Writing Travel

Update from Sandra Basgall on her travel to the eastern frontier of the Congo

 

Note: This is Sandra's January 22 report from Goma. Next stop on her itinerary is Bukavu. I am anxiously awaiting more news.

Goma in Eastern DR Congo has a frontier town feeling. Beautifully situated on Lake Kiva, one of the African Great Lakes, and the Micumba Mountains, this eastern border town lies along the Great Rift Valley where many of the African Great Lakes are found as well as many active volcanoes. The most active volcano in Africa, Mount Nyiragongo, sits to Goma’s north. In 2002, lava flowed through the center of town for the fourth time in a century. Some buildings that were two-story are now one-story with basements. The lava rock is everywhere and is used for building walls and making into brick. Many of the roads are just lava rock, and this makes for quite a bumpy ride.

It is easier to come here through Rwanda whose border is only ten minutes away than to travel from Kinshasa, and many of the aid workers here never get to the capital as they enter and exit through Rwanda. For me to get here, I had to leave my home at 5 a.m. in Kinshasa for a 9 a.m. UN flight. That morning there were three flights, one to Goma, one to Bukavu, and another on which only UN troops flew. 

Sandra Basgall: Settling into my Kinshasa bungalow

  

Guest post by Sandra Basgall, Catholic Relief Services Central Africa

I may never return to the United States as my new furnished bungalow in Kinshasa is so nice. I am in a compound with about ten other bungalows and a good sized swimming pool. My bungalow is separated from the others with nice plantings and grass, and it feels quite private. There is a heavy gate with two guards that make sure the residents are safe. 

I have three bedrooms and three bathrooms. Now don’t get too excited, the small bath is just as you enter the house and for guests. The middle is for the two smaller bathrooms and has a nice shower. And the master bath has all the comforts of home as well as a nice tub! There are lovely built in drawers, shelves, and closets in the two small bedrooms and a large set in the hallway going into the master bedroom suite. What more could a girl ask for? And there is plenty of room for guests. 

Week 2 in Kinshasa ... and not counting

  

Guest post by Sandra Basgall, Catholic Relief Services Central Africa

The unsung heroes in the development world are the local staff.  If it were not for the regional administrative assistant, I would be completely in the dark.

He has organized temporary housing and working on permanent housing; he has helped me interview and hire household help; he has made sure I have drivers to take me around and without them, I would be lost; he has made sure that I get groceries; and he has just been there to answer questions. He works long hard hours, juggles many priorities, is constantly on the move, and an amazing asset. I take my hat off to him and others like him who have taken care of me around the world.

The house is in the works and I hope, if there are no glitches, to move in the end of the week.  I have hired a widow with six children to work five days a week for me. She has some English and will clean, wash and iron my clothes, and cook for me. It’s a little incestuous as she is the sister of one of my colleague’s housekeepers and the aunt of another. Just goes to show that it pays to have connections. As soon as I can move in, we, she and I will go the house and see what we need and go out and buy it. I look forward to getting settled.

Impressions of Kinshasa

Cedric_Kalonji_in_Kinshasa_CHILD_LABOR, originally uploaded by bukavuonline.

Guest post by Sandra Basgall, Catholic Relief Services Central Africa

Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is a bustling city of 8 to 10 million on the Congo River. Across the river lies the capital of the Republic of Congo, Brazzaville. This is the only place in the world where two capitals lie side by side.

From certain locations, you can see Brazzaville, just as large and busy as Kinshasa. There are no bridges connecting the two cities. Many people cross by speed boat and others on the overcrowded ferries. You need a visa to visit there.

Many of the boulevards in Kinshasa are very wide, but traffic is heavy, and during rush hour, the buses and taxis race each other to get the next passenger. These yellow and blue vehicles defy description. Some of them look like vans or old delivery trucks with windows cut out of the sides. People hold the doors closed by just hanging on to them. They are full, full, full of people and remind me of the old ‘70s game of seeing how many people can fit into a Volkswagen!

Many look like they can barely move, but my colleagues tell me that just a month ago, the worst of them were taken off the road. I can barely imagine what they looked like as this bunch is so rag-a-tagged. We have been told not to use buses or taxis as they are not safe mechanically and you might get robbed. I have no desire to ride in one.

Green bus in Kinshasa.Originally uploaded on Flickr by FredR/Creative Commons

Sandra Basgall: Settling into Kinshasa

Kinshasa street scene, originally uploaded by Irene2005.

Guest post by Sandra Basgall, Catholic Relief Services for Central Africa

I have been here a week now. I went from 16 hours plane sitting to 3 days of regional meeting sitting and so was really glad when the weekend came. One of the last tips I received before I left the States was to see if anywhere they served a fish called capitaine. This was someone who had eaten it 40 years ago as a Peace Corps volunteer in Togo and still remembered it with fondness. Imagine my surprise at the Thursday evening dinner during the regional meetings that the restaurant served capitaine. I, of course, ordered it. It was cooked in a banana leaf pouch with a lovely sauce and it was truly wonderful. I will have it again, many times.

At CRS CARO (Central African Regional Office), most of the major management positions are held by women. I think it sets a very interesting flavor and there seems to be a lot of collaboration and support. The regional director is an African-American woman who was three years in the Peace Corps in the Gabon and is married to a Senegalese. She has been RD for the last five years. Although we service seven other countries, the DRC is the largest in terms of program dollars, and they have the largest country program, also directed by a woman, an American. There is a real hodgepodge of other nationalities here, and it is interesting to learn where long-term Congolese CRS people have served.