The end ???

How do I begin to tell the end, when it doesn't really feel like its ended just morphed into another very different chapter. In a way Ethiopia feels worlds away but it is very much entrenched in who I am now. Actually it is at least a continent away…I now find myself in southern India. Walking back from dinner just now (a luscious cashew masala with buttery roti bread), I was reflecting on my life in Ethiopia. I had the thought that right now being in India feels like the final exam of my past two years. It has many of the same challenges (being seen as a dollar figure, men staring with creepy looks, pollution, overpopulation and a completely foreign culture), but I also find it wonderfully civil in many ways (speaking English, fast internet, organized tour groups - mostly catering to Indian tourists, and things that just make sense - like meters for the rickshaws (Bajaj’s)).

Before I jump into describing my newest adventure in India I want to try to summarize my departure from Ethiopia. My last week in Goba was bitter sweet. I was ready to go but sad to leave. I really did make some good friends, like Wynshet and Demanich with whom I celebrated my first Timket holiday and ate my last doro wat meal with. Who cried when I left and loaded me down with gifts of a jebana (coffee pot), scarf, and baso (barley powder). Such dear sweet women. Others I will always remember are Meski and Emabet, my neighbors; Elias, Gobezie and Hasan, my counterparts who really worked with me and were dependable; and Kabadich my dear “habasha mother” who always gave me milk and listened so well. And there are many others that I will always remember with a smile.

Towards the end I struggled with not getting weighted down with so many “I should have’s”.  It took a lot of basic acceptance to see that even though I felt like my work was just getting started I did my best given an array of  many different factors. The weeks leading up to my departure went quicker than expected - a fun backroad adventure into the Harenna forest and wild coffee lands, the celebration of my PC friend Bre Anne getting engaged to her Ethiopian boyfriend Atota with his huge Muslim family, and a mad dash up to Addis to apply for my India visa.

Leaving Goba felt kind of surreal, like a dream that I just had to follow but was acutely aware of at each moment. I had a nice going away party/garage sale with all my Bale fereji friends, and the Agriculture office put on a little buna ceremony for me as well. The weather didn’t help and instead started pouring the day after I sold my rain boots and umbrella- ha of course! My last night my walls were bare (exposing all the giant spiders that had been hiding) but I felt I had completed all my tasks. Except maybe saying good bye to a few more people (like my friend Megdes who ran the suk shop next door). With two bags and a market basket full of pottery I was lucky that my landlord Afork drove me to the bus station at 5am and  both he and Gobezie helped to send me off. My heart felt full and grateful knowing that I had met so many wonderful people and for having had such a unique experience these past two years.

And now fast forward two weeks and you find me in my little air conditioned room smelling of sandalwood and  playing with my newly purchased smartphone. India isn’t nearly as crazy as I expected yet it still is crazy. Mostly due to insane drivers who love to blast their horns at everything. But today I splurged and hired a guide to take me to the Bandipore National Park where I saw elephants, spotted deer (aka tiger food) and all sorts of other cool birds and animals. Nature really is my sanctuary. Today is my 6^th day here and for the most part I have been taking it easy. Like I said at the beginning I feel like this is my final exam. I’m doing this adventure solo, without the support of Peace Corps, a 24 hour on call doctor , or my fellow PCV’s. Oddly enough I haven’t met any other travelers, just seen them in passing like ships in the night. Thankfully I feel confident in bartering and asking questions to clarify the ambiguous, which seems to happen when speaking various forms of English. In a way I’m still waiting for the next chapter to begin, a chapter that I have no idea what the title is. But in this unsettling limbo time of change I again rely on what I have learned, how to take it one day at a time without getting too caught up in worry and to simply be present and open to whatever happens.  In keeping this state of mind I have had some wonderful moments that make me smile both inside and out. And isn’t that what life is about?

Wishing you many smiles. Thanks for listening. 

Finally a few new photos of what I've been up too...

Can I take one home with me? 

Getting henna painted on my hand from a very sweet Muslim girl at the market in Harar

A traditional "Harari home", now a wonderful B&B

Inde!!! This mamma was big!! Later I fed her meat with the stick in my mouth. So cool!

Beautiful Somoli bridal party also having fun with wild hyenas

My new favorite hat

New Years song and celebration

The mighty Awash falls

Friendly Afar guide 

The oasis hot springs lake

Celebrating at Lake Langono

At the Meskal "burning of the cross" celebration with my happy neighbor

More chickens, men in skirts, and camels oh my!

Monday October 6- Ah yay for a good day! It is such a great feeling to see all my efforts of the past two years starting to show some benefit, in small tiny ways I never imagined. The past few days I have been buying materials with my two closest guy friends Gobezie and Elias to build a small portable chicken coop. This is a project that has been evolving for the past several months and its finally coming together. Today we build the majority of it at Elias’s house, me taking notes on how to build it and playing with the cute neighbor girl, while Elias and two friends did the “man” work. I took them to lunch (54 birr, so about $2.70) and in the afternoon we were having fun joking around feeling good about the work we had done. Earlier in the morning I went to the Ag office and had fun saying hi to people hearing them complement me on how fat I am (I don’t think I’ve changed in the past year) and how “perfect” my Amharic is (I still feel like I speak like a five year old).

Later in the afternoon, just before the rain started I stopped by my favorite ladies coffee shop and helped them to make dabo kolo, a tiny little bread ball thing colored red, green and white, in preparation for my friend Wynshet’s giving birth- who is due in 1 week. (This is so they will have a nice snack to give to people who stop by to wish congratulations). It felt so good to just hang out and chat and cut little chunks of green dough.

Wednesday, market day, will be the teaching of how to build the chicken coop and we will sell lottery tickets to auction off the chicken coop. The money will then be donated to some charity, which I have yet to decide on. It should be fun and I am glad to be working with my friends who have provided great input on the project of ways to improve it. The past two years have simply been building a foundation of friendship, respect and trust which is what has enabled this project to happen. It’s still a simple project but feels so good to have such strong support.

And now for a quick glimpse of what I have been up to for the past 2 months since I last wrote on this blog….

Harar- I went to this ancient walled city, the 6^th most holy Muslim place in the world, with three of my Peace Corps girlfriends. We stayed at an amazing “Harari house”, a private family’s home that had a huge living room lined with cushions and brightly decorated baskets. In the morning they served us fluffy crepe type things with honey and strong coffee. In the two day’s that we were there we fed hyena’s meat from a stick in our mouth, ate camel meat and delicious Somali flavored rice with our hands, got our hands decorated with henna by beautiful Somali women, bought colorful scarfs, saw a camel market, ate yummy street food like potato and garlic samosas and falafel, and wandered the narrow streets of the ancient city feeling like we were in a foreign mid-east country. This was a really fun mini vacation and a good glimpse of some different, wonderful cultures. It made me feel for the Somali people who are so forgotten but were so kind and friendly.

Afar and the Awash Falls Lodge- So I had been entertaining the idea of staying another year in Ethiopia to work at a tourist lodge in the heart of the Rift Valley, where archeologists continue to find ancient human remains, some now older than Lucy! The lodge is inside the Awash National Park, a hot, classic African landscape with Acacia trees, hyenas and dust. The lodge itself sits perched on the edge of the Awash river overlooking the mighty Awash falls that were a raging torrent of brown water since it is now rainy season. I had fun drinking a cold beer and watching the falls, especially when I saw three crocodiles hanging out in the eddies catching fish.

The next day the kind Dr. Yirmed (owner of the lodge) and I went out to visit their newest project – a second lodge perched on the edge of a hot springs lake. Yes it is a big lake of hot water, fringed by very tall grass and palm trees (and hosts hippos and crocodiles). Quite an amazing oasis in the middle of the desert. Unfortunately it was roasting hot so I didn’t really feel like soaking in the hot water but it sure was pretty. This place was located right on the boarder of the park but is owned by the Afar people who are notorious for being aggressive. I can kind of understand because they live in such harsh hot conditions barely surviving by grazing sheep and cattle. The men wear colorful skirts that come to their knees and no shirt but lots of armband decorations and all carry some sort of ancient rifle type gun. Dr. Yirmed had a long, Afar-Oromifia-Amharic conversation with some of the elders trying to buy sand and settle on a price to charge tourists for swimming in the lake. As I watched I realized how slow and complicated everything is, even for a respected Ethiopian male. Finally we drove the 26km bumpy dirt road back to the main lodge and I happily fell asleep listening to the waterfalls from my lovely little thatched hut room.

The lodge and staff were are wonderful and Dr. Yirmed is a smart, motivated, conservation minded person but after much deliberation I decided that I did not want to stay another year. I realized I was hoping to make up for the past two years by trying to do similar work- rallying local people to work on creating alternative incomes- except this time it would be in an extremely hot, through beautiful, isolated place.

COS Conference- The day after I returned to Addis from Afar my whole G8 group went to a fancy lodge on Lake Longano to celebrate our “Close of Service” conference. For two days we talked about how to summarize our past two years on a resume, to try to see all of the skills and growth we have made, to try to see how much of an impact we have made (though most we will never see), and all the details of how to return to the States, including learning that returning is way harder that it was to leave in the first place.  It was a powerful, meaningful, enriching two days where I realized I have formed some life- long friendships and have a lot to feel good about. And now I officially have an end date of December 2^nd where I will become a “Returned Peace Corps Volunteer” which is quite a badge of honor. It is kind of humbling and very nice to feel like I have spent the past two years working for peace rather than war.

Ok so now I have two months to bust out this chicken coop project, spend time with my close friends, seize the moment and start thinking about what the heck comes next…eeek.

A few photos...

Typical Orthodox church celebration- love the colors!

Sweet Muslim kids hanging out

Goba Muslim men praying at the Ramadan celebration

Goba Muslim women praying at the same celebration.

Sweet Muslim girls. I loved the little one in white!

Teaching gardening under a lovely Ficus tree at camp GROW

My future job as a bee keeper?

Happy in the jungle!

My dear teacher friend Damanich

My new best friend George who now hangs out in a fern in my yard. Chameleons are so cool!

GROW, growing, gone.

Ah yay for rainy season! It has returned full force and as it pours outside I am totally content to be inside with my cup of tea and cheery candle. I got back to Goba last Friday after spending a week in the paradise university campus of Wando Ganet. It is paradise because it is surrounded by Jurassic Park like mountains, ancient tropical forest, flowers and monkeys galore. I was there to help with a second summer camp this one called GROW (Growing and Renewing Our World), focusing on different environment and agricultural activities. I didn’t teach any sessions but instead was the finance person, in charge of purchasing all the random supplies needed to build two composting toilets, make different herbal salves, and feed snacks to fifty people.

The day before camp started I was feeling really worried because the grant money still had not been deposited in my account, but later in the afternoon when I took out 130,000 birr I left like an elephant had been lifted off my chest. Hallaluha just in the nick of time! It was quite odd to take out that much money- the bank even ran out of 100’s so gave me 50,000 in 50’s! Talk about bundles of birr! The next few days were actually kind of fun as I got to drive around with Endale, a great Peace Corps driver, and purchase all our supplies- including 100 kg of oranges! The fruit vendors were falling over themselves handing me slices of oranges trying to show that they had the best fruit.  The week went by in a flash and once again all the kids had a great time and learned a lot. I was able to bring four kids from Goba and a wonderful woman counterpart named Damanich who teaches cooking at the technical school.  Yay for tiny little positive influences.

The weekend before camp I had fun on Saturday going to an Orthodox Christian celebration with Gobezie and watching all the people dressed in their finest traditional clothes- white scarves and embroidered dresses. At his home later in the afternoon his wife Tigist gave me a traditional cloth called a gabi that is worn as a blanket. I was very touched at her kindness and am now bundled up in it enjoying its warmth and the fresh smell is has from being dried in the sun.

Two day’s later was the Muslim holiday Eid Al Fitr celebrating the end of their fast from Ramadan. I am truly impressed how for over a month Muslim’s don’t eat or drink anything from sunrise till sunset, only eating when it is dark and again at 3am. My friend Elias invited me to attend the main ceremony where all the Muslim’s gathered at the town’s soccer field to pray. It was beautiful to see all the men in their white robes and the women in their brightly colored dresses and head scarves. Seeing hundreds, if not thousands of people bowing, kneeling and praying in unison really is a precious powerful thing.

Later in the day I went to my other friend Hasan’s house were I got to eat the Ethiopian traditional dish Doro wat (a spicy chicken sauce) which I totally love. Hasan, his wife and their adorable one year old twin daughters live in a very small simple two room mud home but were very generous with their food. It was a fun experience to see a different side culture (Muslim Oromia).  His wife’s father came to visit, and though he was a rural farmer who only spoke Oromifa performed the universal action of bringing sweets to his granddaughters. Again I wish I spoke this language beyond hello and thank you but it was neat being a part of the celebration.

So now that I am finally finished with my summer camps I can start to focus on doing one more little project – building a portable chicken coop and simply hanging out and spending time with my Ethiopian friends and family. As of today I have officially 4 months left!!! And as always I still miss and think about all my American friends and family- please write if you can! Warm wishes to all!!! 

Bale Brits

Yay for another full circle. This time I had nothing to do with actually helping it come about but feel happy that I was able to observe. First, a little background refresher. Since I have been in Goba I have been trying to work with the Bale Beauty Nature Club which consists of 2.4 hectare of pristine land and a library/study room in town. Ayoub, the original leader and inspiration for the club “disappeared” in America last year and has yet to return. I have spent the past year, unsuccessfully, trying to find a way to keep the club going in a sustainable way that doesn’t just depend on dwindling local NGO donations. The main thing that is lacking is a person who will take leadership for the club and reinvigorate the community members. Or so I think.

But today I learned that the Ethiopian way of last minute planning can work out. A week ago Ayoub randomly called me saying that another group of students from England would be arriving soon to do a “volunteer vacation” to work with the club. (The same company that organizes this trip came last year and the work largely fell onto my sitemates and I, (see old blog post)). As much as I want to see this club survive I decided to not change my plans but to simply observe and help out a few days into the trip.

So I stuck with my plans and had a fabulous weekend climbing a mountain outside of Goba that I have been looking at since living here. I went with my friends Marit and Jan from Holland who work in Robe and who, like me, love outdoor adventures. The mountain had stunning views and it was so nice to camp, relax and hang out viewing Goba from a new perspective.

Anyway, back to today when I finally met the group from England and helped them plant some trees at the club property. The rest of the day I mostly just chatted with the leaders and helped them buy food, preparing for a trek into the Senetti and Bale Park. For me it was so refreshing to hear their positive views on Ethiopians and in particular the club members who stepped up and made their visit such a success. Out of thin air emerged three smart, motivated, English speaking Ethiopians who were very kind and were great guides in organizing good activities. I say emerged because like I said I have been trying to find guys like this for the past year to work with.

But long story short it was great to see how successful they pulled off this trip for the “Brits” and now I have some hope that the future of the club will continue due to this short one week event that will hopefully bring in enough foreign money to keep the club running. The “Brits” had a great visit and will encourage their company to continue bringing school groups to Goba and working with the nature club. For me it was also nice to see Ethiopia through their eyes for a day. They were so positive about the kindness of Ethiopians and how well they were treated by strangers. It’s sad that sometimes I forget to see this quality on a daily basis.

So again I am happy and humbled to see that things do work out without me. Life prevails and continues in ever unfolding and mysterious ways. Maybe not as planned or intended but nonetheless it moves forward.  

A few Bekoji Camp photos...

My homeroom girls "team Nigeria!"

Guiding the group through crazy tall bushes

My Goba "girls"

Jib bet, INDE!!! (Hyena den, oh my)

Team Nigeria classroom!

Glad to be home safe- this is such a sad common scene- supposedly everyone survived....

The finally finished doro bet- nice fence and happy chickens= yay!

Bekoji Camp GLOW - Year 2

Bekoji Camp GLOW year 2- check, finished, baka. Phew. This year was much different from last year’s camp even though it was in the same location, the Agricultural College in Bekoji. The big difference was that I was in a much more positive, confident head space (and not fighting a nasty head cold), and I took a much more active role in teaching. This year I also brought three girls, quiet but the only girls who spoke up during the 8^th grade English class that my new dear friend Tewabech teaches. Camp was also 6 full days with a very packed teaching schedule. Last year at the end of camp all us PCV’s commented at how amazed we were that nothing went majorly wrong. This year was not like that.

Well I take that back, nothing went majorly wrong but we had a lot of little fires to put out- like one of the girls fathers wanting to essentially kid nap her, another girl breaking out in hives from an infection and covering her lips with buna (coffee) grounds as a local “medicine”, no water for 4 days, a very gross shint bet (why do people poop on the ground 2 feet from the hole?), and a useless guide on our hike to a mountain. But despite all the chaos I can say that this was by far one of my most rewarding weeks here in Ethiopia.

Every morning I started out the day by teaching thirty 14-17 year old girls and a handful of female Ethiopia “counterparts” yoga. The first few days we were packed into the dining hall but got through without anyone getting kicked or stepped on. The second day I had to catch a rat that was running around freaking out the girls before the class could continue. But by the end of the week they all knew how to balance in Eagle Pose and loved saying “Namaste” at the end of class. They didn’t get the whole breathing part of yoga but they sure loved it nonetheless. Yay! For my first time teaching yoga it was a lot of fun.

My other big success was teaching salve making. Working with Tewabech who helped translate I talked about the different locally available medicinal herbs and their benefits. Next I showed them how to make salve – melting bees wax with oil and adding rosemary and Eucalyptus oil. It went really well and they hung onto every word!   I am now re-inspired to hopefully teach some women in Goba how to do this so they can start a small business for themselves. It really is a cool, simple way to make good natural medicines, that actually work (way better than buna or butter- the common treatments).

Finally each day for two hours I taught four girls “homeroom”, which was focused on English but soon morphed into doing fun art projects. At first I was terrified- I don’t know how to teach English- but I got creative and with the help of some teaching aids I ended up loving spending that time with the girls. As I got to know them I learned how eager they were to learn and how hard their lives are at home. One girl was the 10^th of 11 children, one was a seratenia (servant for another family), and another girl has only her mother (her Dad works in America). I totally fell in love with them- their innocence and motivation to learn, absorbing every word I said.

For our closing ceremony, a bonfire where each girl held a candle and spoke about what they appreciated, I told them how this had been one of the best, most rewarding and inspiring weeks in my two years of service in Ethiopia. Despite all the struggles I see in the country working with these girls gave me hope. Breaking and opening my heart at the same time.

Now I am back home, enjoying the simple life of washing clothes and drinking tea. Tomorrow I will treat myself to an adventure hike in the national park – its warthog and baboon season! Babies galore!

A few photos of my latest activities...

 Selfie on top of my local view spot with lovely storm clouds in the distance

Classic Peace Corps moment- riding a gari out to the monastery with my doro bet materials

The almost finished doro bet one week after bringing the supplies

Aba Kenfa showing how they make the wooden crosses that every Orthodox Christian wears as a necklace

Posing inside the 2nd portable doro bet with my dear friend Elsabet (who is my exact age but looks 50)

You never know what the day will bring...

(I posted this at the end of April but was advised by Peace Corps to remove it, I think now that things have settled down I will post it, but know that I am not adding more information due to the lack of freedom of speech in this country and for my own safety...)
Phew what a day. And as it ends I am grateful to be alive and in such a beautiful place with so many kind people. Today I ate breakfast with my site mate Nora, who has one month before the end of her service. We shared ambasha (a delicious fresh flat bread) and “special fool” (a spicy bean and egg dish) and drank some bun aba watet (coffee with milk), and loz chai (tea with peanut butter). I then went up to the Ag office and was happily informed that Tenadesta, Salomon and I were scheduled to do a garden training with some local farmers for this Friday. Finally! With enough patience and persistence the Ag office folks are finally realizing I have something to offer them. So next I went around town gathering odd things like used coffee grounds, wood ash and charcoal powder from local shops that will be used for the soil amendments in the training.

After quickly going to the big muddy Wednesday market to buy onions, carrots, chard, and bananas I ate lunch and hopped on a mini bus to go to Robe hoping to use some fast internet. I am trying to take an online Buddhism philosophy class but its turning out to be very frustrating trying to download audio files. (Funny in trying to learn to be more patient through Buddhism I get very frustrated with the computers).

In Robe I said hello to my mini bus driver friend then walked around the corner to get a bajaj (motorcycle taxi) into the main part of town. I realized something was wrong when none of the drivers wanted to go to town. I finally found one that would take me part way and when I got out of the bajaj I saw a lot of people standing around looking down the road towards a huge mass of people about 200 meters away. In that moment I also saw that the internet shop was closed, along with every other shop on the road. A kind man spoke to me saying the university students were protesting and a moment later the mass broke out and started running towards us. That triggered everyone else to run, turning off onto side streets to avoid getting caught up into the mass of people.

 I started running/speed walking down the road back to the bus station when I heard gun shots. At that point I darted off the main road and waited for a moment with my heart racing. During that scary moment when everyone was running several people were very kind to me in inviting me into their shops to hide, or to go down the side street. I could have hid but I wanted to be out of there so I walked as fast as I could away from the crowd to go back to Goba. As I got farther away I still heard gun shots and the women had fear on their faces, while the young men seemed excited. Go figure.  The phone network stopped working (potentially the government blocking it) and I was glad to get a bus out of there quickly. Phew!

Evidently in the last few days there have been country wide protests at many universities about how the government suppresses the Oromo people which account for more than 30% of the population. It goes much deeper than that but people here are very hesitant to talk about it. I’m curious to see the news on TV but am guessing none of this is being reported (the government owns the TV network). Online I read that several people have died- police and students. Two months ago, in Addis Erik and I visited the “Red Terror” Museum telling the story of the military government that controlled Ethiopia in the 70’s and 80’s. Over 500,000 people were killed during that time to a brutally suppressive regime. In my time here I have often reflected on how much that affects the way people behave today.  History can be so very haunting.

Overall the longer I live in Ethiopia the safer I feel but today I just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. Now I’m happily safe in my little cozy home drinking tea and about to prepare for an environment/ English class I will teach tomorrow. Stay tuned for my post on Italy, I’m slowly working on it. Things have been surprisingly busy in Goba since I returned last week.

As always- send emails, letters and love if you have a moment! 

Return of the Doro

Why hello internet world. It’s been a long time! Tafach! (Amharic for “you disappeared”, which I hear often when I haven’t seen someone for a while)

I’ve been trying to think of something to write for a while but I guess I’m having writers block. (Or feel that my life here in Ethiopia is “normal” without much to report). Not anymore because I want to share my day with ya’ll. It is a part II story from my last “doro bet” fiasco. So now 3 months later the chickens are alive (minus two), and starting to lay eggs. Last week I bought a dozen big brown eggs from the monastery. A nice full circle feeling. But I was concerned because they are still in the tiny no air or light room that they were originally placed in. The doro bet I was building lay in the same state it was when I left it two months ago. But two weeks ago I devised a simple design using the remaining money I had from my grant to buy a few basic materials (metal roofing and chicken wire). So I got a gari ride from my friend Masai and delivered the materials and talked with the carpenter monk to explain my plan. I’m pretty darn sure he understood with the picture I had drawn what I had planned and by his smiling positive response. I left feeling up beat and that I hadn’t abandoned the project and that the chickens might just survive.

Last week I went back to check up with my new acquaintance Hasan (a Muslim guy who was happy to help the Orthodox Christian church, which was very nice) works for the Agricultural Office with rural co-op groups. Upon arrival I was happy and dismayed to see that they had done a ton of work- but made it to the original 3 x 6 meter size- huge and with lots more expensive roofing. Just when I think I have something figured out it turns out to be completely different from I you thought. Always. But I couldn’t be too frustrated because it was almost finished, mud walls and everything.

Hasan had been talking about building a simple triangle shaped fence system to keep the chickens in during the day while they foraged on grass and bugs and we decided to come back the next week to try to build it, which leads me to today. My dear friend at the monastery Elsabet (who is my exact age but looks over 50) greeted us and helped us get to work by introducing us to the “doro bet” crew- all women who in all truth are the ones who really do the work at the monastery while the men sit around and have visitors kiss their wooden crosses (slightly cynical tone but the truth).  First we had to find some wood which involved going into the woods and cutting down some pole size Eucalyptus trees. I really enjoyed working in the woods again hauling wood and cutting with my fancy ferengi saw.

The four women that worked with us were all very sweet and quickly warmed up to me and we really enjoyed “talking” and interacting. We worked all day, barely pausing for lunch, which on a funny side note shows the generosity of Ethiopians. I mentioned I was hungry then in the next 30 minutes 3 different people showed up with food and we soon had a little feast (of lots of dabi – a bread similar to injera and shiro- chickpea powder and spices). They served me a new type of tea that was made from roasted barley and was delicious! The day went fast and we actually finished building the project just as the sun was setting (beautiful pink clouds against the green fields and distant mountains). Of course we couldn’t leave until they then served us more food with a “desert” of fresh hot milk and sugar from one of their ten dairy cows.

Today was truly a delightful “Peace Corps” day largely because it was not me trying to convince others to work but another Ethiopian (who at one point was grumbling about the lazy work ethic of Ethiopians- ha so it’s not just me!). Now I also have more projects to look forward to in the future – Hasan wants to duplicate the easy doro bet design and teaching it to families in rural areas and who need a steady source of income. He might just be one of those rare people that are truly motivated to work and help other which is invaluable to making a project work here. Praise Allah! 

The chickens have flown the coop!

This post is to document, reflect and capture the steps and lessons learned from my latest endeavor- the doro bet project. It all started with casually mentioning to my kind Ethiopian friend Dr. an idea I had seen for placing a chicken coop over a fish pond. I wrote about this in a past blog but for my own internal processing will lay out what happened. Thank goodness I decided to go with the simple doro bet once recognizing that the science did not support an integrated chicken/fish pond. Probably one of the biggest things that got this project off kilter was me going on the recommendation and advice of my acquaintances to buy the 15 chickens from the Ag office under their improved breed doro program. The day I asked about buying chickens they said, yes today is the only day to buy the chicken, you must do it now. Usually I have run into the opposite- “oh you are too late, that should have happened a month ago, now you have to wait a year”. So by going off my best information at the moment I paid for 15 chickens out of my own money, 1500 birr.

This triggered my needing to apply for a grant to get reimbursed and I quickly filled out a “mini” grant – the smallest and fastest grant available. My second hindsight mistake (ie. lesson learned), was to take the word of Getachew of the NGO Farm Africa seriously in believing he would help pay for the building materials (like roofing and fencing). I estimated the supplies would cost about 2000 birr and submitted the grant. For a few weeks I had been trying to get a hold of Getachew, calling, stalking his office, leaving text messages but to no avail.

The first day back in Goba after being in Addis to pick up Erik (yay, he’s here for a month!) I went to the Ag office and someone casually said “oh the chickens arrived yesterday, you need to pick them up today”. Thank goodness Gobezie saved the day by helping me go buy chicken feed, get some basic building supplies and with the help of a few monks carry the 15 chickens out to the monastery. It was one of those classic unexpected but it all works out kind of days. At one moment I was feeling the high of feeling competent in successfully buying chicken corn from the market and taking a gari out to the monastery, all negotiated by myself in Amharic.

Upon arrival at the monastery I learned that the chickens could be stored in the small class room made for the few kids living at the monastery, a good “temporary” solution. The next day Erik and I showed up ready to bust out a chicken coop. After waiting for an hour to gather some basic tools we started work along with a carpenter and a slew of kids and bystanders. Several hours later we stopped working after a long discussion that digging post holes 60 cm deep was totally unnecessary. But concluded that if they insisted, then they could do it, and we would return the next day to continue building.

Of course the next day the holes were not finished but since the head carpenter wasn’t feeling well we started placing the poles and frame. Despite the huge language barrier we all managed to have fun and to work pretty well together. The kids were fun and helpful and one barefoot monk was thoroughly enjoying watching the scene and chatting.  After five days of work we were ready to put on the roofing…. which is where the project stalled. I had finally managed to talk to Getachew and even after visiting the monastery he is stalling on buying any materials. Now it is a week later, the chickens are in their dark hole of a house and I am again trying to get a hold of Getachew who is playing the frustrating game of not giving a clear answer and being very elusive.

Today I went to the Ag office, prepared to give a training with the help of their chicken experts to several of the monks at Teklehaymanot. Before walking out there (its about a 30 minute walk), we called to reconfirm the training (which I had arranged with the head monk Aba Kenfe last week, repeatedly confirming that the date and time were suitable). And of course Aba Kenfe said the monks were in church and today was not a good day. Fortunately Tesfaye (my ag expert friend) was understanding and agreed to do the training on Saturday, which I wont be able to attend because I will be trekking in the Bale Mountains with Erik.

Tomorrow Erik and I will go back to the monastery, build a very rudimentary but healthy doro bet with the few supplies we have and call it good. It has been a very frustrating project largely due to the communication/language barrier along with many cultural differences and habits. The cultural habit of being polite and agreeing to things then not coming through got in the way several times. I’m glad I had a taste of trying a project but am now humbled by just how difficult and slow things can be. My biggest lesson learned is to do my best, especially with clear, repeated communication but in the end to accept that so many things are out of my hands and control. It’s not just up to me to make a project “successful”. Fortunately next week I am flying to Italy so it’s a lot easier to see the big picture right now.

Thanks for reading my latest endeavor. Ishi baka (ok, enough)!

Bees n' shoes

Oh Ethiopia how I love you right now. I just got home from an extremely productive two hours. A few weeks ago I met the teacher for the “Environment and Tourism” department at the Technical College (which if you remember the Ethiopian school system is where you go if you fail the grade 10 exam). I ended up teaching a class about sustainable tourism and the value of the Bale Mountains to the 18 students, who probably understood about 15% of what I said but were very kind and enthusiastic. Anyway a few days ago I met with Argo the teacher and he introduced me to Merhetu, a local bee keeping expert who has a very good project idea.

Today I sat down with them and worked out the details of the proposal which is to place 8 modern and 2 transitional bee hives in the Bale Mountains at the site of a fancy new tourist lodge.  The site is ideal for bees because it is in the heart of the Harenna forest, lush, pristine and bursting with flowers. Once the hives are established they will start training surrounding community members how to work with the modern hives. This is important because the current “traditional” hives are inefficient and in the process of harvesting the honey the bees are killed. Also establishing a way to make money by protecting the forest is crucial for the sustainable management of this unique forest.

So basically I am helping them to formulate their plan then present it to Frankfurt Zoological Society who helps to coordinate management projects within the national park. It’s so nice to finally work with motivated people who have an idea and want assistance with it rather than me trying to rally up enthusiasm to do a project.

Which I am still trying to do with my “Doro Bet” project with the Tekyelemot Monastery but in a new version. The other day I finally managed to drag my fatigued and head cold ridden self up to the Agriculture office to talk about my plan. One guy I have worked with in the past played the arrogant “know it all” (a common personality type here) and proceeded to shoot down my plan with glee. But in hindsight he addressed some of the concerns I had been mulling over, and swallowing my pride I thanked him and left.  My next stop was the Farm Africa office (a great NGO), where Getachew confirmed my concerns but really supported the idea to just build a chicken coop, even saying he could purchase all the materials. So for now all systems are still a go!

Now onto the reason I started to write in the first place. Early this morning tragedy struck- the new puppy in my compound chewed up my Chaco, which for those who don’t know is the world’s greatest sandal that I wear daily and have had for 8 years. But due to Ethiopians resourcefulness I was able to take it to my favorite shoe shine boy and he sewed it up to a usable state and didn't even charge me! So here’s a big grateful grinning salute to all those kind, motivated, helpful Ethiopians out there- thank you! And of course a big hug and smile to all my family and friends back home who are there cheering me on. I truly appreciate you all.

Kind Reflections

February 2, 2014

Phew another month gone. Where did it go? Well for starters lots of time spent on the bus going to and from Addis. I’m sure getting good and 9 hour bus rides, and for the most part enjoy them. Sometimes I meet the nicest people. This last time I met an older lady who reminded me of Whoopie Goldburg and Alice Walker because of her grey hair and kind eyes. She is a school teacher in Addis who lives alone and is named Kabenish. (Side thought- have I ever mentioned how difficult some of the names are here? At least I’m starting to recognize some of them like Tesfaye, Siefeden, Karkidan, and Mestaowit). Anyway she gave me her phone number and said the next time I am in Addis I am invited to stay with her at her home. So kind.

Another kind Ethiopian I am starting to work with is nicknamed “Dr.” because he is a veterinarian, thank goodness because his real name Endalkachew is a mouthful! Today was one of those rare wonderful days where I feel really excited for a potential project. We took a gari (hose drawn cart) out to one of my favorite places in Goba- the Teklehaymanot Monastery where about 150 monks and nuns live tucked into the forest and streams. I’m starting to take the steps in building a chicken coop over a fish pond (the chicken poo helps fertilize the pond), a cool integrated system that I saw in another town. Everyone is very supportive and   eager to help work, which is great! Plus the site is beautiful, peaceful and the people so very kind. There are several caves where in the past people have lived in and prayed and even one cave where a man lived in for 7 years. It really feels good to finally be doing something.

The weather continues to be perfect, sunny with a few fluffy breezy clouds. Yesterday we had our first rain shower in over 2 months indicating the start of the “short rainy season” which will go for the next few months, until the transition into the “long rainy season”. A few weeks ago I took advantage of the low river and went exploring up the Tagona. It is such a joy to be able to get out and explore, one of my main activities for staying sane. At one beautiful little canyon spot I stopped and wrote some “Lessons from walking the river” which I will share:

-keep focused on the next step but look up often, and sometimes look back

-take time to pause, look, listen and feel frequently

-a stern looking man with a gun can have the most brilliant smile once you say hi

-shy little kids are adorable

-flowing water sooths and restores

-simply saying hi and being yourself has an influence on others, make it a positive one

-I have a very strong urge to do something to contribute, but an equally strong fear in trying

-Life is living everywhere you look- frog eggs, bird nests, lizards, bugs, cows on cliff edges…

-In nature a sense of self doesn’t matter

-Eucalyptus smell lovely

-There are many paths to choose from, all get you up stream

-Not everyone smiles, but most do

Despite the frustration of not doing much work I feel very thankful that I have so much time for reflection, reading and meditating. My latest motto has been to see this experience as a 2 year retreat, a chance I will never have again. Plus I get to see cute donkeys and beautiful kids on a daily basis. One kid that cracks me up is a little two year old that is absolutely terrified of me up close but as soon as I am walking away at a safe distance he will shout my name and say bye until I am out of site. Ah little joys. 

A glimpse of the Bonga travels

They make em big in Wolita area! Beautiful homes!

Gojo bets and banana trees as far as the eye can see for miles and miles

Beautiful old woman selling chickpea snacks outside the bus window.

Buna berries drying in the sun. This is where your coffee comes from! 

A little bit of Christmas

Our Christmas gathering. The Catholic priests even made us a tree!

The lovely waterfall we hung out at

Can you say wow! Tropical jungle beauty!!! 

Swimming in the falls!! Cold but wonderful.

My PCV friends Jill and Meg walking through the neighborhood at the waterfalls...

Another amazing sunset in Hawasa officially my favorite city in Ethiopia. Watching this and drinking a beer doesn't get much better!

And there's tons of amazing birds! (This is one of many Mirabou storks)

A delight on top of our hotel roof! Beautiful Colobus monkey. I guess he was looking for water to drink.

Next time you complain about moving...imagine having to do it with only a donkey cart!

Holiday Travels

Ah the joys of a quiet home after 3 days of travel on hot cramped noisy buses! I just got back from fun holiday adventure to visit my friend Sally in her town of Bonga- home of the “mother” coffee tree. Bonga is in the tropical forest region where a large majority of coffee is grown and it’s beautiful! Steep hills and mountains covered with lush jungle vegetation. My good friends Jill and Devin (who live in the town next to me) accompanied me on this adventure and on the way there we decided to take the “scenic” route- adding an extra day to our travels to bypass going to Addis Ababa. One thing I am learning about Ethiopia- it certainly isn't flat desert. Up, down, twist, turn go the roads in various conditions to brand new pavement to dirt.

Christmas was a fun “ferengi” gathering of 8 PCV’s, and 3 Japanese volunteers (in a program very similar to Peace Corps).  I made a roast and we ate cookies and drank egg nog while looking out at the jungle below from a lovely view at the Catholic Church (where one of the Japanese volunteers was renting a nice house from). The rest of the days were spent exploring the jungle and lounging around a beautiful waterfall that we even got to swim in!

In total we were on buses for 6 days, and spent 4 days in Bonga. Along those many miles (kilometers) of travel I wrote little glimpses of what I was seeing (and experiencing) so imagine you are looking out a window seeing little bits of the following from Ethiopia:

-Red blooming Koso trees

-Low rock walls around grass thatched roofs. How old are they?

-Colorful stream coated in freshly washed fabrics drying in the sun

-Hand pressed cow patties drying to be used for cooking fuel

- Huge piles of hay, hand cut after a good harvest. Food for the cows, donkeys, horses and sheep.

-Tiny barefoot kids herding cattle into dry open fields

-Sunrise hitting tin roofs and old tires, the day awakes from darkness

-Mud homes hidden in banana leaf thickets

-Getting hit in the head with a banana stem by a rude street vendor wanting attention (this was at the bus station).

- Greeting an old woman selling veggies; her kissing my hand in respect.

-Hiding from the sun behind a curtain, waiting, waiting for the bus to leave. (it took 3 hours before full of people)

-Small circular burial plots marked with stone pillars

-Different mud homes (Gojo bets)-  very large and tall with straw thatched roofs and circular bamboo base. Little wood doors and decorative paint lining the entrance.

-Breakfast of fried dough balls dunked in little cups of buna at the bus station, perched on a bench around a little charcoal stove.

-Closing my eyes to do yoga in the morning sun at the bus stations (to ignore the stares), then teaching some young guys so yoga poses.

- Peeing in a water bottle in my cheap no bathroom hotel room.

-Reverse ghost town homes; new and partially finished mud homes with no people around. One of the many mysteries.

- A river lined with green in a sea of dry brown fields, naked men and boys swimming and bathing.

- Muslim girls in a colorful array of headscarf’s walking to school.

- Red bushes of poinsettia, white blooms of plumeria, purple bogenvilla; bursts of color among fields of dry corn stalks and straw.

-Green acacia trees dripping with dangling grass weaver bird nests.

-(Upon arriving in Addis Ababa) Girls wearing traditional Orthodox Christian white headscarf’s with tight jeans and high heels.

-Driving through the Great Rift Valley with endless towers of termite mounds and acacia trees with young boys sitting in their shade.

-A posse of young boys playing soccer; all barefoot and pant less

-The bus stopping by a river so all the Muslim men could wash and pray, facing Mecca.

- Near the end of a four hour ride seeing everyone perk up and look out the windows in hopes of seeing Mountain Nayala and other wildlife as we pass through the grassland part of Bale Mountain National Park.

Ah the joys of getting back to Goba and being greeted by the neighborhood kids and women, and sleeping in my own quiet bed.  

Trees n turkey

Well hello there! I’m now back in Goba after spending over a week in the hectic, bustling, booming city of Addis Ababa. Things sure are changing fast there and they are even building a big train rail system in the heart of the city, which will be great in the future but makes for crazy traffic now. I was in Addis for our “Mid-Service Conference” meaning I am officially half-way through with my service! Yay! It was a week of reflecting, planning and re-inspiring ourselves for the upcoming year. And also a time to feast on yummy ferengi foods.

Thanksgiving was a lovely day where 3 of my fellow PCV’s and I got invited to an American family’s home who work for US Aid at the Embassy. It was like being back in America for 6 hours- crazy! Fancy home with a regular bathroom, kitchen- the works- even a trampoline out front and tons of kids toys all over the place. The family was very kind and having been in the Peace Corps themselves knew how to treat us- delicious food galore! A full on real Thanksgiving dinner- turkey, mashed potatoes, pumpkin and apple pie oh my! It was really interesting to see their world, and vice versa. They were very eager to hear about life “on the other side”, since they essentially live in a bubble of luxury, completely cut off from real Ethiopian life, even after having lived here for over 2 years. It was a wonderful day but a slight disappointment to come back to reality.

But now that I’m back in Goba I wouldn't trade it at all. This morning I went for another sunrise run and ended up exploring up a river in total peace and quiet. As I wondered my way back to town I felt like I was in a timeless place. Little tree and cactus lined pathways with mud homes and grazing horses and donkeys that could have been the same scene a hundred years ago. It was so peaceful and I felt very content and competent as I asked for directions back to town from the surprised but very friendly locals. I was reminded of cultural differences when I tried to give a little boy “high five” and he flinched in fear at the white person raising her hand at him.  

Back home after making crepes from milk still warm from the cow I spent the day dinking around my garden, and doing chores. I wonder what it is that makes sun dried sheets smell so good? Maybe all the effort it takes to wash them by hand…

After a pretty low, frustrating and depressing week I really enjoyed relaxing and connecting with my neighbors. I also had an inspiring meeting with a local veterinarian called “Doc” who helped me translate and print a flyer about how to care for newly transplanted trees. Sometimes after much frustration and flopped efforts one little success can feel so good. Tomorrow I will hand out the flyers along with supposedly 10,000 tree seedlings. This is a project put on by the Bale Nature Club that I have talked about before and is yet another typical example of good intentions but poor planning. Last Sunday I found a flyer on my door announcing a program to give away trees and I spent this week trying to understand what the “program” was all about.

I guess due to a flood the Agriculture office has to get rid of all of their tree seedlings and called upon the Bale Nature Club to help distribute them to the public. Sadly this is the worst time of year to plant trees- the rains have stopped and it will be dry for the next 3 or 4 months. So that is why I tried to make a flyer instructing people to water their trees. (A new concept). Sorry for the cynicism, I guess that’s what Ethiopia has done to me.

Anyway I am inspired about my new partnership with Doc because he seems to be eager to help and work on different things. Currently we are talking about putting on a training for all of the gari drivers (horse drawn carriages) in Goba about how to properly care for their horses. This was his idea and I’ve learned to go with the flow and work where I can when people are motivated. So here’s to motivated action, let’s see where this gari ride takes me! 

Tanzania travels

Oh where to begin…the last 10 days already feel like a dream. But my sore legs remind me that I just had a great adventure. Tuesday November 5 I got on an Ethiopian Airlines plane headed to Tanzania. Right off the bat the trip started well- they served me a delicious lunch on the plane including cheese and apple juice! Walking off the plane I had the biggest grin on my face as I looked around at all the new scenery and the hidden hulk of Mt. Kilimanjaro. I got a taxi to the hotel I had booked and the grin widened when I saw the lovely swimming pool and palm trees. Even just checking in I was served chilled hibiscus juice and the people were so friendly. I immediately put on my suit, wrapped up in the snazzy cotton bath robe and went to lounge and swim in the pool. Heaven!

Later I went for a little walk into the village and froze with dropped jaw when I saw Mt. Kilimanjaro in its full cloudless glory. It was a powerful moment as I realized I had dreamed of seeing the mountain since I was a kid- I even had a poster of it for many years. I think what makes it so stunning is just how massive it is and the beauty of white snow gleaming in the hot African sun. The rest of the walk I giggled to myself as I habitually tried to say hello to the kids by speaking Amharic, leaving them totally confused. My first impression of Tanzania was to notice all the chickens roaming around and how the young trees were not fenced but were actually growing unharmed by grazing animals. This made me realize how poor Ethiopia really is in comparison even as I watched bare foot, pantless kids run around in the dirt streets.

The next day I headed into the town of Moshi with some other travelers I had met at the hotel. They showed me around town and we spent a bit of time hanging out at the fancy “ferengi/muzungu” coffee shop where I drank a fruit milkshake. Later when entered back into the hotel I was thrilled to see my dear friend Cassandra sitting at the bar waiting for me! It was such a joy to see a friend from home and to catch up about our lives from the past year. I was also so inspired and amazed to hear that her run around Kilimanjaro was a success as well as her climb up the mountain! She truly is one of the strongest, kindest people I know. Through contacts from her run she had tentatively made plans for our safari and the next day we hit the road in our classic Land Rover with our driver/guide Tony.

The next four days were spent driving around four different national parks- Lake Manyara, Ngorongoro Crater, Tarangire, and Arusha, all different landscapes with amazing animals. The first day at Lake Manyara the highlight was watching a herd of elephants 30 feet from the road munching on spikey Acacia trees murmering to each other. We had gone with a “budget” safari and were a little concerned when we had to have some guys push start the truck when we had stopped at a little viewing spot. Fortunately that was the only time because only an hour later we were sitting (in the truck) staring at lions lounging in a tree in the afternoon heat. A male lion sat hidden in bushes at the base of the tree and it was only after Cassandra joked about peeing at the base of the tree did we see him. Yikes!

That first night we stayed at a fancy hotel with flowers sprinkled on our beds and warm washcloths presented to us on arrival. Ah luxury! And for breakfast we had a buffet of fruit, omelets and….BACON!  (yes I am a little food obsessed). Oh simple pleasures. That day we went to another place I have dreamed about – Ngorongoro crater- 12 miles wide with fresh water springs popping up to provide water year round to the abundant wildlife. The Masai people graze their cattle on the outer rim of the crater and it was beautiful to see them wearing the traditional deep red and purple cloth against their dark skin. The women had long fancy silver ear pieces and the tall men all carried long spears. Classic! We drove down into the crater (a steep 2,000 ft drop) and were greeted with the classic scene of grazing wildebeest, zebra, impala and gazelles totally unfazed by the vehicle. We also saw a hyena sleeping in a mud puddle in the road, elephants, hippos and ostrich hanging out in a lush green grassy spring and as a grand finale a cheetah! She was feeding on a fresh kill, panting in the heat and alert to other predators. Again this was a potent moment for me as I have always loved cheetahs and felt so thrilled to watch one in the wild.

Tarangire National Park had a lovely river where we saw elephants playing in the water and took lots of photos of the beautiful and huge baobab tree. A precious memorable moment was silently watching a group of female elephants rest under a tree only 20 feet away. In the group was a little baby and we watched in awe as it nursed and waddled about. Leaving the park we stopped to buy some jewelry from a Masai womens group and I got a fun photo of them showing off their work.

Our last day was in Arusha National park where the highlight was giraffes, lots of them roaming the thick brush and flamingos, wading in alkaline lakes. Flamingos are hilarious in the way they groom and bathe themselves murmering and chattering the whole time. It was magical to watch them fly in and out against the backdrop of the looming Mt. Meru. This mountain is the 5^th highest in Africa and has a stunning gnarled knife edge summit.

The only reason I know it is the 5^th highest is because we decided to climb it and it had a sign at the top. Long story short (we only knew 30 minutes in advance that we were able to pull this adventure off) at 10 am we got picked up and driven back to Arusha park to start a 3 day climb. Our starting elevation was 1500m (4,920ft) and the summit was at 4,566m (14,980ft), in other words lots and lots of going up. The first day we hiked through the lush jungle passing a huge arched Ficus tree that we could walk through, and pausing to ogle at the teensiest little chameleon I had ever seen (less that 2” big). We got to our “camp” and were delighted to see it was newer building with clean bunk beds and flush toilets! On guy on our support team even brought warm water so we could wash. Pretty snazzy!

The second day we walked past the huge ash cone (a perfect conical slope) and spotted some giraffes lurking in the bushes. We then hiked up a long series of switchbacks climbing up a huge cliff. I had fun recognizing the same type of vegetation I am familiar with in Ethiopia thinking how similar it looked. We got to our 2^nd “camp” early and had time to relax a bit before climbing Little Meru to acclimatize. Little Meru was a fun hike and I was happy that I was feeling great. (Remember that Cassandra had just run over 250 km, AND climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, so she is in fantastic shape, where I have just started running 20 minutes, 2 times a week.) At the top we got a little concerned because it started raining and wondered if we would face rain the next day.

Midnight we got up after a few hours sleep and got ready for our big day. In my fog coming back from the bathroom I walked into the wrong bedroom, stood confused for a minute then realized what I had done. Funny oops. We drank some coffee, munched popcorn and headed out into the cold darkness. I had never done an “alpine start” and thinking of hiking up a steep slope for 6 hours in the dark sounded quite daunting. But I trudged along, thankful for my meditation practice that allowed me to simply peacefully focus on my breath and steps. I was also very thankful to have some extra warm clothes from Cassandra – gloves and a jacket made all the difference. After passing some sketchy steep patches and seeing the beautiful glitter of ice crystals on the rocks we saw the first hints of sunrise. From there on out I was beaming knowing we would make it and immersed in the beauty of the dawning day. Mt. Kilimanjaro stood in its glory in the distance and we could see forever- even into Kenya.

The summit was spectacular and I felt so happy to be on top seeing such pristine beauty. We took many celebratory photos with our little posse of an Austrian, a Brit, and our two guides. Coming down I felt great and continued to take in all the stunning scenery. We got back to our 3^rd camp, ate a big meal, packed our bags, then continued down for our very very long descent all 10,000 ft in about 15 miles. I was whipped by the time we got down but still felt so jazzed at what we had just done. For dinner that night we splurged at a fancy restaurant where I had a steak with Blue Cheese (moaning in delight with every bite), and two glasses of wine.

My last day I chuckled as I hobbled down some stairs feeling like an old lady. We did some shopping in town and indulged in an iced coffee with chocolate ice cream! Oh little pleasures! I said a quick heartfelt goodbye to Cassandra then headed to the airport for my short 2 hour plane ride, and long 9 hour bus ride back to good ol Goba. The plane passed directly in front of Mt. Meru and I said a contented goodbye to Tanzania. Now back in Goba it almost feels like a dream, but a very good dream that I will never forget.