I arrived in the UK in March 22, after one week I came here to the hotel in Lancaster.  We came in a taxi with 6 people, I didn’t know them but they were from my region so we were talking.  But I didn’t know the place, I was confused, I thought it may be more countryside, but I need a city, I want to go to my church, I was praying they put me in a city close to my church.  But I’m here!  And still, thanks to God, the people are very nice here in Lancaster.

Actually I was very sick because of this problem, I was really stressed and mentally sick, that I cannot get to my church, but thanks to Gisela, she helped me with financial assistance to go to Birmingham to attend the mass.  She has really done a lot for me, I can say that she saved my life.  I was in terrible times, it was very difficult then for me.  I was trying to kill myself.  I went two times to my church by train with the support of Global Link, I go for Friday evening and I stay there in Birmingham, attending the mass on Saturday and Sunday, and I pray with the priest, they pray for me.  I feel beautiful there, I feel like I meet my families, I feel very peaceful and different.  I am closer to my God.  And I am better now.  Before I didn’t go out from my hotel, I stayed all night and prayed there, I was very down.

There are four places in England with my church and I have a letter from Global Link and from my doctor teams requesting for me to be moved to one of these places, but still I am waiting.  It’s very terrible for me to not be able to go and pray, and I’m afraid to ask again for help from Global Link, it’s shame for me.  The churches here are not the right church. When I get a problem I go to Global Link, they are like our mother you know?   We tell them everything and they will help us, everytime.  That’s why it’s good, Global Link.

I get here, I see there is no any church, I don’t have any place to go, and it’s a small town, but after time we heard information about Global Link, they will give us clothes, shoes, every help what we need.  When we went there we were happy!  They are welcoming us with kind smiling faces, they are very nice and we are very happy.

I know others from my region, but they are Muslims mostly; they have a mosque here close to the hotel.

The hotel has terrible food, it is not good food, so we are very eager to go to the lunch every Tuesday!  A lot of people go.  We’re happy, we chat there, we laugh, it’s very nice.  Of course it’s good for me to meet people.  And 10 days ago we went in the mountains, we went trekking with Global Link.  It was my first time in the UK countryside.  Wow!  It makes me like, different, I don’t know how I can tell you, but that was very wonderful for me, to see nature, and for my mind, it was very helpful for me.  If I stay in my room I am stressing, sitting, thinking about my family, about my case here…   Outside I feel like positive, free you know, everything is free, I feel very nice, peaceful.

I like running, jogging, I’ve been out with Lancaster Running group.  Another man told us about ParkRun, he registered me and two other men, we go there on Saturdays.  I worked as a volunteer for them two times when they had a marathon and a 10km race in Morecambe.  Every Thursday they make a course for immigrants to run with Lancaster people, I went 4 or 5 times every Thursday, but after I got sick I didn’t go.  I got very worried about Rwanda and my spiritual problems come high. Before I come I believe the UK is a very nice place, but when I arrive I hear this bad news about Rwanda, my mind is changing, they make us stress, that was a very difficult time for everybody and we feel anger.  If I know there are different European countries maybe better to stay in France or Belgium, I meet people who regret coming here.

After time we know the town, we know Global Link, they advise us, they help us, and they give us many informations, so after that we become more happy, because they were very helpful for us.  If we have something like a problem we go there and they will try to help us fix the problem.

For two or three months, before new courses are coming, I went to English course at Global Link.  It was helpful, before that I didn’t speak well, but now I’m better!  And now I go to class once a week at Cornerstone.

It’s good to leave the hotel.  There’s no sitting space, you have to go and knock on the bedroom of a friend.  It’s like a prison, even the main door is locked, we go through the back, because there was problem with a protest.  But the location is good, in the centre of town, and even the room is good.  But the food is awful, mostly chicken and rice, chicken and rice, sometimes we even wonder “is this chicken?”  So we are very eager for Tuesday lunch at Global Link!

Sometimes I go to the drop-in at St Thomas and I try to translate for people from my region, if they want to tell us something or other.  And sometimes at Cornerstone I help them washing dishes during coffee time.  I asked people to help find for me voluntary work, but then I stopped when my spiritual problem was up again.

I also like to play football, it was three times a week, now two times because they don’t let us play on one place in the winter.  And there is gym at Global Link, but you can only go 2 days a week, it’s not enough.  We like to do sport because mostly we sit in the hotel.  It would be good to have games to relax, like table football would be good.  There is a pool table at Global Link but it is very small and the surface is damaged.

Mostly I am happy here because of the people.  The people are very kind, you know, they have real love, they give you true love, smiling all the time.  I am far from my religion but here there is nice people.