Live Like a PCV Challenge

So, there's a challenge going on to live like a Peace Corps volunteer for one week. There are different requirements for each country and Rwanda doesn't have its own, but I made up some for people to follow.

This is the schpeal from Peace Corps:
On March 1st this year Peace Corps will be celebrating it’s 50th
anniversary and as a part of the activities in our year long
celebration currently serving volunteers have developed the “Live Like
a Peace Crops Volunteer Challenge” As a participant in this challenge
individuals back in the U.S. are asked to give up some everyday
conveniences for one week, in part to help raise awareness of the
Peace Corps mission and also to give the participant a small taste of
Volunteer life. You have received this email as a part of our March
push to recruit challenge participants. Please take a moment to find
out more about our “Live Like a PCV Challenge” by visiting
LiveLikeaPCV.org even if you decide not to take part you can be a huge
help to us by simply forwarding this email, and if you have a Facebook
account marking our FB page as a favorite. (you can find our face
book page through LiveLikeaPCV.org)

And here are the requirements I created for PC Rwanda:


These are based on my current living conditions and as a disclaimer; I live pretty posh compared to other PCVs both in Rwanda and in other countries.

· Only cold shower, or you can heat up water and put it in a bucket to bathe with.
· Only eat food that you cook. No restaurants! No foods that need refrigeration (cause you don’t have a fridge!)
· Must buy only locally grown produce (fruits and veggies, rice, potatoes, meat, etc.) [I know this is going to be hard, but if you can, do!]
· No packaged foods, no prepared foods [dried pasta, rice, bread okay, no cookies, chips, prepared meals]
· Cannot drink water from the tap! Must first boil the water and let it cool or spend way too much money on bottled water. No cold drinks! (cause again, you don’t have a fridge!) [this is easy to do if you boil your drinking water the night before. By morning it will be cool enough to drink]
· No TV at home, no internet at home. Can use the computer to watch things as long as they are files you own and not streaming from the internet or DVDs.
· Can only use one burner to cook meals with and no oven or microwave!
· Try your hardest to cook in only one pot or pan because you don’t like doing dishes and don’t want a lot to clean up! [haha, I do this all the time!]
· No washer or dryer! Must wash clothes by hand and hang them to dry.
· No dishwasher! Must wash them by hand and put them in a rack to dry or dry with a towel.
· No warm water comes from any tap in the house, can only use cold water. Only cold water is available unless you heat it up yourself on the stove or in an electric kettle.
· Must greet everyone you see [that you know, and some you don’t] with a handshake and asking how they are
· Only use your phone for texting or short phone calls [airtime is expensive!]
· Read an entire book this week
· Watch an entire season of a show (on your computer, you don’t have a TV and you especially don’t have a DVD player… or BluRay!)
· Wear only sandals the entire week
· Sleep under a mosquito net every night
· Can only use cash. No debit cards, no credit cards, but you can get your cash from an ATM

Some things from my old lifestyle (when I lived in the village) and from other PCVs in Rwanda

· Only go to the bathroom outside in a latrine [I know this is impossible, but thought I’d add it because this is SOOOO common]
· In the early evening shower outside using a bucket of water heated in the sun during the day
· Cook outside on a fire or with charcoal, or if you’re fancy with a gas burner
· Only use water obtained from rain or from a tap near your house [you don’t have running water in the house, so you must go outside to get it]
· Lose power for at least 2 hours every night
· Have the water go out for half a day