Last Day in Addis
We are in Addis on our last day in Ethiopia. Tomorrow we depart for Nairobi, overnight there and then depart for Amsterdam, overnight there, and finally make it home (let's hope) on Sunday night.
We had an eventful trip to visit Abera’s family on Tuesday. The drama was caused entirely by our agency, and quite unnecessarily so. (I can’t go into the details just yet—I am still fuming).
The family visit itself was quite short but pleasant. The kids all seem to be healthy. I showed them a video of Abera that I took over Christmas. Surprisingly, the family had absolutely no questions about Abera’s life with us or what he’s like. We handed out some gifts we had brought and took a few photos. Then, the government worker who had come with us decided we needed to leave so she could get back to her office at noon for her lunch. We probably spent a half hour with the family.
It was challenging for me to think about Abe growing up in those circumstances. The family has one small living structure, divided into two VERY small rooms. They do have cows and goats, which we hadn't seen before. It is a relief to see that the siblings are OK, and we now have a local connection to communicate with them so we don’t have to use our agency anymore. We overnighted in Awassa in a nice new hotel there -- Tadesse Enjory -- and traveled back to Addis yesterday.
Our driver to and from Addis was also great. He spoke good English and was very accommodating. He was all pimped out in a fancy Red Sox hat, shiny basketball jersey, pierced ear and was listening to Chris Brown. I had a lot of time in the car to talk with him and he, like many Africans I have talked to, is fascinated with Barack Obama and what he will do for Africa. I try to manage their expectations about what Obama can accomplish in Africa by telling them of our troubles at home, which will surely be more of a priority for Obama. Our domestic issues pale in comparison to the poverty and woes here, and they believe Obama will be a savior for Africa. I hope they are not disappointed.
I also talked with our driver about foreigners adopting Ethiopian children. He seemed generally in favor of it. He hopes that perhaps they will come back and help their country. He told me that perhaps Abera, like Obama, can be President of the United States. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that Abera can’t be President because of our Constitution.
It was Christmas Day here yesterday and there were many bands playing in the hotel courtyard and a general feeling of jubilation. Families spent two days or more preparing all of the food, including doro wat, a yummy chicken dish. I was unable to partake in the Christmas feast because of some mysterious stomach ailment. That’s not necessarily a bad thing! We had so much great food in Nairobi that an involuntary fast will do me good.
We are all generally wiped out from the travel. We took it easy yesterday (Grace didn’t leave the room). This afternoon we did a little shopping for souvenirs, and Grace and Mom just went to the pool.
We are very much looking forward to coming home.
We had an eventful trip to visit Abera’s family on Tuesday. The drama was caused entirely by our agency, and quite unnecessarily so. (I can’t go into the details just yet—I am still fuming).
The family visit itself was quite short but pleasant. The kids all seem to be healthy. I showed them a video of Abera that I took over Christmas. Surprisingly, the family had absolutely no questions about Abera’s life with us or what he’s like. We handed out some gifts we had brought and took a few photos. Then, the government worker who had come with us decided we needed to leave so she could get back to her office at noon for her lunch. We probably spent a half hour with the family.
It was challenging for me to think about Abe growing up in those circumstances. The family has one small living structure, divided into two VERY small rooms. They do have cows and goats, which we hadn't seen before. It is a relief to see that the siblings are OK, and we now have a local connection to communicate with them so we don’t have to use our agency anymore. We overnighted in Awassa in a nice new hotel there -- Tadesse Enjory -- and traveled back to Addis yesterday.
Our driver to and from Addis was also great. He spoke good English and was very accommodating. He was all pimped out in a fancy Red Sox hat, shiny basketball jersey, pierced ear and was listening to Chris Brown. I had a lot of time in the car to talk with him and he, like many Africans I have talked to, is fascinated with Barack Obama and what he will do for Africa. I try to manage their expectations about what Obama can accomplish in Africa by telling them of our troubles at home, which will surely be more of a priority for Obama. Our domestic issues pale in comparison to the poverty and woes here, and they believe Obama will be a savior for Africa. I hope they are not disappointed.
I also talked with our driver about foreigners adopting Ethiopian children. He seemed generally in favor of it. He hopes that perhaps they will come back and help their country. He told me that perhaps Abera, like Obama, can be President of the United States. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that Abera can’t be President because of our Constitution.
It was Christmas Day here yesterday and there were many bands playing in the hotel courtyard and a general feeling of jubilation. Families spent two days or more preparing all of the food, including doro wat, a yummy chicken dish. I was unable to partake in the Christmas feast because of some mysterious stomach ailment. That’s not necessarily a bad thing! We had so much great food in Nairobi that an involuntary fast will do me good.
We are all generally wiped out from the travel. We took it easy yesterday (Grace didn’t leave the room). This afternoon we did a little shopping for souvenirs, and Grace and Mom just went to the pool.
We are very much looking forward to coming home.
posted by Jennifer Lechner at
7:45 AM
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