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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Now three months into her adventure in Rwanda, Crystal Milligan is learning a lot through her experience.

Milligan was born and raised in Yellowknife. The 25-year-old went to Kigali, Rwanda on July 20 to take part in the Youth in Partnership program.

Crystal Milligan is currently doing development work in Kigali, Rwanda. Here she is in Nyungwe National Park. She said Rwanda is a unique country that intrigues her. - photo courtesy of Crystal Milligan

She is doing development work that focuses on HIV/AIDS among Rwandan youth. Part of her role is make sure gender equality and equalization are considered before taking action.

"Gender mainstreaming is a term to describe the incorporation of boys, girls, men and women's concerns and experiences into all policies and programs so that all people benefit equally," said Milligan. "Rwanda has had the greatest percentage of female parliamentarians in the world. Many Rwandans assume nothing more needs to be done. The reality is that the large majority of Rwandan women do not benefit from the current 56 per cent majority in parliament."

Milligan said there are policies and programs that look good on paper, but people need to be educated about the impact of gender in daily life.

She is enjoying her time in Rwanda.

"I have only been here three months but I can see very well how Africa seeps into your skin," said Milligan. "This is a continent of contrasts, most obviously between black and white and rich and poor. I am attracted to Africa by the same thing that first attracted me to the so-called developing world: its natural vibrancy of life. Others might say these places are primitive, whereas I see a very raw and rich humanity that I think gets lost a little in North America."

She said feeling part of the community is very rewarding, but being a foreigner or "muzungu" can be challenging.

"I am still adapting to the culture here, a task made more complicated by the fact that the rewards and challenges of being a foreigner - muzungu - in this culture are one and the same: I get a lot of attention," said Milligan.

She said sometimes kids want to touch her hair or skin while other times she will be warmed by the connections she makes with young children and their mothers.

She said she enjoys the food with a few exceptions.

"I generally eat as the Rwandans do, particularly at lunch," said Milligan.

Rwandans eat a large buffet style lunch where they pile their food on their plates a few inches high. For some people it is the only meal of the day.

The Rwandan buffet includes cassava leaves and roots, brown beans, potatoes, stewed bananas and rice.

"I cannot say that cassava is my favourite at all, but I pile on the bananas and beans," said Milligan. "I also eat a great amount of fresh pineapple and avocado."

Rwandans also eat chicken, fish and red meat in small quantities.

"Goat is more frequently eaten than beef because it is less expensive," said Milligan. "One of my favourite quick and cheap evening meals is a goat brochette (salted goat meat on a skewer) with fried bananas."

She said there are many good restaurants in Kigali, but added she misses salmon and cheese nachos and will eat them when she returns to Canada.

She has learned some words in the Rwandan language Kinyarwanda, but said she has a long way to go to fluency. She can get by with French and English.

"I've been lucky to meet many interesting Rwandans simply by virtue of knowing how to ask them what is new: amakuru?" said Milligan. "Then I cannot go any further. I would like to learn more and am looking for a teacher."

She said she has seen some traditional Rwandan dance performances.

"There is something about Rwandan traditional dance that simply mesmerizes me," said Milligan. "It conveys such passion and emotion, as though the dance steps were not steps at all, but rather instinctive responses to the music."

She said she has been healthy. She takes malaria pills, uses a mosquito net and boils drinking water.

Milligan said she will finish in Kigali on Jan. 23. She is scheduled for a debriefing in Antigonish, N.S. on Feb. 1.

She is not sure what she will do when she finishes her position.

"I hope for a development job that will allow me to build on what I have learned here and in my past experiences," said Milligan. "This could be anywhere, but I am thinking of taking some time to reacquaint myself with Canadian turf, be closer to family and learn a bit more about my own country's approach to international development. I'm already looking into potential opportunities now, but the future is wide open."