK_XXnTS5WRYnEf8gm/s1600-h/P1000395.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg19ffCKq1-gmGK-0tIejkaVKLlIoX-pbflSxwXMynU-Hq6nE2FOM2wnbY0vLfYmeQ4nBRrF22JADE_1Ym_RyXpc2R1rgMFjTmfx6zH1rHtZmoAaO7563bnK8UIF1uK_XXnTS5WRYnEf8gm/s320/P1000395.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310293834594395234" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmAGGEmK5kVlF-hN7ajyqn1RhPbIUCwRdtMov5Yn8aZqKFGMBVgaX0uoTbpdL_p0H7bsW09tn8oOtQwDnQP3QoF_LSBV60r-wD91cAsihOp62YP0bfwECHahrTPEMx-H5Hd-DctdaUwAlr/s1600-h/P1000419.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmAGGEmK5kVlF-hN7ajyqn1RhPbIUCwRdtMov5Yn8aZqKFGMBVgaX0uoTbpdL_p0H7bsW09tn8oOtQwDnQP3QoF_LSBV60r-wD91cAsihOp62YP0bfwECHahrTPEMx-H5Hd-DctdaUwAlr/s320/P1000419.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310293830984196898" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9rqld6j2SDlvcKNQepUQGZiIRys_CSyCajpfS-MGxgWbNvG07ndGggAdU_osnhnzHa3wXQiXPv3K3RNd1Jmm1f-A1si8sPt68h9wXYi2ARtPJwG8nAwWvkfpPGQFbKLVR0TOy1EVMmp4Y/s1600-h/P1000371.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9rqld6j2SDlvcKNQepUQGZiIRys_CSyCajpfS-MGxgWbNvG07ndGggAdU_osnhnzHa3wXQiXPv3K3RNd1Jmm1f-A1si8sPt68h9wXYi2ARtPJwG8nAwWvkfpPGQFbKLVR0TOy1EVMmp4Y/s320/P1000371.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310293815509916146" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXsxD3S6JkIANcNCXAcfMzhs_SWVInrJvlMycJCByizJfdr03StyZ2iwKOZaKdCtLHggfn97sZDRg40A_W-MtwiR4uPCXp8pPoYEl4B_ysPmX-6LJk0M26Qcb2FHRGzUc7Pv8eHiho7S-B/s1600-h/P1000369.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXsxD3S6JkIANcNCXAcfMzhs_SWVInrJvlMycJCByizJfdr03StyZ2iwKOZaKdCtLHggfn97sZDRg40A_W-MtwiR4uPCXp8pPoYEl4B_ysPmX-6LJk0M26Qcb2FHRGzUc7Pv8eHiho7S-B/s320/P1000369.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310293811918823890" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYc2GFPSfS23K1PYHJzeTtTS3n5E-LtY6nN2yuRxD684B_H3mAi8sQTov0XsTcevRWEnHTlUyQJeV0pK8Jq774quTF4mZGeu5iobzxzuHoCY4HFgWfcXDZxZYmizU1TZDDzsbzCNelMxte/s1600-h/P1000362.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYc2GFPSfS23K1PYHJzeTtTS3n5E-LtY6nN2yuRxD684B_H3mAi8sQTov0XsTcevRWEnHTlUyQJeV0pK8Jq774quTF4mZGeu5iobzxzuHoCY4HFgWfcXDZxZYmizU1TZDDzsbzCNelMxte/s320/P1000362.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310292319410366594" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL0ipgHFgFx1hVdc9jhR2lrW6vxPt8yCT5hJGvBLX-mRxHJpErkAsjm9wOQI6m2cA-cKBqKFYaUEMtHxOtbb0VWZU3dPzMEK1V2BfehYvkNB1cBcihv6ymUlhNfjPQGAH7zAuq7sB-01Oc/s1600-h/P1000314.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL0ipgHFgFx1hVdc9jhR2lrW6vxPt8yCT5hJGvBLX-mRxHJpErkAsjm9wOQI6m2cA-cKBqKFYaUEMtHxOtbb0VWZU3dPzMEK1V2BfehYvkNB1cBcihv6ymUlhNfjPQGAH7zAuq7sB-01Oc/s320/P1000314.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310292312801659458" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMpgKAJDf6Vx-sKoLsX0wf9-SJCNx9kQ5EO3l8RqmouSZxZyeCEaI6Sr0flkjOl8a_seJvoK4qvcqrpG-syYRsCQyvLGcSvb8cBqXJ7t0adL_mCXzLVysMxoTefMwso3QlXoExPFWAtMP/s1600-h/P1000289.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMpgKAJDf6Vx-sKoLsX0wf9-SJCNx9kQ5EO3l8RqmouSZxZyeCEaI6Sr0flkjOl8a_seJvoK4qvcqrpG-syYRsCQyvLGcSvb8cBqXJ7t0adL_mCXzLVysMxoTefMwso3QlXoExPFWAtMP/s320/P1000289.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310292300765349378" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju8bm2grnK8IXrVdhAIn3oDu3dVyR-EqXn66QXKV3c9sQk2ElLJKjDTGDrznk4rvi-ayH7GUpkDsTyS9xf74gWWdLLPYSP5YY9EfQ_UeWtlVjaiAbeIANqI8HBGHniUgjcOq2EP22ZBmE/s1600-h/P1000285.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiju8bm2grnK8IXrVdhAIn3oDu3dVyR-EqXn66QXKV3c9sQk2ElLJKjDTGDrznk4rvi-ayH7GUpkDsTyS9xf74gWWdLLPYSP5YY9EfQ_UeWtlVjaiAbeIANqI8HBGHniUgjcOq2EP22ZBmE/s320/P1000285.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310292298798269138" /></a><br /><br />The Volcano we hiked, Mount Bisoke is not active. The <br />Volcano in nearby Congo is. It erupted in 2002 and buried <br />a big part of the town. It was slow moving lava so most people <br />evacuated. It's possible to hike there and spend the night, and <br />see lava. When I went to Goma I half hoped to find some UN people <br />who were going to go do that and join them, but it didn't happen. <br /><br />Bisoke has a lake down in the crater. When you get to the top <br />there are signs that forbid swimming. Methane gas is being <br />released into the lake and there are areas on the surface where <br />there is no oxygen. It's the same deal in Lake Kivu to the west. <br />People have died swimming in Lake Kivu. You also can't walk around <br />the rim as Bisoke crosses national boundaries, I think into Congo. <br />The hike was really tough. Age is starting to catch up with me - I <br />was the laggard of the group and in the end the decision was made <br />(with my acquiescence) that a porter would carry my backpack. I did <br />make it to the top fine. The previous day when visiting the gorillas <br />at 10K feet I could feel the altitude. For a few minutes I was a bit <br />lightheaded. Going up to 12K on the volcano I was fine, just slow. <br />Altitude affects people strangely that way. A guy on the hike <br />organizes tours up Kilimanjaro. He's been up seven times. The first <br />three and last three were fine. On the middle try he got altitude <br />sickness and he said "I thought I was going to die."<br /><br />Since people like gorillas, I added a bunch more pics. There's <br />a nice picture of a silverback, though not the boss of the group. <br />According to the guides when the boss passes away, there will be <br />no primacy fight among the other three silverbacks. The ranking is <br />understood by all. The first picture is Mt. Karisimbi, taken from <br />the *top* of Bisoke. It goes 2500 feet higher than Bisoke! It's a <br />two day hike to the top.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-23612600228296416422009-02-25T21:27:00.000-08:002009-02-25T22:13:54.432-08:00In the mistWell, not so much really. Last week I went to the northern<br />town of Ruhengheri to see the mountain gorillas and hike a <br />volcano. This is where Dian Fossey of `Gorillas in the Mist' <br />fame did her work. (I didn't know this but she was at Cornell<br />from `81 to `83 before she was killed in `85.) At this time of<br />year the weather is supposed to be lousy, rainy and overcast.<br />We had two great days. You get to the park and then because<br />our group was far away we drove about an hour and a half on<br />very bad roads to the hike. At first we went through this<br /><br /><a ="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqja09eerhnJCcAUhWaNWIUqJHcT7xE88QCQxgmRdpY-AWCstZCh2SZGt8Xcylp_cMdzbd_bNv3kSlLyakq9lAy3ZX0WX6myVZ6K70N8ylEqzUXJep_HHZ-Or6g5EFwf4InRlPZJpRc2Ge/s1600-h/P1000264.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqja09eerhnJCcAUhWaNWIUqJHcT7xE88QCQxgmRdpY-AWCstZCh2SZGt8Xcylp_cMdzbd_bNv3kSlLyakq9lAy3ZX0WX6myVZ6K70N8ylEqzUXJep_HHZ-Or6g5EFwf4InRlPZJpRc2Ge/s320/P1000264.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306974474053254898" /></a><br /><br />amazing bamboo forest. The stalks were 30 feet and taller. <br />I've never seen anything like it. We started at around 8000 <br />feet and hiked up to over 9000. The guide was in contact with<br />trackers. It took longer than usual to find the group (about 40 <br />gorillas), a total of 3.5 hours of hiking on trails and<br />bushwhacking when necessary. The guides had machetes and cut down<br />bamboo when we went off trail.<br /><br />This is Magilla.<br /><br /><a r="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimlR7Zk6NHwk72p_B_dmozfErE8Qu74X04o6P09G6SPrnvlsURQAD533448lGor2kABbuZIWAJ5UWCuDe9v95alWdud7dKnFthN-cKs1spz2q_Xuux2RKJtXDtfOHoZrOEBZ8hOjGUoK0D/s1600-h/P1000287.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimlR7Zk6NHwk72p_B_dmozfErE8Qu74X04o6P09G6SPrnvlsURQAD533448lGor2kABbuZIWAJ5UWCuDe9v95alWdud7dKnFthN-cKs1spz2q_Xuux2RKJtXDtfOHoZrOEBZ8hOjGUoK0D/s320/P1000287.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306976900594904978" /></a><br /><br />If you don't get the reference you are too old, too young, or<br />my age and you frittered away your youth by not watching <br />enough cartoons on TV. So you get to the group and they go over<br />the etiquette. No pointing as the gorillas think you are throwing<br />something at them. Eye contact is fine. Don't go closer than 7<br />meters, though if the gorillas approach slowly, then back up slowly.<br />If they charge (they do this as a feint, for fun), crouch down.<br />You get one hour with them. In the first 5 minutes we got a<br />couple of vigorous chest beatings and one charge. We all backed<br />away rather than crouch! This shows you how close we got them.<br /><br /><a="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS35WcfSiZDDjTCiaD2SzKrRgCaHh2raZnhqs5Du8FpS3AL3GCXBDBEPFLnMDVJKU8ua1JFtIDV9b_TfqyTpMrUn0Wz5TlyYjQNUU0mRUZfAPyutdLXZi1lWN8YP91qbmzocmTB9R6RxGU/s1600-h/P1000359.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS35WcfSiZDDjTCiaD2SzKrRgCaHh2raZnhqs5Du8FpS3AL3GCXBDBEPFLnMDVJKU8ua1JFtIDV9b_TfqyTpMrUn0Wz5TlyYjQNUU0mRUZfAPyutdLXZi1lWN8YP91qbmzocmTB9R6RxGU/s320/P1000359.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306976908341658402" /></a><br /><br />The big males, silverbacks because the hair on their backs turns<br />silver, can go over 450 pounds. The boss of the group, who saw <br />us arrive and then went off was massive. His head was the size <br />of my torso (ok, in my case that isn't saying much). Here are a <br />few more pictures.<br /><br /><br /><a ="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8VwLJiG2jjOdaMlBs-czrafuzodPFEx-ST2hxWZ0YARwOweyjyrttX_tniEfHwRoi4CKLN7O8_jRpeP8noanKTKzTOkYwG5bRRr9cOZta4B2j50vCgrexvGH4qbiiDr07PI9b9QAhJERP/s1600-h/P1000288.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8VwLJiG2jjOdaMlBs-czrafuzodPFEx-ST2hxWZ0YARwOweyjyrttX_tniEfHwRoi4CKLN7O8_jRpeP8noanKTKzTOkYwG5bRRr9cOZta4B2j50vCgrexvGH4qbiiDr07PI9b9QAhJERP/s320/P1000288.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306980343549401650" /></a><br /><a or="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMrIOiyC6b4EjNxSpUDZbqVPwHwTN96BE00X3sFLVRD8l-po2AEXKbXSR6TipOh6w0DxQDQp69FQ84pmAItE-rLL51r3Zjc0lC4EcRtLhTF-p1gQo2mHri7kzBgTZqqY611R2jj-u2xYMF/s1600-h/P1000299.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMrIOiyC6b4EjNxSpUDZbqVPwHwTN96BE00X3sFLVRD8l-po2AEXKbXSR6TipOh6w0DxQDQp69FQ84pmAItE-rLL51r3Zjc0lC4EcRtLhTF-p1gQo2mHri7kzBgTZqqY611R2jj-u2xYMF/s320/P1000299.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306980339853034354" /></a><br /><a ="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizIvJW8JFZY16TWVKqELM4CFAMbAQ4TN7JOUF5miOc0F50BziWT6J4UV4hneViy9e5o5CLD1uBsbs5tWlkbDhZ5GOL0RmDGP5NaiYCGV8c3m7sfrj6tEIf8fnd9S8CcfCH3pmdPXr2N0fI/s1600-h/P1000374.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizIvJW8JFZY16TWVKqELM4CFAMbAQ4TN7JOUF5miOc0F50BziWT6J4UV4hneViy9e5o5CLD1uBsbs5tWlkbDhZ5GOL0RmDGP5NaiYCGV8c3m7sfrj6tEIf8fnd9S8CcfCH3pmdPXr2N0fI/s320/P1000374.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306980334304181250" /></a><br /><br /><br />For the record, Dian Fossey disapproved of this sort of tourism.<br />In her day poaching was the issue and she organized antipoaching<br />patrols. Now that isn't a problem and they have the one hour limit.<br />The gorillas don't seem to mind us at all, but there is the health<br />risk that humans bring to gorillas and the question of whether <br />having their day upset for an hour is a bad for them. On the flip<br />side this brings HUGE amounts of money into an impoverished country.<br />It costs $500 to go on this trip and that does not count hotel, <br />transport etc. You only hope the money is not lining bureaucrats'<br />pockets.<br /><br />I need to go do math - volcanoes will come later.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-26950650441605713362009-02-16T13:02:00.001-08:002009-02-16T13:27:11.005-08:00Last weekend<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwq5HUdEaq_eEMOFqPuGaAqrOkoUg83p7omAg7zFWY0sw-C5UslUvCbfTGE3v2qthvFvdr3BgXRJfsD5UWQ23fLZbCOoY3-6ZeKDldWyQQhH4FdEIu4Sj6j1lPTKJEGuZoT2_svBnOFJXy/s1600-h/P1000217.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwq5HUdEaq_eEMOFqPuGaAqrOkoUg83p7omAg7zFWY0sw-C5UslUvCbfTGE3v2qthvFvdr3BgXRJfsD5UWQ23fLZbCOoY3-6ZeKDldWyQQhH4FdEIu4Sj6j1lPTKJEGuZoT2_svBnOFJXy/s320/P1000217.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303507118863597506" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXB0AuSmzS_58kpGbYL3Y_W4XSvVEIyFaS4YveR-95emFAAd3Rd1HcFR9dQce0sDoiSpVwlx5ppSEBB0i9AqRYXQTy6hmI3uXoCv_nuElPlxoSHF0HYquTT04FTZ3anhRRUlhv1N1BSlpq/s1600-h/P1000255.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXB0AuSmzS_58kpGbYL3Y_W4XSvVEIyFaS4YveR-95emFAAd3Rd1HcFR9dQce0sDoiSpVwlx5ppSEBB0i9AqRYXQTy6hmI3uXoCv_nuElPlxoSHF0HYquTT04FTZ3anhRRUlhv1N1BSlpq/s320/P1000255.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303507111087339538" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzaegrJRXWpcfnoZyFh6bBQUqjopXb77y8l0zjXU-0ZHS19IC1hWzpnW3dgVYM5KTmAAa8ONkowx6AAOmueRkB2r823QL-vGPXoXBEmq1uXFCBenFXx0vZ62Lb8gV9SRJT6IU980X0Q3Bw/s1600-h/P1000228.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzaegrJRXWpcfnoZyFh6bBQUqjopXb77y8l0zjXU-0ZHS19IC1hWzpnW3dgVYM5KTmAAa8ONkowx6AAOmueRkB2r823QL-vGPXoXBEmq1uXFCBenFXx0vZ62Lb8gV9SRJT6IU980X0Q3Bw/s320/P1000228.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303505201750367810" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoKDo0QUGB-odX74rxk7iwcXpJZzG9rImF-Nct6pGrhxr0m1DPuYHhFSqWqKHluT4yxUHAs-PrzZsCSPmbSS0NjBf07_BWpt-kX7PZ2sThyphenhyphenD2y3zP4YQwjejtZ8DTXB8ZKcr7esUnMfPc_/s1600-h/P1000232.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoKDo0QUGB-odX74rxk7iwcXpJZzG9rImF-Nct6pGrhxr0m1DPuYHhFSqWqKHluT4yxUHAs-PrzZsCSPmbSS0NjBf07_BWpt-kX7PZ2sThyphenhyphenD2y3zP4YQwjejtZ8DTXB8ZKcr7esUnMfPc_/s320/P1000232.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303504535116787394" /></a><br />This is Roger.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMcnEk7Im05EWyBdnZBNqZnuTjPWkgd_cpp5MSmEqGiISFi9N-ETcCxZgUgeXxErc3JrD125A73XkDjOnDLXPBXo5NXgNpO0KYc04_XDLAVZMAP4aVQzwLwhK-KdxTGx8lcWIF4Qr8s5Zt/s1600-h/P1000221.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMcnEk7Im05EWyBdnZBNqZnuTjPWkgd_cpp5MSmEqGiISFi9N-ETcCxZgUgeXxErc3JrD125A73XkDjOnDLXPBXo5NXgNpO0KYc04_XDLAVZMAP4aVQzwLwhK-KdxTGx8lcWIF4Qr8s5Zt/s320/P1000221.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303503871931282162" /></a><br /><br /><br />I met Roger at a pub in Nyamirambo, the neighborhood next to<br />KIST. It's more accurate to say he met me. He had noticed I <br />had been there a few times (mzungu stick out) and started <br />chatting. It turns out he owns a mine for coltan (or is it coaltan?)<br />a couple hours out of Kigali. It's a pretty small affair, but<br />that's because to separate the coltan from the rock they need to <br />wash the rock. And the nearest water source is 2 kilometers away,<br />and down a hill 100 meters or so. People carry the water up in jugs<br />on their heads. Roger is planning to set up a pump system in the<br />next 4 months. Then he hopes to produce 100 kg per day. Coltan <br />sells for $25-30 per kg, so this is real money. He hopes to employ<br />200 people. Anyway he took me and the young German couple in the guest <br />house to visit his mine. The pictures are from the mine and what we<br />saw along the way. The wooden bike is pretty cool! Those are coffee beans<br />at the top. We had to drive at least 20 km on dirt roads in the middle of<br />nowhere to get to the mine. What looks like a hole in the ground (ok, it<br />is a hole in the ground) is one of the sources of coltan. The earth there is<br />30% coltan or so. When we parked in the village (maybe 20 small houses)<br />we immediately attracted an audience of small boys. They followed us<br />up the hill and to the mines, for a few hours. They seemed to have a good<br />time watching the mzungu.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-42398309809294801062009-02-14T09:51:00.000-08:002009-02-16T12:57:05.259-08:00More pictures<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT5R3Frq12-rekQ-UAv6nUTAZ8RpWzODtwnn2SGdYCRfJlBWostgSTpDdtsuRVCM_RORSXK3vJwqIIcugdQc0uL5kw-jFdHHn1uOClyIdvbbuB7-4Sr-o_n7TuKlcLiZHUmvymGhL79Sie/s1600-h/P1000203.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT5R3Frq12-rekQ-UAv6nUTAZ8RpWzODtwnn2SGdYCRfJlBWostgSTpDdtsuRVCM_RORSXK3vJwqIIcugdQc0uL5kw-jFdHHn1uOClyIdvbbuB7-4Sr-o_n7TuKlcLiZHUmvymGhL79Sie/s320/P1000203.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303500252491925218" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4J6wpxSPD_VboLqyZyHhbHz7wNMa30hqhAfOfgvqNcyX-Oup-3nbkwYPxcJ8PVSg8N1-NBeLzmsUrIKEdSFBxvp7bzKwQzqimPW0srW8eOS93gAbgqmQfjFp8IEdYLHNc5dJKARamddId/s1600-h/P1000197.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4J6wpxSPD_VboLqyZyHhbHz7wNMa30hqhAfOfgvqNcyX-Oup-3nbkwYPxcJ8PVSg8N1-NBeLzmsUrIKEdSFBxvp7bzKwQzqimPW0srW8eOS93gAbgqmQfjFp8IEdYLHNc5dJKARamddId/s320/P1000197.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303500250595257250" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2afkm9oJ7EG_C8SEayFBSd5C_j7o8U-gtdEzTZOgrL134beMvjX6YynutrlJpC8cTA371PCbHxMjhzTaHf6RKJcgFqKJN-5GRDdt62YRdG4pZP85haviKVac3V1-whrqIsQDjKfer1MdP/s1600-h/P1000146.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2afkm9oJ7EG_C8SEayFBSd5C_j7o8U-gtdEzTZOgrL134beMvjX6YynutrlJpC8cTA371PCbHxMjhzTaHf6RKJcgFqKJN-5GRDdt62YRdG4pZP85haviKVac3V1-whrqIsQDjKfer1MdP/s320/P1000146.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303500245790317666" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVFNpqzlUPu99AMSoIpS3pnUw2GVafDhPppCmNu0wx8Cn90iwxGwfx7etdjMh7MXMsh7qNux9yLVuVGANLP3zgrXad7Gw3THUSKF6XPtCMIQGzNMRSvYSzD1yACBYHAjwgwkobYabjvspA/s1600-h/P1000175.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVFNpqzlUPu99AMSoIpS3pnUw2GVafDhPppCmNu0wx8Cn90iwxGwfx7etdjMh7MXMsh7qNux9yLVuVGANLP3zgrXad7Gw3THUSKF6XPtCMIQGzNMRSvYSzD1yACBYHAjwgwkobYabjvspA/s320/P1000175.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303499426373967026" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiehiG3AqbO-M6jjvOLlUcMzTWHop-HP9DvqyIU7yqOkpr9VtFRjEWw00BcU9ypufNiYCSXQm0xZssWbvMSVmugK1HvKFdf882JaU7s5iSe2YHfyjOfYSQjYwGqAPI9JlJJ3AHUfc9VY-Qj/s1600-h/P1000096.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiehiG3AqbO-M6jjvOLlUcMzTWHop-HP9DvqyIU7yqOkpr9VtFRjEWw00BcU9ypufNiYCSXQm0xZssWbvMSVmugK1HvKFdf882JaU7s5iSe2YHfyjOfYSQjYwGqAPI9JlJJ3AHUfc9VY-Qj/s320/P1000096.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303499425143678322" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFaQZ2tfJAIBtWq_4OoXA4xALf2WExvBSOW9Gnkoqe9CrLp9Oz_60uihvqjqY-B-woQvNkVG0yFyYrtS7AEU7iYRa_3IBBz9_JdNTy2_zKqDs43nDDuBk11z1XbpsFOQJT1goA81X19Zzj/s1600-h/P1000108.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFaQZ2tfJAIBtWq_4OoXA4xALf2WExvBSOW9Gnkoqe9CrLp9Oz_60uihvqjqY-B-woQvNkVG0yFyYrtS7AEU7iYRa_3IBBz9_JdNTy2_zKqDs43nDDuBk11z1XbpsFOQJT1goA81X19Zzj/s320/P1000108.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302718893256727874" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqNTk_900Kwm8QFVnOYnrF7fdfQYJ7qjqvMTFA9rp5WcLLq0I3ztpxYUrLB30kR4jwkWq36GprLvTnIxbg9qkmum9NXg0BtY0EBcvpM8poYTFdF-ibpUUXh4TClhBj8Zg8NmAPTR4GcXC/s1600-h/P1000089.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqNTk_900Kwm8QFVnOYnrF7fdfQYJ7qjqvMTFA9rp5WcLLq0I3ztpxYUrLB30kR4jwkWq36GprLvTnIxbg9qkmum9NXg0BtY0EBcvpM8poYTFdF-ibpUUXh4TClhBj8Zg8NmAPTR4GcXC/s320/P1000089.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302715775632164306" /></a><br />Not much new to report - electricity was out <br />in the math building for a week. Now that it<br />and a fast internet connection are back I thought<br />I'd upload more pictures. They are mostly of Akagera<br />and Gisenyi/Goma.<br /><br />In the 2nd pic if you enlarge it you can see all the banana trees.<br />Cooking bananas and potatoes are staples here. Rice and bread are<br />too expensive for most people.<br /><br />The guy in the dugout canoe was fishing and selling his catch.<br />He seemed to go between Rwanda and Congo along the lake with impunity.<br /><br />The little boy was up in the woods above Gisenyi, in the banana farming<br />community. I tried to get him to look at his picture (something that <br />everyone here loves) but he ran away.<br /><br />The last 3 pics are of Akegera. It's a special place.<br /><br />Off to hike a volcano and see gorillas later this week.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-46361822447240130492009-02-11T22:45:00.000-08:002009-02-12T08:05:27.397-08:00Gisenyi and Goma<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY4q6xvQ0z9ewkxMLs93c-VNXlJ00lejXSvzxmIC9J8o8W_gXViLclR2iizDYKnhKUzrY-jDa6GAJ-ziil3radwXo_79T2csRl-He9e6L03hOn38J2X7OQyAR4cTk7TnvDnnsUvZvi4BAn/s1600-h/P1000170.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY4q6xvQ0z9ewkxMLs93c-VNXlJ00lejXSvzxmIC9J8o8W_gXViLclR2iizDYKnhKUzrY-jDa6GAJ-ziil3radwXo_79T2csRl-He9e6L03hOn38J2X7OQyAR4cTk7TnvDnnsUvZvi4BAn/s320/P1000170.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301807581545690066" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBarMaeZh8jFBqOQ5_7__sxa7sXGRsN9gYGz8ngWMtlhXLWujsXvCvJsJIOWEr7UfxhlNw-L2giwqbw_-ceU90xxtDcipFdPtZNWT3hkmbHNsFVu-FKp6GAtaeAEse1FzOHiFlYRVlwivE/s1600-h/P1000167.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBarMaeZh8jFBqOQ5_7__sxa7sXGRsN9gYGz8ngWMtlhXLWujsXvCvJsJIOWEr7UfxhlNw-L2giwqbw_-ceU90xxtDcipFdPtZNWT3hkmbHNsFVu-FKp6GAtaeAEse1FzOHiFlYRVlwivE/s320/P1000167.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301806419740539138" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUG0OlAUvq97m5DjqOmSlvnfWcYfKvhRi4_kQ8WFBi8198ABi0QmdUphz0YShySkWd8yNHRy7ol9oXvqK-LXH2msz6e2lpW3CLP5hKqEFmTN5ZT-rUnTdNPSJcEeTJ3Px1HlaBIpXwXW3K/s1600-h/P1000151.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUG0OlAUvq97m5DjqOmSlvnfWcYfKvhRi4_kQ8WFBi8198ABi0QmdUphz0YShySkWd8yNHRy7ol9oXvqK-LXH2msz6e2lpW3CLP5hKqEFmTN5ZT-rUnTdNPSJcEeTJ3Px1HlaBIpXwXW3K/s320/P1000151.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301805446448774322" /></a><br /><br /><br />Last week I went to Gisenyi, a town at the north end of Lake Kivu.<br />It's adjacent to the town of Goma in the Congo. I did go into Goma<br />and spent a night there. First things first - you want to be very <br />careful about going into Congo. The seurity situation changes and<br />it's no joke. I spoke with a number of people and got good information<br />about the current situation, and it was safe. I did not go outside of<br />Goma at all. <br /><br />It was certainly worth going. At the border they told me the one <br />day visa was $25. I only had a twenty and a ten. I had a little <br />Rwandan money so I gave them a note worth about $9. She gave me <br />about $3 back in Congolese money. So I ask for my $10 back and <br />was told `no, no $10'. So I got ripped off on that. When she put <br />the money away I saw she had a $5. Great.<br /><br />It didn't stop there - they insisted on having a friend who worked <br />at a hotel pick me up and I could stay there. It was a good cheap <br />place they said. I said I would walk, but they said there was no need, <br />their friend would pick me up. I figured you don't argue long with <br />Congolese border authorities who are holding your passport so I <br />eventually agreed to this. The guy came with the car and in 2 <br />kilometers he had run out of gas. So he gets out his car and starts <br />shouting. Yeah, I'm thinking, this'll bring gas. Turns out it <br />does! The picture of the yellow cans above is a Goma gas station. <br />You see them every 500 meters or so. The guys run up to you and pour <br />a liter or so into your car, because everyone only keeps a few liters <br />at a time in the vehicle. As Deepak said, they use the Shashi method. <br /><br />The hotel itself was ok - not a dump but not nice. I now know <br />enough to check if the water works in the room. It didn't so I got <br />one where it did. I forgot to check for hot water in the shower <br />of the 2nd room, so I got a cold shower the next morning!<br /><br />The town is both richer and poorer than Kigali. Poorer for <br />obvious reasons, it's a refugee camp, was buried during an <br />eruption 7 years ago (check out the volcanic rock next to the gas <br />station). It's richer because of the huge UN presence. This brings <br />in people with money so restaurants and hotels are expensive. <br />Probably comparable to a city in the U.S. or a bit worse. The town is <br />also just flat out dirty. There's an enormous amount of smog from diesel <br />trucks. To be indelicate, after about 12 hours there your snot turns black. <br /><br />Deepak, the picture of the mountains was taken from <br />the restaurant at the Ihusi hotel - I called you from there.<br /><br />The next day I went back into Gisenyi. Like all Rwandan towns <br />there are no touristy things to do. So I walked around town, <br />took a road up a hill and wandered off onto a trail where people <br />grow bananas. The picture with the sticks is, I think, a replanting <br />project for banana trees. People live up there in huts with no <br />electricity or running water. They certainly don't see many mzungu. <br />They have to carry their produce into town, generally one bunch of <br />bananas at a time. Maybe 4 or more kilometers. And you can buy a bunch <br />for 1000 francs, less than $2.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-5606787890798671482009-02-01T09:09:00.000-08:002009-02-01T10:50:28.957-08:00Akagera National park<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiavfH6d6IXLhNhbUmQdB4JDe8naY-uiqdv-s1VZK1nRniMq_x7eM0LVS2VFfgKv2iLzTynd6CaFQzGt95C_ZQrpNqMi7gMGRePC17wxZ2_oDf_jEYZ4WSIGN-uC7B5sYiJuTjW7RS0rhAv/s1600-h/P1000134.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiavfH6d6IXLhNhbUmQdB4JDe8naY-uiqdv-s1VZK1nRniMq_x7eM0LVS2VFfgKv2iLzTynd6CaFQzGt95C_ZQrpNqMi7gMGRePC17wxZ2_oDf_jEYZ4WSIGN-uC7B5sYiJuTjW7RS0rhAv/s320/P1000134.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297882242925030402" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWJeyic-qe9vsDKaEZaOIVbIq1II9sGOBVLDC63OveUYkzP-3jXSms6vhXwEKHAMc24PJPn-ioyZFuisUgxXpJgj0F4qBKms-tIHmT4xxWv_zIYFiyBj90_TZwjHH886FBn52IecZYwbx/s1600-h/P1000105.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEWJeyic-qe9vsDKaEZaOIVbIq1II9sGOBVLDC63OveUYkzP-3jXSms6vhXwEKHAMc24PJPn-ioyZFuisUgxXpJgj0F4qBKms-tIHmT4xxWv_zIYFiyBj90_TZwjHH886FBn52IecZYwbx/s320/P1000105.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297882234621576914" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg_FJx70RYZTpHiZfhEA01bUw5kUxUcqbXkgK8OUs8IpLCZvgbtSqIiQxX__kSJAiR5A8_KBfOaal_MzA9utB2OesnrB8fxKwgGCf_MoZvHBWh1ZpyOYjCSjrVn82mRG4LknMKjp00El8H/s1600-h/P1000099.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg_FJx70RYZTpHiZfhEA01bUw5kUxUcqbXkgK8OUs8IpLCZvgbtSqIiQxX__kSJAiR5A8_KBfOaal_MzA9utB2OesnrB8fxKwgGCf_MoZvHBWh1ZpyOYjCSjrVn82mRG4LknMKjp00El8H/s320/P1000099.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297881505274730802" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0FhLfSBpcyxZhuebXVjS87-_wVVa_G4dflLrSX-CSQB2HtkKyWt4yXWnHSFcBO71d_Istup0NuVf1aWrN4nVNUhQ9v5eixMJwjunjjLLvyEbOFce28gnspNscKMKUK3JuI1q_SkzDGBau/s1600-h/P1000078.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0FhLfSBpcyxZhuebXVjS87-_wVVa_G4dflLrSX-CSQB2HtkKyWt4yXWnHSFcBO71d_Istup0NuVf1aWrN4nVNUhQ9v5eixMJwjunjjLLvyEbOFce28gnspNscKMKUK3JuI1q_SkzDGBau/s320/P1000078.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297881500526617042" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2uV54gpOpVFLlrIbSoDkDeLXu_9MRAQmaYhhoYlcItKN6VAwCMaKQ6sgT9Mm7qRiIVp4_-ee9YjIqqHQEdZbLEj4VjHdrY1eqeuhO6EYZvttjgdZizqioGJKBdqqrVIeys6a0paNNSxRe/s1600-h/P1000075.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2uV54gpOpVFLlrIbSoDkDeLXu_9MRAQmaYhhoYlcItKN6VAwCMaKQ6sgT9Mm7qRiIVp4_-ee9YjIqqHQEdZbLEj4VjHdrY1eqeuhO6EYZvttjgdZizqioGJKBdqqrVIeys6a0paNNSxRe/s320/P1000075.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297880866299286930" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMGos2SDdt8KlEIedLezZ6luzUqwzDs43L9I_SfIzYjXcE6UbvTFGQJuLAlOoiMPGQWnj87nCARJl5pa9Csg2FNcGIj6epQQKt3uFDCGCrgWtGy9BfZq4pDWK-dIeDdlU_2D8n1goE7GqI/s1600-h/P1000129.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMGos2SDdt8KlEIedLezZ6luzUqwzDs43L9I_SfIzYjXcE6UbvTFGQJuLAlOoiMPGQWnj87nCARJl5pa9Csg2FNcGIj6epQQKt3uFDCGCrgWtGy9BfZq4pDWK-dIeDdlU_2D8n1goE7GqI/s320/P1000129.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5297880433338468850" /></a><br /><br />The $#!@!! editor is giving problems so all the pictures<br />are at the top. I had wanted them to be at the bottom,<br /><br />A couple musings: The other day, while walking in <br />the downtown area, as usual a guy came up to me trying to <br />sell me a newspaper. It was one I didn't know - English <br />Language but claiming to be independent. I tried to check <br />if it was old - they try to sell you old papers, but the <br />guy pointed at the price and obscured the date, and there <br />was a crowd so I bought it. Turns out it was from July <br />... of 2005. Mom, Dad, all that money you put into my <br />education - maybe it could have been better spent.<br /><br />I am on a mission. From my office in Malott I can walk <br />over to the cafe in Mann and get a very fine cup of <br />Rwandan coffee for about a buck and a half. So far I have <br />not been able to find a cup of coffee in a pleasant cafe <br />for less than that. It seems to me that I should be able <br />to buy Rwandan coffee for LESS MONEY in Rwanda than in <br />Ithaca. I have 3 months to accomplish this.<br /><br />So yesterday I went to Akegera National Park at the <br />eastern border with Tanzania. I saw hippos, baboons, monkeys, <br />at least 4 different `deer type' animals, giraffes and any <br />number of birds. Including an African swallow. Monty Python <br />fans - this African swallow was not big enough to carry a <br />coconut. The giraffes are amazing and not too scared of <br />people. I got to within 30 meters of them before they moved <br />away. When they walk it looks like slow motion. <br /><br />A very fun day!Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-5616302279510819542009-01-22T11:23:00.001-08:002009-01-22T13:40:40.928-08:00In case things don't go well.....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivKzHnpu9DVo54AXhfSbAn9cJtxMZW487bQQBEKnegCCT4IjMdFx4GhAdKJn6SuGcHnx41LBpM0nWLxq_mO6b5QDkpKm8qXWcAM4pOVK_YoeJEpg4CsxbYFPLtRQrlQkAxq0-z24veg3l6/s1600-h/P1000050.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivKzHnpu9DVo54AXhfSbAn9cJtxMZW487bQQBEKnegCCT4IjMdFx4GhAdKJn6SuGcHnx41LBpM0nWLxq_mO6b5QDkpKm8qXWcAM4pOVK_YoeJEpg4CsxbYFPLtRQrlQkAxq0-z24veg3l6/s320/P1000050.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294201263473263874" border="0" /></a><br />he has a fall back plan. I bought a snack there the other day.<br /><br />The African youth soccer championship is going on right now. I saw<br />Ghana defeat Mali yesterday 2-0. Cornellians, you'll be pleased to<br />know that there were a handful of diehard fans who had the<br />equivalent of a cowbell and rang it the entire game.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3b2hXPlMylzRGOQjUegtFtBLbb-6hk2Ng1-Xt70DtIW5v6Mo4zJ95-tPJ7Qp6lGSgjSypCkwbkCZ2OCZ3fkMOQsZY0iHx-BCjKxoXFvZo0wGcIMNtlPBilouES_Z30Qd81p8jS8XHBgKG/s1600-h/P1000047.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3b2hXPlMylzRGOQjUegtFtBLbb-6hk2Ng1-Xt70DtIW5v6Mo4zJ95-tPJ7Qp6lGSgjSypCkwbkCZ2OCZ3fkMOQsZY0iHx-BCjKxoXFvZo0wGcIMNtlPBilouES_Z30Qd81p8jS8XHBgKG/s320/P1000047.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294202802092926098" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUaPyg2ULYJNC8nhKzX64R2FkEbmtzy_WVW4g25n63ie0keAJLup3Tt5jg4FVIZxnGK7xzzuwwDe9zHvT_gM5mX8vawcSJFRat-oGrDp1AChYYwgOJjZAKseTwN3X5fwaL6pzBJOKqkzHL/s1600-h/P1000049.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUaPyg2ULYJNC8nhKzX64R2FkEbmtzy_WVW4g25n63ie0keAJLup3Tt5jg4FVIZxnGK7xzzuwwDe9zHvT_gM5mX8vawcSJFRat-oGrDp1AChYYwgOJjZAKseTwN3X5fwaL6pzBJOKqkzHL/s320/P1000049.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294202815299614466" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmAGL6XCiqKtKJjOMIewtqfjcLUtUC8dozNsaz4OQbpVGY0dEZnjzjW4P_lUKORaOeihf1kuO1S58YCyA0JyYWyPKDTQC-4RJgdXjS7E8WPJw0T8-xUJalzZfWg4Z_rYI0x-RYegGXLvBH/s1600-h/P1000048.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmAGL6XCiqKtKJjOMIewtqfjcLUtUC8dozNsaz4OQbpVGY0dEZnjzjW4P_lUKORaOeihf1kuO1S58YCyA0JyYWyPKDTQC-4RJgdXjS7E8WPJw0T8-xUJalzZfWg4Z_rYI0x-RYegGXLvBH/s320/P1000048.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294202813141827554" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Ghana is in white. One thing was surprising. Of the maybe 5000<br />people in the stands I saw one woman. So I expect more men<br />than women to go to a soccer game, but only one? And as far as<br />I could tell I was the only foreigner there. Nonetheless it was fun.<br />This was the first game of a doubleheader with the big match<br />afterwards. That one involved Rwanda. There was a huge<br />contingent of Rwanda fans who wore team colors,<br />had painted their faces and were dancing and cheering their team<br />on during the whole first game between Mali and Ghana.<br /><br />It's hard to find cultural events here. The soccer game is the only<br />such thing I've done in 3+ weeks. There isn't much in the way of<br />performance in the city, and as far as I know there's only one<br />small museum in Kigali. Butare (2 hours away) is supposed to<br />have a very nice museum and there are famous dancers based there,<br />but that's about it for the whole country. It makes being a tourist<br />here different. The museums and shows you might<br />do in London simply don't exist here.Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-49821593813322839802009-01-20T23:17:00.001-08:002009-01-24T12:27:56.542-08:00Week 4So I haven't really written about KIST very much. It's a relatively<br />new institution, about 12 years old. The math department is<br />only 3, it's first class graduates this fall. (They're on a different<br />schedule than back home).<br /><br /><br />Things are very different here. The students don't have internet<br />at home (some don't have electricity). They take about 8 classes<br />for 30 hours or more per week. This means I can't assign very<br />much homework, let alone the the outlandish amounts I usually<br />do. The curriculum is not what I would design. For the<br />mathematicians out there, measure theory and functional<br />analysis are part of the (required) undergrad curriculum. I don't<br />see how students can learn this material at a level we would<br />consider acceptable at home. I haven't talked to too many<br />students yet, but my small amount of anecdotal information backs<br />this up.<br /><br /><br />Other differences: Well, KIST is still being built and expanded.<br />There's a lot of land on the campus overgrown with weeds.<br />You could bring in some heavy equipment (which does exist in<br />Rwanda) to clear it away in a week. Instead a team of about<br />6 or 8 women work with hoes and are clearing it by hand. It<br />will take months. The lawn here is mowed by men with scythes.<br />Ok, they aren't the kind of things you picture the Grim<br />Reaper using, more like short swords. I haven't seen a<br />lawnmower in the 3 weeks I've been here.<br /><br /><p></p><br /><p> </p><p>I teach the entire second year class of math majors - they don't get to pick their major, they are placed in it. I have one small chalkboard which makes it a bit difficult, Sometimes I start to erase while students are still copying stuff down! The class representative is working on findinganother board. (Yeah, it's her job, not the custodian's or department head's)<br /><br /><br />Administration is different too. Profs carry their own chalk and erasers. I asked how to get an eraser. I was told the chair would give me a form that would allow me to get one at a central office where all supplies are housed. I rummaged through my office and found one in a box marked `stapler' instead. It seemed easier.</p><br /><br /><p>The location is kind of interesting. It's maybe a mile from the fancy<br />downtown area, Kiyovu, with all the shops, bars, restaurants etc. It<br />also abuts Nyamirambo, a *much* less affluent area that extends<br />for miles. Much less affluent meand that parts are lower middle class<br />and parts are slums. On of my students told me she lives in a<br />Nyamirambo ghetto. It's certainly worth walking around there,<br />and you can get lots of stuff cheaper there - that's where I got my haircut.<br /></p><br /><br /><br /><p>Finally there is one cultural difference that I don't think I will get used to. You have to close your office door because it's too noisy otherwise. The standard here is that people knock and enter without waiting for an answer. By American standards, people just barge into your office. Of course noone here takes offense.<br /><br /></p>Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-53131293681323019542009-01-17T11:05:00.000-08:002009-01-20T23:48:27.766-08:00More of week 3<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWwbqWNNCA5OCERiuhb7KcqMsVh-ZqkiUY0Abxc5EXe1pOUDIMv-Lkd1_uwqJ1J_sC4qOUM7OLWnxs0zjr9k7D4xotprNIRzpSOVtE-QrVqcAhpfUPBfKSy7B1xzbjdrciFp2O-ZE23IDt/s1600-h/P1000039.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292348184691425074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWwbqWNNCA5OCERiuhb7KcqMsVh-ZqkiUY0Abxc5EXe1pOUDIMv-Lkd1_uwqJ1J_sC4qOUM7OLWnxs0zjr9k7D4xotprNIRzpSOVtE-QrVqcAhpfUPBfKSy7B1xzbjdrciFp2O-ZE23IDt/s320/P1000039.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgigXNqKYGi1D9ue-gmh3wi7GDNmzSWrNV6urNIPKfalGO0GzqdXNJupV58Zxop_RCDgU-4MgoRso8LG0M8LUU0uxHTVNrcrgvMe7hHuAX3kZZzleXgMChS2Ych3INA_m8MOY9ZL-8Im5FC/s1600-h/P1000037.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292348177214399922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgigXNqKYGi1D9ue-gmh3wi7GDNmzSWrNV6urNIPKfalGO0GzqdXNJupV58Zxop_RCDgU-4MgoRso8LG0M8LUU0uxHTVNrcrgvMe7hHuAX3kZZzleXgMChS2Ych3INA_m8MOY9ZL-8Im5FC/s320/P1000037.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-9rOGKIfI5EDW8mQcta_qcFuic5gRTdYrZ_W2WL1p50lvgNFJuqR6RFr-aC8705KME3tSM8FlnhZkLQsjwTm7XVBVzyuq94ZlkULsc3MQRqHDlTC5v2OXxij9Tmjf1xoYmMtP5XdXAVQN/s1600-h/P1000036.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292348178794501794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-9rOGKIfI5EDW8mQcta_qcFuic5gRTdYrZ_W2WL1p50lvgNFJuqR6RFr-aC8705KME3tSM8FlnhZkLQsjwTm7XVBVzyuq94ZlkULsc3MQRqHDlTC5v2OXxij9Tmjf1xoYmMtP5XdXAVQN/s320/P1000036.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk-M9qeEHF8NH4dm9dnvtvLYMMKEnZZlxB45-Jy6PEIUFZrlxAXK0iKARgutx26j0TTlp6Ts3binyebIKh3CzFFilHSbcqu3bzTnYfTFWzsqILbh2xNQULc_9qyxwIzLrKlAOeO8GA6wK_/s1600-h/P1000035.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5292348166915125170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk-M9qeEHF8NH4dm9dnvtvLYMMKEnZZlxB45-Jy6PEIUFZrlxAXK0iKARgutx26j0TTlp6Ts3binyebIKh3CzFFilHSbcqu3bzTnYfTFWzsqILbh2xNQULc_9qyxwIzLrKlAOeO8GA6wK_/s320/P1000035.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Ok,</div><br /><div>so I'm an idiot. Of course I've known I was coming here </div><div>for some time, and I knew there was no way to learn the </div><div>local language, Kinyarwanda, while in Ithaca. I also knew</div><div>this was a Belgian colony and that many people here speak</div><div>French, but I STILL DIDN'T TAKE FRENCH LAST<br />SEMESTER!! My one year of French back in the mid 80s </div><div>isn't cutting it. </div><br /><div>I went to this town a little ways outside of Kigali, my first</div><div>trip outside of the city. It's called Nyamata - there's a </div><div>memorial there. It was very sad.</div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>So after I visited the memorial I looked around the town a</div><div>bit. Since the point of getting out of the city was to see the</div><div>countryside I decided to walk back. A mzungu (foreigner) </div><div>walking on a country road is an oddity that attracts a *lot*</div><div>of attention, especially from children. The guy in the green</div><div>helmets t-shirt spoke English and told me his sister goes</div><div>to KIST, the place where I'm teaching. The boy in the tan</div><div>shirt and girl in the pink shirt went the same way as me for quite</div><div>some time. Even though we had no language in common they</div><div>really wanted to walk with me. I need to carry a couple boxes</div><div>of cookies with me on trips like this to give them out to the kids.</div><div>I had a few that I shared with these two. The boy in the red shirt </div><div>spoke French, so we could communicate a little. He came upon </div><div>us halfway back and went to Kigali with me. I bought him a coke, </div><div>but he probably thought I was crazy - if I had money for a coke </div><div>I had money for bus fare. The two little boys </div><div>in the distance shot saw me pull out my camera and decided they</div><div>were going to be the point of the picture. (I had wanted to </div><div>take a picture of the thatched hut to the right). Later I was</div><div>waylaid by about ten 6 year olds, who all insisted on telling me their</div><div>names and shaking my hand. As they left the road to go home</div><div>they gave me an enthusiastic `bon voyage'. </div><div></div><div></div><div>I went up and down many hills, </div><div>into a river valley, through several villages and saw several </div><div>hundred people walking along the road. If you give people a smile </div><div>and a `Bon Jour' you get the same back. A fun day, and seeing the </div><div>countryside at 3 mph is very different than seeing it at 40mph.</div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div></div></div></div>Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-39152283372179751482009-01-13T07:05:00.000-08:002009-01-13T10:07:33.469-08:00Week 3<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6dMwneLuH2u8bnSIynoYJj3qv_UgCTp-_FCP7LuVL9d28U5dT27slKZeEa3N-FEuUhY0t9jb3ql_wTpnD_xgjMyIdI0QbY5H9U_Ld0jKPLm74m_xRqVHa8Gubin04CE9_dConELHTo4A/s1600-h/P1000031.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290798477319996898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6dMwneLuH2u8bnSIynoYJj3qv_UgCTp-_FCP7LuVL9d28U5dT27slKZeEa3N-FEuUhY0t9jb3ql_wTpnD_xgjMyIdI0QbY5H9U_Ld0jKPLm74m_xRqVHa8Gubin04CE9_dConELHTo4A/s320/P1000031.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_MB_TPQ1dtzsJOFfqCVUpmScYCXAIFW2CHFhxQWKjG4ymkNu1u2impDUN1M39kGzYBvDFoOPU6ep6WWyuIlRKZcqujhQX55q0zf3dReMCT0SziqZPQ6rR5wEPixCwXgYwKXf3VKuHPQHV/s1600-h/P1000030.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290797160270417346" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_MB_TPQ1dtzsJOFfqCVUpmScYCXAIFW2CHFhxQWKjG4ymkNu1u2impDUN1M39kGzYBvDFoOPU6ep6WWyuIlRKZcqujhQX55q0zf3dReMCT0SziqZPQ6rR5wEPixCwXgYwKXf3VKuHPQHV/s320/P1000030.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>So Last week I visited the genocide memorial here in Kigali. I'm told there's one in every</div><div>town in the country. It was really quite moving. The best way I can think to describe</div><div>it this: A few years I met a colleague at a conference and he told me he had recently</div><div>been to Auschwitz and Hiroshima and added the comment `two places everyone should</div><div>visit'. Add the memorial here to the list. There was one thing that really hit me that shouldn't</div><div>have made a difference but did. In one room they had clothing from various victims on</div><div>display. It was mostly non-western, no sports t-shirts or anything like that except</div><div>for one - a Cornell sweatshirt. </div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div>Ok.</div><div><br /><br /></div><div></div><div>Last Saturday I did one of my favorite things to do in a new city. I got on a bus</div><div>with no idea of the destination and rode it til the end of the line with the plan of </div><div>walking back home - it's a nice way to see different districts. Except this went </div><div>to the place Ihad walked to the previous night. So I decided to keep going </div><div>forward. I realized I was leaving the city. Off to my right was a big hill that </div><div>was undeveloped - no roads, no housing developments, but a few trails and a </div><div>few huts halfway up. So I get off the road and hike up the hill, every now and </div><div>then coming to a hut filled with half a dozen kids or so who never see a </div><div>mzungu (foreigner) up where they live in the woods. Then I ran into Fred </div><div>(see above). After a bit of confusion with me trying to communicate</div><div>in my tiny amount of French (French is much more useful than English here)</div><div>we realized neither of us spoke French but we both spoke English. Fred </div><div>volunteered to be my guide to the top of the mountain. The kids (not his) </div><div>followed along for the fun of it. They got a big kick out of seeing their picture. </div><div>Fred and I walked together for over an hour - he got me to a bus stand so </div><div>I could get home. He really wanted me to get him a job - I could only give </div><div>him my water bottle, some food I had and a couple bucks (real money here).</div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div>The mzungu thing is very real. People, especially small children, point at you</div><div>and call you one. And people try to overcharge you. A funny story: </div><div>I got a haircut recently. I asked a student I know where I should go. He </div><div>insisted on coming with me and asked the price. It was 500 Rwf </div><div>(Rwandan francs, about $1). When the time came to pay they explained </div><div>the price of 500 was for him, for a mzungu it was 1000.<br /></div><div></div>Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5843177232940455444.post-21526173572175542982009-01-04T02:09:00.000-08:002009-01-13T09:53:35.507-08:00<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWtf9KWiYruCDORtRv8H-8rAMfRDFqSeED1_FP9N_tlcFtZ0241Q4jzd6d5W53CF5j6ATRllb9-yy-C_Q-Nxt5hNVeacZ0uwx_4Lb6tAzIHSjyxKOBsIkongPSgjmOSBZH_N9lUmanPgio/s1600-h/P1000028.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290127265896957890" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWtf9KWiYruCDORtRv8H-8rAMfRDFqSeED1_FP9N_tlcFtZ0241Q4jzd6d5W53CF5j6ATRllb9-yy-C_Q-Nxt5hNVeacZ0uwx_4Lb6tAzIHSjyxKOBsIkongPSgjmOSBZH_N9lUmanPgio/s320/P1000028.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN6aMJd8qYW6mBFzIh0A8j1WGHzFfe1OysVvBCoMdFD-NSO0opDw2GNVC9rWZsgrQfeOkaXxwZ8BO_ch1llCVrWArTgKDV9Ux_1r1sgH7mFAX8q_hN7Sa7jwycZhixweg9JkiSgUXuSZDl/s1600-h/P1000024.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290123981907394018" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN6aMJd8qYW6mBFzIh0A8j1WGHzFfe1OysVvBCoMdFD-NSO0opDw2GNVC9rWZsgrQfeOkaXxwZ8BO_ch1llCVrWArTgKDV9Ux_1r1sgH7mFAX8q_hN7Sa7jwycZhixweg9JkiSgUXuSZDl/s320/P1000024.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIeEDwFyJ_bM9Gpf0N_SLOMdSRldUpl5xujBsUSPnYEgDLaeo9K7MARnWm5aJ0F4bj7pQCM5SFlj7Fmc6JMcC-31YHlRWL8-5Lvq56ua6wivftyMTIBtwZrszfnl48s6Vq6s4V38JImPG/s1600-h/P1000025.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290122650510190418" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAIeEDwFyJ_bM9Gpf0N_SLOMdSRldUpl5xujBsUSPnYEgDLaeo9K7MARnWm5aJ0F4bj7pQCM5SFlj7Fmc6JMcC-31YHlRWL8-5Lvq56ua6wivftyMTIBtwZrszfnl48s6Vq6s4V38JImPG/s320/P1000025.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><br /><div>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. </div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><div>Kigali itself is at about 5000 feet and maybe 50-100 miles south of the equator.</div><div>The temperature is pretty moderate, highs around 80 and lows around 60. Rwanda</div><div>is (justly!) called the Land of a thousand hills. The city is built on several hills, each</div><div>about as big as the hill on which Cornell sits. I get my exercise just walking up</div><div>and down them checking out the city. I'm living in a guest house on the campus</div><div>of KIST (Kigali Institute of Sciences and Technology) about 100 yards from my office.</div><div>Pictures of the guest house, my academic building and a view of the city are</div><div>above.<br /></div><br /><div></div><div>I'll be teaching an algebra class here. It supposed to start tomorrow, but I'm told</div><div>that not many students show up for the first week. The course schedule was only published</div><div>online today and most students don't have the internet. Most students can't afford books,</div><div>there are no texts here. They learn only from notes.</div><br /><div><br /><br /></div><br /><div></div></div>Ravi Ramakrishnahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13090152451390325185noreply@blogger.com6