Being on a SCAW distribution requires you to live in the moment, be flexible, resilient, focused, and very much open to a variety of experiences.
Rwanda is an amazing country that continues to work very hard as Rwandans focus on bettering the life that they live. Everywhere you look, people are moving either by walking, on bikes, motorcycles, cars, vans, buses and trucks. And all these modes of transportation know how to weave in and out while integrating their movement on the road that they share in what seems to be guided by some invisible master conductor.
Given that Rwanda is a very mountainous country, when travelling on the roads, you are continuously going up and down, while turning left and right.
You see people walking with a variety of loads on their heads.
You see bicycles equipped primarily with single gears, carrying amazing loads - from people on the back as bike taxis, to loads of hundreds of pounds of fruit, vegetables, building supplies or furniture going up and down these hills! You can see the effort, strength and determination it takes of those who ride these bikes!
Then there are the myriad of motorcycle taxis who really are the master weavers as they negotiate heavy traffic and swirl around slower vehicles in a very gentle yet purposeful manner to get to their destination in the shortest possible time so that they can get the next fare.
The cars, vans, buses and trucks pass each other often under various road conditions using a horn or a signal to warn each other while helping each other getting to their destination. For most of the country, the speed limit is 60 km per hour with a few stretches where up to 80 km per hour is allowed. These speeds are constantly monitored through the ever-present photo radar that is everywhere. Also, the Rwandan police are very vigilant and watching while working as teams to ensure any traffic offences are dealt with efficiently.
The movement of all of these modes of transportation resemble the movement of the jitterbug, tango, slow waltz, and every other modern dance you can think of given the interaction between drivers who look at each other while moving forward. And the bottom line: we have seen no accidents and it all works!
At the end of the day, we join the cacophony of traffic with the visual memories of the happy, smiling faces of children who received a bedkit today. It makes everything that we experience so worthwhile!
For the Children,
Team Rwanda, 2025
Rotary Club of Kigali Virunga 🇷🇼 and SCAW 🇨🇦