Hippo Hunt

Dave, Jochen and I went for a walk to Lake Boye about 4 km outside of Jimma. On the way there we saw all sorts of things, feral horses in Eucalyptus forests, locals selling fruit, GIANT spiders, and huge trucks filled with coffee enroute to Addis Ababa.

When we arrived at the lake, which was really more of a swamp/marsh then anything thing else we were greeted by two black crowned cranes (which are the National bird of Uganda, as well as a threatened species) flying overhead. The sound of frogs came from everywhere and the sky was blue with a few puffy clouds floating around.

As we began to walk around the swamp, we noticed lots of fly catchers who had built their dangling nests in the trees surrounding the swamp. Many parts of the swamp are used for agricultural purposes in the dry season, but now are covered with two-three feet of water judging by the stalks of maize.

Coming up the embankment of the hill, we ran into a young boy who had been fishing with a simple line and hook. He had about seven or eight tilapia or maybe a type of perch on a gill-stick. One of them was missing his eye, I hoped (ludicrously) to myself that it was from a close encounter with a hippo.

We came across a few locals, who warned us of the rain. The clouds has started coming in, but we kept walking. We saw a few blue winged geese and heard lots of other birds but couldn't see any. As we approached a tiny bridge, we said "Hello" to three little children eating sugarcane under an umbrella. I took their photo and they giggled like mad, I wonder if it was the first time they had ever had their photo taken?

The rain came lightly at first, then just poured. We had nowhere to go, but we had our rain jackets. We popped them on and kept walking. The ground was slick, and it was hard to stand up. The rain was so hard, it was tough to see in front of you. It reminded me of the Vietnam war scene from Forrest Gump where 'rain seemed to come from straight up'. After about five minutes we decided to head back towards the road. Walking by a small concrete house, a man invited us in. We sat on long wooden benches, and they poured us some hot chai from a blue thermos.

After about ten minutes we continued on our way around the swamp, accompanied by one of the little boys (perhaps about eight) from the house we stopped at. We walked with him for a few minutes, and we spotted the Black Crowned Crane we had seen earlier. So we crept up closer to get a decent photo, but it flew away. I spotted a few small frogs about the size of pennies in the grass, and upon closer investigation the tiniest frogs I have ever seen, which were smaller than a tic-tac.

We continued around through the muck, slipping and sliding on every second or third step. The clouds and the sky were perfect again, and the swamp had swelled. There were no hippos to be seen unfortunately. We walked up another steep embankment between fields of maize, and cassava. We reached the end of the path, ending up in the lawn of a small farm house.

We walked back down the enbankment and through the dyke-system back towards the road. Just as we were coming back we spotted a pied kingfisher flying close to the water before perching on a telephone line. Then just as we were leaving we saw something I had been looking for ever since arriving to Ethiopia. A snake! The snake was luminescent green against the brown water, and was approximately 20 cm in length. Unfortunately it was in the beak of an abyssinian roller and had disappeared before anyone had time to react.

We started the walk back on the road, and stopped a few times to take photos of locals who greeted us congenially. At one point a 'pack' of about a dozen kids came flying around the corner at breakneck speed kicking around a homemade rugby ball. They stopped to ask us our name before running away down the grassy shoulder of the road. Then all of a sudden, one of the kids who had been happily playing through an axe (yes, he had a real axe) at his friends. They must have been about 8 meters away, and he threw it hard. It landed about 30 cm away from one of the kids' leg, it would have definitely left a mark. Dave, Jochen and I were speechless. The kids didn't even realize how dangerous it was, I said to one of them "Ydellum. Dangerous" there's no way they understood me. Then they wanted their photo taken, which I did (still a little shaken up)

Anyway, that was my crazy Saturday. I hope you enjoy the photos.

Ciao,

PM

PS: Still on the lookout for a hippo

11 Weeks Down

So, I've realized today we've been here for 11 weeks, and just have four to go before we head back to Canada. Things have been going really well here and I thought I was just do a quick update on a few things. I'm going to break it up into little mini categories, and then post a whole whack of pictures.

1. Insects
Since the onset of the rainy season, I've been finding bigger and creepier insects each day. Some of my favourites include giant dung beetles, deathshead hawk moth, and some very interesting moths. Some which are so fast, I can't even believe.

2. Weather
The rainy season has come with a vegence, it comes at any time of the day at the drop of a hat. It's not like "a light rain" it is torrential. It's super neat, but since the middle of June the thunder and lightning haven't been happening. I think that most of the storms were heat fueled (May is the hottest month here).

3. Friends
We've had to say goodbye to a few friends the last few weeks; the other Canadians from NSAC, our friend Charlotte from Belgium, Ben from Germany and also our Ethiopian friend Biru who is out for the summer. It's a bit disappointing though we have met a few new friends and there are a few more Belgian students coming a week or so. It's such a nice thing to have someone to speak English with, without any sort of barrier. It's really refreshing.

4. Food
I've fallen in love with a new Ethiopian dish called "firfir" which is injera with more injera. It's very spicy and sometimes comes with meat, and jalepenos (which is my favourite way to eat it). We've also found some really great local places, places that might not appear so "great" but they do have great service and very delicious food.

5. Locals
We've developed a nice little friendship with a bunch of young kids that live down the road, we stop and talk to them for a few minutes. They're always so excited to ask how we are. We took a few photos the other day, and I'm trying to sort out which things to give them when I leave. I have lots of pens and pencils which seem to be popular, and a few toys. We also ate supper at our friends Samuel and Isaac. They had us over before they headed to Harar. It was an excellent supper and a really nice visit. We're going to miss those boys while they are away.

6. Health
I've been feeling excellent lately, not too much food poisoning or stomach aches. The only thing that's a little weird are the side effects from my malaria medication. I've been having horrible sleeps, with messed up dreams. Often, the dream has sort of translated into consciousness like a hallucination. I woke up the other day sitting up in my bed talking into 'a phone' (which was my hand) to 'the police' in Kentville, NS. It was really odd.

Last night I woke up with an Amharic English dictionary in my hand, it had been on the top shelf so I suppose at some point I sleep walked to my shelf and picked it up. I've always been a strange sleeper but the ones recently have been taking the cake.

See you in four weeks Canada

Ciao,

PM


Sugar cane in early evening


Stephanie and Fredrika


Sweet little girls who live down the street


Spinning Yarn at Merkado


Tej (local honey wine) at Ababech


Delicious chegla tibs at Ababech


Dinner at Sam & Isaac's, note the beautiful centerpieces :)


Traditionally prepared coffee w/ Y rue. Fun fact, I had seven cups of buna/chai (coffee/tea) on Friday. The people we were working with just kept breaking, and I can't say "No." to something so wonderful.


This is a little guy downtown who shines shoes. Many little guys do this to make money to pay for school fees, or support their family. Really happy little guy.


The rainy season is known for it's muddy roads. Muddy roads = Muddy shoes.

I just can't believe it. Where did the last two months go? I will have been here nine weeks come Friday, NINE WEEKS. That to me seems like a very long time, and I suppose it has been. As of today (July 7th) I will be back on Canadian ground in forty-four days.

The last few days have been really nice, as I have found out that I need space more then I think. Dave and I had been living together, eating together and working together for the past eight weeks. We get along really well, and rarely argue about anything. The last few days Dave has been away in Lalibala, and I have had some time to think, and read and it's just been different. I've has a lot of time to reflect and it's been really good for me. I've improved my outlook my time here, I'm starting to feel a little more rewarded for the work that I've been doing and I am getting much better at communicating with people who don't speak English (Notice that I didn't say my Amharic is good, because it isn't.

Some of the really nice things that have happened recently will be listed below.

#1. A French Conversation
This was probably the nicest thing that has happened to me all summer. I've always loved speaking French, and have taken many initiatives in the last few years to improve my abilities. After arriving to AC, my ambition to learn French got pushed off to the side. But it has still been there. I was walking down the street by myself at about eleven o'clock in the morning, and this really big guy comes walking up to me. I stand at around six foot one, six foot two. This guy had me by at least three inches, and had very broad shoulders. Maybe I'm exaggerating but he seemed quite big.

I was wearing a shirt that I purchased in Québec a few summers back that has a little robot on it, and below it "Energie". I think that might have been what started the conversation, or maybe just the fact that I am white and look like a foreigner. The man approached me and with a very clear accent that I was able to understand said "Parlez-vous Français?" I was so excited. We talked for about a half an hour, just walking around. He was in town working for a financial company. He was working on a long term placement and was from Senegal. We talked for about half an hour, and it was just so unexpected and so welcome that it put me in a wonderful mood for the next few days. I was caught off guard, but really surprised myself with how much French I had actually retained. My tenses are a little messy. Okay, more like a lot messy. But my comprehension was almost perfect, and he wasn't speaking slow. So that was wonderful.

#2. World Cup
The world cup is taking place in South Africa, and it is regrettable that it's too far away to visit. However, the excitement is very much here. Akon, Shaqira and K'naan blast from every radio, every store and every car. Children and adults all around town wear jerseys. Most people here cheer for European teams, Netherlands is very popular. The premier league is one of the few things on television here, so most people are fans of Chelsea, Manchester U, or Liverpool.

We watch the games either on campus at the staff lounge (though it's very crowded) or sometimes, which I prefer is watching the game at a local pension (hotel). The games are projected onto big screens outside in the evening, and dozens of locals come out to cheer. It's super exciting and a really nice way to spend the evening.


#3. Insects and Birds
I'm still not over it. It's not going to happen. Just as I think I am getting used to it, a giant ant will land on my plate with HUGE mandibles. Or I'll almost step on a five inch praying mantis. An eagle will fly out of the tree, or a tiny bright yellow bird will be calling from a tree nearby. The only insects I don't like here are the German cockroaches in my room. They're fairly big, and they take at least three hard shoe whacks before they die. They crawl under my mosquito net, and I'll feel them on my face at night. That's rather disgusting. I don't mind them being around if they don't crawl on me. But when they crawl on my face... it's war.

I killed twenty five last night before I went to bed. I left the bodies squished on the floor. I'm hoping they act as a warning for others that come near... but that's just a little bit of foolish optimism. I feel that if one multicellular, motile organism was to inhabit the earth some day it would be a cockroach. I trapped one under a water bottle cap, then put my shoe on it for six days. Today I removed it, and it ran into a hole in the wall... gross.

#4. Space to breathe

I had my first experience where I was outside and couldn't see anyone. There is a little park near the center of the town, which is gated. It's basically a horticulture area, and is very green and very beautiful. There is a one birr fee to enter the park, and I went early in the morning and was the only person around. It was so nice, I miss the space of Canada. I miss being able to take a walk and see nobody, I sat by the river for a few hours, and watched birds and read a book. I also ate my first apples of the summer. It had been eight weeks, and even though they were small and kinda chewy... they were very appreciated. It costs the same amount to buy 100 oranges, as it does to purchase a package of 5 apples. I think I will stick to my oranges (they taste much better anyway).

#5. Meeting the People

I am getting really good at making small talk with locals. On my normal walk down the hill, I have a few people who I regularly talk to. There is a compound with about eight little boys and girls who play hopscotch in front of the bakery. Whenever I walk by, they yell "WHAT IS YOUR NAME?" to which Dave and I usually respond, then ask theirs and keep walking. In the last week, they've managed to remember my name and they all come running over yelling "POWL! POWL! 'OW ARREEE YOOO" The "R's" are rolled and it's very sweet. Gordon Price left a soccer ball to give as a gift, and I've seen them kicking around a very old deflated ball with holes from a neighborhood dog. I think they would be the perfect recipients.

There is also a man at the same spot in the road who loves to talk to me. He calls me "Tom". I don't know why. But as soon as I get close he yells "TOM!" comes running out of this house or cafe or shop to shake my hand. It's quite funny.

Anyway, I am going to tie this post up and get a nice piece of maize. If you're Canadian, I'll be back on Canadian soil in just forty-four days. Yowza.

PM


Praying mantis on a Geranium


Wonderful little nectar eating bird on a hibiscus, not a wonderful shot of the bird because they're very quick.


This is "my dog". I named him "Selam", he's not very friendly but he will come close to me as I give him bones to chew on periodically. I miss my dog back home. I want to pet him, but not as much as I want to avoid fleas.


This is a photo I took at the end of a heavy rain. The sun had just began to break through the clouds. This was taken on JUCAVM campus.

Where did all the Ethiopia go?

Took a look at a calendar today, and Dave and I have been away for almost eight weeks. It will be officially eight weeks come this Friday morning. So, we have been here for more than half of our placement already. It's gone so fast that we will be back on Canadian soil before we even know it has approached.

It's been an interesting few days since I've posted last. Several members of the NSAC faculty have been here, and Dave and I have been helping them with whatever they need. So we do prep work, attend their lectures, drew a few things for lab, photocopy papers and take attendance. It's been really great to spend some time with people with similar humour, and sharing the culture. I didn't realize how important it is to interact with people who have the same culture, but you really don't notice it until you're completely removed from your comfort zone. It's great to be a part of subtle jokes, as the jokes that we are accustomed to here are funny but just a different way of humour. I can't really describe it, but the faculty from NSAC have kept us laughing. It's been really nice.

We've had to say goodbye to several good friends who are leaving for Europe, which is tough. They were here on a medical project at the hospital, in the last week we've said goodbye to two (Ben and Charlotte). We had to say goodbye to another friend (Linda) about two weeks ago. Anyway, several more are here for a few more months. So we still have some other farenjis (foreigners) who are going through the same sort of changes we are dealing with to hang out with every once in a while.

A few neat things that I have done recently.

Last Sunday, we travelled to Gibe Falls in Seka for the second time. Heavy rains had really swollen the river, and the current was very strong. Solomon wouldn't let us get within three feet of the water as a few students in the past have drowned by swimming underneath the water falls. It was a really nice time with the Canadians, and we stopped to buy some oranges from some sweet little kids on the drive back.

On Monday, I went for a little tour of a local school ABFM Academy. The kids were very pleasant and sang us many songs to welcome us, as well as the national and regional anthems. I have a couple of videos, but I can't get them up due to technical difficulties. Photos have stopped working periodically too, so I'll try that later on today.

The kids aged 3-14 speak three languages at school; Oromic, Amharic and English. All students write exams, even the three year olds in kindergarten. I have an invitation to visit whenever I like, so I'm really excited to go back.

We're still waiting for avocados to be ready so we can do some drop height experimentation on microorganism growth rates. Hopefully they are ready in about a week or so, because I am getting really anxious to get going with it. I've been thinking about it all the time for the past three or four weeks.

I've been watching a fair amount of the world cup, I sort of pick and choose the games I want to see. It's super exciting to watch here, because everyone is really into it. Everyone seems to know each player who plays in the premiership, there are Chelsea, Manchester and Arsenal stickers/flags/keychains/shirts absolutely everywhere.

Anyway,
I'll get the photos up later once things start to function a little better.

See you in 50 days Canada.

PM



Charlotte and I with kids at ABFM



View from the Roof of Honeyland


A wattled ibis flies at night. I was trying to get close and ending up getting this creepy shot.


This is such a nice colour combination. Unsure of the flower name though.

CV's and Acacia Trees

So it's been a little longer than usual since writing my last post, but I hope this one will make up for it. I have had an incredible week, filled with some incredible memories that I know I will never forget.

The week got off to a strong start on Monday, when Dave and I gave a presentation on CV's, finding post secondary funding and how to succeed in job interviews. I worked really hard putting together the presentation, and finding information about scholarships. It was a long process with a lot of googling, and seemingly no results in the beginning. But after refining searches, we got together an excellent list of resources. We had the presentation compiled for about a week and a half, before we presented it, as we were waiting on the return of a staff member contributing to the project. When he returned, the notice was approved by the dean on Saturday for the presentation to be Monday. Three posters were put up. I was quite discouraged, thinking that nobody would show up. So on Monday, when we arrived at the venue there was already a presentation going on. They had double booked the auditorium. Our presentation was moved to a lecture hall elsewhere on campus. At ten minutes past the scheduled start time, three people had shown up. Not too encouraging. But little by little people began to show up, and eventually we had 71 students.

The presentation went for about eighty minutes, and many students stayed after to ask us questions and ask for help. It was really nice to finally have some students approach us, as I think it was easier to do in a setting so public and open. We have a few students coming to us later this week to edit resumés, conduct mock interviews and help find job listings online. So that should be a productive way to spend the week.

On Tuesday, Dave and I got to go all around the Southern part of Ethiopia. We travelled from Jimma to Addis Ababa. The next day from Addis Ababa to Sheshamene, and the next day Sheshamene to Hawassa, back through to a small town about 70 kilometers from Addis called Mojo. The next day we travelled back from Mojo to Addis to pick up other project members from NSAC (Dr. Gordon Price, Anne Lelacheur and Anna Fitzgerald). We looked around a bit for accommodations in Addis, but then retreated back to Mojo just because it was safe, and inexpensive compared to Addis. On the final day, we drove from Mojo to Addis, picked up the project members and drove back to Jimma.

Though driving took up most of the day, it was really my favourite part of the journey. I couldn't keep my eyes off the beautiful scenery everywhere.

The Great Rift Valley, is without doubt one of the most beautiful things to see in the whole world. Mountains appear from flat fields, Lakes are hidden by jagged cliffs, there are beautiful prickly pear cacti left right and centre. If you picture in your mind the African Savanah, with the beautiful flat topped trees... that's what we saw everywhere. There were way too many references to Lion King made, for example "Look at that Lion King tree!", "It looks like Rafiki will pop out any minute." etc, etc.

The most interesting thing for me though, was the ornithological life observed along the way. Even the tiniest birds, were so becoming. There were birds of every size and colour. There was a beautiful spot breasted plover I spotted near Sheshamene, yellow fronted parrots, black winged love birds, abyssinian long claw, giant white pelican, maribou stork. Those are just the ones I was able to identify later on, if I had a book... I would have been able to get so much more out of it. But, I think I am doing fairly well all things considered.

Some other highlights included delicious food including tegabino (shiro {from dried yellow peas}, chili peppers, and butter) which is eaten with injera, checla tibs (goat meat, chili peppers and onion) served on a small grill with burning coals, hot mustard and chili paste, as well as delicious egg sandwiches (egg on wheat bread with chili peppers and onion). I'm defiantly getting used to hot peppers, as I can eat them straight up. At least in little pieces, I haven't tried with an actual pepper eating bites yet.

Today I attended Anna and Anne Marie's (Fitzgerald & Lelacheur) lecture on standard operating procedure. It went really well with about 35 people in attendance. Anna and Anne Marie kept the audience interested with a humorous example of putting on a lab coat, and the associated precautions and risks. It was too funny.

I'm going to try to do a food post later on this week, of some of my favourite dishes. But, I have to say... I like them all.

Keeping happy, and healthy. Enjoy the longest day of the year, for everyone back in Canada. It's 7:00 here, and already quite dark.

If you're reading this GP, still looking for Kurtz.


PM


Typical mountain in the Great Rift Valley


Salaam Mountain - Enroute from Addis - Jimma


Great White Pelican - Lake Hawassa Fish Market


Some rocks from a lake enroute from Shesheshamene to Mojo. Does anyone know what the peculiar black mineral is? I thought maybe manganite or osbadian... it looks igneous. I'm no geologist, but I brought a bunch back in my pocket so I can figure it out later on.


Maribou Stork, very beautiful but about 4 feet tall. I was scared they'd fly off with some of the smaller children. Taken at Lake Hawassa


A "lion king" tree. Actually a type of Acacia Acacia tortilis of the Fabaceae family. It is very common throughout the drive, we drove through HOURS and HOURS of savana with millions of these trees. Very beautiful


Great White Pelicans fighting over a piece of rotten fish. Taken in Hawassa


Some sort of weaving bird makes these beautiful nests. It wasn't uncommon to see thirty or forty in a single tree.


My favourite bird of the trip. It's unidentified at this point, but was catching flies on Lake Hawassa. I wish I could go on a bird tour there with a good guide, there was so much to learn. He was about the size of a chickadee.


Finally, this is my favourite photo of the trip. Two little boys running around, near Lake Hora. I know this isn't Lake Hora, but it was one next to it. I'll double check the name w/ Solomon later on.

1/3 Through: Reflections

So today, when I had a look at the calendar, I realized that I had completed one third of my placement. I was a little bit shocked. Five weeks in, with only ten more to go. Time is flying by, I'll be back in the valley before I even know it. Speaking of the valley, I had one very special treat brought to me by a friend which was... an apple. My first apple in five weeks, which was probably the best tasting apple I ever ate. Just because I was craving one so badly. I had to peel it, which was sad but necessary due to food safety. And it was ice cold because it was in the fridge. And it wasn't very crunchy, but it really hit the spot and I was very thankful that it was given to me. It was a very thoughtful and appreciated gift.

Dave and I have had a fairly uneventful week, we've continued to work on a presentation for graduating students and put the finishing touches on today. It's a presentation on how to find a job after graduation, improving your CV, finding financial aid and scholarships to continue education and how to do well in interviews. It's a pretty simple, presentation but we tried making it a little humorous. Hopefully it goes over well, that is taking place on Monday.

Dave and I had a chance to play veterinarian the other day with 400 two week old chicks, we were inoculating them against some sort of parasite. We got to mix the vaccination and then, administer each one to the patients. The chicks were so small, you could pick up four gently with two hands cupped and they wouldn't scratch or bite. Very sweet little things, after they were finished we moved on to the Rhode Island Reds which were also quite nice, but not as fun as the little chicks, as they had developped talons (Dave and I both avoided scratches luckily) and really negative attitudes about having someone putting medicine into their eyes. We did all of them in about two and a half hours, it was most definitely a valuable experience to have.

I've started a new thing, where I draw whenever I am waiting for people who are late. It's just a way for me to calm myself down, because I still get antsy and annoyed when people are late, without excuse, and without apology... for every single thing. It's the way time works, and I knew it would be my biggest struggle in Ethiopia, as back home I crave structure with time, and like to plan and organize. Here it doesn't work so well, Dave is more like the Ethiopians and has no trouble just sitting back and waiting. But, it really irks me. I am getting better with it, but I'm still not over it. So Drawing is a new way to calm myself down, and chill out so to speak. It's teaching me to be more patient, and I think that's a good thing. As I had no patience for people being late back home, now I feel that I am becoming a lot more tolerant.

This weekend Dave and I are hopefully/potentially touring a palace in the hills outside of Jimma with two local teenagers ( ages 18 and 19). Their names are Samuel and Isaac (two easy names to remember for once). They approached us last week at a pool in town, and surprised us with very clear, very natural sounding English. I'm excited to hang around people my age, as my only friend close to my age is Dave (three years older), everyone else for the most part is 10-15 years older than me. I've been able to get along with people older than me, very naturally. But it will be nice to hang out with some people my own age again for sure. The whole "just starting university age" everyone else has a degree and a career and they have that whole thing that I really don't understand yet.

When we met Samuel and Isaac, the first few things they asked were "What are your favourite movies?". They're big into anything English, and I think watching movies has really made them strong speakers. They also must practice speaking English with each other frequently, as they speak better English than most of the faculty here on campus. They also were asking about slang, they go to school at a Catholic school where a few Americans come in the summer and teach kids slang. They were trying some lines like "How's it hanging" and "Wuzzup". It was too funny.

I've found myself getting VERY tired of the same four foods here at the cafeteria (kai-wut, egg sandwich, pasta with onion and tomato and baiyonet). So I've been eating a lot of avocados in replacement of lunch or breakfast to try to change things up. Dave and I have also done a little cooking, mostly eggs. We have two burners on a hot plate to use, and limited groceries. We usually just do omelets with lots of vegetables. We are getting really used to spice, and usually put multiple jalapenos into them. I had a scare the other day with jalapeno and eyes, I was cutting one into fine pieces and got a squirt into the eye. So I ran to the tap with my eyes closed, as was just about to rinse them out. When I remembered that I would likely get an infection from pouring untreated water into my eye. So then, I ran back to the room and got a bottle of spring water and flushed my eye for a few minutes. It stung like a lemon in the eye but ten times as intense. Luckily, David had a bottle of contact solution that worked like an eye rinse as well. So I got it all under control after a few minutes. I recommend to anyone cutting jalapenos to keep their face away from the cutting board, it will save a lot of discomfort.

Anyway, I am going to get a bite to eat.

Attached are a few photos. One of a few chicks we vaccinated, one of the hens, one of an omelet we were cooking and one a very small praying mantis I found while washing my hands this morning.

Cheers,

PM

Four weeks in

So today marked four weeks since my departure from Canada.

I am doing very well here. The food is finally agreeing with me all the time, I've made lots of friends, and the climate is just right. We've been experiencing some AMAZING rain storms, which feel like the end of the world is coming. Truthfully, it's a little bit scary at times. But it's so neat.

David and I have been hanging around a bit with some European surgeons, medical interns and registered nurses. They're very kind, and really refreshing to talk to. It's just such a nice thing to have someone else who's first language is also English. You can make subtle jokes, and it's just nice to hear some opinions from other "farenjis". (foreigners). I even get a couple of words in in French here and there.

Dave and I are doing well outside of campus now, and we enjoy taking walks around town to the merkato, or to the Variety Café, which serves delicious fresh juices.

As far as work goes, we've been doing a variety of things from writing and narrating a documentary, to designing a device to minimize dropping impact for avocados. We've also edited papers, marked exams, reformatted a course calendar, been interviewed for Ethoipian television, created a presentation on preparing resumés and job interviews to name a few.

A few funny things have happened, that have really made me realize that I'm in a different country.

Taking public transport to the bank, someone hopped on the bus with a rooster tucked under her arm. That just cracked me up, because the "bus" (basically a glorified van) had already about 25 people in it. And here this woman was, bringing on livestock.

The other day a group of kindergarten kids came to campus for a tour. I got mistaken for being of Chinese descent, which was hilarious. The kids all started yelling "LOOK! CHINA! LOOK CHINA". I never really considered myself to look Asian, but apparently to those little guys and girls I did.

Also with younger kids, Dave and I were hanging out in the garden before supper and some of the faculty's children approached us and began rehearsing their English lessons from school. Here were two of my favourite ones, you'll have to imagine these tiny little girls maybe five years old and three feet tall talking in robotic english back and forth. Too cute.

The Phone Conversation

Girl 1: Hello is Meron there?
Girl 2: Yes this is Meron.
Girl 1: I need your help
Girl 2: What do you need my help for?
Girl 1: I lost my grammar book
Girl 2: Where did you lose it?
Girl 1. Yes, I left it at the academy
Girl 2: Oh, you can borrow mine
Girl 1: Thank you so much
Girl 2: You are welcome. Goodbye
Girl 1: Goodbye.

Situation II - Birthing

Girl 1: Where were you today
Girl 2: I was at home
Girl 1: Why?
Girl 2: My mother has given a birth
Girl 1: What is the sex?
Girl 2: Female
Girl 1: Congratulations
Girl 2: Thank you
Girl 1: Good bye
Girl 2: Good bye

Often walking through the town, we hear these situations being played out again and again. Obviously, a big class that practices the same dialogue.

Oh, and I'm going to have some photos added later.

Keep Happy and Healthy,

PM

Still clippin' along

Now that I am another week through, I thought that I would update everyone on what is happening here.

The work is picking up again, David and I have been attending a seminar on the physical characteristics of biological materials. The course is offered for faculty members here, to get a little more experience with their respected field of post harvest management. It involves a lot of really complex calculus, in determining the different properties of said substances. These calculations may include bulk density, porosity, moisture content... and the different ways that a material responds to an external stress (compression, heat, moisture etc.) If you're an engineering student who is interested in reducing world poverty by studying the packaging of materials, you would probably find it fascinating.

David and I have also been working with IT here on campus, helping them prepare a documentary about the information technology department here. Once that is ready to go, I will try to post it. I wrote the script, and hopefully we'll be recording it soon. The film is still being shot.










Still having problems with photos, which is sort of frustrating. But I've been taking plenty, and they will be up eventually.

I've been reading a lot this week, as it often pours in the evening. I've read a lot of great books since being here.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chobsky
The Willows - Algernon Blackwood
The Mountain and The Valley - Ernest Buckler
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - Jonathon Myers
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
Carrie - Stephen King
Needful Things - Stephen Kings
All Creatures Great and Small - James Herriot

Now I'm hacking my way through a textbook on mammalian biochemical pathways, and a few introductory books for organic chemistry. Just trying to get a leg up on next semester. I figure I have a little time for quiet reflection and studying, less distractions and a clear mind. So it's going really well.

If anyone has some suggestions of books to read, I'd appreciate it.

I'm trying to get some volunteer work done on the weekends, working with people with physical disabilities. I've seen several people since arrival, that look to be in extreme discomfort. I'm not sure what sort of work that I would be doing, but hopefully they can find some sort of work for me to do. There's also a spot down the road for people terminally ill. They are also looking for help, so I'm going to try to volunteer with each group.

I played a little bit of tennis last night with some faculty members, which was fun. We're going to try to play a little more. They have a fairly decent clay court here. My original plan was to train for cross country this summer by running here. Unfortunately it won't be the case. I get stared at enough walking around just being white. If I was to start running around wearing shorts, I would even draw more attention to myself. The roads would be okay to run on, but the traffic is heavy during the day, and I also don't feel comfortable running on an extremely bumpy road in the darkness.

We have something neat coming next week, we're helping faculty do research about post harvest management. We're doing things on dropping them. So we'll set something up by dropping the avocados from various heights onto a level surface. From there we will determine different factors of spoilage that result from it; micro-organism impact, firmness etc. It should be fun, and a chance to get some scientific method fit in which is really important to me.

I also have been able to finish my meals now. This might not seem so significant, but food here is extremely filling. The way you eat is using injera (a flatbread made from an indigenous grain called teff), you use the injera to scoop up bites of sauces called "wots". The wots are usually pea or lentil based, but also may have beef, chicken or egg in it. I've also had steamed/curried spinach, cabbage and potato at times. The meal isn't "finished' unless you eat all of the injera, and I did this on Sunday and Monday night.

I'm still having trouble with my stomach, but I think it's just still adjusting to the food here. It's very different, and I've been having a bit of stomach pain. But all is well. Give it a couple more weeks. :)

Peace,

PM