Settling in

This past week, I have felt much more useful and much more productive at Kechene school. I am starting to get to know the kids and their different but totally cute personalities, and I literally cannot believe how smart they are! I am also getting to know the teachers well too, and that has been great. We have conversations about education, marriage, and just about life, usually while we are eating rice and cabbage for lunch (the students are totally silent during this time because they are concentrating so hard on eating their own food). And when we are feeling frustrated from the language barrier, we just go outside and play volleyball, and all is well.

I have only ended up teaching one day this week, for about half an hour. And believe me, it was tough (in a different way than in New Orleans, but still as tough for sure). Anyway, I asked the math teacher what he wanted me to teach, and he said "Anything! American math!" And I was like..uhhhh.....help haha. I know nothing about kindergarten curriculum, and at the time I had no idea how much math these student knew! So I decided to teach them order of operations, because it was clear that they could add and subtract (I focused on how to evaluate math expressions when they included parenthesis). Thus, I began my lesson to at least 30 six and seven year old kids. They had no notebooks or pencils,  so only a few kids could work out a problem at the same time on the chalkboard, which was quite problematic for my behavior management! Not to mention the language barrier, which was hard (although I am pretty good at counting in Amharic now, I must say!). Teaching was quite an experience... but I think I learned a lot from just jumping right into it, and I have a few ideas for improvement when I teach next time. I really want to teach an African geography lesson (they love pointing out things on their map).

I have found tutoring students during recess and breaks to be much more productive. The first time I had sat in on a class, I noticed one of the students was REALLY far behind the others. So at recess tapped him on the shoulder, and we practiced the English alphabet together. I made flashcards, because I noticed he could only do the alphabet in order. He really liked the hands-on activity. In fact, like five other kids gathered round and were studying with us! It was great. The next day, I started giving kids math problems. Now a few of them walk up to me and ask me to give them a problem right when they get to school, even though they have time to play outside then. Especially these two really cute kids named Besufucato and Limya (Limya has the biggest eyes I have ever seen!). Anway, it makes me really happy that they enjoy learning, this is going to take them far in life.

I am also working on a few other projects for the school, like writing a newsletter about the graduating kindergarteners and editing their school brochure. Also, one of the teachers is starting another school in his neighborhood, because none of the kids there have enough money to go otherwise (government school tuition is free, but students have to pay for uniforms, books, and meals). A church has donated land and labor to build a school house, but other than that they have no funds whatsoever. But this teacher has such a big heart, that I think it will work one way or another. I am helping him write a proposal and budget; it's a great learning experience for me! I hope the school will be successful because the kids deserve it.

So even though there are setbacks often, things are going really well over here. I almost feel like I have been living here for like a year! It's only been three weeks though.... :)

-Colleen

Bahir Dar and Blue Nile Falls

Last weekend, four other travellers and I went to a city in Northern Ethiopia called Bahir Dar. As soon as we landed, we all fell in love with the place; the sky was blue and we could breathe again!

Our first activity was a boat ride on Lake Tana (apparently one of the biggest lakes in Africa) to an Orthodox Christian monastery that was built in the 14^th century. Christianity in Ethiopia is really interesting, as it has been here for a really long time and it is said to be the home of the original stone with the ten commandments! The country is full of old monasteries and churches that are carved out of rocks. My grandma would have loved it. Anyway, the monastery was beautiful; it had artwork that reminded me of the Buddhist monasteries I saw in Tibet. The buildings are made of three concentric circles, the outermost for the public to pray, the second circle for priests, and the inner circle for a replica of the 10 commandments. I really enjoyed touring these monasteries; I felt like a part of history!

The next day, we drove about an hour on a ridiculously bumpy road (our tour guide said we were getting an “African massage”) to the Blue Nile. It was cool to see the countryside, but it was a little bit sad at the same time. Aside from a few areas that looked fertile and arable, everything was brown. It seemed like most people were cattle herders (apparently Ethiopia has the eighth largest population of domesticated animals in the world!). A book I was reading said that cattle grazing has created a lot of deforestation, which causes rain to wash away all the fertile soil. In Uganda, it seemed like even if villagers didn’t have any money, they could usually plant food to survive. I don’t know if the same is true in Ethiopia, and that worries me.

Once we got to the area of the Blue Nile, we took a short hike to Blue Nile falls. This part of the Nile is NOT blue; in fact it is totally mud brown, which made out tour guide giggle. After we saw a great view of the falls from the top of the mountain, we hiked on a wobbly suspension bridge (which was actually really fun) right down to the river. We just hung out on rocks while being misted by the waterfall. I was splashed by the Nile, I feel famous!

On our final day in Bahir Dar, we went on a Bike tour around town. Although my bike was falling apart, it was great! We rode over a bridge across the Nile, and saw hippos! We weren’t allowed to take pictures though, because the government is worried that someone will try to destroy the bridge. They are building a dam on the Nile to use for hydro- electric power and irrigation, but Sudan and Egypt are worried it will cut off a lot of their water flow. So I could not capture the cute hippos in a photo!

Everything about the trip was so wonderful, until we were about to fly back home and it started storming (helllooo rainy season). We were stuck in the Bahir Dar airport, which is literally like a garage, for five extra hours! And the power, at the airport, went off at least three times, leaving us totally blind in this garage- like structure with 50 strangers. Every time it happened, people would groan loudly (me included); it was actually pretty funny haha. But we made it back eventually, no harm done. The whole time I was in Bahir Dar, I was thinking of the town I lived in in Uganda. I miss it! It had more of a community feeling like Bahir Dar, and people were a little less aggressive than in Addis Ababa. I think next time I travel, I will make sure I live in a little town instead of a capital city, although living in Addis is a great experience of course. 

School

My first few days at school have flown by. Kechene is a private school run by a non-profit for 30 kindergarteners who are living with relatives because one or both of their parents have died. I have to say, I have never seen such cute children in all of my life! They range in age from about five to eight, and they all have these really cute blue sweaters as their uniforms. Every time I walk into the school compound, they shower me will hugs and kisses.

The first day I was at school, I just sort of observed what was going on. At recess, I played soccer (which was so embarrassing because I kept kicking and completely missing the ball!) and the students taught me to count to one hundred in Amharic, by strategically pointing to the beauty marks on my arms (I actually only have 32 beauty marks, as the children have just recently discovered).  After recess, the students had English class. Their teacher, Asrat, is really funny and lively, and the kids totally feed off of his energy. His class is a little hectic because all the kids are jumping out of their seat begging Asrat to let them answer questions. It's so great to watch them excited to learn, it’s like I can see the wheels turning in their little brains! If a student gets a question correct, Asrat gives that person a “biiiggggggg right” and if they get a problem wrong, they get a “biiiiiiggggg x.” I don’t know if I could teach little kids though, because I want to cry whenever a student goes to the chalkboard and can’t figure out how to do a problem. Their eyes get so big and they are so sad! Their math teacher is much more calm, but that is a great class too. I cannot believe how much math they know already; it’s great!

Going to school is sad in a lot of ways though. There is no electricity (a lot of times it is too dark to even see the chalkboard because there are no windows!) and no running water either, although they have a little water tank for drinking and washing their hands. Three out of thirty of them have been diagnosed with HIV, and the teachers think a few more are probably living with it as well. Of course, these students are the cutest out of all of them, and I can’t look at them without wondering how their lives will be different than everyone else’s. I don’t have anything else to say about them, because I can’t put into words how I sad it makes me.

It’s also so sad to walk around Addis Ababa and see the kids that are not in school at all. My guidebook says only half of school- aged children in Ethiopia go to school. I hate seeing really small kids shining shoes or selling gum instead of being in school. How is their life going to get any better without an education?? But then how could someone tell them they HAVE to attend school, when they have to earn money to eat and survive? Some non-profits have started schools where children get incentives, like food to take home, if they attend school. I think that sounds like a good idea, but maybe there are problems with that too.

Other things in Addis have been great! The rainy season has started, and I have realized that my cheap wal-mart raincoat is definitely not going to cut it here haha. I have been doing yoga at night with my Korean roommate, and we talk about life a lot. Yesterday, I taught her what a “rebound” boyfriend is, and she thought it was soooo funny because she really likes basketball (she said in Korea you call a rebound a “second boyfriend”). We also got a dog! Her name is Rosie, and she has this really long hair like a rug. Or maybe a mop. I love her already, although it makes me sad because she has to sleep outside and sometimes she looks so cold!

Anyway, I don’t feel like I have been that productive so far, but I guess I just got here a week ago. I also don’t want to come in and tell people what to do, especially because I have no idea what I am talking about haha! I am thinking I might want to teach a health class, sort of like I did in Uganda. But I guess we will see where the summer takes me!  

Airports, first impressions, and ...mexico?

Hello everyone,

I have arrived in Ethiopia safely, finally! The trip went fairly smoothly, although I think I was traveling for over 48 hours, which seems like two weeks when you are by yourself. I got a little nervous when I got to London, where I had a 13 hour overnight layover. I got to the terminal my flight was leaving from, where I figured  it would still be bustling with people and maybe even have restaurants open overnight. But I was wrong. Very wrong. The man who was working there was like..."uhh... they close the terminal overnight." and I was like "uh oh." But I went to the terminal anyway and asked them what I should do. They said to take a bus to the main terminal where we could sleep. So I got on the bus, which I found out was the last one of the night, and drove for seriously like 30 minutes to the other terminal. How could that airport be so big??? Anyway, there were probably 40 other people spending the night, and they herded us like sheep to this one gate which we weren't allowed to leave. And we all just had a big sleepover. It was strange, haha

. 

The next day I finally got to Kenya, where I knew I would have to run to make my connection to Ethiopia. But the airport worker said, "oh, you just need to go to gate 6." I was so excited to make the flight, but little did I know that gate 6 was the Kenya airways transfer desk where there were 50 people waiting in line to get their boarding passes, all of whom were about to miss their flight like me. There were people shouting at the receptionists to hurry up, and people shouting at each other for cutting in line. I was chaotic, and I missed my flight of course. But when I got to the desk, they hardly asked me anything, they just gave me a hotel and booked my flight for the next morning. That is a lot more than I can say for Delta, who basically left me to fend for myself in DC for two nights after their airplane had mechanical problems (then they lost my bag for three weeks, so I was stuck in Uganda with one change of clothes ahh!).

So I went on my merry way to the Stanley Hotel in Nairobi, which my taxi driver told me was where the Queen of England used to entertain diplomats during colonialism. I walked inside and realized I was in the nicest hotel I have ever stayed in. The hotel was so beautiful (it was a five star hotel), and they gave me free dinner which consisted of chicken and french fries. Then I went to my room and watched ESPN, which I found slightly ridiculous because I was hearing about the New Orleans Saints and Drew Brees while I was halfway across the world. How cool!

Finally, the next day, I made it to Addis Ababa Ethiopia, the third highest capital city in the world! (If you know the first two, I would really like to know what they are). I thought the altitude might bother me, but it hasn't so far, although when I try to work out, I think I will be in for a rude awakening. Apparently Olympic athletes train for races in the mountains right outside Addis. Maybe I will meet one! The air pollution is soooo bad though, and that has started bothering me already. It seems worse than anywhere I have ever been (even Bangkok!), but I am sure it won't interfere with enjoying how awesome Ethiopia is.

The first day I was here, I got a cell phone, exchanged money, and explored a little (in an area of town called Mexico...have no idea why..?). I went with my new roommate, who is from South Korea, to a really awesome restaurant called Yeshi Buna. It was the first Ethiopian food I had ever had in my entire life! It was a plateful of Injera, this thin spongy bread that is apparently really good for you, with vegetables and other things on top. Everyone shares one big plate, and you use the thin bread to scoop up the vegetables with your hand. I was so messy, but hopefully I will get better haha. It was absolutely delicious.

Tomorrow I start my first day as a teacher at a primary school called Kechene. I am excited but quite nervous, of course. Apparently though, this school is really great at motivating students to learn through competitions and things like that which the kids get really into. This is one thing I am not very good at in my own classroom in New Orleans, so I am excited to learn from them and hopefully contribute a little too! I will keep you updated as much as I can, of course, and hopefully talk less about myself in the next few posts.:)
-Colleen

Goodbye USA

Hello friends!
I am about to leave for Ethiopia tomorrow morning, and I am nervous but really excited too. I flew through Ethiopia on my way to Uganda two summers ago, and as soon as I looked out the window, I decided that one day I would actually spend time in Ethiopia. And it's happening! I am going to be teaching/ tutoring in a primary school (kindergarten through 2nd grade) for orphans in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Addis Ababa, the capital. I also might help plan a summer camp they will be running, which sounds like so much fun. Maybe I will teach them field hockey!
Anyway, the flight is lonnngg because I have a ridiculous layover in London, but that's ok because half the fun of traveling is plopping down in the airplane seat, watching movies, and sleeping while people bring you food haha. So I will update you in a few days, as soon as I make it to the other side of the world:)
-Colleen