Rwanda Experience

Flash back 2015. I was in Dubai on a holiday with my parents. We had all gathered in the all day diner of the hotel we were staying in- Marriott Al Jaddaf. Morning breakfast taken with family are always special. They lead to something I believe. The restaurant had only us as guests. This lady – the host walked to us with a smile asking for our order and welcoming us to the restaurant. I asked her what what her name was. I was curious to know where she was from and how she liked working in Dubai. Noella was from Kigali, Rwanda and she was determined to work in her own country after gaining good experience in the hospitality industry. I immediately checked up on wiki, details about the country. All this while, my family was listening in on the conversation at the table. I told her casually that my next work destination would be Kigali, Rwanda! I had actually made no plans to work there nor did I have an offer to work there. It was just spontaneously that I uttered those words.

Fast forward July, 2016. I saw a tempting position in my line of work, which I will discuss in another article, and I chose to apply! Within days I was on the plane to Kigali! :) 7 hours later I was in this beautiful country that amazed me with the cleanliness and warmth of the people. Greenery all over, the land of thousand hills was the apt name given to this wonderful country. I could have not asked for a better country to start my African experience other than Rwanda. As I now write this article, it’s been over 1.5 years of work experience there and I am now back to India. If you get an opportunity to work or visit Rwanda, do not miss it! You will meet amazing souls that are always ready to help you, always around to show you the right way should you get lost. In terms of safety, you could actually walk out at night with hard cash and not worry about it! The city has good provision of security on the roads with officials carrying a gun to take care of citizens in case of any eventuality. Rwanda is now becoming the East African hub and companies are eager to conduct business meetings, conferences in the country. Why not? Who would not want to take an opportunity to be in the Switzerland of Africa ? Rwanda also has an exclusive body called RDB – Rwanda Development Board, that promotes the country and showcases the country on the world map. In terms of activities, there is too much buzz from the non-profits of the world. A lot of meaning work is being conducted in the field of health, environment and conservation. I met some wonderful people and had an opportunity to learn from them. Talking about Rwanda, I cannot miss to talk about the gorilla safaris. There are many trails that can be explored in Rwanda. There’s this volcano safaris that I clearly remember. People would book months in advance to come see the wildlife. I had an opportunity to also witness the gorilla naming ceremony called – Kwita Izina! Exciting ain’t it? I could actually sit and go on about all the beautiful moments that I spent in the country. Before I close this article on a sudden end (lol), I cannot miss to share with you this picture below. This is how Kigali looks like at night! It’s like the stars have descended on earth!

Now If you get an opportunity to work in Africa, try to work in Rwanda as this will tell you how Africa is growing and how fast it is developing.