... I shall compose a short blog.
Plus, one of my friends who actually seems to read my blog (I'm amazed there are still some of you out there!), mentioned that, well, I've been neglecting my duties lately (not THOSE kinds of "duties", Grace!).
So, without further ado... a blog post by me.
This, by the way, is my 1001th blog post! That in and of itself should warrent a post, no?
There are several reasons I haven't been blogging lately. For starters, we haven't had city power in 6 days. Which means at 10:30pm each night, I'm plunged into darkness and sweatiness. Yes, there is a battery back up to our internet, but there's just something unappealing about sitting in the dark with a hot laptop on my already sweaty lap. Plus, I've been SO busy. Tomorrow marks the end of 4 consecutive weeks of workshop faciliation. Three workshops in 4 weeks in two different countries!
But they've all been great workshops. The workshop in Ethiopia was focusing on bridging activities and helping to flesh out the new curriculum in that country for Grade 4 for 3 different language groups. I learned a ton from the woman that I was working with and just from interacting with the guys there. We also had some good fun!
I got to go with the Ethiopian chaps that we were working with for pizza one night. It was the first time EVER that they had eaten pizza! They were a bit puzzled by it at first, but ended up loving it! They ate a LOT of pizza.
After the pizza, we all went together to the Sheraton Hotel where they do this dancing fountain light show. It was so cool. One of the more quiet guys in the bunch was standing next to me, and the look of awe and wonder on his face was so priceless! I asked him if he liked it, and he just said, "It's wonderful!"
I had to agree with him - it was pretty wonderful. When you're coming from the place that I live (which is actually quite similar to the place that these guys that we were working with come from), walking into the Sheraton Hotel, seeing these dancing lights and fountains with music... it was pretty amazing!
I also went to my favourite "cultural" restaurant in the city to enjoy some nice food, coffee and dancing. I have to admit, I'm not a fan of the "mixed dish" bit of food. I've turned into a bit of an Ethiopian food snob, but you know, I know what I like, and why bother wasting time on all the rest that I DON'T like. But I was along for the ride with a crowd of short-term volunteers, and their pack leader/host ordered the food. So what could I say? I have, however, found that if people aren't too keen on Ethiopian food, there are better things to order than the "mixed dish", plus, when you're eating with a whole group of "newbies", I also must admit that I don't like it when everyone puts their grubby paws all over ALL the food! If you get a few choice dishes, you can dish in such a way that every one has their "own" little pile on the plate (like how we used to eat where I used to live!), and then you don't have to worry about other people's spitty fingers in your little section!
But, that being said, I realize I can be a bit bossy and a bit of a food and etiquette snob sometimes, so for the sake of the pack, I grinned and beared it. And enjoyed my nice dark injera, which the rest of the pack didn't like. I was still munching on the dark injera and leftover shiro long after they were all finished eating!
Of course, after the dinner comes the dancing! It never ceases to amaze me. I don't know how those dancers make their bodies shake like they do without losing an arm or head or some other appendage.
I have also decided that if I ever move to Ethiopia, I'm going to learn to play the little Ethiopian flute. It's probably completely against the culture for a woman to play that flute, but it sounds so nice, and would be such a simple little instrument to pack up and take along with you anywhere you go. I also really like the sound of Ethiopian music, so in learning to play the flute, I would learn a bit about the traditional music, as well!
The day after we enjoyed dinner and dancing, I went along with that same pack to see a monestary and a canyon. It was a spectacular day - amazing scenery, interesting history, a short hike through the forest, and lots of opportunity to take some good pictures (don't worry, I won't post them all here!)
(Grrr. Why does Blogspot flip my pictures around the way they're not supposed to be?!)
Anyway, we had a lovely day trip outside the city. It was just so nice for me to be out of a city!
But that being said, it's also nice to be back in my own city here, especially now that the city power has come, for the first time in 6 days! There's a bit of an issue in town with diesel, so the city had stopped running their big generators. I had given up hope of seeing power again... so when I stepped out of the shower and the lights came on... I would have done a very happy dance, except that everyone else on the compound is asleep and I was wearing nothing but a towel... (yes, I know, you're glad you don't have a picture of THAT!).
Plus, one of my friends who actually seems to read my blog (I'm amazed there are still some of you out there!), mentioned that, well, I've been neglecting my duties lately (not THOSE kinds of "duties", Grace!).
So, without further ado... a blog post by me.
This, by the way, is my 1001th blog post! That in and of itself should warrent a post, no?
There are several reasons I haven't been blogging lately. For starters, we haven't had city power in 6 days. Which means at 10:30pm each night, I'm plunged into darkness and sweatiness. Yes, there is a battery back up to our internet, but there's just something unappealing about sitting in the dark with a hot laptop on my already sweaty lap. Plus, I've been SO busy. Tomorrow marks the end of 4 consecutive weeks of workshop faciliation. Three workshops in 4 weeks in two different countries!
But they've all been great workshops. The workshop in Ethiopia was focusing on bridging activities and helping to flesh out the new curriculum in that country for Grade 4 for 3 different language groups. I learned a ton from the woman that I was working with and just from interacting with the guys there. We also had some good fun!
After the pizza, we all went together to the Sheraton Hotel where they do this dancing fountain light show. It was so cool. One of the more quiet guys in the bunch was standing next to me, and the look of awe and wonder on his face was so priceless! I asked him if he liked it, and he just said, "It's wonderful!"
I had to agree with him - it was pretty wonderful. When you're coming from the place that I live (which is actually quite similar to the place that these guys that we were working with come from), walking into the Sheraton Hotel, seeing these dancing lights and fountains with music... it was pretty amazing!
I also went to my favourite "cultural" restaurant in the city to enjoy some nice food, coffee and dancing. I have to admit, I'm not a fan of the "mixed dish" bit of food. I've turned into a bit of an Ethiopian food snob, but you know, I know what I like, and why bother wasting time on all the rest that I DON'T like. But I was along for the ride with a crowd of short-term volunteers, and their pack leader/host ordered the food. So what could I say? I have, however, found that if people aren't too keen on Ethiopian food, there are better things to order than the "mixed dish", plus, when you're eating with a whole group of "newbies", I also must admit that I don't like it when everyone puts their grubby paws all over ALL the food! If you get a few choice dishes, you can dish in such a way that every one has their "own" little pile on the plate (like how we used to eat where I used to live!), and then you don't have to worry about other people's spitty fingers in your little section!
Of course, after the dinner comes the dancing! It never ceases to amaze me. I don't know how those dancers make their bodies shake like they do without losing an arm or head or some other appendage.
The day after we enjoyed dinner and dancing, I went along with that same pack to see a monestary and a canyon. It was a spectacular day - amazing scenery, interesting history, a short hike through the forest, and lots of opportunity to take some good pictures (don't worry, I won't post them all here!)
Anyway, we had a lovely day trip outside the city. It was just so nice for me to be out of a city!
But that being said, it's also nice to be back in my own city here, especially now that the city power has come, for the first time in 6 days! There's a bit of an issue in town with diesel, so the city had stopped running their big generators. I had given up hope of seeing power again... so when I stepped out of the shower and the lights came on... I would have done a very happy dance, except that everyone else on the compound is asleep and I was wearing nothing but a towel... (yes, I know, you're glad you don't have a picture of THAT!).
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