Lazy Saturday

Mar 29th

Umuganda Day. We decide to have a restful weekend (it’s the first weekend in a month that I haven’t been dashing off somewhere). By early afternoon the rain clouds are coming in, so we make a foray to the market and stock up with veg. I’m getting more used to this market thing now, and we try to strike hard bargains with 50 franc pieces rather than 100 franc notes. Sometimes we think we’ve done well, other times we know we’ve been ripped off by the raucous laughter as soon as we leave. What I find more intimidating than the market women is the crowds of aimless street kids that crowd in on you while you’re buying. What is it with them? Don’t they believe that muzungus need to buy food and eat it? Or are they hoping that in some miraculous way we’ll suddenly turn round and buy them all food (or give them cash to buy their crack or whatever)?

In the evening Karen invites us to come round to her place an play cards, and she’s got electricity so it’s an offer we can’t refuse! Spend the evening playing Newmarket, and eating our biscuits, Christi’s popcorn and Karen’s Maltesers (unheard of luxury, but then Karen’s going back home to England for a couple of weeks so she’s be able to eat all the chocolate she likes…)

Best thing about today – plying cards with friends and gorging on goodiesWorst thing – still no power. Electrogaz said they couldn’t come in the Afternoon because it was too wet and dangerous to be messing around with electricity (that’s the most stupid excuse I’ve ever heard. It’s their bloody JOB to play around with electricity. I bet if the problem was in Government offices there wouldn’t be any crap about too wet to work…). Tomorrow, of course, is Sunday, so nothing will happen then. No power till Monday at the earliest!