Ethiopia, Part One

Ethiopia.

Day 1 and part of Day 2 we flew from Minneapolis to Amsterdam to Khartoum to Addis Ababa. The other part of Day 2 was lost in the time change (Ethiopia is 8 hours ahead of CST). Day 3 we went to church with some of the SIM (Serving in Mission) missionaries we just met, then went out for traditional Ethiopian food at a restaurant (no tourists, just locals!). Day 4 we had a little orientation and tried to figure out what we were going to do the rest of our trip. As some of you know, the doctor we were supposed to work with over there had to return to the US on short notice but we decided to proceed with our trip anyway. This made our arrangements somewhat difficult at times, but we managed. Over the next week and a half we alternated between watching Charlotte and doing some kind of medical work. Between the two of us we worked in a few different clinics where we saw all kinds of different things, went on home visits with both the HIV and TB projects through SIM, toured an SIM school for missionary kids (where Charlotte may attend some day?), toured the Hamlin Fistula Hospital, and visited the Gladney care centers where our niece lived for 6 months before joining our family.

Now for some pictures.

A little chai while we waited for our plane in Minneapolis.

A little sleep while we waited for our plane in Amsterdam.

Our room at the SIM guesthouse in Addis Ababa, home for one and a half weeks. We had shared bathrooms, a big living room, and a dining room also.

Oh, and a playroom, where Charlotte spent a lot of time.

Traffic. This is pretty orderly compared to what it usually looks like. Everyone is actually staying in the lines here!

There were lots of beautiful flowers around the SIM guesthouse.

An alley near some of the homes from the HIV home visits.

One night we went out for an Ethiopian meal with a show of singing and dancing. This big plate of food is very traditional Ethiopian food. The bottom is injera, a sour pancake made from teff flour and water which is fermented for a few days. Then a variety of different kinds of wat (stew) are arranged on the injera. They can be made with beans, lentils, meat, potatoes, cabbage, spinach, and some other things. To eat this you tear off a piece of injera and scoop up some wat, then put it all in your mouth. No utensils allowed.

Charlotte liked it. She now likes to "eat like an Ethiopian" at home...with her hands.

At the restaurant. Charlotte is holding her tiny kitties, which came with us almost everywhere on the trip. Poor tiny Peppermint got lost somewhere along the way.

Here is some of the dancing. Maybe I will put up a video of this in my next post. They do a shimmy shaky shoulder dance that is incredible.

Stay tuned for the next installment of pictures from Ethiopia...