Trip to Soddo - Day #2

OK, day 2 in Sodo.  We woke up very early to the Muslim call to worship, blasted from speakers at the mosque somewhere.  I don't know what time this was...5?  Very early and while it was still dark out, in any case.  I lay there for over an hour and at 6:45 it was time to get rolling again.  Oh, those early mornings are killer on vacation!

We had a buffet breakfast at the hotel (cold fir fir, cold eggs, pancakes but no syrup) and then were able to get a tour of the Soddo Christian Hospital.  This was a real treat as the girls, my mom and I had spent countless hours on a fundraiser for this hospital.  (I can't remember the exact number, but I think we baked over 60 pies and made over 60 friendship bracelets and raised $3,000).  Anyway, the person who gave us the tour is Jackie Anderson, and she and her husband were there at the start and oversaw the entire building and development of this hospital.  Not only do they provide excellent care to the people of Ethiopia, but they train local doctors as well.

The compound is beautiful - it was amazing to see the level of care they can provide, yet there is always great need there for more (used laptops, people to provide construction/electrical/plumbing work, etc.).  You can check out their website to donate to various projects or find out more information.  http://www.soddo.org/

After the brief tour we had one more visit at M's birth village.  This time it was not as stressful or emotional as the first time, but was bittersweet as we were leaving again.  It was a bit of a shorter visit, with lots of photos, and then we left to head back to Addis.

(On a side note, Soddo is much hotter than Addis.  We were dying in the sun both days there...it would have been so nice to sit by a pool or to wear shorts and a tank top, but the culture is very conservative so we had to cover up and sweltered if we were in the sun!)

Well, we left the birth village at about 12:15 or 12:30.  We figured it would be about another 6 hours to get home.  We ended up making a stop at Solomon's father's house which was somewhat on the way.  We were very happy that he had the chance to see his dad, and his parents were so hospitable and lavished us with a coffee ceremony, popcorn, pop, kolo, injera with cheese, and the best freshly made guacamole we have ever had.  The avocado was literally just taken off the tree in his front yard.

Anyway, this stop meant that we would drive home a different way.  The way down was mostly good, but a chunk of the drive had a lot of pot holes and made the road quite rough in spots, or we had to swerve a lot to avoid them.  This way home didn't have pot holes and it seemed like we were cruising along so fast, but we kept driving, and driving, and driving.  We stopped at an amazing hotel in Sashemane for a quick bathroom and coffee/pop break, then continued on driving, and driving, and driving.  The drive was fairly interesting - we drove by Lake Langano (we eat at the Langano Skies restaurant in Edmonton so it was neat to see Langano skies firsthand), and drove by the biggest greenhouses I have ever seen.  They went on for at least a kilometer wide and went on as deep as you could see.  Apparently Ethiopia is a huge exporter of flowers - I would have loved to have stopped at the greenhouse but it was getting late.

The ipods died after a few hours, it was hot, and we kept driving and driving and driving.  Thankfully Arvid had the GPS on his phone so we knew it would be awhile.  We still kept driving and driving and driving.  I mentioned before that I felt more comfortable on the roads this time around, but all of that changed the minute it turned dark.  Not only are you dealing with oncoming traffic literally coming in your lane right at you, but you're trying to avoid potholes, animals (although there were much fewer out, thank goodness), and way more trucks than during the daytime...and it's DARK!  Our driver was very safe and cautious, which I appreciated, but the trucks are big and just go and YOU have to move around them.  It was very stressful!  Not only was it crazier at night, but our speed dropped to about a third of what we were going before...which made it even longer!

Oh - I forgot to mention that we saw a busted up car in one spot (it had happened sometime before), but then came along another accident scene that looked a bit more fresh as it had tons of people around it. Solomon asked if they needed help, and what happened - it turned out that one person had died and 2 were very injured. So now we were exhausted, driving in the crazy night, and the accident scene was still fresh in our minds.

We had already been driving for over 6 hours, and now we had to deal with driving in the darkness, with nothing but a cold breakfast and some pop and granola bars all day.  I am so impressed by the kids...we were all pretty much ready to jump out of the car with exhaustion from so many days of travel, but somehow we all managed to hang in there.  We stopped for a quick bathroom break and ice cream shake/smoothie in Debre Zeit (it was so good after not having eaten all day), and continued to drive, drive, drive.  I don't know the exact time that we finally got home, but it was about 9:30.  Other than a few quick stops, we were in the car for about 9 hours.

This was probably the hardest part of our trip.  The flights were long, but we were well fed and everyone had lots of entertainment options and bathrooms available.  We weren't anticipating such a long drive home and after having spent the previous 3 days traveling long distances we were just dying to get home..  We were absolutely thrilled when we finally made it back to the guesthouse.

OK, now for some pics:

Our view from our hotel room

Part of the Soddo Christian Hospital Compound - where the missionaries live.  There are numerous doctors and families who serve here instead of amassing fortunes in the US.

Ethiopian flag - such a beautiful area!

They have tons of wards here - ICU, Emergency, Pediatric, Orthopedic, Dentistry, Maternity, etc.

One of the sick kids in the pediatric ward

A group had previously come in and painted the walls in the ward.  I would LOVE to come here on our next trip and do some work there.

The girls got to blow off some steam at the playground.

A trampoline, built into the ground...so smart!  :-)

Of the fundraising money we were able to give half to maternal benevolence (helping pregnant mothers who can't afford assistance), and the other half towards the purchase of this ambulance.  When we gave, the project still needed more funding, then it was fully funded, and here is the ambulance, ready to go!

A pretty flower outside M's birth home

Agriculture behind the house - the tall ones in the back are banana trees, in front is avocado, beans at the side, and more.

At the restaurant in Shashemene where we stopped for a quick drink.  This was a beautiful hotel and even had little monkeys climbing around the trees.

Some monkeys at the bar

In the tree

Snuggle time, dreading the rest of the way home.

Solomon, a huge help to us on our trip.  Not only did he help coordinate our trip to Soddo, but acted as our translator as well.

E, looking out the window and catching some of the sights.

This picture doesn't do it justice, but the greenhouse just goes on and on.  I would LOVE to see inside.

Some cacti...we saw a lot of this on the way home.  In many areas it acted as a fence around property.  

Home sweet home.  What a lovely sight after an exhausting two days away!

Trip to Soddo, Day 1

We are so glad to be back in Addis again.  We had an absolutely exhausting last two days.  We left at 7:30 on Friday morning and drove straight through to Soddo and arrived by 2:30.  We only stopped for a bathroom break once and for a quick coke and bathroom break somewhere else.

Soddo is in the Rift Valley, south of Addis, and it was a beautiful drive.  It is more dry and barren outside of Addis, but the further south you go it turns into a near tropical paradise.  There are tons of banana, avocado, and mango trees, lots of sugar cane, and the area is much more green and lush.  Although the drive was long (and hot) we managed to do pretty well.  I'm amazed at how quickly the girls have adapted to crazy driving.  We're keeping E and G topped up on Gravol for the road trips and E could even play her ipod and not get sick.  Unfortunately, ipods died after a few hours and the kids started getting a bit hyper by the end, but they managed to make it there just fine.

The roads in Ethiopia are actually fantastic.  My mom, who has traveled quite a bit in Africa, said that they were much better than other countries she has visited.  The biggest obstacle on the roads are the big trucks (the rules of the road, from what I can gather, is that if you are bigger, you just go and everyone else has to move around you), and the animals.  There are constantly cows and goats being herded along/across the road and sometimes you have to swerve or stop to avoid them.  Our driver told us that if you hit an animal, you have to pay for it...it's up to the driver to avoid it.  There are always lots of people on the road or beside the road as well, but if you honk they tend to move, unlike the animals.

Solomon, our very helpful contact through the orphanage, joined us on our drive and had arranged a hotel for us to stay at.  We stayed at the Nega International Hotel, which opened just 5 months ago.  It is an approximately 6 story building, with about 24 rooms on each floor.  The rooms were quite nice - they each consisted of a double bed (and wasn't hard as rock as our last stay in Sodo), closet, small table and chair, beautiful big window/balcony with view of the hillside, and a private bathroom with shower (and no shower curtain, of course).

By the time we checked in and were unpacked it was about 3:00 and we were dying for some food.  We went to the hotel restaurant and ordered, and it took FOREVER for the food to come.  It came out in stages - the Ethiopian food came first, and I think they had to fly to Canada to get the western food.  We were getting stressed because it was getting late and our whole purpose in coming to Ethiopia was to go to M's birth village and would be dark soon.  (It gets dark by 6).  We ended up wrapping up the food and taking it to go, although I only ended up eating half a sandwich all day.

We had another few detours (we're thinking of fundraising for a water well in M's birth village) and picked up a government official on the way.  Arvid couldn't believe that we could find a government official at 4:35 on a Friday afternoon, the weekend before Christmas, on short notice.  For once, something was fast in Ethiopia.

Anyway, M's birth village is only about 20-30 minutes from Soddo, near a place called Humbo.  The road is paved all the way, which is pretty amazing for such a remote place.  We parked on the side of the road and walked about 10-15 minutes (crossing a stream) until we reached the home that M spent the first 4 years of her life.

M does not want details to be shared about who she saw/knew/remembered in Ethiopia.  She told me that only family (up to first cousins) are allowed to know these details and I will respect that.  All I will say is that many neighbours and people remembered her and greeted her so happily, and one person especially was so happy and thanked God and us so profusely and was so beyond thrilled to see M that I was moved to tears.  That greeting alone made the expense, long flights, 10 hour time change, lack of sleep, long drive and culture shock worth it.

How did M do?  Well, I think it was a lot to take in.  She was so excited to see her home...she was skipping and jumping and running on the way there.  However, once she was greeted by people who knew her, many of whom she didn't remember, speaking a language she didn't understand, it was a bit overwhelming.  I would have liked a bit more interaction from M's side, but I also know that she is only 7 and this was such an emotionally charged event and just so much to process, even for an adult.

We spent some time there, some of it great, some of it a bit awkward when there is a huge cultural and language barrier, but on the whole it went really well.  As the sun was going down quickly we decided to head back to Soddo.

We were all wishing that our day would be over, but we still had donations to drop off at the Soddo Christian Hospital.  We were asked to bring a few things from home as well as child-friendly, fun fabric which will be sown into hospital gown for kids and were happy to give the last of our donations away.  We will be traveling so lightly now!

By the time we got back to our hotel, it was 8:30.  We had barely eaten all day - other than a great breakfast at the guesthouse we just had a bit of pop in the afternoon and half a sandwich at 4, but we were so beat that we went to bed.  It was such an exhausting, but good day.

I will include some pictures below, but won't include many from M's village in order to respect her wishes:

Countryside which is closer to Addis, more dry and less trees

Entering the Rift Valley - already much more lush

A note M wrote me on the way - so cute!

My mom decided to sit up front for awhile and spent probably 4 hours asking questions.  She is a true scholar - even took notes.  :-)  We took this picture because it looked like he was putting his arm around her (it was actually on the seatback, Dad, don't worry!  :-) )

Typical town we drove through on the way

Just another day in Ethiopia

My mom and the girls HAD to stop and use the toilet...this is what they were greeted with.  They all managed to use it, although one said her aim was a bit off.  :-)  I'm so glad I didn't drink on the way so I could avoid this.

The view from the front of our hotel in Sodo - this is a huge protestant megachurch across the street.

Our driver, Married (not sure how you spell it, but that's how you pronounce it).  He's amazing - fast, safe, so sweet with the girls, and speaks English quite well.  This is on the way to M's birth village

Crossing the stream

We brought some things...not the most practical, but we didn't have to carry it back.

G, not a lover of animals, did so amazing, picking her way through cows and goats and sheep.  I am so proud of her!

M, viewing the house she spent the first 4 years of her life in.

Showing us the inside of the house

Behind M is the area of the house where the animals are kept when they are not outside

Part of the property

The girls played some frisbee - this helped M relax a bit.

Countryside

Beautiful area, bananas, mango, avocado, beans, corn, sweet potatoes are all grown here.

Sun going down - time to go!

He also took detailed notes on his phone so that we can find it again.  He also used a cool GPS app on his phone.

My girls in Africa? How is the adjustment going for all 3?

Hi all.  Yes, this is my third post of the day, but we are leaving for Soddo in the morning and I won't be updating until we get back and will have much to post about at that point, I'm sure.

Thanks for those of you who are commenting/emailing - your support and readership means a lot.  One question I'm getting a lot is about the girls and how they are adjusting.  Our girls are girly girls.  Even M, who lived in a grass and mud hut until she was 4 now complains when we go camping without full hookups.  We knew it was a risk to take them to Africa, and we've had a few challenges, but I am amazed at how well they are doing and taking it all in.

I'll try to remember some of the comments that we've heard so far from them:
- There aren't any bugs here - I thought there would be bugs everywhere (E)
- I thought there would be spiders in every corner and I haven't even seen one (G)
- It's so nice here but also hard to see all of the poor people (M)
- Everyone stares at us (G, E, M) x 100.  It's a bit unnerving, but I think we have only seen about 3 other white people this whole trip, so there aren't many of us around so of course we're interesting to look at.  When you take into consideration that there are 5 white people, with an Ethiopian, and that 2 of the white people are kids (how many white kids are in Africa really?) it's no wonder that they stare.  I think the girls are all used to it now and don't mention it anymore.  E and M now make a game out of it and wave at everyone in sight when we are driving - they always get big waves and smiles in return (and the odd hand cupped, asking for money)
- It's too hot here! (G only)  On that note, it is probably about 22 every day.  When the sun is behind the clouds or there is a slight breeze it's actually a bit chilly (for me), but when the sun is out it is intensely warm - especially in a hot van with 9 people, no AC and stuck in traffic.  We were in the sun for only a few minutes a few days ago, and Arvid got a burn on his neck (except for a nice white stripe from the camera strap) :-)
- I really liked seeing our sponsor kids and meeting the families (G, E, M)
- We've started to compile a list of things we are thankful for from home:  Secure home, large home, furnace, A/C in cars, good showers/baths, snow (G only), paved and safe sidewalks, brushing teeth with tap water, eating raw veggies and dairy products (we're trying to be extremely careful, especially since we are spending so much time in cars), paved roads almost everywhere, jobs, education, healthcare, bathrooms, toilet paper, Costco...we'll keep adding to this list and will also come up with a list of the things we appreciate about Ethiopia.

I'll give a special section to M, as this is the first time she's been back since the adoption.  We noticed some behavioural changes before we left for Ethiopia due to the trip (and Christmas, I'm sure).  It manifested itself in nervousness and hyperactivity.  Since we've gotten here she has settled down a lot.  She is extremely shy, though, and interacts with the locals much less than G and E (and they are also shy).  She feels a bit shy and unsure, although she said that she likes looking like everyone else.  I think it is all a lot to take in - and I would imagine that smells and sounds and music would bring back memories, or at least a feeling.  She is happy and doing well, though and is very thankful that we've come to Ethiopia.  Tomorrow will be the big test as we go to Soddo and visit her home village.  Please pray for a great reunion with those she still knows there - that God would grant her peace and much joy and that the visits would go well.

I may be offline until we return - but it may take you that long to read all of the posts anyway.  :-)  All the best to those of you at home and Happy New Year!

Sponsor visit Day #2 - Part 2

After visiting Hanna, we were able to visit Rahima, our last sponsor child.  (Oh, I forgot to mention that Ethiopia celebrates Christmas this coming Tuesday.  We asked each family what they would do for Christmas, and Hanna's family indicated that they didn't have any money to do anything differently, so they would just pretend it was an ordinary day.  How sad!!  I'm all about Christmas and I can't imagine having to skip it because of lack of funds!!)

Rahima's family is Muslim so we knew they wouldn't celebrate Christmas and weren't sure how the visit would go as they know we are a Christian family.  Rahima's mother and young baby sister were home and they welcomed us with open arms.  Rahima was very shy, like Kidist, but sweet and smiley like all of the sponsor girls.  They spoiled us with kolo, popcorn, freshly baked cookies, other snacks, pop, and a coffee ceremony.  Those just never get old!

Rahima's family was very nice and very hospitable.  We enjoyed our visit a lot and did the usual question/answer and sharing of the backpack.  We tried to get her to speak some English and then made our girls speak some Amharic.  It is always very entertaining!  Rahima's house was a room in a small compound, and as there was a courtyard we were able to teach her frisbee.

The sponsor visits were amazing and we are so thankful for all of the work and coordinating that CCFC did for us and does for these families.  It has been a lot to digest and take in.  We are about to have supper and it will be interesting to debrief with the girls and get their feedback.  I will try to share some of their thoughts on our trip so far the next time I post.

Tomorrow we are off to Soddo - a 6 hour drive.  It feels like we are spending more time in the car than out of it these days, but it has all been worth it.  Thank you so much for those of you who have told me you've been praying - it means so much to us.  The kids have been doing great and haven't gotten carsick and although this trip has been exhausting, it has given us many life lessons!

Now for some pictures...

The owner of the compound had a baby goat she was feeding with a bottle.  So cute!

Rahima, pouring us some delicious coffee

The girls enjoyed all of the snacks and pop

Presenting the backpack

She had the best reactions - so fun to watch her!

Playing frisbee

Rahima, her mom, baby sister and our family

On the way we saw at least 20 of these stands, loaded with watermelon and pumpkin

We stopped in an amazing restaurant on the way back for lunch

Christmas is on Tue and many places are decorated, although it is incredibly tacky!

That's a coffee tree they are standing next to

Banana tree

Coffee cherry - the fruit is edible, and inside is the coffee bean.  Too cool!

E liked these sparkly rocks

My mom, enjoying the fresh fruit drinks

Our gang - driver is in front, CCFC staff on the other side of M

Tibs which came with it's own little stove

Just goofing around.

Sponsor visit #2 - Part 1

Well, today started out a bit differently than I had hoped.  I woke up with one of my bad headaches, and if I don't do something fast it gets bad really quickly!  I took an advil on an empty stomach, which is never a good idea for me, but I wanted to get over it before we left at 7:30.  It got super bad, and then I got super nauseous, and then it was time to go.

What a miserable first hour of driving!  We were stuck in a crazy traffic jam in Addis, breathing in diesel fuel, starting and stopping for what seemed like forever and I was wishing I had stayed back.  I had come to the point where I was going to have the van stop in Debre Zeit and would find a hotel and stay there in misery until they came back and got me.

Thankfully, the headache pain went away as the advil kicked in, and eventually the nausea subsided and I felt good as new.  I am sooo thankful that I am healthy again and that we all survived the food we ate yesterday!  :-)

Today we drove about 2.5 hours to Adama (Nazret).  It was a much more pleasant drive than yesterday, as we actually had paved roads the whole way.  Either the road has gotten a bit safer, or there wasn't as much traffic, or I just got used to it, but I didn't find that we had as many near-head on collisions as we have had on that road in the past.

We finally arrived in Adama - it is quite a nice city and looked to be a bit nicer to me than Addis.  We again got a tour of the CCFC offices (these are much nicer) and then drove to go see our first sponsor child of the day, Hanna.  We ended up driving to a market, and parked right in the middle of it.  We weren't sure if our hosts were going to buy something there, or why we stopped, but they came around and opened up the door.  It turns out that each of the little stalls has a home behind it - who knew?

Hanna and her mother greeted us and treated us to a coffee ceremony with popcorn.  She told us that we were in her uncle's house as hers was too small.  Her uncle's house was basically one "big" room with a curtain in the middle to separate the bed from the rest of the room.  Interestingly enough, the living area had a small fridge and a TV and a nice dresser.  We had a nice question and answer period with them and were thrilled to know that Hanna liked football (soccer), knowing that we had put one in her backpack.

She was excited to open her backpack and it was fun to show everything to her.  She is in Grade 6 and the same age as G but looks at least 3 or 4 years older.  At the end of our visit we were able to see her home, right next to her uncle's home.  I was very shocked - her home is a tiny square hole in a wall, with a single sized mattress and dresser that filled the entire space, and you couldn't even stand in there.  I will show pictures below - their "home" was smaller than any closet in our house, and the communal kitchen was tiny as well.

Other than the shock of that, it was interesting to see that Hanna was like a typical teenager.  Her mom struggled to get her to do chores, and Hanna just wanted to hang out with her friends and have fun.  That sounds so familiar!  :-)  Of the 3 sponsor kids we visited, Hanna had the least and seemed to have it the hardest as she had access to the TV at her uncle's and knew what else was out there.

OK, I'll see if I can post some pictures before I move on to the next sponsor visit.

E presenting Hanna with her backpack

Excitedly looking through the backpack.  You can see the TV and fridge behind and the curtain which divides the bed area from the living area (this is her uncle's house)

Her mom, looking through some pictures.  This is the other side of the room

The girls

G taught her how to play the recorder - she played her Grade 6 Christmas concert song and it was stuck in our heads the entire day!

All of us...don't judge my look -  I had a rough start today!  :-)

This is Hanna's house.  All of it.  She shares the bed with her mom

The communal kitchen, outside

The pots in front are what Hanna's mother sells.  Their house is directly behind this in the market.