What a Wonderful World
Sometimes you stumble into a place and immediately fall in love with every intimate detail; the people, the place, the language. As you travel more and more, you learn that wherever you go, people are always willing to lend you a smile, or a helping hand. No matter where I travel to, the rich voice of Louis Armstrong always resonates in the back of my head. This truly is, “a wonderful world.” Rwanda was no exception to this. The country is lovingly referred to as, “Le pays de mille collines,” the translation being, “the land of a thousand hills.” As you gaze upon the lush, rolling hills sprawled out before you, you can’t help but agree that its beauty is only one of the many reasons to fall in love with the country. Rwanda reminded me to appreciate all that’s around me, especially the people, places, and languages.
The Rwandan people were the first to captivate me. I straggled into customs off of the airplane in Kigali, the country’s capital, at 1:00am. Bleary-eyed and bedraggled, I lugged my bags up to the counter. The man behind the desk greeted me with a warm, welcoming smile, despite the hour. In addition to providing me with friendly service, he also described his favorite places to visit, and restaurants to eat at. My initial encounter of the people of Rwanda set a precedent that was only surpassed by even more friendly and welcoming people in the weeks to come.
One other moment that particularly stands out took place on a day when we were browsing in the local markets. I had bought a handful of postcards in one of the first places we stopped, and we had continued on down the road. Almost 40 minutes later, a man rushed up to me, breathless. He must have been running, and he seemed very concerned. “Sister, you left something in our shop.” A bit confused, I couldn’t think of what I could have left in his shop. I followed him down the road, and was taken into the back of the store. A woman opens up her purse, and shows me my iPad! I couldn’t believe that I had left it behind. I must have taken it out of my bag to pay for the postcards. I was overwhelmed with gratitude that they had gone out of their way to return it to me. All too often you hear stories about people complaining about pickpockets or robberies when they are abroad. However, the people of Rwanda even went out of their way to ensure that my iPad was returned to me. Although taking precautions is always a safe method when traveling, I think that also having faith in the goodness of people can go a long way.
Whenever I travel, language is always one thing that I can’t seem to get enough of. Language can be something that separates us, but it can also be a bridge that connects us. The exchange of language is such a beautiful thing. I have always loved learning new languages, and I didn’t hesitate to do so while I was in Rwanda. My favorite Kinyarwanda phrase that I learned was “ntakibazo,” which is pronounced as nah-chee-bah-zoh. It is the equivalent to the famous Swahili phrase, “Hakuna Matata” or the Spanish “no pasa nada.” It means no problem, or no worries.
All too often we live in such a high-paced state of being. Especially in the United States, I think we can get too caught up in where we are going, what we are doing next. If you continuously live in this state, it is easy to forget to live in the present, and to just enjoy where you are in that moment. Therefore, I love the way that ntakibazo can ground you. It forces you to take a deep breath, and forget about the things that you can’t control. Rwanda encouraged me to remember what the most important things in life are: connecting with people and learning to live for today. So the next time I am feeling overwhelmed with work, school, and stress, I’ll remember to say “ntakibazo.” If you can’t control it, why worry about it? Life should be about enjoying the people and places around you, not worrying about what’s next. Much like Louis Armstrong, I always “think to myself, what a wonderful world,” no matter which country I travel to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYWMhzIRzuU
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Even Thomas Edison would be astounded at just how much the use of electricity has transformed the world, and there seems to be no limit to what the future will hold in terms of technological advances. With electricity comes Wi-Fi, Facebook, and the all-consuming Netflix. It brings around the world connections through Skype, and Google searches to provide vast knowledge at the touch of your fingertips. But despite all of these options. it seems we are steering into a world of even less personal connections. Socializing has begun to feel like a chore, as it would be all too easy to instead just stay inside to “Netflix and chill,” and even Netflix judges you after a few too many episodes with the prompting… “Are you STILL watching?!” It seems that we are wanting to be more and more connected, and yet we are losing touch with just how to do so. Even with an endless array of opportunities to reach out to people, many still claim feelings of loneliness and isolation.
Staying at the Discover Rwanda Hostel in Kigali illuminated just how much we depend on electricity. We had more blackouts than we had power, and as soon as the rooms went dark there was much grumbling. Without electricity there was no way to charge our phones and cameras, and no way to access the Wi-Fi. However, when the lights went out, it seemed to transform the hostel. People appeared to crawl out of the woodwork, and there seemed to be even more mingling in the common areas. My best conversations at the hostel were during the blackouts, as we sat in the dark and wondered aloud about the amazing transformation that Rwanda has seen in the past 20 years. We laughed together, as the local Rwandans tried to teach us words in Kinyarwanda. We discussed the similarities and differences between the United States and Rwanda, and just how small the world can truly be. The sounds of our singing intertwined together, as Chinese words mixed with English, French, and Kinyarwanda. We lounged on the hostel porch with the setting sun the remaining light, as we gazed upon the lightning and thunderstorms rolling in.
Towards the end of our time in Rwanda, I came to welcome the blackouts. It meant that we would all come together in the common areas. It meant that we would connect, without a Wi-Fi signal. It meant that no matter how much technology advances, nothing will compare to just being with people.
We still romanticize the light of the candle, and I think I learned the reasoning behind this during my time spent in Rwanda. Although we seem to love new gadgets and new technology, we love simplicity too. We love simply spending time with others. Because of this, I hope that I remember to just simply be, when times seem too complicated. It is in our simplest moments, that come the most beautiful memories.
When the lights go off, life truly turns on.