Yeni Bate Yenci Bateno

*Bisoftu lakes*

*Hiking at Menegasha*

*Eating breakfast at campsite in Menegasha*

*Our compound*

*Our garden in our compound*

*Our side of the compound*

Mi casa es su casa. My house is your house. Yeni Bate Yenci Bateno in Amharic. Most people living in Addis (at least those with homes) live in a compound. All houses have walls around them and a large gate as an entrance. Our house is very much like a town-house in the US. We are on a street corner, so we have a wall in the front with a gate and a wall along one side. Along the back of our house is an alley. The other side shares a wall with the neighboring house and compound.

Inside our compound there are essentially two homes, each two stories. Zena, another teacher at AIS, lives in the front house. At the back of our compound is our house, with the living room on the bottom floor and outside steps leading up to our bedroom. There is a shared kitchen that connects the houses. Since we do not have a car, the driveway serves as a very nice patio. When it isn't raining and the sun isn't too scorching, we eat on the patio. Finally, in the front there is a small, grassy garden that is surrounded by large bushes, making it not very useful. Nonetheless it is pretty and we can say that we have a "yard". Our house does have an extra room…if any of you are interested in visiting! (Oh yeah…BYOB: Bring Your Own Bed)

Living in a compound does have its pros and cons. Pros include protection and safety (for ourselves and our stuff), the gate keeps out beggars and kids constantly asking to play Frisbee, and it makes us feel that we at least have a safe, private space to escape to. On the other hand, the wall system isn't always welcoming. Often outer walls have broken glass bottles embedded along the top or barbed wire along the top. You also frequently hear the sound of slamming gates, and determining if it is our gate or someone else's can be difficult. Instead of listening for a doorbell (we don't have one), we run outside, bend over, and try to see we can see feet through the small gap between the gate and the ground. Considering how the rest of technology has worked…we'll take the bending over!

While we do spend lots of time in our Compound, we've been able to get out and about much more lately. In the past two weeks we've visited two orphanages to volunteer (We'll tell you more about these later). We also have several friends with cars, and they have generously invited us to join any trips out of town. Two weeks ago we went to Bishoftu, a small town with five crater lakes surrounding it. And this past weekend we went camping in Menagesha, where we earlier went hiking. We were again energized by the air, but disappointed that the troop of baboons that went through our camp at night did not wake us up. Despite many promises, we still haven't actually seen one!

Overall, we are settling into typical routines. While we are adjusting and enjoying it, work does take more time than we anticipated. Teaching looks different than before. While the kids speak English well, Keegan is spending much more time on reading comprehension and writing. Anne is learning to be a writer, which is a good challenge and an area she has wanted to grow in. Unfortunately, the last two times she has eaten the local food, Anne's gotten sick. So, while we've adjusted a lot and this is beginning to feel like home, there are always challenges and areas things that need a bit more adjusting to.

Any Reason to Celebrate!

*Photos are of Meskel. 1- A choir swaying with sticks (very technical description we know…sorry) 2 – the massive "tree" for the bonfire. 3 –Us in front of the burning bonfire.*

Ethiopia does not lack an excuse for a celebration. The population is mostly split between Ethiopian Orthodox and Muslim. Between the two, there are many celebrations, traditions, fasting times, and feasting times. (Not to mention the constant sounds of a Mosque or Church around every corner!) This week the Ethiopian Orthodox Church had their biggest celebration of the year, Meskel. Meskel, which means "Cross" in Amharic, is a huge national celebration of "the finding of the true cross." On Friday afternoon and evening, thousands upon thousands of people gather in the large Meskel Square in downtown Addis for this very religious ceremony. As a result, the entire city is virtually shutdown for the celebration.
While sitting among the throngs of people in the square would have been interesting, we were lucky to sit in a "VIP" section reserved for guests of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Sitting a floor above us were both the President of Ethiopia and the Abuna, or Pope, of the Orthodox Church. When they drove up, Keegan became the paparazzi, zooming in with his camera to take pictures.
The celebration included several massive choir groups, two marching bands, and a float of a traditional church. The choir groups were quite impressive, with perhaps 500 people dressed in matching robes and performing choreographed dances, often times with colored flags or shawls waving in the air. While we couldn't understand a word, the devotion and commitment was quite powerful.
The Abuna lit a massive, three-story high bonfire at the end of the ceremony. Before this, everyone was given traditional candles to burn, creating a spectacle of thousands of candle flames filling the night. As soon as the bonfire was lit, fireworks and yells from the crowd made for an exciting celebration. We were impressed by how completely filled the square was, but we were more awed upon entering the streets. They were just as packed with people, many burning candles and following the "Cross" float inching its way through the crowds. Words cannot describe the number of people that were at this celebration. It was a celebration of faith and unity.
We had other smaller celebrations this week: Our first unguided trip to Merkato, the largest market in Africa, where we purchased Ethiopian art to finally have something on our walls; Our first paycheck; The best homemade ice-cream we have ever tasted; and having Cherry Cokes after discovering Vimto, which is so close to grenadine. Despite the new things, we mostly celebrated a pretty normal week because, well, shouldn't home seem normal?