I ran the python code like Gary suggested and it succeeded. (As an aside, it would be nice if I could run the python code for avro without having thrift installed.)
Then I re-created my ruby example in python (essentially calling set_keyspace and then making a multiget_slice call) and it also succeeded. When I try the same in ruby, it fails with the cassandra giving a KeyspaceNotDefinedException. I'll keep digging and let you know what I find. --Gabor
