Final Ethiopia Blog Entry

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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 can. Working with Onesimus was an experience I will never forget and always cherish.

So in an effort to not make this an incredibly depressing and sentimental final post, I'm going to list a few of my favorite things about Addis Ababa and post some of my favorite pictures and a video from my time at Onesimus. (I'll put a few more on the Onesimus Facebook page)

Favorite things about Addis

1.Ethiopian food- I think of it as comfort food now, I had Ethiopian food for lunch almost everyday when I was at Onesimus and I really loved it. The food at Ethiopian restaurants was extremely flavorful and fresh too.

2. The movie theater- Heck yes i'm going to the movies when it costs about $3 dollars and they're being released there before they arrive in America! I went to the movie theater in Edna Mall several times, it was really well located and had pretty nice facilities.

3. Restaurants- Addis has a variety of restaurants with different cuisines, Indian, Thai, Italian, German etc. Most importantly, they have Sishu, a burger restaurant with probably the best burger I've ever had, they have their own signature Sishu sauce which is great with the fries. I don't usually like burgers this much, but Sishu is amazing. Other places I would recommend: Beer Garden, Jewel of India, Enya's Mediterranean Kitchen, Yod Abyssina, Yeshi Buna, Castelli's, Limetree and Gati Thai.

4. Bowling- The city has the oldest and newest bowling alleys I've ever seen. I really like the old bowling alley at the Guenet Hotel close to Mexico Square, it felt like nothing had changed since the 1950s. There were only two lanes open, but their attendant was very kind and it was a very nice place to hang out.

5. Taxis- or as we referred to them at the house to avoid confusion, minibuses. They are an adventure and although they may not be the most convenient, you really feel like a part of the city when you ride on one, smushed in with everyone. As crazy as it sounds, I liked riding minibuses...especially when I didn't need to get somewhere on time.

6. Jazz- who would have thought Addis would have good live Jazz. The Taitu Hotel is the place to go!

7. My umbrella- Being able to carry my umbrella everywhere with me, rain or shine, to block sun, rain or dust. It was my favorite item in Ethiopia. I loved that most women used it to block the sun as well. Ok, maybe most of the women who used umbrellas were older and Ethiopian, but hey, it was a smart idea so I just followed suit.

8. The wonderful people I met in Addis Ababa. With some I became friends(you know who you are) and with others I simply had a conversation once, I enjoyed them all.

Thank you Caroline, Matt, Kiely, Everyone at Onesimus and Cherokee Gives Back for giving me the experience of a lifetime, it was a blast! I hope I will be able to visit again soon.
Amasayganalo and Ciao!

Alyska

Aleska

Alaska

Elsa

Alexa

Awassa

Alyssa

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