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 Here are a couple of shots of our house. We have more space here than we did in our Winnipeg apartment. It is a two bedroom house on a compound (which means its surrounded by a cement wall and has a gate). At the back of the compound, an elderly lady and her daughter and house worker live. First off is my kitchen. It is quite bright and fun to work in. In the corner, you can see the stove, which is  a combination gas and electric. You can also see our water filter (the silver canister).

Here is Jeff sitting in the living room. These aren't the best shots, but they give you an idea, at least. Our house came furnished, which is really nice) so we didn't have to worry about purchasing furniture before moving in. The couch is funny to sit on because the cover makes it so slippery, you almost slide off if you don't firmly plant your feet on the floor.  :)

 This is a shot from the front-- isn't it cute!? Sometimes we eat breakfast on our little porch, but lately the chickens that roam the yard have been a little to keenly interested in sharing our food! You can see a little bit of the front yard in this picture, but what you can't see is the huge mango tree that is just starting to grow mangos alongside a beautiful poinsettia tree. They are both quite large and shade the whole front area.

This is the side of the house where we hang our laundry. You can see the house of the other ladies who live on our compound here in the back. You can also see a lime tree along the side. I think there is an orange tree somewhere in the yard as well.


All in all, its a lovely house. Pictures don't quite do it justice. We are thoroughly enjoying having more space. Plus it helps that we have a lot less stuff than we have in Winnipeg. We even have a spare room where company can stay. This weekend, we have a couple from Switzerland staying with us because they are in the city for meetings with the organization that Jeff's parents work for.

Well, there's another little glimpse into our life here. Bye for now!

A Pictures Worth a Thousand Words

I've been procrastinating about getting some blogging done. It really isn't that I've been terribly busy, but I just don't feel like I have anything super meaningful to say. I've got a couple ideas percolating, but nothing finalized. So instead, I will share some pictures of my life here with you.  Sorry that the formatting isn't super nice to look at. I can't figure out how to move things around like I'd like to.

Here is one of several of the Welcome to Ethiopia cakes that we've been given. People are so generous and eager to make us feel at home. Jeff is the third generation of Coleman's who has lived in Ethiopia so there are a lot of people who are excited to see him again and meet me.

I love monkeys and baboons and was thrilled to see a bunch

 on our trip from Addis to Bahir Dar. 

Jeff and I, along with a couple other foreigners and a guide, travelled into the country side to see the big falls over the Nile River created by a hydro dam. We went on a Saturday morning and were travelling against the flow of 'traffic' which included donkeys, people, cattle, sheep, more people and all sorts of things being carried. It was a fun hike and a beautiful view.

The Nile River Falls-- We got close enough to feel the mist and get our shoes all muddy.

I don't take a lot of pictures of people I don't know, but I couldn't resist trying to capture the feel of market day movements. There isn't anything quite like it in Canada.

This reed boat is sat on by people harvesting stuff out of the water. You sit with your legs on each side of it and paddle.

We watched the eclipse a week and a bit ago. 

Here are Jeff and I enjoying a Saturday by the lake. There are a lot of hotels and restaurants to visit while sitting and enjoying the breeze off the lake and the birds flying around. At the beginning of November, we went on a boat ride on Lake Tana and saw tonnes of birds and even a couple hippos!

Here is a sunset over Lake Tana.

And, finally, here are my two sister in laws that I get to spend time with teaching and hanging out on the weekends. I am quite enjoying getting to know them both better. On the left is Abby and on the right is Amy.

Transition, Transition, Transition

The last two weeks have been packed and it feels more like they've been a month! We've left Addis and come to Bahir Dar, which is where we will be for the rest of our time here. The drive was picturesque with lots of trees, flowers and people to watch and enjoy. I love driving through little towns and seeing people live their life. There is such a rhythm to life that is mundane when it's your life, but interesting to an outsider. One of the highlights from the trip was when a young person herding sheep along the road stopped and pulled out his cell phone and took a picture of us. Jeff and I joked that he'd probably post that on facebook or something. Another highlight was seeing a bunch of baboons! I love monkeys and baboons-- as long as they are not too close to me. Apparently there is a monkey that likes to come in the front window of Jeff's parent's place. That would be a little too close for me.

Starting the Friday after we arrived, we began the feasting for Muskel. Muskel is the Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of the finding of the true cross. Jeff's parents are part of a community group (called a mahaber) that got together to eat and enjoy each others company and we were thoroughly welcomed. We sat together under some trees in an area close to everyone's place and watched as the women prepared the injerra and wat. (Wat is the stuff that goes on the injerra.) They slaughtered a sheep on Saturday and Sunday and I got to watch how they prepare the dish. Often, they chop up the intestines and organs really fine and make a dish called dullet, which is a delicacy. I've tried it once and won't be trying it again. :) Part of the Muskel celebration continues each weekend as families take turns preparing meals for everyone. Each week, a different family is responsible for the food. Thankfully, there will be a lot less meat at the next feasts!

It's really interesting to watch the different social practices. For example, the group of us ate our fill and whatever we didn't want, we just left on our plates. A couple young men came and just sat at the edge of our gathering and waited. I don't know if they knew these people or what, but I was told that the men wearing the blankets would eat whatever we didn't. When we were finished, all our leftovers were put into a bag and the men were off.

The social customs here are quite different. In Canada, hanging out with people is fairly informal (at least in my circles) and generally, I don't like to fuss much about making things fancy. Here, following traditions is a matter of honoring others and showing respect and I think I would inadvertently tell people that I didn't respect them if I treated them with the same casualness that I would with close friends.

Jeff and I have moved into our new place. We have a house!! It is two bedroom and as of this weekend, it has running hot and cold water in the kitchen, food in the cupboards, hot and cold water in the shower and the toilet flushes. :) We also have a gas stove that works so I'm ready to start trying my hand at Ethiopian cooking.

I'll give you a bit of a tour of our place and tell you more about it in another post after I have everything settled in and off the dining room table and I actually have food in my cupboards. :) Also, our internet is giving us some grief so I don't have quite the access that I thought I would. Hopefully soon I'll add some pictures.

Home, Sweet Home

As I sit in the room Jeff and I are staying in Addis Ababa, it has an odd mix of feeling like home and feeling foreign. Its doesn't feel like home because we aren't staying here. Our suitcases are semi unpacked since we are staying here longer than expected. We have lamps, beds, electricity (at least right now) and running water. (Addis Ababa was without water for three days prior to us arriving on Wednesday morning, but since we've arrived, its been on.) Even though we are in transition, its quite a comfortable place to be. Its not really the room that gives me a feeling of being home, though. Its the world around the room. Outside, I hear several different types of music playing loudly together with a background of cars, the murmur of peoples conversations. Somehow, this combination is a reassurance of belonging. People matter here and so much is about relationship. There is an acceptance and easygoingness that I have only felt when I have been in Africa and Haiti. Its hard to put into words something so intangible, but its a good feeling.

As we went from the airport to HQ (which is what people call the headquarters of the NGO that Jeff's parents work with) nothing struck me as out of the ordinary. I guess I've come to appreciated and value a lot of the differences in life throughout my travels and they no longer are a thing to notice. So I noticed that I wasn't noticing them. :) Of course pedestrians weave in and out of traffic with a grace that befuddles me. Of course the drivers are comfortable centimetres away from other vehicles. Of course there is a man carrying a bunch of mops over his shoulders to sell. Of course there is fresh fruit in little stands sprinkled down the streets. Of course there is a big, white gate at the compound when we enter. Of course people move at a relaxed pace. It reminds me of a book I had in my classroom called "Same, Same, but Different." It is a picture book for kids that shows the lives of two boys and highlights the similarities and differences in their lives. I feel like I get it that life here is "same, same but different" than life in Canada a bit more than I did in previous travels. Being in Ethiopia doesn't feel foreign or strange or difficult, it just is different in many good ways.

Although, there is one aspect that I feel completely out of place- and you'd be surprised at how big a deal it is. I walk fast. And I seem to have two left feet. And I have very poor spatial sense. I don't have a good sense of where I am in relation to others or objects. At home, I do pretty good with smooth side walks, walking in areas that become routine, and a culture where people walk around with big personal space bubbles around them most of the time. Here, I'm a bit awkward, to say the least! We had to get some pictures taken to get SIM cards to get phones and, on the way out of the building, I banged my head on the door. Not even the top of the door but somehow I managed to smack the lock on the door with my ear.  I'm hoping no one noticed, although I think it would be considered very rude to laugh at me if they did notice.  Walking down the street takes a lot of concentration! There are people everywhere and I constantly have to watch my feet so I don't step in the places that are less than desirable or trip on the cracks in the cement. How does everyone else look so graceful!?! I feel like I walk a lot on my toes because I get so focussed on where I am placing my feet and I start walking fast and then have to slow down before I barrel someone over! I hope that Bahir Dar will be a little less dense. :)

Travel went really well. I had a little dental adventure that started with a large filling falling out of my front tooth on Sunday morning and ended with my wonderful dentist taking me in as an emergency at 2pm on Monday and giving me a bunch of antibiotics in case it gets infected. We flew out at 8pm on Monday and had the pleasure of staying with some family friends in Toronto for the evening and then back to the airport for a 10am flight to Addis. We arrived with all our luggage and on time. I ended up needing a visa so I have a visitors visa right now for 3 months and, when we get to Bahir Dar, we'll figure out what paper work needs to get done so I could volunteer. Jeff has the right visa, which we thought I could get in on, so I think that will help with the process.

The last couple days have been spent trying to cover details that will make our lives easier when we head to Bahir Dar, which is where we will be spending most of our time. In Canada, I know a lot of the ins and outs of things and know how to figure them out if I don't. Here, we depend a lot on others to help us out. I like it because they offer us a valuable service and we offer them some employment. So, as of today, we both have working cell phones and internet. We started the process to get Ethiopian drivers licences, planning to spend the day waiting in lines to finish the three steps so that we could head out on the weekend. At our first stop, we found out, we won't have that paper work until Tuesday morning because the guy who needs to sign it didn't work today and doesn't come back in until Monday afternoon. Sigh. So much for plans. I'd really love to get going and get settled a bit more and see Jeff's mom and sisters. Thankfully, Jeff's dad has been able to be here with us and help us figure out all the details.

Tomorrow is going to be another day of details probably. We're hoping to get a water filtration system, some pillows and an electric kettle. Stock is variable and somewhat unpredictable so its a lot of checking out this place and then that.

Well, that's enough for now. Its fun to see that I've got so many people checking out this blog-- makes writing more fun :)

Another Step

The count down is on- only forty four more days until Jeff and I take off to Ethiopia. I've decided that I will continue to blog when I have thoughts I think others might enjoy hearing so if you're interested in hearing about what's up with us, check back here.