Blogs 5-18-09

Laugh so Hard

I have never in all my time here seen all of the nannies laugh so hard while watching a movie. Tonight for the first time we watched Dumb & Dumber. They laughed at all the right places but they went hysterical over the bathroom scene. Oh man Tesfanesh was laughing so hard I though she was going to pee her pants. I was laughing so hard watching them laugh – it reminded me of watching it with my dad and doing the same thing with him.

Finally

Today I got my Ethiopian drivers license. It took me all day but I finally got it. First I had to go to the U.S. Embassy and get my Californian drivers license validated. Once I got that I went to the Ministry of Transport and a nice gentleman helped me fill out all the forms and I had to get my picture taken so he took me to a photo house where I was ripped off but since I had to have them I had to pay it. I found out that I had to get the paper from the U.S. Embassy authenticated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. And since the Ministry of Transportation was closed for lunch we went to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs but they were closed for lunch too. So I went to a new restaurant called The Cottage. It was my first time eating a meal by myself and when the waiter said, “Solo?” I was embarrassed. I was the only woman in the restaurant and I swear the white man sitting kitty-corner to me was talking about the fact that I had a St. George. After finishing my meal I went back to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and stood in line for 20 minutes. Then I stood in another line to give them my paper.. They gave me a number and told me to sit so I could pay. So the girl next to me and I watched part of Across the Universe on my iPOD. Once I paid I had to wait in another line to get my receipt. Then I left and we went to use the ATM. I saw a ticket from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs then it dawned on me that I left my camera with security. So we had to go back (luckily it was on the way). They asked me to fill out a survey – I was honest about the fact that it was a waste of time standing in three lines when only one was required. Who knows if they will change their system - probably not because all of Ethiopia is like this. Then we headed back to the Ministry of Transportation and finally after standing in a very short line I received my drivers license. It is just laminated cardstock with a photo of me on it and a couple stamps. Then the nice gentleman who helped me at the beginning asked me for money. I told him no. He was very angry but I told him that I didn’t ask for his help but that I was very grateful for it. He said that that wasn’t fair. I told him that I thought he was helping me out of the kindness of his heart and not doing it for money.. Then he walked away. Typical. They prey on the white people all over Addis. They come up to you and ask you if you need help when in reality this is their job – they are like vultures and always expect something in return.

Alive

I am still alive after my first day of driving in the city. It took me two days but I found a car to rent. I picked it up this afternoon and drove down Bole Ave. during rush hour. The minibuses scare me as well as Meskel Sq. (the largest intersection I have ever seen – 10 lanes on each side). Mexico Sq. roundabout was difficult to navigate because there were four cars trying to go at one time into one lane. But I made it home without hitting a goat, donkey, person or other car. All of the kids were so excited that there is a car at the house. They all asked to go for a drive but I told them that we would go tomorrow. So tomorrow we are going to go for ice cream. Most of them have never had ice cream so it will be fun for everyone.

Reassurance

Yesterday Mesfin (the man from the new orphanage) called and asked me to come on Saturday and teach them how to care for children. He asked me to teach them proper sanitation, nutrition and health care for the nannies and children. Oh to have someone open minded who is willing to be taught by someone younger. It is very rare here to have someone (especially a man) who wants to be taught the western way. Ethiopians pride themselves on tradition and the fact that they have been a country for so long. It is so refreshing because it is so hard here at the house to try and teach them something new – like putting the boiled milk in the fridge. It just reassures me as to why I am here - I am here serving the Lord by serving the children. And that reassurance makes up for what happened last month.

Road that Never Ends

Last Friday Tesfanesh and I took a road trip to Jimma to visit her family. Even though I was super sick I really wanted to go. Jimma is approximately 350km from Addis and it took 6 hours to get there. It was super easy to find because there is just one road all the way from Addis to Jimma. The first 180km were nice and straight. I only had to slow down for towns, people and cattle. The second half of the trip was a different story. For 60km or so the road was switchbacks up and down mountain sides. We had to go so slow. For the rest of the trip the road wound around gradually. I was getting tired from avoiding the numerous cattle, donkeys, and goats – not to mention all the people. When dusk came around I started imagining that the stacks of wood on the side of the road were people. It was much easier to see when it was fully dark. Finally we made it. I was so excited to get out of the car but there wasn’t anywhere to park at Tesfanesh’s uncle’s house. So we had to park a couple doors down at the Catholic school. The next day there was a different guard who was refusing to let us out - after 20 minutes he did.

Hurricane Jimma

While I was in Jimma it rained every night. Let me correct myself. It didn’t rain – it poured. It poured so hard I had never in my life seen that much rain. It made me think of a hurricane – but without the wind.

Sacrifice

After rescuing the car from the Catholic compound we visited the Jimma Museum, which consisted of old artifacts from the king. Then, we went up to the palace.. The view from the palace was absolutely gorgeous. They were going to charge me money if I took any pictures so I didn’t take any. We toured the empty palace and drove back down the worst road in Jimma. By this time it was around lunchtime so we stopped by Tesfanesh’s Uncle Teka’s house. I didn’t know we were going for lunch or I would have brought some food with me but they knew I was going to be joining them because they had slaughtered a sheep on my behalf. I asked Tesfanesh what I should do and she said that she told them that I don’t eat meat. I felt so bad but they made me macaroni instead. My voice was so deep and it hurt so bad to talk that I just sat there most of the time. I was probably the rudest guest they had ever had in their home before because 1) they killed one of their sheep for me and I didn’t even eat it and 2) I didn’t talk to anyone because I was sick.

First Time For Everything

On our way back from Jimma Teka asked us to stop by his shop - which is around 22km from Jimma. It was market day in that small town so everyone was out and about getting ready to sell and purchase things. The next thing I am about to tell you is neither a lie nor a joke. I was the first white person to walk through town. Everyone stopped what they were doing and gathered around to watch me. It was a sight to see. I almost took a picture but thought that they wouldn’t appreciate that too much. That was a first for me.

Culture

For the most part I really love the Ethiopian culture. There is one factor of it that I can’t stand. I hate the way they treat their employees. There is a huge social divide between the employers and the employees. Housemaids are treated more like servants. They are at the beck and call of their employer. They work 16 or 17 hours a day for pennies cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and sometimes watching children. Coming from a Western culture this is so foreign to me.