Our gardener sought me out today–and before I go any further, yes, I feel strange and a little queasy saying “our gardener”–because he wanted to be paid just a few days early. I said, Nta kibazo, which is “No problem” in Kinyarwanda and one of my three best phrases.
But then I wanted to wish him a good evening…at 5 pm. It’s too early to say ijoro ryiza, or “good night,” which implies that it’s at least dark out, if not that you expect the person you’re talking to to pretty much be in his pajamas. But it’s too late, being dusk, for umunsi mwiza, which is “have a nice day…” I couldn’t remember that thing that goes in middle.
So I thought I’d take the opportunity to ask:
C’est plus tot pour “ijoro ryiza” mais plus tard pour “umunsi mwiza.” Est-ce que je dois parler?
Astute linguists will notice, in addition to the fact that my French is lame, that I said “So what should I speak?” rather “What should I say?” (which my (lame) French told me too late is “Esc-ce que je dois dire?”).
And so he answered the questioned that I asked:
“Francais.”
