Category: Lifestyle

Kigali City is an entirely Photoworthy destination. Below are photo impressions of our cameraman Hamada Elrasam. Igihe.com gallery presents the latest of street fashion,glamour and style.

In our unending efforts to bring you closer to the local lifestyle of our society, Igihe.com is proud to introduce to you yet another celeb Prince Kid..our reporter Andrew Kareba held an exclusive interview with Prince Kid (pictured) and below we bring you exerpts of the full interview.

Igihe.com: What are your real names?

Prince kid: My parents named me Kagame Ishimwe Dieudonné, I was born in Kigali, 23yeas and single with no girlfriend because loving is like going on war. I don’t know how tall Iam, but I am tall enough. I stay with my parents.

Igihe.com: What is your stage name?

Prince kid: I use prince kid and it is a name I felt for so long and it is the abbreviation of my original names.
I believe in God, that is what I am in no doubt of and being called prince, it is a sign of being a true believer, and adding Kid to my name it does not mean I am immature, as I said before, it is an abbreviation of my true names.

Igihe.com: Tell us about your musical journey

Prince kid: I came to like music because I used to assemble different people particularly those who like music, and I used to listen to Jamaican music but most of that, I liked dancing very much, that is what inspired me to like music, but I will on no account fail to remember that Rafiki is a person who inspired me.
So far I have produced five tracks; I normally work with JP Production, Dj B and Junior.
I compose the songs because I have no specific outlook and what comes first in my mind is what I write about.

Igihe.com: Whats the level of your music career?

Prince kid: Music requires much effort and however much you sing with no target, you can not progress.

Igihe.com: Each career has its highs and lows. Explain to us about yours.

Prince kid: Promoters and producers respect for time and schedules is biggest challenge Iam faced with producers. However, I am trying my best gradually solving the challenge. Solving some of them I personally think twice point out the challenge and find means of handling it.

Igihe.com: All artists dream of launching albums, have you any?

Prince kid: That is true, but I can not say that it is there! The album is given name when it is out for your fans. I havent decided yet.

Igihe.com: what are your plans on expanding your music career abroad?

Prince kid: It is not easy but Iam planning to produce a song with Shanel from Burundi, Eddy Kenzo (Stamina) who saw my stage performance and appreciated, Grace Nakimera from Uganda of the Kawonawo track, also locally I have a song in collaboration with; Tom Close, The Brothers and Casanova but I have more songs pending in studio with Ridernan, Kitoko, knowless and Rafiki.

Igihe.com: Have you ever performed outside Rwanda?

Prince kid: Yes of course, I performed in Burundi, Uganda in Rwanda night

Igihe.com:How can your songs be accessed?

Prince kid: So far, I am not selling my songs , what I am doing now is to promote them as am planning to launch the first album by next year but this can not stop my funs from watching them, and requesting over radios.

Igihe.com: what is your projection in the next 3years?

Prince kid: No one knows his future because it is God’s plan and will, but according to what am doing now, I can say, it has improved. I will find myself fitting in East African Music competition.

Igihe.com: Who do you owe your success?

Prince kid: Specifically I can not say that here he is, but among those who had tried their best, I can express my gratitude to Riderman, Rafiki, Tom Close and Radio presenters.

Igihe.com: What do you think can astonish your parents?

Prince kid: I don’t know really, for the reason that if you can not do the finest to gratify your parents, you can never know how worth life is to you.

Igihe.com: Have you produced any videos?

Prince kid: Yes, I have three videos and show face, cedru and are the ones running the project.

Igihe.com: What is your worst moment?

Prince kid: Since 2008 I had video shooting project but until today, I have not yet got my video because I don’t know what is taking place.

Uganda’s popular dance hall music artist,self proclaimed Gheto president, commonly known as Bobi Wine yesterday wed his long time fiancee with whom they have three children.

Bobi wine was recently in Kigali where he performed at Sports View Hotel as fundriser for his wedding despite denial from the Event organisers.

A Ugandan weekend newspaper The SundayVision reported that Robert Kyagulanyi, alias Bobi Wine wed Barbara Itungo at Rubaga Cathedral in the capital Kampala.

Archbishop Cyprian Kizito Lwanga commended the couple for setting a good example to the youth.

“What you have done; to come and get married in church, shows that you understand your religion and love it because many people knew you as bayaga (weed smokers). I appeal to the youth and all those who have not yet got married in church to follow suit,” he said.

Lwanga said he had asked Bobi and Barbie to explain the dreadlocks and tattooing each other’s image on their bodies and was satisfied by their explanation. The couple explained to him that tattooing was similar to okutta omukago, a traditional method of expressing tight friendship. The dreadlocks, he added, was just a hairstyle and not a religious symbol.

Marriage record of Bobi Wines family

Bobi Wine’s family line has a history of marrying at Rubaga Cathedral. His great grandfather, Gilere Sentamu, wed Birizita Nalubega there in 1891.

On February 27, 1920 Bobi’s grandfather, Sentamu, walked down the aisle with Martita Nakirija in the same church. Bobi’s parents, Jackson Willington Sentamu and Margaret, followed suit on August 7, 1951.

“This shows that this family understands the Catholic church and their religion,” Lwanga said.
Lwanga told the couple that in the Catholic Church there is no room for divorce.

He expressed concern over the increasing infidelity among married couples. “Lack of faith is growing day by day. Many people are not faithful to their partners. You should fulfill your marriage vows,” Lwanga said.

Among the guests present were the Nabagereka (queen of Buganda), Sylvia Nagginda, the Kabaka’s brother, Prince David Wasajja; Prince Jjunju and several Mengo officials.

Also present were singer Jose Chameleone and his wife Daniela. Chameleon, who recently converted to Islam before making a U-turn, did not receive Holy Communion.

The Archbishop explained that he had to apologise publicly and go through a religious process before being re-admitted to the Catholic Church as required by the canon law.

He became famous after scooping his first prize during Task Project Fame season three in 2009 and he immediately rushed in the studio and released a song with Bebe cool of Uganda which hit the whole of east African community.

Igihe.com made an exclusive interview with Alpha Rwirangira(pictured below) and talked about his love for the music.

igihe.com: Can you talk about your back ground?

Rwirangira: Am Alpha Rwirangira, a Rwandese born on 25th May, 1986 in Geita town, Mwanza Region, Tanzania. I’m born in a family of five children and proud to be the first born in the family.

igihe.com: Tell us about your Educational back ground?

Rwirangira: Studied at Nyabohanse primary school in Kenya (1997-1999) and later at Omukarilo Primary school (2000-2002) in Karagwe district, Kagera Region, Tanzania where I completed primary school education. When we left for Rwanda in 2002, I joined APRED Ndera Secondary school and completed secondary education in Physics and Mathematics (2003-2008).

igihe.com: When did you know that you are gifted in singing?

Rwirangira: My passion for music started since I was young where my melody progressively increased as I grew up at school and started singing in church choirs where I worshiped regularly.

igihe.com: Are you in a stable relationship or you are still searching?

Rwirangira:(He smiles first) Well, I’m not in a relationship and I hope when the right person comes I will go with her.

igihe.com: How many albums do you have so far? Any collaboration with any of our artists?

Rwirangira: I have one album, but besides that album, I have other songs which are more than 27 and I have collaboration with Presence Priscilla.

igihe.com: Who is your role model among the famous artists worldwide?

Rwirangira:I always look forward to Jonathan Delter because he sings and at the same time a songwriter

igihe.com: How did you feel when your name emerged for second time to battle for Tusker all stars 2011?

Rwirangira: I was overwhelmed to hear that I were going to represent my country again and thanked to God for His greatness He always show me.

igihe.com:Were you confident from the beginning that you are going to win or just doubting your luck?

Rwirangira: (Laughs again) Yes at first I wasn’t sure because all my competitors are talented, but the final week to be in the house I would score higher points than all and this gave me hope that I would be the winner.

igihe.com: Can you tell readers the plans you have for the new song ‘umwana wa Africa’ which you are about to release?

Rwirangira: I composed this song after observing what is going on in Somalia and in Northern Kenya and thought that through my career as Rwanda artist I should do something to help and I hope to get some money out of the song and donate it a charity to the hungry people, especially those of Somalia.

igihe.com: What would be your advice to other local artists?

Rwirangira: I Wish to tell them that they should love each other because I believe with love our music industry can go high.

This year’s “Miss KIST 2011 title was on friday awarded to 20-year old GISARO JOE CHRISTA, in the official competition that took place at Muhabura block at Kigali Institute of Science and Technology.

In Second place, the runner up was Dukunde Minerve who was wore print number 1, while in third place was Umurerwa Igire Emeline Currently Miss Gasaro studies Architecture in first year, says she was very confident among all 8 contestants that is why she looks forward to leading her fellows into a new, modern future.

Gasaro further urged young women to confidently follow their dreams regardless of what society thinks of them, “I feel proud to represent my University as a beauty queen and do not regret my decision, She advised young women should not be scared of society but do what they think is right,” she said.

Julienne Mukandekezi the mother of crown miss KIST, finds her daughter as a role model to youth and not to be scared of society.

Mukandekezi noted, “If she is crowned as KIST’s representative hope it will not affect her studies. My daughter likes studying that is why I don’t have to be afraid of my daughter being crowned because her vision is to complete her studies,” she added.

In her speech, Dr. Jeanne D’arc mujyawamariya, the Rector of KIST says, they will keep on promoting culture, and she awarded best students in sports and culture.

Gasaro Joe Christa, the new Miss KIST 2011 is a last born from the family of four children, a boy and three girls, one of the contestants that participated is her cousin sister and came at the last position.

By: Stephen Mutasa
in Butare

Did you know of the public secret that exists at the university? If you did not then this is a window to it, not the door or else I might be seen as. -what?.

Let us leave that for next time and get to the secret which is the ever rising cases of cross generation sex coupled with prostitution being practiced by the students at the university.

Talking to one of the students who preferred to remain anonymous, she had this to say: “as long as the university is a human community then prostitution is inevitable. We as girls are pushed into this act and cross generation sex by a host of reasons.”

To her by the way a ten year age difference was alright for girls as an acceptable range. “These mature men offer security both emotionally and financially as you know that women are emotional and at times get carried away having such a man is an opportunity to keep up with the never ending competition between us ladies.”

What brings about this competition we asked and got even more revealing information. She mentioned the fact that most girls live lifestyles that they cannot afford with the meager funds they receive from their care takers.

“The money you get from home may not be enough to give you a pleasant campus livelihood.” She intimated. Some of the girls do get enough money she admitted but sighted the foible of ladies having very many demands as a cause even after getting ample support.

Furthermore, some are simply too “broke” to live the luxurious lifestyle which entails meeting people from different backgrounds. Ultimately this is all peer pressure so she added that giving the girls a lot of money was not the solution but rather have actively functional guidance and counseling services at the university. All this we got to know even after our source had initially claimed not having any knowledge of such actions but on convincing her of name discretion in the article later complied.

We still got to learn that girls engaged in this practice do this mainly after travelling to Kigali, where they meet these covetous men taking advantage of their love for the material world that they happen to possess.

“The girls who actually practice prostitution are usually picked up at night hangout places and paid some amount between 2000 and 3000 depending on their looks and consumption.”

She said that men were not so willing to pay high amounts if you consumed many items during the course of the night. Although this does not guarantee that all ladies at night spots are whores. Some are genuinely party lovers.

More so, talking to a gentleman, also a student that preferred to be anonymous said that the prostitutes in places like Tumba and Cyarwa were cheaper than any student prostitutes and that is why guys at campus prefer to go for such.

Evidence of this was manifested when a lady known to be a whore brought one of the products of her affair with a university student to the campus residential halls last year. This product was a baby! “The ones of Tumba are cheaper at a fee of 500 francs which is nothing in comparison to the 5000 you may pay for a campus girl who might have HIV from her older lovers in Kigali.”

This emphasizes the idea that a good number of girls are engaged in such activities with men some of whom have been mentioned, although that will be for next time. Watch this space

By: Supreetha Gubbala

As I casually passed by the MTN Center located in Nyarutarama city suburb, something new, red and unfamiliar caught my eye. It was a chique sign pointed off the Kacyiru main road, and amazingly read, “Sakae Japanese Restaurant.” I could hardly believe my eyes. A Japanese restaurant in Kigali?

It aroused a discussion with a good friend and long time Kigali resident, for me to realize that in fact, a new chef had arrived in town.

Opening its doors on July 1st, the restaurant already boasted a nearly full restaurant upon my arrival on Wednesday night.

Already salivating for the comforts of fresh sushi, restaurant owner Kang Su Lee greeted us warmly as we were seated and stared about in wonder.

The restaurant exuded the peaceful atmosphere of Zen with a much more simple formula. Displaying white graceful paper lanterns hanging from the high timber ceiling, and two Tepanyaki tables, the first of their kind here in Rwanda the restaurant simply had me at “Hello.”

As we excitedly flipped through the menu, we worried that perhaps like other restaurants attempts at sushi, the new Sakae may once again disappoint our fine tuned palates.

Fresh and raw fish of the kinds often required by sushi such as salmon, tuna, octopus, eel and shrimp are often difficult to obtain fresh, daily in Rwanda. But as one does in love, we took the risk. And I must say, I think we may have found the one.

Upon our first visit, we seated a table of four and ordered up a variety of Japanese sushi as well as Korean dishes.

As we awaited our food anxiously, we were provided with a fresh cabbage, avocado and tomato salad drizzled with tangy peanut sauce vinaigrette.

A perfect, light beginning to what preceded to be an equally satisfying meal.

My specific dish was number 40 on the menu the “Crunchy Prawns Roll” , which accurately created a perfect combination of crunchy tempura coating and fresh avocado, shrimp and tuna.

A close friend, ordered up the “Sakae Sushi Set”, after which she proceeded to order more pieces of the octopus and salmon sushi that were particularly good. The set contains 8 Chef recommended pieces of sushi, and 2 pieces of the special roll.

As she excitedly reveled in finally being able to eat good sushi in Rwanda, she pointed out: “I wouldn’t have dreamt of a Japanese restaurant in Rwanda but… here it is. The food is amazing, the service great and the atmosphere is simple yet beautiful.”

Other dishes ordered include the owner’s specialty and the sweet surprise of the menu: Korean food — Customer number 3 ordered up tempura-fried pork with a sweet sauce and rice. A long description short, he patted his stomach and sighed in sweet satisfaction at a readily emptied plate.

His wife, ordered up the well-known “Teriyaki Chicken” which also arrived with rice, which is a nice plus compared to the separate orders of rice required at neighboring restaurant, Zen. Her first experience with Japanese food proved to begin at a good place.

Midway through our meal, the owner brought out a complimentary platter of Gyoza, pan-fried dumplings that come with pork or mixed vegetables. Lucky for us, it turned out to be one of our favorite dishes for the night.

Upon our second dinner at Sakae on Thursday, the warm and friendly owner, opened up as to how he came to open up the first Japanese restaurant here in Rwanda.

“I had a friend in Kigali who said come see Rwanda, because I was opening up in Nairobi another restaurant, but Nairobi has a lot of problems. There are no many restaurants, no good restaurants actually, especially Japanese/Korean they seem to have none,”

Lee praised Rwanda for its peaceful atmosphere and intimated that when he came here it really was not expected to be in Kigali. He was just acquainting himself with all the problems, but now it is completely different, it is a like a new country. “It’s truly amazing…”

Kang is Korean and had previously been living in Nairobi for over 23 years. He holds much experience in the restaurant business. In fact, his former Chinese restaurant now run by his brother is the biggest in Nairobi.

Kang and his wife have been in the restaurant business for years, and his wife has personally trained many of the current chefs at Sakae.

“Most people know Japanese, but those who have tasted Korean love it. That’s why you see all those working at the Japanese embassy, here eating the Korean food,” Lee told Igihe laughing.

When asked his favorite dish on his menu, Lee recommended the new Tepanyaki table to customers. “Tepanyaki is my favorite. Also because it’s the first ever in Rwanda!” he excitedly told Igihe.com. Tepanyaki is a style of Japanese cuisine that uses an iron griddle to cook food.

The word teppanyaki is derived from teppan, which means iron plate, and yaki, which means grilled, broiled or pan-fried.

Modern teppanyaki grills are typically propane-heated flat surface grills, and are widely used to cook the food in front of guests as they eat as a form of entertainment and fresh cooking.

Customers excitedly munching away Thursday night could hardly contain their praise for the new restaurant. The cars have already filled up the entire restaurant lot, and we were lucky to find one of the few spots left.

Candy Basomingera, a local Kimihurura resident commented, Definitely my new favorite restaurant in Kigali. A big thank you to the Owner for this truly Asian experience.”

The new restaurant is located in Nyuratarama near Gishushu and is open Monday through Saturday 11:30pm-3pm for lunch and6pm-11pm for dinner. Head over for a seriously, good Japanese-Korean experience.

Though in Rwanda Father’s day is celebrated with a few, the day should serve as a wakeup call in appreciating male parenting as well as identifying some of the challenges the house heads encounter.

The day which is celebrated worldwide highlights how valuable fatherhood is to the children and society in general. It is also marked by issuing of gifts to fathers as well as taking them out to dinners

Jessica mbabazi, a student at Kigali Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) is among the few who honor this day. She attributed her happiness to the day since it coincided with her birth day.

In this respect, she took her father for an average shopping at Nakumat Kigali’s renowned supermarket. In the shopping process Mbabazi hardly kept her joy and would be seen encouraging other shoppers on the relevance of the day.

“I prefer celebrating this day with my father since he has raised me to who I am now and on such a day I have to make sure that I’m the first person to hug my dad and tell him how much I appreciate him, “She emphasizes.

Innocent Mugabo, a civil servant explains that the day should also be celebrated by those whom their father’s have passed away since by doing so one would be cherishing their memories which could serve as an inspiration to their lives.

Celebrations for this year’s international child day should serve as a wakeup call in ensuring better welfare to children, yet more needs to be done especially in civilizing street kids.

In line with raising the awareness, the event scheduled to take place in Huye district will also observe two more relevant global celebrations including child labor day and African family.

The minister of labor and public service, Anastase Murekezi noted that some children were exposed to harassment due to poverty. He proceeded by warning those who take advantage of the poor kids’ situation by employing them to hard tasks and end up paying them pea-nuts.

Murekezi also encouraged the public to play a role in ensuring children rights were adhered and that they should report cases of child labor or harassment. In addition vulnerable parents were informed to group themselves into cooperatives in order to access credit which would facilitate them in forming a descent income generating activity.

The minister also discouraged financial contribution to physically fit beggars especially adults who use their children to beg money in the street. “It would be better if you advised them on useful activities or give them jobs instead of providing them with coins since it makes them reluctant,” he remarked.

Moreover, constructions of two more rehabilitation centers are underway, the target is to eliminate all street kids and train them on vocational skills while those who perform well will be given scholarship to pursue their career in academic institutions.

The event will also pay tribute to those who took part in South Africa’s Soweto Uprising back in 1976 meant to change the quality of education given to locals during the Apartheid war.