Blogs from Addis Ababa Region, Ethiopia, Africa

After the nice times in Metu, we made our way by a long but exciting bus ride (lots of singing and clapping) to Tepi, a small town in the middle of a jungle. The highlights of Tepi, where we spent one night, were the realization that we were in the jungle (it rained lots, but people still called it 'the dry season') and that meant there were some big bugs. I woke up in the morning and flipped over my sandal to find a palm sized spider just chilling out. Even worse was that the pouring rain leaked through the roof and onto me while I was sleeping. I should say poured, as leaked doesn't do it justice! We quickly left Tepi and headed for Bonga, the center of the wild coffee harvesting area. We were ... read more

I had an Ethiopian dance party last night. I went out and enjoyed lots of different "local" bars and clubs. I was quite the attraction! I only kind of ran into one other white guy, but he had his entourage of prostitutes keeping him busy at what was more of a brothel than bar, I just kind of turned around and left. I met up with a friend I use to work with and had some coffee. She works at the UN now, another example of what you can do with an arts degree! She told me that I found sketchier parts of the city than she had! That came after I told her about chewing chat and drinking beer with some locals and then being shown (through some back alleys and pulling a secret cord) ... read more

10th Nov ’12 Lalibela to Addis Ababa It was a morning flight back to Addis with the usual drink and a bun and soon we were back on a bus in heavy traffic after having seen one of our group off at the airport. Then there were more goodbyes as another two people were dropped off at their hotel and once we reached the Ghion again it was our turn to say our goodbyes. It was quite sad to be leaving the group, they are a lovely bunch of people, good company and good fun. Sue is an excellent tour leader who always went that bit further to ensure we got the most from our time in Ethiopia, her love and passion for the people and the country was inspiring and infectious. One of the most ... read more

Its been a month, almost two actually, since I returned from Ethiopia and I've been avoiding writing a final entry as much as possible. I think I realized why I didn't want to write it (this also reflects my lack of a closure from my Italy blog)...I don't really want to accept that this wonderful, amazing experience I just had is over. I'm not in Ethiopia anymore, I don't get to see those awesome kids every day and it makes me sad. I cannot even begin to hope I made a smidgen of a difference in the lives of any of the kids I worked with at Onesimus, but they made an enormous difference in mine. I hope I can continue to be in contact with the organization and help them in any way that I ... read more

Selamnachu! This week, I want to tell you a little about what typically goes on daily at Onesimus. Everyday is truly an adventure, even though we do have a schedule, you never know what is going to happen. The majority of my time at Onesimus is spent with the drop-in center boys, the boys who are still sleeping on the streets at nighttime but come to the center Monday through Friday from about 8am to 3pm. I think of these boys, Amanuel, Befekadu, Besufekad, Endaweke, Abebe, Adonias, Yidenacachew and Esrael as my boys because I’ve spent so much time with them and have gotten to know them so well. Before Onesimus had any foreign volunteers, which is pretty much up until this January, the staff each had their own scheduled activities with the drop-in center kids; ... read more