Moving Three Meters To The East

It’s been a while since I’ve written anything.  Even now I’m at a lack of words, but while it seems I haven’t been doing much I know stories are abundant.  For 10 days at the end of May all of the volunteers in Ethiopia had a training to consolidate us during the election period.  It was the first time Group 2 and Group 3 volunteers had ever been all together (and also likely the last).  Having about 70 Americans together for over a week was a nice break, although a little overwhelming too.  It definitely could have been a social experiment—seclude 70 Americans in small Ethiopian towns for a year and then bring them all together for a week to see what happens! We’re all so used to being alone or being the only foreigner, that by the end I was definitely ready to go back to Dangila.

My group of volunteers at the consolidation.

We had the training in a small town south of Hawassa called Yirgalem (where my good friend Jordan lived before he left at Christmas time).  For the most part, we spent all of our time (sleeping, eating, training) on this compound, not going into town much.  One of the final days, a few of us decided to go on a hike where we were quickly bombarded with hoards of children.  Wow- reality hit! We were still in Ethiopia! I had been in that compound surrounded by Americans for so long that I almost let myself forget where I was.  Going for a walk in my town, by myself, in familiar territory, is a lot different from a walk in a new town with 4 foreigners!

By the end of the training I was happy to leave but also very aware that life outside that Americanized compound isn’t easy.  It amazed me how fast I forgot that!  I’ve been back in Dangila for a couple weeks now and I’m fully adjusted to life here.  After all, I’m used to the small town life here.  Being surrounded by 70 Americans is fun but it’s not why I’m here.

Speaking of reasons I’m here—one of the main principles of Peace Corps is for volunteers to live at a modest level.  We make a modest salary, live a modest lifestyle, and reside in modest houses.  Except that last one isn’t always true.  For safety reasons a lot of volunteers live in houses bigger than necessary.  While I’ve been living in a modest 18 square meters for a year and a half, an opportunity for improvement presented itself.  Since my landlord moved out, the big house on my compound was vacated.  I bargained a reasonable price for it, received permission from Peace Corps, and moved about 3 meters to the east, tripling my living space.  Best. Decision. Ever.

It’s been fun nesting again, getting all my furniture in order and finally having more space for all the stuff I’ve collected.  And the “stuff” is abundant—I think it’s an American thing because Ethiopians don’t have “stuff” like I do. It’s kind of ridiculous how it accumulates!  It’s nice knowing that for the most part all of it will be staying here and given away a few months down the road.

That doorway leads to the hall... that's right, I have a hall!

All students have exams for the entire month of June, meaning I won’t be teaching my English class until their summer break begins at the end of the month.  The grant I wrote, and which has been approved, is being processed, so I’m just waiting on that money to continue that project.  Both of those things have turned June into a waiting game.  I feel like I’m not being productive at all, but my patience has definitely grown over the past 18 months, so I’ll survive.  In the meantime I’ve been spending quality time with neighbors, turning my front yard into a garden, and getting excited about the start of the World Cup! I figure watching the upcoming matches will be a great way to spend time in my community for the next month!

My First Ethiopian Travels

After IST (Peace Corps In-Service Training) in Sodere I was able to take my first trip in Ethiopia and I decided to head down south.  My friend Danielle and I were able to travel to Hawassa, Yirgalem and Lake Langano to visit other volunteers, do a little work, and have some well-deserved time off.  It seemed like a completely new world traveling south through green fields, even stopping on our way to Hawassa to buy fresh strawberries.  The city of Hawassa lies on a lake providing the perfect backdrop for sunsets and lots of wildlife to see.  Besides the massive stork-type birds found all over the city we were able to see goureza monkeys and we took a boat ride to see the hippos in Lake Hawassa.  At least eight hippos had their heads sticking up out of the water amongst the long grass.  Of course there were also a lot of new restaurants to try; countless places claiming true “ferengi food” and some even resembled food found in America!

After a quick visit in Hawassa we escaped to our friend Jordan’s town, Yirgalem, just one hour south.  Combining work and pleasure, we were able to take a look at Jordan’s host organization, the Beza Youth Center, and see another part of the south.  It was interesting the see another town with the supposed same population as my town, and yet it seemed so different.  Besides the surrounding forests, and green plants, Yirgalem is spread out to seem much bigger.  One night we took a hike into the forest to a lodge where we saw a hyena-feeding.  Three hyenas came within 20 feet of where we were sitting!

Lastly we visited Lake Langano on out way back up to Addis Ababa. Lake Langano is the only swimmable lake in the whole country, and I was excited to jump right in!  Although the water was mud-colored, the cool water was welcomed after the hot springs of Sodere.  We had a wonderful day swimming and kayaking around the lake, it almost seemed like we weren’t in Ethiopia for a day.

Overall the trip triggered my travel bug and has made me start to mentally plan my future adventures around Ethiopia.  This country is so vast, full of different places to visit.  I can’t wait to see more.