Blogs from Ethiopia, Africa - page 12

Welcoming the benefactor Our second and last day of service finished yesterday. I dressed appropriately that time and set to work continuing to build the school in Ategaye. After three hours of slathering, mooshing, and squishing cement between the cinderblocks, my arms were on fire. I couldn’t help but admire Shuli whose perseverance never flagged and who ended up working longer than any of us because she just wouldn’t quit until lunch was right in front of us. By the time the morning ended, the walls were high enough that we were balancing on cinder-blocks placed on top of raised wooden boards (also balanced on cinder-block stacks) that bowed and shook with passing movement. I started to feel distinctly unnerved about the prospect of falling because a) it was becoming much more likely and b) if ... read more

Addis Ababa: Nothing to write home about really. Pretty much a building site as they are building a metro. Reminds me of a cleaner, less developed combination of Calcutta and Delhi with the following differences: -Churches instead of temples - Fewer cows. More donkeys - The Chinese instead of the Russians have designed the metro - Less spitting in the streets - Blue taxis instead of black and yellow ones So quite different then I suppose! Trek near Lalibela: After a couple of days in Addis, we flew to Lalibela and started a 4 day, 3 night trek. Unfortunately we had to cut it short by a day and a night as Dad decided to spend the entire 2nd night throwing up! Oh dear. He’s better now thankfully. It was a fantastic ... read more

The Castle of Ethiopia When we arrive shortly after dawn at the Addis airport, luggage tickets and boarding passes await us. No waiting in line only to be told you’re in the wrong line and the rules changed but the signs didn’t and now you have to please hurry along because you need to be in the waiting area an hour ahead of time and nobody informed you previously of that rule either. (Sound familiar, world travelers?) Hmmm….there are perks to group travel! In Ethiopian airports, like Kenyan ones, there is a security checkpoint at the front of the airport as well as the one entering the waiting area. We joke about needing two checkpoints just in case one metal detector or scanner isn’t working so well (these are very old-looking machines) but perhaps there’s something ... read more

Welcome back I walk out of the plane to bouncing metal steps leading down to the tarmac and as I take in the view, two pied crows fly overhead. And I know I’m back in East Africa. A surge of excitement courses through my tired, bedraggled body. I will have to count on these second (third, fourth, fifth…) winds to carry me through this long day. I’m in Addis Ababa, on the first day of a week-long sojourn in Ethiopia on the first group trip of my life. I’m traveling under the auspices of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) in a program called Entwine which seeks to encourage young professionals (like myself and my twenty-some-odd hand-selected compatriots) to become more involved in JDC’s humanitarian endeavors. I have certain wishes for this trip but few ... read more

Geo: 9.145, 40.4897Got boarded on our flight to Addis Abeba and it was only 60% full and if we had been quick could have taken up more seats so sleeping would be easier. This was going to be our second night flight leaving Frankfurt at 10:05 pm and arriving at 6:15 am.The ticket had said we would be flying in a Dreamliner but this was not the case. Nevertheless, it was a comfortable flight and the service was excellent. They gave us a meal and wine and then off to sleep. It was not as easy because we were not as able to stretch our legs out but we did get some sleep. We were awakened around 4:30 a.m. to get a small snack and some coffee.We had a window seat and so we could see ... read more