As some of you know, I had a hard time getting home for the holidays this year. I left Addis Thursday the 17th on the KLM flight that travels to Amsterdam via Khartoum. In Khartoum there was some issue (it was 1ish in the morning so I’m not clear on what the problem actually was but there was a delay in loading passengers and then they had to take all of the luggage off and match it with the passenger list and then reload). This delayed our arrival into Amsterdam for 2+ hours. Normally, flying to Dulles this wouldn’t matter, but I had chosen to fly to Detroit and then into Baltimore—which is a much shorter connection—and which I missed. I then spent two nights in Amsterdam and one night in Copehagen while I was routed and re-routed to Dulles (as Baltimore was too difficult). Ugh. So while I left on Thursday night and should have arrived on Friday, I actually arrived on Monday afternoon. While I was roaming around the airport, freezing cold cities, sitting on stalled trains, and enjoying my hotel, I wrote down a few things that I would tweet, if I was on twitter. So to recount the tale of my journey, I bring you my tweets below.
I did finally get home and with my luggage (though it arrived 30 minutes later on a different plane) and have since spent a little under a week in Phily with my sister and her family and the holidays with my mom, dad, sisters and families and my younger half brother and sister (and two dogs and a cat). Now I’m back in Baltimore for a few days and then to DC before heading back to Addis. Good times.
Anyway—here are my tweets: (BTW—care of Veronica Mars I’ve learned the Battlestar Gallactica cuss word of frac which I now use liberally)
• Sleeping on the floor of the plane during KLM delay—better than the seat!
• Sweat! Booked on a new flight and bumped to biz class!
• Sorry my flight is when? Oh, frac.
• Could this line be any longer?
• Why yes it could!
• I’ve just met the most helpful man in all of schipol. Hotel, vouchers, care kit? Sweet.
• I guess my room’s not that bad.
• Dinner is that bad.
• Oh frac that storm on the east coast.
• I’m going where?
• Would this woman just SHUT UP?! That is NOT helpful and frankly, I don’t care. None of us do.
• Well, this is a nicer hotel than last night. And another "care kit". I think I'm starting to hoard.
• Train into Amsterdam success!!
• What a lovely canal boat ride!
• Frac it’s cold!
• All set for the cold with my new (very expensive) hat and gloves.
• Now too tired to explore anymore.
• Train back to Schipol successfully boarded!
• Um, why are we stopping?
• Crazy man on the train tracks in the tunnel up ahead.
• Now police are coming.
• Now police are calling in the special police.
• Seriously? A suicide? I’m totally transportationally cursed.
• No I don’t speak French (said in French) so they keep trying to talk to me.
• Shared a cab to airport with other strandees—so that makes plane, train and automobile.
• It’s like the Amazing Race---but not fun.
• Please let Sunday be my luck day…cuz Saturday sure wasn’t.
• Who’s heard of SAS??
• Biz class in a small plane = middle seat empty. Boo.
• If KLM pawns me off to SAS and that flight is delayed—who takes care of me?
• It’s fracing snowing in Amsterdam. You’re kidding right?
• Next year, Christmas on a beach please.
• How can people bike in this cold?
• We’re almost ready to take off. Copenhagen here I come!
• After Schipol, Cope feels like I’m in the Toledo Airport of EU but with good shopping.
• My flight is what?!?!?!
• Canceled in case you couldn’t guess.
• I think I might cry.
• How the heck do I get out of this airport?!?!
• Oh. Cute dress.
• Copenhagen is cool—just freezing.
• People are jogging? Total nutters.
• Ugh—that guy's breath is rank.
• Me and one other woman in the hotel bar? Not a good sign.
• Misery loves company.
• Brittany Murphy died?
• Ah---on to London. Long live the Queen.
• Oh, you’ve been stuck since yesterday? So what?! I’ve been wearing this outfit for 5 DAYS!!!
• Ah London, good to be back.
• What’s the I see? A departure time???
• Holy crap! The Virgin Atlantic lounge is sa-wheet!! Pool table, food, bar, barber, kids play area?? Crazy!
• Boarding a plane to Dulles---yippee!!!
• “Upper Class” on VA is SA-WHEET!!! There’s disco lighting and my seat turns into a bed. Yeah!!
• Through customs in a breeze.
• My luggage is where? No I don’t mind waiting another 30 minutes.
• Madeleine Albright just left Dulles---didn’t see her. Bummer. I love her!
• Reunited and it feels so good!
• Ah the DC beltway. What joy.
• Home at last!!!
Hope everyone had a great holiday and here's wishing you a Happy New Year!!!
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Some photos from South Omo
Hi everyone,
I went to South Omo Zone with a colleague to monitor some programs and so I could check out the situation.
Here are some photo highlights:
I went to South Omo Zone with a colleague to monitor some programs and so I could check out the situation.
Here are some photo highlights:
 |
| Trip to South Omo |
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Thanksgiving weekend—a lot to be thankful for, especially for one lioness.
As you may read already, when traveling to southern Ethiopia to monitor programs I learned of and saw a lioness cub and then worked with James at The Born Free Foundation in Ethiopia to bring her back to Addis in a safer, healthier environment. While James was able to quickly bring Safia back to Addis, the issue of where to keep her remained. Safia spent a few weeks at James’ house (eating lots of meat and a whole chicken!) while he worked to establish a new temporary home for her on the new BFF land.
The Born Free Foundation (BFF) has been able to get 73 hectares of land about 25 kilometers from Addis Ababa from the Government of Ethiopia to use as a new wildlife center. The perimeter has been staked out and BFF now has trained and uniformed guards patrolling the area while BFF works on installing the perimeter fencing.
This weekend, I got to help James and the vet move Safia to her new home. It’s a temporary enclosure where she’ll live for a few months while the perimeter fencing and a larger permanent enclosure is built.
I arrived at James’ house in the morning and while we waited for the wildlife veterinarian I said hello to his other animals. BFF currently cares for a number of lions in a zoon in Addis, several additional lions and a cheetah currently living at the President’s house, and some animals residing with James. They include a cheetah, an owl, and several tortoises of varying sizes. The cheetah, Menelink, has a few toys that she likes to bring over to you and likes to be pet through the fence. Amazing!!!
Once the vet arrived, she got down to business. First up was darting Safia with anesthesia so that we had better access to her and she could be moved. From upstairs we could hear her growling. I thought it was cute…others found it a bit more intimidating. Once Safia was asleep, we brought her outside, got her weight (27kg), took her temperature, listened to her heartbeat, checked her stool (she has worms), and looked at her front left paw which is at a bit of an angle—though useable. I was also given the honors of cutting off the chain which has been around her neck since she was at the village where I first saw her.
Once the health check was over, we loaded her into a dog crate and headed out to the new site and she was transferred into her new quarters. We waited a while and she slowly started to come out of the anesthesia. If she focused on us close to her (but on the other side of the fence) she would growl. She eventually was able to shuffle herself around a bit and got herself into the corner of the room (she seems to like corners!).
A bit later James put in her dinner and she seemed to perk up a bit. I mean, who wouldn’t get excited at 1.5 kg of raw meat (plus a deworming pill and some calcium powder) in close proximity? Kidding aside, the instinct for meat was really strong. So she shuffled herself over to the meat and ate a bit…but it was like watching a little kid who wants the food but is so tired they can’t stay awake. And she kept up the growling when we moved around so that we wouldn’t get too close to her meat!
After a bit of the meat, her curiosity got the best of her and she drunkenly made her way over to the gate outside. The set up is similar to that of a zoo in the states where there’s the indoor enclosure where she’ll be at night and then a gate that can be opened so she can be outside or inside as she chooses during the day. She needs to be inside at night because there are hyenas, baboons and other animals that might find her—say we say interesting?—and she’s still quite young and can’t really defend herself. Another perimeter fence will be built with barbed wire and that will help as well.
Watching Safia go outside was really cool. It was the first time she’d been in the sunlight or felt wind for months. She tentatively stepped off of the concrete to the dirt and then went back inside. She came back out, took a few more steps off of the concrete and again went back inside. After another 15 minutes or so she managed to walk down to the far corner of the enclosure. By the time we left, she’d walked about halfway back up and had settled in a semi-sunny area to bask.
Needless to say I think she’s quite happy. I’m going to go back out on Friday to say hello and see how she’s getting on in her new home. I’m glad I told James about her, but I’m really glad that BFF has been able to set her up so nicely and so quickly. She really is a bit free now and will have a much better life. I’m going to try to keep supporting BFF and Safia in particular while I’m in Ethiopia. Maybe I should start looking for work in the conservation field???
A big thanks from Safia, James and me to those of you who’ve helped out and supported the costs for keeping her. The ones I know of are Stephen F, Eyerusalem H, Jamie S in Ethiopia (or by way of a staff person in my office) and Michelle S, Johanna O, Stef H and Sarah G in the US. Your contributions are making a HUGE difference!!!
To view the photos, click here.
Abrazos to all,
Jane
To contribute for Safia:
http://bornfree.wildlifedirect.org/category/born-free-ethiopia/
http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/further-activities/born-free-ethiopia/
(Let me know of your contribution and I'll tell James...you might get a shout out like Michelle S!)
If the link doesn't work, this slideshow will show you the same:
The Born Free Foundation (BFF) has been able to get 73 hectares of land about 25 kilometers from Addis Ababa from the Government of Ethiopia to use as a new wildlife center. The perimeter has been staked out and BFF now has trained and uniformed guards patrolling the area while BFF works on installing the perimeter fencing.
This weekend, I got to help James and the vet move Safia to her new home. It’s a temporary enclosure where she’ll live for a few months while the perimeter fencing and a larger permanent enclosure is built.
I arrived at James’ house in the morning and while we waited for the wildlife veterinarian I said hello to his other animals. BFF currently cares for a number of lions in a zoon in Addis, several additional lions and a cheetah currently living at the President’s house, and some animals residing with James. They include a cheetah, an owl, and several tortoises of varying sizes. The cheetah, Menelink, has a few toys that she likes to bring over to you and likes to be pet through the fence. Amazing!!!
Once the vet arrived, she got down to business. First up was darting Safia with anesthesia so that we had better access to her and she could be moved. From upstairs we could hear her growling. I thought it was cute…others found it a bit more intimidating. Once Safia was asleep, we brought her outside, got her weight (27kg), took her temperature, listened to her heartbeat, checked her stool (she has worms), and looked at her front left paw which is at a bit of an angle—though useable. I was also given the honors of cutting off the chain which has been around her neck since she was at the village where I first saw her.
Once the health check was over, we loaded her into a dog crate and headed out to the new site and she was transferred into her new quarters. We waited a while and she slowly started to come out of the anesthesia. If she focused on us close to her (but on the other side of the fence) she would growl. She eventually was able to shuffle herself around a bit and got herself into the corner of the room (she seems to like corners!).
A bit later James put in her dinner and she seemed to perk up a bit. I mean, who wouldn’t get excited at 1.5 kg of raw meat (plus a deworming pill and some calcium powder) in close proximity? Kidding aside, the instinct for meat was really strong. So she shuffled herself over to the meat and ate a bit…but it was like watching a little kid who wants the food but is so tired they can’t stay awake. And she kept up the growling when we moved around so that we wouldn’t get too close to her meat!
After a bit of the meat, her curiosity got the best of her and she drunkenly made her way over to the gate outside. The set up is similar to that of a zoo in the states where there’s the indoor enclosure where she’ll be at night and then a gate that can be opened so she can be outside or inside as she chooses during the day. She needs to be inside at night because there are hyenas, baboons and other animals that might find her—say we say interesting?—and she’s still quite young and can’t really defend herself. Another perimeter fence will be built with barbed wire and that will help as well.
Watching Safia go outside was really cool. It was the first time she’d been in the sunlight or felt wind for months. She tentatively stepped off of the concrete to the dirt and then went back inside. She came back out, took a few more steps off of the concrete and again went back inside. After another 15 minutes or so she managed to walk down to the far corner of the enclosure. By the time we left, she’d walked about halfway back up and had settled in a semi-sunny area to bask.
Needless to say I think she’s quite happy. I’m going to go back out on Friday to say hello and see how she’s getting on in her new home. I’m glad I told James about her, but I’m really glad that BFF has been able to set her up so nicely and so quickly. She really is a bit free now and will have a much better life. I’m going to try to keep supporting BFF and Safia in particular while I’m in Ethiopia. Maybe I should start looking for work in the conservation field???
A big thanks from Safia, James and me to those of you who’ve helped out and supported the costs for keeping her. The ones I know of are Stephen F, Eyerusalem H, Jamie S in Ethiopia (or by way of a staff person in my office) and Michelle S, Johanna O, Stef H and Sarah G in the US. Your contributions are making a HUGE difference!!!
To view the photos, click here.
 |
| Born Free and Safia |
Abrazos to all,
Jane
To contribute for Safia:
http://bornfree.wildlifedirect.org/category/born-free-ethiopia/
http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/further-activities/born-free-ethiopia/
(Let me know of your contribution and I'll tell James...you might get a shout out like Michelle S!)
If the link doesn't work, this slideshow will show you the same:
Monday, November 30, 2009
Help me help a lioness
Hi all--
Most of you know or remember how much I LOVE animals. Here is Ethiopia it's particularly hard to see the goats/sheep on the side of the road for sale, the donkeys carrying ridiculously heavy loads back and forth, the sad and hungry street dogs. It can be overwhelming. But I've recently found a small way I can make a difference and I'm hoping you can help me.
When on a site visit with one of my NGO partners, I went to a town where there was a man with a lion cub in his back room. I asked to see it and took this quick photo while I urged them to give her to the "proper authorities" as she would grow so quickly. I didn't know who the proper authorities were, but when I got back to Addis after a few other trips, the deputy of my agency had just visited the new program manager of the Born Free Foundation in Ethiopia. I emailed him and he followed up with a phone call and he was heading out for the two day drive a few days later. I've never seen anyone move so fast.
He got the local authorities and the lion "owner" to give her up (as they'd realized they really couldn't afford to feed her) and has brought her back to Addis. She's in a temporary enclosure while BFF sets up the permanent animal sanctuary outside of Addis. I've offered to volunteer with James to both try to get work crews together for the new site, but also to help out in whatever way necessary. Needless to say we're happy that he was able to rescue her from the stick hut where she was chained up and being poked and teased by kids.
Right now Safia is eating about $10 of food per day and that will more than double as she grows. I've attached a picture of her from later September. I'm hoping to see her again this weekend and will send out a follow up to those who are interested. The enclosure she's being moved to here in Addis while they set up the permanent center will cost about $600. James is looking for people to sponsor Safia as right now BF is paying for all of the food and other costs (for Safia, the two cheetahs he's got, the owl and the tortoises!).
If you're interested in making a donation to something really worthwhile and which I can provide updates on, it would be much appreciated. If you're in Addis, see me. If you're elsewhere and want to help out, go to one of the sites below and you can either donate for Ethiopia or just in general as they're now paying all costs. Just put in a reference to me and Safia (the lioness--we've discovered) if you can so James knows who sent you.
Sites: http://bornfree.wildlifedirect.org/category/born-free-ethiopia/
http://www.bornfree.org.uk/campaigns/further-activities/born-free-ethiopia/
This would be a great Christmas present for someone who loves animals!!! It's also tax deductible :-) !!!
Please pass this on as you see appropriate.
Jane
Monday, October 12, 2009
Two more trips to the field....lovely!
Hi,
So our protection officer was out for a few weeks and we made two trips to two areas of Ethiopia where our partners are working but which I had not yet visited. Both trips proved to be fascinating....and a bit of a trip!
The first trip was to a town called Kersa Dula in the Somali Region of Ethiopia where people had been displaced due to fighting but had returned with assistance from a partner that we give funding to. So we chatted with community members for a bit and visited the water point that has been rehabilitated to alleviate some of the tension with the neighboring community. The next day we traveled to another displaced persons camp and talked with some of the women and children about the issues they face. The driving to this region takes one and a half days so on the way back we stopped in Awassa and enjoyed a soda by the lake (with monkeys and birds galore).
Link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthioKersaDulaHudet928103?authkey=Gv1sRgCNjI34z3yoKXbg&feat=directlink
The second trip was to the Gambella region of Ethiopia which borders Sudan. There are Sudanese refugees but again, we were looking at Ethiopians who've been displaced within Ethiopia. The people in Gambella really don't "look" like other Ethiopians. They look much more Sudanese. So you'll see in the photos a difference there. The second village we went to is accessible by boat and we saw lots of cool birds (this country is really a bird watchers dream) and some crocodiles! The community isn't getting flooded out this year (thankfully) and we're funding our partner in the region to provide a clean water point in the coming months which should help with many of the basic health/hygiene issues as right now they're using river water (which they don't boil though they know they should).
Link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthioGambella1009?authkey=Gv1sRgCLv7y9KNwtf7Sg&feat=directlink
Anyway--both trips were really interesting for me since I haven't been to these areas or seen the programs of these two partners.
Now I'm in Nairobi for a week and then heading to a training in Kigali Rwanda (where I hope to take the weekend to look for mountain gorillas!!!).
In the meantime I'm being treated for amoebas and feeling MUCH better. Thank goodness for access to quality medications! And things are going along with work well. I've had a few requests for photos of my house so when I get back (and now that it's not raining) I'll take some and post them in early November.
Thanks for all of your emails and notes and enjoy this latest batch of photos!!
Abrazos,
Jane
P.S. -I'm hoping the slide show and links will work, but if not, let me know and I'll try a different post option.
So our protection officer was out for a few weeks and we made two trips to two areas of Ethiopia where our partners are working but which I had not yet visited. Both trips proved to be fascinating....and a bit of a trip!
The first trip was to a town called Kersa Dula in the Somali Region of Ethiopia where people had been displaced due to fighting but had returned with assistance from a partner that we give funding to. So we chatted with community members for a bit and visited the water point that has been rehabilitated to alleviate some of the tension with the neighboring community. The next day we traveled to another displaced persons camp and talked with some of the women and children about the issues they face. The driving to this region takes one and a half days so on the way back we stopped in Awassa and enjoyed a soda by the lake (with monkeys and birds galore).
 |
| Ethio-Kersa Dula/Hudet 9/28-10/3 |
Link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthioKersaDulaHudet928103?authkey=Gv1sRgCNjI34z3yoKXbg&feat=directlink
The second trip was to the Gambella region of Ethiopia which borders Sudan. There are Sudanese refugees but again, we were looking at Ethiopians who've been displaced within Ethiopia. The people in Gambella really don't "look" like other Ethiopians. They look much more Sudanese. So you'll see in the photos a difference there. The second village we went to is accessible by boat and we saw lots of cool birds (this country is really a bird watchers dream) and some crocodiles! The community isn't getting flooded out this year (thankfully) and we're funding our partner in the region to provide a clean water point in the coming months which should help with many of the basic health/hygiene issues as right now they're using river water (which they don't boil though they know they should).
 |
| Ethio-Gambella 10-09 |
Link:
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthioGambella1009?authkey=Gv1sRgCLv7y9KNwtf7Sg&feat=directlink
Anyway--both trips were really interesting for me since I haven't been to these areas or seen the programs of these two partners.
Now I'm in Nairobi for a week and then heading to a training in Kigali Rwanda (where I hope to take the weekend to look for mountain gorillas!!!).
In the meantime I'm being treated for amoebas and feeling MUCH better. Thank goodness for access to quality medications! And things are going along with work well. I've had a few requests for photos of my house so when I get back (and now that it's not raining) I'll take some and post them in early November.
Thanks for all of your emails and notes and enjoy this latest batch of photos!!
Abrazos,
Jane
P.S. -I'm hoping the slide show and links will work, but if not, let me know and I'll try a different post option.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Take 2 on the photo links
Let's see if this works:
Photos from trip to Asebe Tefari and Blue Nile Falls:
or
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthiopiaBlueNileFallsAndAsebeTefariSeptember2009?authkey=Gv1sRgCJK7penu0erq6AE&feat=directlink
Photos from Mom's trip to Lalibela
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthioLalibelaWithMom72772902?authkey=Gv1sRgCLG1z4bbh_TaJQ&feat=directlink
or
Photos from trip to Asebe Tefari and Blue Nile Falls:
or
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthiopiaBlueNileFallsAndAsebeTefariSeptember2009?authkey=Gv1sRgCJK7penu0erq6AE&feat=directlink
Photos from Mom's trip to Lalibela
http://picasaweb.google.com/jane.e.strachan/EthioLalibelaWithMom72772902?authkey=Gv1sRgCLG1z4bbh_TaJQ&feat=directlink
or
 |
| Ethio-Lalibela with Mom 7/27-7/29 |
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Long overdue update from Ethiopia
So it’s been ages since I’ve written. I’ve been on some trips for work within Ethiopia, had my mother visit for a week, and went to Nairobi for meetings followed by almost a week with my sister and her family in Tanzania. And I’ve passed the 6 month mark. I can’t believe I’ve been here for a half of a year already! Time sure does fly.
First, for work, we’re definitely being kept busy. The situation in the country overall is precarious with successive poor or failed rains, cholera outbreaks, and lack of food and financial resources for relief operations. Despite that, I’m enjoying being here.
In one of the locations I visited there is very little food and people are eating cactus as their main food source. In another area I saw a completed water program that, with our funding and the diligent work of the NGO, provides water to four villages and one town a 11 different locations which means that people have to go much shorter distances for clean water. I’ve been able to travel with some other donor representatives and have thus have made some great new friends.
My mom came to visit for about a week in July which was lovely. But the weather and Ethiopian transportation systems conspired against us. Despite my plan to visit two locations, our flight was canceled after a terrifying landing attempt at the destination airport and then we had a scary flat tire a few days later. But we did get to visit Lalibela so Mom could see the famous rock churches. Maybe when she comes back we’ll visit other places (thought I don’t think coming back is tops on her list right now!).
Here are some photos from her visit:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=jane.e.strachan&target=ALBUM&id=5364527697822569809&authkey=Gv1sRgCLG1z4bbh_TaJQ&invite=CNbt2e4D&feat=email
In August we had some regional meetings so I was able to get out of Addis and the incessant rains for a few days. Let me clarify that the rainy season started in June with hail storms and the thunderstorms and rains that have followed have been significant and fairly constant. Of course, this is in Addis which is up in the hills. In many of the other areas of the country, the rains will not be long enough that planted crops reach maturation—so people will likely loose another harvest. The rainy season is starting to abate—which is good for me as I’ve been enjoying the sunshine, but not for the farmers. In Nairobi I was able to do some shopping, download updates for my computer, some shows from iTunes, etc. But as it turns out, I’m a mobile cloud gatherer. After about 5 hours of sun in Nairobi the clouds rolled in for the remainder of my stay. So after our meetings finished I headed to Tanzania to see my sister et al.
Tanzania is of course, still lovely. Just driving along next to crystal blue waters lowers your blood pressure. Again, after about 5 hours of sunshine, the clouds rolled in. And then it was partly sunny and windy for the remainder of my stay! My sister, friend Tracy and I went to a beach about 4 hours from Dar that was beautiful and relaxing. It was a great break and I got to sit in the hammock, watch the little monkeys roam by looking for fruit in the trees, and read my book. I did take a dip in the ocean (before the rain started), and then it was on to the bar! On Sunday we drove back to Dar and I spent the next few days with my nephews and brother in law while my sister went back to work. I returned to find Addis still rainy and cold. Not much changes in a week and a half I guess!!!
The remainder of August has passed in a blur and we’re now in September. I’m just back from another trip for the inauguration of the water program I saw in July. Then I traveled with some friends to Blue Nile Falls and Lake Tana for a little break.
Photos from Asebe Tefari and Blue Nile Falls
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=jane.e.strachan&target=ALBUM&id=5378984635112285425&authkey=Gv1sRgCJK7penu0erq6AE&invite=COiGwNUO&feat=email
This Friday is Ethiopian New Year (September 11) so we have the day off and I’m planning some shenanigans with friends. Then we’ve got someone coming from WDC for a few weeks and I’ll be traveling with her, and then it’s off to meetings in Nairobi Kenya and Kigali Rwanda. Yippee!! I’m planning in Rwanda to go with a friend to see the gorillas—something I’ve wanted to do for years! I’m so excited.
So besides all of the travel and who-ha with work, not much is new. I’m pretty settled in and enjoying expat life here. There will be more to come with all of these trips to new places so stay tuned!
Miss you all,
Abrazos,
Jane
First, for work, we’re definitely being kept busy. The situation in the country overall is precarious with successive poor or failed rains, cholera outbreaks, and lack of food and financial resources for relief operations. Despite that, I’m enjoying being here.
In one of the locations I visited there is very little food and people are eating cactus as their main food source. In another area I saw a completed water program that, with our funding and the diligent work of the NGO, provides water to four villages and one town a 11 different locations which means that people have to go much shorter distances for clean water. I’ve been able to travel with some other donor representatives and have thus have made some great new friends.
My mom came to visit for about a week in July which was lovely. But the weather and Ethiopian transportation systems conspired against us. Despite my plan to visit two locations, our flight was canceled after a terrifying landing attempt at the destination airport and then we had a scary flat tire a few days later. But we did get to visit Lalibela so Mom could see the famous rock churches. Maybe when she comes back we’ll visit other places (thought I don’t think coming back is tops on her list right now!).
Here are some photos from her visit:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=jane.e.strachan&target=ALBUM&id=5364527697822569809&authkey=Gv1sRgCLG1z4bbh_TaJQ&invite=CNbt2e4D&feat=email
In August we had some regional meetings so I was able to get out of Addis and the incessant rains for a few days. Let me clarify that the rainy season started in June with hail storms and the thunderstorms and rains that have followed have been significant and fairly constant. Of course, this is in Addis which is up in the hills. In many of the other areas of the country, the rains will not be long enough that planted crops reach maturation—so people will likely loose another harvest. The rainy season is starting to abate—which is good for me as I’ve been enjoying the sunshine, but not for the farmers. In Nairobi I was able to do some shopping, download updates for my computer, some shows from iTunes, etc. But as it turns out, I’m a mobile cloud gatherer. After about 5 hours of sun in Nairobi the clouds rolled in for the remainder of my stay. So after our meetings finished I headed to Tanzania to see my sister et al.
Tanzania is of course, still lovely. Just driving along next to crystal blue waters lowers your blood pressure. Again, after about 5 hours of sunshine, the clouds rolled in. And then it was partly sunny and windy for the remainder of my stay! My sister, friend Tracy and I went to a beach about 4 hours from Dar that was beautiful and relaxing. It was a great break and I got to sit in the hammock, watch the little monkeys roam by looking for fruit in the trees, and read my book. I did take a dip in the ocean (before the rain started), and then it was on to the bar! On Sunday we drove back to Dar and I spent the next few days with my nephews and brother in law while my sister went back to work. I returned to find Addis still rainy and cold. Not much changes in a week and a half I guess!!!
The remainder of August has passed in a blur and we’re now in September. I’m just back from another trip for the inauguration of the water program I saw in July. Then I traveled with some friends to Blue Nile Falls and Lake Tana for a little break.
Photos from Asebe Tefari and Blue Nile Falls
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=jane.e.strachan&target=ALBUM&id=5378984635112285425&authkey=Gv1sRgCJK7penu0erq6AE&invite=COiGwNUO&feat=email
This Friday is Ethiopian New Year (September 11) so we have the day off and I’m planning some shenanigans with friends. Then we’ve got someone coming from WDC for a few weeks and I’ll be traveling with her, and then it’s off to meetings in Nairobi Kenya and Kigali Rwanda. Yippee!! I’m planning in Rwanda to go with a friend to see the gorillas—something I’ve wanted to do for years! I’m so excited.
So besides all of the travel and who-ha with work, not much is new. I’m pretty settled in and enjoying expat life here. There will be more to come with all of these trips to new places so stay tuned!
Miss you all,
Abrazos,
Jane
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