That’s a wrap on our first tour

What I learned after spending two years living in one of the poorest countries in the world…

There is no sugar coating it - life here is difficult. I’ve had the privilege of living here as a U.S. diplomat and that has afforded me access to things that most locals don’t have. I have access to package deliveries from the U.S, a gas station at the embassy, a generator at my house, and a duty free grocery store. Locals queue in line for hours and sometimes days, for just about every single necessity of daily life. There are perennial shortages of gas, sugar, and often no electricity, and no water for extended periods of time. But I don’t want my time here to be just about the poverty because poverty is not the full story of this nuanced place. And to focus on the poverty would be focusing on a singular and incomplete story. In perhaps one of my favorite TED talks of all time, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie talks about the “Single Story” ( Check it out here!):

“The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete, they make one story become the only story”.

This could not be more true of my time and experience in Burundi. If I had not been posted here, I would have never visited and probably not even given this country a second thought- and that is the beauty and uniqueness of this job! A quick search of Burundi shows civil war, genocide in 2015, a dangerous border with the Congo, and utter poverty- but this is not the only story. To be here everyday, you meet local entrepreneurs, artisans, doctors, nurse’s and families that are all desperately trying to propel their beloved country forward. When you are here day in and day out, the poverty is visible, but it becomes only part of the story.

I’ll remember sitting on lake Tanganyika sipping wine from South Africa and eating freshly caught Sangala fillets with a side of fried bananas, I’ll remember homemade mango ice cream from our favorite Gelato Delights, I’ll remember the excitement in Chotu’s teachers voice when she proudly told us how well he had learned French, and I’ll remember trying fried Mukeke (eyes and all) for the first time, as the local nurses that I worked with looked on in sheer amusement.

When I think of Burundi I will think of sweet mangoes, avocados the size of eggplants, warm tropical days with Afro beats playing in the background, women wearing brightly colored kitenge while balancing bananas on their head as the small toes of the baby they are wearing poke out, I will think of eating my friend’s homemade and delicious sticky Ugali, and the curious kids smiling and yelling “Muzungu!” as we walk by. Mostly, I will think of all the local friends we met that showed us THEIR version of Burundi.

This is the Burundi I will take with me, and this is the Burundi I will tell people about.

Not that you will ever visit- but if you do….

Where to stay

Martha hotel

Kirriri Garden hotel

Burundi Palace Boutique hotel (great rooftop bar and restaurant)

Club de Lac

Where to eat

Tandoor (Indian food)

Chez Orphee (french food)

Le Baron (Burundian food)

Atrium (Burundian & Senegalese)

Buja cafe

Bahizi cafe

LM cafe

Maquis (Burundian)

Le Cafe Gourmand

Juiced (juice and smoothie shop in Jardin Publique)

Gelato delights (best homemade ice cream)

Vinothèque ZILLIKEN (restaurant and wine bar)

Where to shop and what to see

Le reflet- clothing store with modern clothes using local kitenge fabric

Musee vivant- shopping area next to the “zoo”

Chez Nathalie (shopping center with local handicrafts)

Drummers at Ruzizi river

Rumonge- south on the lake about 2 hours from Bujumbura: stay at Sunstone beach resort

Take a tour of the tea and coffee plantations

Arena- turns into bar/club in the evening with live music on the weekend

Three generations taking in views of the DRC from the shores of Lake Tanganyika.

Lake Tanganyika is an impressive sight. It’s a great lake, and the longest fresh water lake in the world (at 420 miles), and the second deepest (4,700 feet). With the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to the west, Burundi and Tanzania to the east, and Zambia to the south.

Sangala and Mukeke are fish found in Lake Tanganyika, often served as a filet with a side of vegetables or steamed/fried bananas. Avocado vinaigrette salad is always a must for a starter.

Next up: one month of home leave before heading to Moldova!