Tuesday, November 15 2011
We woke up this morning to Pancakes & Smoothies for breakfast what a nice treat. It has also been nice to watch Late Night with David Letterman every morning at breakfast.
Once again the weather is beautiful. It is a bright sunny day with just a few clouds in the sky. We have spent a great deal of time at the Ethiopian Guest Home just relaxing and bonding with Zeland. It has been nice but I must tell you I am ready to do some exploring. Today we will be doing some sightseeing around Addis with Hermella our translator from Children’s Hope International. We were picked up by a tiny beat-up taxi that has definitely passed its prime and then some. As we traveled through the city of Addis chocking on diesel fumes dodging in and out of the some 7 million people with windows that do not work in the sweltering heat we suddenly began to long for home. The taxi driver seemed very nervous as if the cab would stop working at any minute. On the hills we were passed by mules and when we were stopped I could swear people were laughing at us. Most of the taxis here are past their prime but this one takes the cake. The only thing that worked was the engine and the horn. our first stop was at the Green View restaurant for pizza. It seems like there is a coffee shop or a pizza place everywhere you look kind of like downtown Plymouth! After lunch we headed to the Mercado for some shopping. We did a great deal of shopping on our last trip so we did not need much but we thought it might be nice to pick up a couple of dresses for Lily and an outfit for Zeland. Of course Tanya could not resist a few scarfs as well. It is fun to try to get a good price but difficult when your wife keeps say how absolutely beautiful things are and how much she wants them. Needless to say we didn’t get many deals but then again when you are arguing over 50 birr it is a little ridiculous since it is really only about $2.50. Shame on me but it is still fund to try though! I guess that is the New Yorker in me. After shopping we stopped at Tamoca coffee shop, which I remembered from the last visit that we had purchased coffee beans to bring home. The place was packed and people were but 100’s of pounds of beans. I waited my turn and bout a measly four pounds to bring home. The price was right about $5.oo U.S. per pound. We returned to the Guesthouse for a great dinner. We really have been very spoiled by the staff here especially since we are the only couple here. By the way did I mention that Zeland eats absolutely everything as you can see from the photo we shared yesterday he loved his pancakes. Zeland has four teeth with more on the way. He has really grown since we were here in July.
Wednesday, November 16 2011
This morning after a breakfast, which featured French toast and freshly squeezed O.J., we headed to the USE to pick up Zeland’s visa. Once again the weather is absolutely beautiful. We are told this is the best time of year to visit Ethiopia and I am not surprised as every day has been picture perfect. After the long trip to the USE we were in and out with Zeland’s visa no questions asked. Now it was off to visit the Bright Hope School which has over 2000 children in grades K-8 a great deal of which are the children of parents that are Hiv + or have leprosy some of the children do as well. In order to get to the school we had to travel through a village on perhaps the worst road I have ever been on. There were many merchants selling everything from diapers to furniture along with barbershops, street vendors and just about everything else you would need to supply a village. There were many homeless people throughout the village as well as many lepers. Once we arrived at the school, which, is in a gated area, we were given a tour by Montero a wonderful man with a big heart. He showed us all of the projects that our agency CHI sponsors at the school which, include wells for drinking water and irrigation, chickens for laying eggs and a ten acre farm where they grow their own food. On the tour we also got to visit with the children. The first your girl we met was a 4th grader named makalesh she was absolutely beautiful and as sweet as can be. She came up to me and said hello and asked me my name in perfect English. Our hearts melted, if we weren’t thinking about adopting again we are now. As we entered the outside play area for the k-1st graders we were swarmed with children that just wanted to say hello, shake our hands and give Zeland big kisses. We must have shaken hands with at least 100 children. They were all so beautiful and had such big smiles on their faces. After the tour we went back to Montero’s office to sit and talk. He spoke very broken English so it was difficult but rather enjoyable. While Tanya changed Zeland’s diaper Montero took me to the lunchroom so I could meet more of the children. There in the middle of the room sat the biggest bowl of Mac n’ cheese I have ever seen. I am sure Lily would have loved it! The children were so orderly waiting their turn to get their giant scoop full. For most of these children this will be the only meal they get for the day. After seeing the Bright Hope School I am compelled to bring a group of high school student to help with a project or two.
On the way back to the guesthouse we made one last stop at Kaldi’s for you guessed it Carmel macchiato. Then it was back to the Guest House for lunch, a nap and packing for our big trip home. The noise continues at the guesthouse there is an actual construction zone just outside our room. Lucky us! However I did find a website that has soothing sounds for sleeping so that has been a big help.
Before we leave the guesthouse for the airport we will have dinner and a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony. We are also happy to report that a number of out adopting families have received their clearance from the USE and will be coming to Ethiopia this week to bring their children home for Thanksgiving. More to come!
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