Monday, January 17, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Baking Cakes in Kigali
Ah, the fascinating world of Angel Tungaraza, cake-maker extraordinaire! Although a tad like Mma Ramotswe's setting in the beginning, the book develops its individuality quickly and captures your attention. Interesting (and often funny) characters, mouth-watering cakes and stories (both happy and sad) will come your way as you read on about people and their situations and circumstances in current day Rwanda. I found the cross-cultural and language aspects particularly interesting. Angel is very endearing and Parkin shows her witty side often in this enjoyable book.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Burundi
NatGeo Picture: Burundi drummers perform during a tribal ceremony in Ninga. Small, poor, densely populated, and landlocked, Burundi lies just south of the Equator in central Africa. From the capital, Bujumbura, on Lake Tanganyika, a great escarpment rises to fertile highlands. Agriculture employs 90 percent of the people, with most being subsistence farmers. Since independence in 1962, Burundi has been plagued by ethnic conflict between the majority Hutus and the Tutsis, who tend to dominate the government and army—but are only 14 percent of the population. A 2003 cease-fire and new government offer hope for peace.
I found this information from the World Factbook interesting:
Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only 100 days in office, triggering widespread ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. More than 200,000 Burundians perished during the conflict that spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands of Burundians were internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring countries. An internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for a transition process that led to an integrated defense force, established a new constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu government in 2005. The new government, led by President Pierre Nkurunziza, signed a South African brokered ceasefire with the country's last rebel group in September of 2006 but still faces many challenges.
Burundi's first democratically elected president was assassinated in October 1993 after only 100 days in office, triggering widespread ethnic violence between Hutu and Tutsi factions. More than 200,000 Burundians perished during the conflict that spanned almost a dozen years. Hundreds of thousands of Burundians were internally displaced or became refugees in neighboring countries. An internationally brokered power-sharing agreement between the Tutsi-dominated government and the Hutu rebels in 2003 paved the way for a transition process that led to an integrated defense force, established a new constitution in 2005, and elected a majority Hutu government in 2005. The new government, led by President Pierre Nkurunziza, signed a South African brokered ceasefire with the country's last rebel group in September of 2006 but still faces many challenges.
Mini Fact-File:
- Official Languages: Kirundi, French (and unofficial: Swahili)
- Independence: From Belgium in 1962
- Capital: Bujumbura
- Currency: Burundi franc
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