New_orleans_to_rwanda_254After you get off your last plane flight leg and are told that your baggage is not there with you, what is a man to do….. Well, this man said "where is the store?" And so, 20 minutes later my gracious hosts in Rwanda had me inside a local African owned small business selecting a few items to hold me over until my bags arrived. Once again, the owner and his workers could not have been kinder to me. And to top it off, the hotel concierge traveled with me to the store! Now, where does this ever happen in the states (smile). The gentleman to the left, who traveled to the conference from Germany, also came up luggage short (smile again).

I hope President Kagame of Rwanda, whom I had the pleasure of meeting last year through one of my other heroes, Quincy Jones, and then later with Ambassador Andrew Young, doesn’t mind a "creative clothing combination" for the formal welcoming reception tomorrow because that is exactly how I will be greeting him (smile again). The President has really done a fine job turning this country around and setting it forward on a positive track following the Genocide more than 10 years ago here in Rwanda. More on the interesting and inspiring story of this great African country later in the week.

Onward with HOPE, John Hope Bryant

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