We left Bismarck at about 1:00 on Thursday, May 9 filled with anticipation and trepidation. The flight schedule was daunting. Yet, the anticipation of meeting our kids and experiencing Jemo filled each of us with excitement.
We flew from Bismarck to Denver. We had about a 4 hour layover in Denver. Sierra loved the flat escalators (or whatever you call them). She made us all laugh when she proclaimed, "These are awesome! My life is already changed forever."
One thing that makes me laugh about air travel is that we all do everything we can to be comfortable. Though we try - we often feel more like paperclips than people by the time we reach our destination. Sigh!
Sierra and my mom
My mom is one of my favorite people to travel with. I am so glad Sierra got this chance to hang with her grandma in Africa. Amazing memories were made, including cheetos on the guest house deck and sleeping with bedbugs.
We arrived in Washington, DC at about 11 PM. We were then taken to a nearby hotel in a shuttle. They did not really have enough room for us all - but we made the best of it.
Making the best of things was one thing this team did well.
We had no complainers on this trip. No matter what came up - lack of sleep, no wifi, too few showers, long delays, bed bugs, ect. . . NO one whined and complained! I am so proud of each of my travel buddies!
We were back at Dulles Airport early Friday morning, preparing to board our long flight to Ethiopia.
Here we are, lined up, ready to board. There is just something odd about climbing aboard a plane that will fly for more than 10 hours. All you can possibly feel is dread.
The flight was long. We left in the morning, and everywhere we flew it was daytime, making sleeping hard. In the moment, it felt as though we would never get there.
But when we landed, we all commented that it was not so bad.
(I will never say that flying to ET is not tough. The flights stink. BUT they are SOOOOO worth it!)
(I will never say that flying to ET is not tough. The flights stink. BUT they are SOOOOO worth it!)
We arrived in Ethiopia at 7:30 am their time. We got through airport quickly and simply. I was shocked at how much smoother the airport is run now than when I went to Ethiopia 3 years ago. It was a great experience.
We were met by the smiling faces of Hilena and Fikra - CHC staff - and quickly lead to their van. We were thrilled by the van. It was so nice and roomy! Who would have guessed we would travel more comfortably in Ethiopia than in DC?
We went right to the guest house. (pictured above)
We dropped off our things and changed before heading to Jemo.
This was our first glimpse of the Jemo compound. We parked each day right in front of this gate.
I felt both excited and nervous as we walked out of the van.
We were greeted by a mob of kids.
Some were shy.
Others reached up to shake our hands, kiss our cheeks, and greet us with the traditional "Salem."
They were curious about our cameras, weird language, and pale skin.
Jim IS Jim wherever he goes.
He was quickly teaching the kids a "secret handshake."
They loved it, and begged to shake his hand all week.
It was so great to have Jim's creativity and energy on our team. I appreciate him so much.
It did not take long, and they had the kids all lined up to welcome us with songs.
They were super cute!
And super nervous with all of us new people snapping photos.
They were soon "dismissed" to play with us.
The parachute was a hit!
As were the Frisbees.
I think Jim was the first to locate one of his sponsored kids.
This little guy shadowed him all week.
Bob was completely at ease surrounded by kids!
This is Ashlee introducing herself to her sponsored son.
We all think he looks quite a bit like her son, Drew.
One of the funny things about this sponsorship program is that, in a number of cases, we thought the kids' personalities or mannerisms were much like their sponsor families'. It really was a hoot!
It was obvious that the kids have not been around fair skinned people much. As they held my hands they were fascinated with tracing my veins, which are so visible through my pale skin. They were also fascinated with body hair, as ET people have very little. One morning as a young lady sneaked up behind me to stroke my hair, she gasped "Amazing!" I giggled. Touched her braids and replied, "Amazing!" The it was her turn to giggle!
All too soon, the kids were sent home.
Then the team was taken on a walking tour of the neighborhood.
It is a very poor area, but safe and friendly.
There is a rock and gravel pit nearby.
These donkeys were being loaded with rock.
As soon as they were loaded, they took off to the rock's final destination.
They had no guide, they just knew the way.
In fact, you had to get out of their path - they were on a mission!
When we returned to the church, they were preparing coffee for us.
All team members that were new to Ethiopia were very excited to try the famous coffee of Ethiopia.
They were not disappointed!
After a brief meeting, we left Jemo for the day.
When we all got settled into the van, there was much excitement in the air.
We all agreed that it had been a wonderful experience.
We were very excited about the week ahead!
After leaving Jemo, we stopped at a rooftop restaurant for lunch.
Behind Sierra is a view of Addis.
(I insisted on this photo as the first picture I have of Krissy in Addis is very similar. I feel so blessed to have taken both of these girls to Ethiopia. It is such an amazing experience for a middle school girl.)
I can not tell you how happy I was to be in Ethiopia with Chad.
It was just SO good!
On a side note, thank you for praying for his lungs! He has asthma, and I was very worried that the air quality combined with the altitude would make him sick. He felt INCREDIBLE on this trip! He worked hard with the Ethiopian men on a fence project and never needed extra meds. God certainly honored our prayers!
After leaving the restaurant, we drove up Entoto Mountain.
It was a beautiful drive, that many of us missed. (We dozed off in the van!)
We did enjoy exploring the church and palace at the top of the mountain!
These are the stairs we climbed, surrounding the palace.
(I love the workmanship combined with the different lines and textures in thei photo.)
Here we are in front of the church.
We look pretty good for people who have been up for about 48 hours, don't we?
As we were leaving Entonto, we spotted this monkey! I was so excited as it is the first time I have seen a monkey in Addis! (I know, simple thrills!)
My mom looking out the gate.
On our way back down the mountain, we stopped to buy scarves from the Former Fuelwood Carriers.
It was a great experience.
We were able to watch them work a bit.
They can weave a scarf so quickly, it amazed me.
They let Chad try.
After watching Chad try his hand at weaving, I have even more respect for the weavers! It is difficult work. It takes much timing and precision. The weavers can make several scarves each day.
This is a photo of the weavers.
They all once worked carrying firewood down the mountain. It is truly the worst job I have ever seen. These fuelcarriers tie a load of sticks on their backs that weighs much more than they do. Then they slowly make their way down the mountain to sell it. They make $12.50 a month for this incredibly difficult work. It is a thought that makes my stomach hurt. $12.50 can not sustain them, but still they work, trying their best to get ahead. This weaving project has given a few a new way of life.
We were very happy to purchase the very beautiful scarves they weave.
We finished the day at a pizza place called Island Breeze.
It was very dark as we arrived.
Sweet Fran tripped and fell down many stairs. By the grace of God, she was not hurt. When we saw her lying there, we were sure she had broken something. It was a bad fall. BUT amazingly, she had only a scraped knee and elbow. I am so thankful that she was protected from serious injury!
Pizza was sweet relief.
One thing Chad had worried about before the trip was food. His past experience with Ethiopian food was not good. He was concerned about what he would eat in Ethiopia. Day 1 in country alleviated any fears he had! We were served yummy, healthy, and very Americanized food! This pizza was just like he makes!
By the time we got back to the guest house, we were ready to collapse!
It had been a very full day - but we slept with happy hearts, knowing we would wake up and attend worship at Jemo!
Prayers answered on this day:
1. All bags arrived!
2. Team members did amazingly well. We were tired - but we embraced each part of the day with excitement, open-minds, and extreme grace.
3. Chad (and everyone else) felt healthy and strong.
