Cultural Tidbits

Owls

If you see one at night it is taboo.  When an owl comes to visit you, it means that you did something to make your ancestors upset and someone close to you will pass away very soon.

Chicks

Yesterday on the moto, there was a chicken and a few chicks following behind it attempting to cross the road.  When my moto driver almost killed us to avoid hitting them I was a little baffled.  Is it really worth all that??  Then apparently he read my mind because his response to the thought in my head was, "It is okay to kill the big chicken, but when you kill a baby chicken, you will have bad luck."

Skin

Just like many people in America, the people of Rwanda believe that to have lighter skin is to be more beautiful.  Someone the other day told me that I was getting darker and I smiled and told him that it was not a problem and that I didn't mind being dark.  Then he said, "But if you keep getting darker you will no longer be beautiful."  I did my best to explain to him that

all variations of black are beautiful, but he was adamant on the fact that lighter is better.  I just don't understand the logic behind this way of thinking.  Why does skin have to be such a determining factor for beauty?  Also, when I say that I am black, some people here seem to get offended and then they try to convince me that one of my parents is black and one is white, therefore I am brown.  I tell them that in America, I am black, both of my parents are black, and that black people come in all different shades of brown.  By the end of the conversation, they still don't get it, so I just change the subject and let them think what they will.

Dogs

One of my posts from last month (or the month before) talks about dogs and why they are looked down upon in Rwanda.  But in a nutshell, the people here don't like them because during the genocide, they roamed the streets, eating the flesh of their dead owners.  So to call someone a dog here is very offensive.  So offensive that when a woman calls her husband a dog (out of anger or as a joke) he is able to divorce her immediately and send her back home with her parents.  By the way, divorce is almost non-existent here...that should tell you how serious they are about this dog business.

Living Alone

It is not usual or okay for a woman to live alone in Rwanda so I have basically been the village weirdo since moving here.  Everyone asks why I live alone and when I tell them why, they proceed to tell me that it is not safe and that someone should be living in my house with me.  Almost a dozen women have tried to move in with me (I'm not sure if it's for safety reasons or because they think I'm rich), but after kindly declining, they proceed to tell me again that someone should be living with me so that nothing bad happens.  Everyone's concern is very reassuring, but also scares me a little bit...is it really that unsafe for a woman to live alone?...I wonder to myself, what's the worst that can happen?    And then I really get scared...A LOT can happen!

Newcomers

When someone new comes into the village, it is customary for everyone to come and greet that person and to do their best to make them feel welcome.  On my first night at site, I didn't really have any food so when dinner time rolled around, a few of the students who live near my house came over and extended an invitation for me to come and eat with them.  I love how hospitable they are here...nothing like in America.

The next day when I was cleaning my house, these same students came by and one of them took the mop right out of my hands and finished the job.  I told her that I could do it and she said, "No, let me."  I felt bad watching her clean my house, but she really wouldn't give the mop back.  It amazes me how humble and thoughtful Rwandese people are.  No one in America would ever drop their pride enough to clean your house unless they were being paid.

Love and Peace Corps,

Dametreea