Strolling through Ruhija

Since our trek to visit the gorillas had been relatively short, we decided we could take a tour of the Ruhija community. It's interesting how the government has allowed the native people to remain on plots of land in the park.  We visited a family to watch them demonstrating grinding sorghum into flour for porridge.  No Cuisinart here,  just two flat rocks and you own power.  It would not take long to develop strong arms grinding flour each day.  

We also observed a young medicine man mashing medicinal plants in a large wooden mortar and pestle to make a tincture said to settle stomach pains and clear intestinal parasites. From there,  we strolled along the road meeting goats, pigs and the occasional chicken or cow. There were bricks drying in the sun next to the gouges in the red soil. The amount of hand labor required for each building here is impressive.  Each brick being hand formed,  stacked, baked, transported to the building site and eventually used to
construct a home or trading shop.

Our final destination was the primary school and orphanage where we met some of the 330 pupils who reside and study there.  It was heart wrenching to see the dormitories where the children sleep two and three to a bed. The classrooms are also quite crowded with about 8 wooden bench style desks and seats for around thirty students. Most of the students had gone home on break for the holidays but the few who remained drummed and danced to welcome us. They all appeared content although most have few possessions.  The majority of small children run around without shoes and their clothes are most often second hand. One particularly precocious 3 year old followed us around hamming it up, chattering and hassling Sam asking for his pen and his phone, then entertaining us with a spontaneous dance with a basket on his head as a hat. His gregarious nature serving as a reminder to both appreciate all the comforts and prosperity we have and to remember that true happiness is not dependent on material goods.