Small Bits of My Life: My house and funny things

I can't even believe that TODAY, three years ago, I moved here! Sometimes it seems like just yesterday and somedays it seems like I've been here longer. =)

So today is a little glimpse into my house and some funny differences of living in Rwanda.

I have come full circle. Since moving to Rwanda, I have lived in 4 houses. I moved into the first for only 1 month just to figure out what kind of living situation I would need/want. Then I moved into a neighborhood called Gaculiro pronounced something like: Gah-Chu-LEE-RO. In Rwanda, "r" and "l" are interchangeable, so it can also be Gacuriro, or Gacurilo. After returning to start my second year, I moved to a neighborhood called Remera and as of July 1, I'm back in Gaculiro. I live on Benjamina St., which was recently numbered KG 412. 

Gaculiro is also called the "Vision 2020 Estates", it was designed by the government to promote the middle class of Rwanda. It is essentially a neighborhood of 300 town homes, most houses are connected to a neighboring home. As you can see on the street, each home is behind a fence; this is typical of most neighborhoods in Rwanda. Even the smallest of houses have some type of vegetation or markers around the property. 

Below are my gate and my house:

I like living in Rwanda because I can decorate with lots of different colors using fabrics and baskets! See my living room.

I am sharing this house with two teachers from the Kigali International Community School. They haven't arrived back from their summer holiday, otherwise I would've included pics of them.

So, next up are the things that have just become part of my life. Rwanda tip #1: Don't drink the water.

Unfortunately, the pipes that bring water to our houses are not cleaned well, so you can get really sick from drinking the water. To prevent illness, we all use some form of filter. With some filters you have to boil the water and then filter, but fortunately this one does not require boiling. So we pour tap water on the top half and it filters the yuckies out and gives us clean drinking water from the bottom.

Speaking of boiling, my stove/oven is gas powered, see the large orange propane tank sitting next to it?
So, it's kind of like camping, you have propane to light the stove and oven until the propane runs out. There are no gauges to know WHEN it will run out, so it generally happens while you are in the middle of cooking. Propane tank shops are pretty common, but it's just the frustration of being in the middle of cooking a meal and having to load the large orange tank, which is light when it's empty, but pretty heavy when it's full. My size of tank is about $40 to refill and we can go through one tank every 2-3 months depending on how many people are in the house.

One of my favorite things (and most hated when it runs out) is prepay "cash power" or electricity. I believe this is something America should definitely consider. It helps me manage my electricity usage and if you don't have credits, you don't have electricity. It doesn't allow you to use what you don't have money to pay for. Most supermarkets or small shops will have machines to allow you to buy more credits.
So currently, I'm at 42 units, which will last me about a week. My house is pretty small and doesn't have too many things burning too much electricity. Electricity for this house is about $60/month and it will be split by 3 of us. I have a washer and dryer, but the dryer uses a lot of units (anything that heats), so we mostly line dry to save money.
The power is pretty consistent here, though there are still some random power outages. Some neighborhoods are worse than others, this is one of the better about having consistent power. 

The next funny thing that ensures I have a warm shower (as long as we have power) is an instant shower heater. The water from the pipes run through the box attached on the wall and heats the water instantly. It is actually pretty efficient as opposed to a hot water tank, because it only turns on when you are in the shower.

Another funny thing about my life...my dachshund, Diego. There is a family who breeds dachshunds here, but little Diego didn't have a home before they left for a summer leave. The family asked us if we could keep him permanently or until they found a home for him. Needless to say, he stayed. That little guy is a constantly source of funny. I also like to take him for walks in the neighborhood because everyone is pretty entertained by his little legs. My old roommate was a chiropractor and worked from our house. I'm confident that the majority of her clients only saw her so they could visit Diego. I have several ask since I moved if they could come play with him (those are the adults, by the way).
Dog food is pretty expensive here, so Diego gets a nutritious diet of rice, hamburger meat, carrots, green beans and yogurt. 

So I have two more messages to go this week talking about where I've been and where I'm going. Stay tuned for more small bits!