Road-Tripping

The World Bank, among other groups, has invested significantly in infrastructure development in the North, including paved roads and wind turbines. The entire road from Addis to Mekelle is paved asphalt, which, makes a significant difference on so many levels. What comes to mind is not just ease of transportation and connecting the rural North to the capital, but also the many peasants who walk barefoot to the distant marketplaces or water wells. These peasants walk miles to sell the guava and carrots they grow. And students wake up before the sun rises in order to make it to school.

Traffic jams on the road up North are caused by herds of cattle or a lonely lost camel, not by cars.

Common road companions included donkeys, camels, cattle, monkeys, horses and any animal capable of carrying heavy loads. 

 

On the way back home to Addis and in preparation for Easter, we purchased many farm goods along the road that are cheaper than in the city...butter, eggs, guavas, papaya...8 chickens and...a live whole sheep. I put my Western reservations aside and patiently indulged in the cocodoodle doo and baaaaaaas coming from the roof of the car. 

On Human Nature

I got quite a good dose of human reality on this 7 day trip...both good and bad....

Mekelle is one of the poorest cities in Ethiopia where even college-educated men and women are unlikely to find satisfactory employment post-graduation. Men typically gather during the day to drink beer, having very little incentive to seek out job opportunities. This is a mass generalization, of course, but I witnessed about 25 men sitting daily outside the house where I was staying sipping beer and yelling at each other, preventing me from taking my much needed naps (I don't sleep more than 2 hours at night since I arrived in this country...)
So it's no surprise in these difficult conditions that theft might be tempting.While walking down the streets, I forgot my camera in the side pocket of my backpack. A young hooligan grabbed it. I immediately realized what had happened and yelled out "no!". It took about 3 seconds for the entire street to join me in running after the guy and we quickly regained my camera. I was truly impressed and humbled by these people, whose genuine, kind nature shone through.

In the countryside, children ask for pens to write with and are ecstatic when they are given empty water bottles to store seeds and to source water.

I am referred to as a faringee (foreigner) and following the immediate stare-down, I am typically addressed as "sweetie" or "sista". My favorite is when their English is limited, they just point at me and say "you, you, you" which cracks me up.

I was recently hit on by a 20-something year old guy at a hotel in Kombolcha. His name tag said "Bill Boy 3", which I guess means bellboy #3. I never saw any other Bill Boy though...
He approached me while I was sipping coffee in the hotel lobby. He started by saying, "I really really really like you" (yes...3 times...) and then said, "I even like your posture". Interesting...considering I was sitting...

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My immediate travel group of 6 was more of a challenge. The leader of the trip is next in line after Gaddafi. He did not allow coughing in the car, unscheduled bathroom breaks, and insisted that 4am was the optimal wake-up time for his "soldiers". One morning he overslept and woke up at 6am. Not willing to endure the wrath of my colonel, I had been ready since 4am. When he finally arose, he claimed he was in fact up at 4am, but not all his "soldiers" were ready, so he decided to take a long shower....

My next travel companion was an insecure 40-something female who was also a pharmacist and had a good dose of medication with her. I can't tell if she was bipolar or just very unstable, but her mood would significantly shift in a matter of minutes. I was never sure if she was going to kiss me or smack me. She would disappear for questionable periods of time after dinner, only to be found laughing on her own.

The one seemingly normal person was also a yenta. She thrived on gossip and aligned with the group member willing to offer her the most sensational story.

I felt like I was living "Lord of the Flies" or an episode of "Survivor - Ethiopia". Thankfully, I didn't understand most of what was going on, but I have a new-found appreciation for the pharmaceutical industry...

Travels up North

I'm back in Addis Ababa after 7 amazing days in the Northern Region of Tigray. I have left my peasant lifestyle to regain the "comforts" of Addis and most significantly...........wireless connection......

My travels up North included 1 day in Kombolcha where I was able to work with the outreach workers at the clinic, 3 days in Mekelle where ASC also has a clinic, and an unexpected weekend trip to the Gheralta mountains. The Northern Ethiopian countryside spans a variety of magical and diverse landscapes. Some areas are clearly desert landscapes, other areas look more like steppe lands contrasting with the long meandering passage through the Wollo mountains.

In addition to the beauty of the landscapes, I am profoundly impressed and humbled by the warmth and resiliency of the peasants up North. They are the purest, sweetest and hardest-working people I have met. Their daily lives are consumed with sourcing water, trips to the market, and feeding very large families. After witnessing life in the countryside, I am also convinced women work harder than men in the kebeles (villages) - carrying heavy loads up steep mountainous hills, caring for children, going to church, and finally drying lentils and peppers in the sun in order to feed 5 hungry mouths.

The children themselves are not spared heavy labor. They steer cattle and mules - hitting the animals with sticks and stones in order to keep them moving. The irony, of course, is that these children are about 6 years old and have little flesh on their bodies. The 300 pound ox could easily overpower its owner...

The 14 hour drive up North serendipitously lead us to the Gheralta mountains. The undeniable highlight of this weekend escapade was the sunset setting over the Sahara, exposing parts of Sudan and the majestic Gheralta mountains. I was literally moved to tears...which is not unusual when I watch "Free Willy"...but has never happened while watching the sun set... Below are some images of the amazing lodge where we stayed tucked away in the mountains along with a couple photos of the transcendent sunset.

Slums - Addis

I generally like to explore new places by aimlessly walking around until I end up in an area worth exploring further. In the past, this has successfully led me to underground enclaves where the champagne flows and the food is plentiful.


A Sunday stroll in Addis led me to the slums...which was a part of the city I had not yet explored. While the area I live in is quite poor, we have a toilet. 

Below are a few images that I took along the way and some of the children I met...

Clubbing in Addis

Ethiopians are lovely people across the board! Super warm, friendly, welcoming and they loooove to dance. 

Helen and Asquad (the nieces of the head of ASC) wanted to take me out clubbing Saturday night…Addis style. Given my general love for dancing, I clearly agreed.
And clubbing, or "cultural night" as they call it here, involves wearing high heels...an interesting challenge through the rocky streets of Addis.

We started the night at the German Coffee House (their choice...not mine) followed by beer at a traditional restaurant which puts on a live performance. The night ended at another traditional Ethiopian restaurant where I re-learned how to dance Ethiopian style. The goal is to move your shoulders and neck, without moving the rest of your body. I took on the challenge and was stared down on the dance floor...but it could be that I stood out in more ways than one...

Cost of the entire night, including drinks for 5 people at 3 different locations and cab ride back home...$40

In case you're wondering..I'm the pale one...

Shola Clinic - Addis

Day 2...and I already feel a lot more comfortable in the city...navigating the streets and getting stared down is not so intimidating anymore. Michael Jackson would be surprised to see it does matter if you're black or white on the streets of Addis...

And in an attempt to channel Marie Antoinette/Staci Rice I am feeding the children Hazelnut cookies. So the rumor mill amongst children in Addis is working in my favor. 

I went to visit the Shola Clinic this morning operated by African Services Committee. Shola is ASC’s #1 clinic and located in the 2^nd largest marketplace in Addis. It's also the area of the city with the highest concentration of commercial sex workers (CSW), which makes it the ideal location for the clinic.

I am thoroughly impressed by the clinic and the services they offer. They provide the full breadth of Free HIV/AIDS voluntary counseling and testing as well as family planning services. It’s essentially a Free one-stop-shop clinic focusing on the needs of HIV/AIDS patients. 

I attended a group meeting (bi-monthly meeting) in which women gather to share experiences and offer each other support as they tackle the hardships and stigmas associated with the virus.

Women are also able to come pick up contraception at the center twice a week .

I visited the CSW’s "homes" to discover an unparalleled level of poverty. Their houses consist of 1 bed with one tiny table surrounding by corrugated steel. Literally the house is the bed. If they have children, the children live under the bed. Besides the clear lack of space, there is no toilet, no lighting, no kitchen...and no sanitation. 

Following the clinic visit and interactions with the staff, I have already come up with some print and radio marketing ideas that I will be able to implement in order to further drive awareness and relevant outreach communication for ASC. 

Haben - an ASC outreach coordinator

  

I have decided weekly showers will have to suffice. The water pressure combined with ice cold temperatures make for an interesting shower experience. 

But the toilet experience is by far the highlight...
On my first day here, in order to flush I had to lift the entire toilet tank...but this advanced system no longer works, so we must resort to dumping buckets of water directly into the toilet in order to complete the process.

 

My tactic for coping with sporadic showers...and the Ethiopians seem pleased with my attempt to assimilate.

Day 1 - Addis Ababa

This is my first time in Africa and my first time in the Developing World. A unique combination for Day 1...

I am experiencing the greatest level of culture shock I have ever experienced abroad. I feel overwhelmed with emotions and humbled by the level of poverty. That word carries with it such a deeper meaning in Ethiopia and I am saddened by how little people really have. The most heart-breaking are the children who rummage through garbage without shoes and continuously beg for money. Given how inexpensive life is here (dinner is $2, good coffee $0.50, taxi ride home $3) it's even more upsetting. 

I arrived last night to be warmly greeted by the Co-Executive Director, Asfeha, of African Services Committee, who is setting me up with a room in his house. My current room features JC...Please note that African JC is also white.

Every day, I take in a few cockroaches as pets. They seem particularly attracted to my bed. Must be the proximity to JC...

The process of getting a cell was a lengthy 1.5 hour process in which I had to go to 4 different offices in order to complete the process. This includes 2 passport size photos to be submitted with the application (?!) 
I'm told Ethiopia is the only country in Africa in which the government has complete monopoly over the phone system and is known to monitor calls. Fortunately, I brought my phone scrambler along. 
I am now the lucky owner of a semi-functioning 1995 mobile telephone. 

My SIM card...."connecting Ethiopia to the future"...

The bureaucracy and inefficiencies are rampant here and it's impressive anything concrete ever gets done. Due to low electricity supply, in many areas, power is usually down for a couple hours each day. They call it "lights out". This is as common as seeing a couple donkeys grazing on the street.

There is a clear shortage of petrol and lines to fill up a tank of gas can take up to 1 hour...Given the proximity to the Middle East, this seems surprising to me...if only JC could negotiate a deal with the Saudis...

Every morning there is a coffee ceremony. This is done in people's home as well as in the coffee houses. Beautiful tradition. And the coffee is amazing!!! This country is right up my alley in terms of coffee consumption. 

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There is construction going on everywhere in Addis. Buildings, houses, roads...Foreign investment - primarily from the US, Europe and China - is being channeled into the country. This is transforming the landscape of Ethiopia and is already leading to improvements in terms of standards of living. 

 

These new buildings are, of course, in direct contrast with how most people live....