My long lost blog...

G6 MSC... preparing for Capture the Flag.

I can’t believe how long it’s been since I've written last; I know I’m pretty bad on keeping up, but this is an all-time low!  So much to say, I don’t even know where to start!

I guess at the beginning.  Life has been a roller-coaster ride of emotions, work, struggles, and frustrations.  The day that I looked on line and saw that my Peace Corps Project funding was full was one of the best on my service so far; a couple weeks later when I walked into the education office to discuss implementation only to find out that EVERYONE I had worked on this proposal with had left for other jobs or school and when I asked the head of the office when we could start, he replied with, “and who are you?” was one of the worst days in my service.  But, what goes up must come down, or I guess vice-versa in this case, and the project (after re-assessing everything, compiling a new budget, and starting from scratch with these new partners) moved forward. 

The location given to us for our Environmental Club

The education office handed me off to the water and sanitation bureau who agreed to supervise my project and do all the hiring and contracting for the well.  We brought their experts to the area to look over the space to determine a location and the probability that there would be water under there (every expert said “most likely, but we won’t know until we dig”…so comforting) and then we sat together and drafted a lengthy contract and final budget.  The office hired the local youth association (designed to give unemployed youth and drop outs in the area a chance for employment through small projects such as this) and after a dramatic signing session of contracts, designs, and budgets, an initial payment was given and construction began.

The beginnings of our project... why it had to be so BIG is beyond me, but I was told that's just the way it's done here...

 At this point I ran off to Debre Zeit, near Addis Ababa for a Mid-Service Conference, all the while crossing my fingers that that found some water down there (our other alternative was to turn our big hole into a water catchment system- not a bad idea, but not exactly helpful for starting environmental club projects this year…) and when I returned, I got another one of those roller-coaster highs: WATER!  It was a relief and an exciting day to see a project going right. (update, a week later we discovered it wasn't ground water, but run off water- so we have changed the design to be a water catchment pond; not quite as effective as a well, but still will get the job done.)

A little pause from the project, our Mid-Service Conference was great and just the break we all needed.  With only 18 of us in our group, we are probably more close-knit that other incoming groups and as a result, we get along.  On the one side, we spent the week grafting and pruning trees, talking about our projects, and discussing ideas and advice; on the other, we played sardines, capture the flag, did a gift swap and even voted on “superlatives” for each other (I won the coveted "most likely to be an extra in Harry Potter", and "most likely to become a crazy pony lady"... I think I can live with both of those.). 

Learning 'budding' technique on Avocado trees

Teaching Ethiopians the art of pie baking- they were really impressed with canned pie filling: so t'urum!

Another great day during MSC was Thanksgiving Day; our APCD, Heywot, had gone the extra mile and got us a spot in the culinary school to cook our thanksgiving feast.  The way she managed this was presenting it as a teaching opportunity for the culinary students to learn some ‘ferengi’ cooking, and we had a great time teaching them everything from stuffing, sweet potatoes, and chicken, to chocolate chip cookies and apple, cherry, blueberry, and pumpkin pie.

It was a crowded kitchen.

This day was a dramatic high-low in itself with great experiences teaching and baking, and one sour experience at the end of “who broke the blender”, in which the students vs. the volunteers all claimed the other did it (I watched the whole thing, and one of the students did indeed knock it down, though I understand why he wouldn’t want to fess up as it would probably come out of his pocket), thus making a rather upsetting end to an otherwise perfect day.  Grr.

Back to my town:  MSC ended, we all spent a few days in Addis Ababa getting our mid-service medical exams done (my doctor was surprised to see my file as one of the healthiest PCVs in country with only a dog bite reported, well, and two cavities) and spending far too much money on eating out and going out dancing; so I flew back tired, happy, and broke to my small town in Tigray.  With only three days to spare before turning around and heading back to Addis for a Volunteer Advisory Committee meeting, I checked up on my project, took some pictures, and listened to my well contractor go on about how the budget wasn’t enough, they weren’t getting paid enough, and he needed another payment.  I had this sneaking suspicion that this might happen (it happens a lot here) and the realization that contracts and budgets mean very little slowly set in.

Back to Addis, had a great VAC meeting, and was asked to head down to the town of Assela for a few days and give a presentation on the world map project to the new PC trainee group. 

Presentation on Peace Corps "World Map Project"

Fast forward, I am now back in my town after basically three weeks absent, and trying to gather myself and throw myself into my work again.  Yesterday the well contractor, office supervisor, and I met together to discuss the second payment for the well: I (shamefully) became that rude ferengi that insists that things have to be done her way and demanded that the project had to follow the pre-agreed budget and made everyone sign a new contract describing the payments received, and the remaining balance of the budget that would be paid at the completion of the project.  I am usually a very relaxed and easy going person, but I felt like the contractor was trying to take advantage of the foreign girl who ‘undoubtedly has tons of money and can afford to pay us more’ and lost my cool.  It happens to the best of us.

The project continues, and soon we will be starting on our mini gardens and tree nursery with the students- then the real fun begins!  In other big news, I just got the go-ahead to commence project “rebuild the irrigation system” at the tree nursery site!  With two projects underway, Christmas and New Year’s, some traveling planning in January with my brother, an all-volunteer conference and a trip to India planned for March, It’s going to be a busy few months! 

Kept it simple and planted squash, cantaloupe, and egg plants in the garden- out of the three, squash apparently love Ethiopia..

Squash dominating my garden

The two extremes of holiday food:  above, the pre-holiday feast of "dulet"; everything BUT the meat (all the little intestinal bits and pieces)  and below, the post-holiday feast: my favorite dish of "Ta'halo" a spicy meat sauce eaten with yogurt and barley dough. (Most holidays include 3 feasts... )

Ode to my small town in Tigray...

Before I get on to the rest of my post I just wanted to quickly ask for your help yet again with my Peace Corps Partnership Program.  At the high school here in my town we are working to get a pump and well built for the use of not only the school so that they will have a reliable water source, but so they can maintain the grounds, and, in my opinion the most important reason, so that the Environmental club can establish their own tree nursery and other projects to battle the ongoing deforestation in our community.  I know many of you have already donated and we really appreciate your support; we are starting to get desperate though, and we need as much help as possible.  We still have around a thousand dollars to raise before we can begin the project and we could really use your donation!  Please, if you can donate, even just a little, I would appreciate it so much! 

Please donate if you can at the following link!

https://donate.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=663-028 or go to www.peacecorps.gov/donate, and search for ‘Peatross’, or the project number 663-028.



Tigray Flag



Ok, now on to the post.... I realize I have been pretty vague about my town here, so I thought I'd write a little about it to give you a better idea of the daily life here in Tigray.

A quick Description

My town is relatively small, with a population of about 8 or 9 thousand, but having one of the only schools in the area, I swear most of that population seems to be under the age of 18.  The surrounding area looks like it belongs in a 1970s spaghetti western with dusty plains and jagged cliffs surrounding the town.  The town itself is perched on a Cliffside overlooking the valley to the east and high plateaus to the west.  During the rainy season the area is surprisingly green with streams running under the bridges and grass along the once dry, sandy slopes and the rough cliff sides are dotted with green plant growth.

Each mountain top, I might add, has a rickety Orthodox church perched on top, the large elaborate metal cross just visible on the steeple.  At any given spot in town you can spot about 3 of these churches; in fact, total, I can think of 10 Orthodox churches all within walking distance of the town center.  Besides the Orthodox churches, the center of town is also home to the towering green and white mosque topped with the traditional moon and star.

The Places

Every time I think of where I live, I am forced to compare it to the small town of Duchesne I grew up in back in rural Utah.  There are innumerable differences, yet surprisingly some similarities. 

 I think of the town grocery store I used to go to for shopping, the only grocery store in town, and thinking I had limited choices; yet here in Tigray I wait for that one day a week, market day, to do my major shopping and stock up for the week.  Instead of walking up and down the aisles of neatly packed canned goods and frozen foods, I push my way through a crowded market haggling for this pile of potatoes and that kilogram of guavas.  I think of back home with fresh milk, a bakery, and even a deli right at my fingertips, and I grudgingly buy my powdered milk and bread to get me through the week. 

The Butcher is possibly one of the largest differences in my two towns; Duchesne had neatly packaged meat all cleanly and sanitarily wrapped with a date stamped on top, and here, you know when the meat is fresh by the skinned hide and cow head sitting outside the door.  In the states packages of meat cleanly describe the meat as a ‘rump roast’ ‘rib eye’ or what not, here, you walk in, point to the part of the carcass that is hanging up by his hocks, and ask for your specific cut (thank you, 4-H, for my knowledge of animal parts). 

The post office, an orderly building I remember in Utah, filled with a box for each residence, is no more than a small room here in town, with about 25 boxes.  The post master calls me when there is mail we grab a cup of tea and arrange a time when he can come to the post office and unlock it so I can get my post. 

My office building too, has a sharp contrast from any government building in my small town in Utah;  Our cement walls are battered, the paint is peeling, and there are old, handwritten signs, posters, and maps littering the walls all at least two years old.  I think of cubicles in the states, and it makes me smile when I see our small, one-room office that somehow managed to cram 13 desks in.  The two computers in the office, to be shared among all the workers, are still running on windows XP on giant ancient monitors.  Did I mention we have 2 windows, neither with glass, and one book shelf with no books but handwritten reports from more than 15 years prior?



During the holiday 'Meskel', or the 'Finding of the True Cross'



In Northern Utah, people used to say that there was a church on every corner, but they all teach the same thing; here in Tigray, that pretty much holds true as well: more churches than you can imagine, and they’re all Ethiopian Orthodox.  Though, I am still struggling to understand religion here as every time I’ve gone for a holiday or something, we never actually go inside the church and just listen to the singing and praying going on outside in the courtyard.  Everyone is very religious and very devout to the Orthodox faith, yet there is no Sunday school, no church groups, and as far as I can tell, very few actual church services… Most have never read the bible, except those who are deacons or priests, as it is usually printed in the ancient language Ge’ez, but I guarantee nearly every man, women, and child in town has on a traditionally carved wooden cross to proudly display their religion.  Here, Religion is Culture and nearly all holidays are religious and those that aren’t have adopted religious practices anyway. 

The People



After the death of PM Meles Zenawi, we had a ceremoney in town-
these are the many people traveling in from far and wide to attend.



If you were to walk down the streets of my town, you would see women dressed in tattered dresses and long white scarves all hurrying to their destination in what we'd call ‘jelly-shoes’.  They usually have their hair braided in what we volunteers have coined ‘triceratops braids’ due to the three large lumps braided back on the head, ending in a large, fanned out poof of hair at the top the neck, or ‘Tigray braids’ which is basically the same thing, without the triceratops lumps and a small braid coming down the forehead, splitting in the middle, and braided behind the ears.  Most younger girls dress in this fashion as well, minus the scarves and the hair; because of lice, most girls have a short crop or shaved head until at least 8… Usually women are carrying a baby or some massive bag of something on their back, all tied with the traditionally woven white scarves.

The men, usually sitting in coffee and tea houses, mingling on the side of the road, or waiting for the bus, dress far more diversely than the women.  You can tell the priests and older traditional men by their traditionally woven white scarves wrapped almost turban like on their heads, their long beards, and their T-shaped staff and cross in hand.  Most government workers wear a suit, or the latest faded and ripped fashion jeans and a button-up shirt, and the youth range in everything from an Abercrombie and Fitch catalog to a 1980’s thrift shop (yikes).  Then there are always some surprises,  like the occasional women in the silky Hello Kitty pajama set, undoubtedly assumed a fancy two piece outfit, or the Adidas or Reabook jacket that actually says ‘Abibas’ or ‘Rbdock’. 

Finally, two of my favorite people in town, our resident ‘rock lady’ and ‘dancer guy’:  Rock lady has lived here in town as long as I can remember, usually seen with a rock in hand and chasing people while threatening to throw.  She is really eager, however, and LOVES foreigners.  If she spots me, she usually screams, runs up to me, and insists on no fewer than 5 shoulder bumps in greeting (all with rock in hand).  In the past she has been known to chase people away from bus seats ‘belonging to the ferenji ‘(foreigner) or demand you a seat in a café, even if you weren’t planning on sitting, all with rock in hand.   Dancer guy is a new addition to our town, and just showed up for our last holiday.  Wearing not much more than a white traditionally woven scarf as a toga, he spent our last holiday dancing in front of the crowd during a serious ceremony presented by the priests.  He then proceeded to lead the parade of priests, dancing and waving a strange spastic baton-like thing as they marched somberly around the fire and cross for Meskel.

There- hopefully that gives you a thorough view of my town and a good idea of the people and places I see and interact with every day; despite the differences, I love this town and the rich culture I get to be a part of!

During the Meskel holiday, the priests lit the bonfire holding the cross- depending on the direction the cross falls, it could be a good year!

Summer Camp Ethiopia Style!

Who knew that those skills I gained while working at camp WeHaKee all those summers would be so useful all the way on the other side of the world?

Almost two months ago now (I know, I’m slow to get this on my blog), Tigray region PCVs hosted their first ever Tigray summer camp, and I think the overall opinion was that it was a huge success.

This process started about 4 months before camp for me (for the volunteers directly in charge of this, it started long before that).  Each volunteer was responsible for selecting three eligible campers from their town;  I worked with the vice director at my local high school to select possible students, then met with them and explained camp and that any who were interested could submit an essay on why they wanted to attend.  From this process we selected three awesome students from our high school; 2 girls, both in 11^th grade, and 1 boy in 12^th grade.  Over the next few months I met with the students and discussed rules and expectations for camp, dates and timeline, and the permission slip for their parents.

The day of camp arrived and we all eagerly sat in a café waiting for the bus to pick us up (it was coming from a nearby town with other campers).  I’m pretty sure my campers believed this was to be a typical ‘training’ like they are so used to:  dry and boring with very little interaction, despite my attempts to explain this foreign concept of ‘camp’.  However, when we arrived, the moment we walked in the door they could tell it wasn’t anything they had expected. 

As they walked in, each camper was placed in a color team, of which I was the orange team leader (AKA, counselor of ‘cabin’ Orange). Campers spent the first afternoon creating nametags and decorating their new camp journals with craft supplies so rare to Ethiopia; stamps, glitter, stickers, markers, and colorful paper.  All 34 campers seemed a little unsure of what to think or do, or what was expected… especially after a round of ‘BANANAS UNITE!’   Little did they know, we were easing them into this camp experience.

Each day of camp had a specific theme:  Leadership, HIV-AIDS awareness, Environmental Awareness, Gender Equality, Nutrition/Healthy Lifestyles, and Field Day (team spirit and some friendly competition).  I assisted with a session on Leadership day, taught two sessions during Environment day (one, an introduction to environmental awareness and the other on food-security and small scale gardening practices), and the rest of the time worked as the Orange color group leader, taught about a million girls to make friendship bracelets (ok, more like 15), played waaay to much Uno for one week, and helped with behind the scenes stuff, like trips to the market and filling water jugs. With our little remaining free time, some of us shamefully spent hours putting together puzzles. (If anyone wanted to send me a couple 1000 piece puzzles, definitely wouldn’t complain… though, I might not leave my house either)   Alas, no horseback riding program like at Camp WeHaKee to make it really feel like camp, but still a great week.

By the end of the first day campers were getting into the camp idea- color teams had cheers for their teams when they won a precious glittered bottle cap and campers were enjoying the lessons, all of which had fun, interactive games, skits, and crafts to help them learn (slightly different here in Ethiopia: most teaching is in a classroom setting and more ‘listen and memorize’ than ‘creative thinking’), and it was almost impossible at times to drag campers away from the craft table or their friendship bracelets…

The last day of camp was full of games we’ve all played a dozen times, but things like a wheel barrel race or a three legged race were brand new to them.  My favorite was the ‘dizzy-bat’ race (you know, stick your forehead on a bat and spin 10 times) I don’t think a single one of those kids had ever been so dizzy in their lives.  My other favorite competition of that day was the ‘You got served!’ Dance off.  Each color group had to dance to first, Tigrinya music, second, Amharic music, and third, American music.  If only I could describe...  In the final rounds, the teams had little skits to open a song, choreography, and some serious moves.  I think all of us Americans were a little shocked, however, at what the perception of ‘American Dancing’ was; although when you consider their only images of American dancing come from MTV, I guess it makes sense.

Throughout the field day, my team did pretty well; I didn’t tell them this, but by the end of the first half of the day we were in the lead, but after a rather rough second half, we dropped to a respectable 3^rd place.  The end of camp also meant camp awards and the fabulous orange team gained the most glittered bottle caps throughout the week and earned the coveted ‘Gobez Color Team’ Award (gobez meaning smart or clever).  The campers I brought from my town also made me proud: One of my girls got the esteemed ‘Gobez Female Camper’ Award; the other was in the winning dance troop of ‘you got served dance off’, and the boy from my town got second in the camp talent show (held earlier in the week) with some impressive acrobatic skills.

Camp finished traditionally with songs and dancing around the camp fire and of course, S’mores: a definite first for all our campers and as some described to me later, the most ‘tu’rom’ (delicious) thing they’d ever tasted. 

Again, just another note about the project I am working on with my high school- we are trying to get funded through Peace Corps Partnership Program for a well and pump for the school.  This way the school can maintain their grounds, the Environmental Club can start their projects of a tree nursery and demonstration gardens, and the school will have a reliable water source.   Funding relies on the donations from generous people back home and so far, it has gone pretty slow and we’re starting to worry we won’t get the funds by the time we need to begin.   We really, really need your support- even if it’s just a few dollars- we truly appreciate every bit of help given.

 Please donate if you can at the following link!

https://donate.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=663-028 or go to www.peacecorps.gov/donate, and search for ‘Peatross’, or the project number 663-028.

Thank you and የከንየልና!

Our Environmental Club Project!, And the 'deadly' "tafiek"...

Before the rest of my post, I just have a quick story that made my day...  So about 2 months ago, right as I was getting into bed I hear a ruckus outside my door as two of my compound brothers scrambled around sounding like they were whacking at something with a broom.  When I stuck my head out the window to see what was going on, everyone yelled at me to stay inside and not too worry; they got it.  'It', they told me the next morning was called "tefiek'" in Tigrinya, and other than 'it runs very fast'  and 'is very scary' I never really found out what it was. (I paranoid for weeks that it was the notorious camel spider.... literally the scariest thing I've ever seen)

This evening, I hear them calling my name, so I poke my head out the door to see what they need; they are nervously beckoning me to come down and away from my house as fast as I can... so, I come down, and ask whats up.  "There's a 'tafiek' on your house!!!" and the two boys with big sticks and scarfs wrapped around their noses and mouths start creeping towards my stairs.  I, however, was curious and said I was going with them ('NO!'- one of my compound sisters) we get up there, and lo and behold, the terifying 'tafiek', is none other than a gecko.  I felt bad afterwards, but I laughed outloud when I saw him and told them not to hurt him. They looked at me as if I were crazy: "but he'll crawl up your nose!"  Again, I laughed and said I'd take my chances... After a serious debate on whether or not the gecko (who has been living here for a while, I named him Waldo about 3 weeks ago) would indeed crawl up my nose if they didnt kill him, they let him live.  It's amazing that something I've always grown up as seeing so harmless and cute is something they are terrified of- it's very interesting how culture and stories can sway your belief into thinking something so harmless is so scary.  I supose we do the same thing in the U.S..  Do earwigs really crawl up your ears? Are mice really that scary?  yech, or cockroaches?  I guess I can't laugh to hard. 

Anyway, moving on to more serious subjects.  A few weeks ago Peace Corps posted on the web my high school’s Environmental club well project!  I am so excited to get this project underway and start working with these students, but, we can't get started until the project is fully funded.  I know it is a lot to ask of you all back home, especially when I've done one of these Peace Corps Partnership Projects before while back in Niger and asked everyone for donations then too, but if there is any way you are able to donate, even a small amount we would really appreciate it!!  These kids are so excited for this chance to make a difference at there school and in their communities; we really could use your help! 

So, with that said, I would like to tell you a little more about our project:

The Frewoyni High School is only one of 3 schools in the Woreda (district), which means we have anywhere from 1600 to 3000 students each year- and not enough teachers for such a large student body!  This results in class sizes of at least 80 students, and only a half day of school for each.  Because of the difficulties they’re facing, areas such as environmental education and student clubs often get overlooked and receive little to no support.

One of these areas is Environmental Education and the Environmental Club:  The current Environmental club, consisting of 100 students and two voluntary advisors, eagerly meet on a regular basis for discussion, but lack the funding and water source to establish any projects. The students met at the end of the previous school year and enthusiastically discussed the desire to start a garden and tree nursery in the school grounds. This requires the construction of a well and hand pump, which will make possible club activity and participation not only for this coming school year, but several years to come.

So, that being said, our objectives for this project are to first, construct a well and hand-pump and second, establish a garden and tree nursery site. Through meeting twice a week and spending a little time after school each day, students will gain valuable knowledge in vegetable and tree varieties, receive hands on experience in tree planting, and learn new techniques such as pit composting and drip-irrigation systems. Our goal is that students will not only gain and share their new hands-on skills and knowledge, but will also assume ownership in their work by taking seedlings and container gardens home with them to plant and share in their communities.

Anyone who has been to Tigray, Ethiopia, would tell you that Deforestation is a major problem and has tragically transformed the land from the lush forest that it was so many years ago. Little hints of forest land still remain here and there reminding what it once was.  Ask any farmer in our woreda and they will tell you stories of the wildlife and the forests of when they were younger: they will tell you the land was more fertile, that crops grew better, and that they received more rain.  Yes, our goal to teach students tree varieties and how to plant, but beyond that we hope to create awareness of the deforestation and food security problems: how individuals can provide food security for their families while still maintaining and taking pride in the surrounding forest land.  By teaching these students and giving them hands on experience, they can bring their knowledge back home and make a difference in their communities all around the Woreda.

If you are able to help us out, even a little, we would truly appreciate it!  To donate, follow this link:  https://donate.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=donate.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=663-028 or go to www.peacecorps.gov/donate, and search for ‘Peatross’, or the project number 663-028.

የከንየልና!  Please spread the word to anyone you know that might be interested in helping us out! Thank you all!!

The joys of Ethiopian transportation!

I was looking back at some of my posts the other day, thinking, hmm, these are all so similar; I spend the majority of the post talking about what I did, what I’m planning, blah, blah- I realized there are a lot of little things I leave out.  So, Im going to start posting more random stories, observations, and things that I should mention more often but never seem to have the time!

The joys of Ethiopian transportation!

I feel like the best complement I could give is that transportation here is actually not as bad as I expected.  I live on the main north-south road and therefore have more travel opportunities than a lot of other PCVs.  Each (larger) town has a bus station, and one could go there and wait for a bus to arrive to their destination (usually there are ticket boys that scream the destination in a high-pitched speedy voice: “Mekele-Mekele-Mekele!”), wait for the bus to then fill, and then wait for the bus to leave… This process takes somewhere between 10 minutes and 3 hours.  OR, one could go to the side of the road, wait for a bus headed in the desired direction, flag it down, and push and shove along with the other 20 or so Ethiopians trying to do the same thing, to snatch the one or two spaces left on the bus.  I am not very pushy, but I do get lucky quite often because I am an obvious foreigner- sometimes they’ll make sure I get one of those spots.

One of my favorite things about Ethiopian transport is the décor.  The largest of busses are rarely seen without at least 50 posters and photos plastered on the windows, windshield (I often wonder how they are even able to see out) and the ceilings, usually of Jesus, Mary, other religious figures, Manchester United football team, and Rihanna/50 cent/Usher.  Then, there is usually some sort of garland handing from the sides and front complete with tinsel and fake flowers, and finally, fur.  Oh, the fur.  I don’t know how it became a fad, but long, colorful, Muppet-style fur is the latest car fashion here.  Usually is hangs from the ceiling, covers the dash board, and is wrapped around the rear-view mirrors of the vehicle.  This is all, mind you, over a rather loud velvety cloth the entire roof of the bus is upholstered with in a fruit or flower print.  My favorite is when the car has Muppet fur on the ceiling of the front cabin of the car, and if you sit in the middle seat of the front, you end up with half your head stuck in the fur and spend the ride trying to see out between a sea of red Elmo fur.

Photos to come of car décor, I’m trying to compile some of my favorites, but sadly, I rarely have a camera when I travel.

Here are some of my Ethiopia travel dos and don’ts:

DO sit by a window:  There is a myth that the air from an open window will make you sick; according to fellow bus members, depending on where you’re at you might get the flu, a cold, TB, or… AIDS?  The only way you are going to combat the stifling heat of 25 people crammed on a small mini bus is by scoring that window seat and dominating that window (much to the distress of your neighbors), plus, I always get a vindictive pleasure in chewing out the lady next to me who unwittingly tries to reach over and close MY window.

DO make friends with the bus driver (if he’s not creepy that is) that way next time you’ve been waiting in a huge ‘line’ (lines don’t exist here) for three hours for a bus that isn’t coming, when he pulls in you might just score yourself a seat.

DO make friends with that loud larger lady on the bus; that way when the ticket boy tries to raise the price for you, she jumps in, defends you to the death, and the ticket boy wishes he had never even tried to screw you over…

DO buy some kolo or shimbira (roasted barley or chickpeas) on the side of the road and share it with your neighbors… everyone will love you.

DON’T ask the ticket boy the price.  He is usually a little jerk who will try and make an extra 5 birr for himself; instead, get in, ask one of your friendlier neighbors what the price should be, hand it over, and only then if an argument arises should you haggle over the price.  Better yet, at each bus station there is a guy in a yellow vest as the bus station manager: ask him for the right price.

DON’T pay until the bus is moving.  It may just be my bad luck, but it seems every time I pay before we leave, we end up waiting another hour, and I see 3 busses all for my destination come, fill, and leave before we go.

DON’T get on a bus that has luggage stacked as high on top of the bus as the bus is tall.  I don’t think I should have to explain this one…

DON’T sit on the back row in the middle.  Though there are only three seats back there, there is rarely a time when a forth, and sometimes a fifth person aren’t squeezed in there.  If you want to breathe, pick a different seat.

Other important notes:

-The bigger the bus, the slower it goes.

-ALL busses play the same 5 Tigrinya songs over and over again.  Get used to it.

-At least 3 people will be sick on nearly every bus ride you ever take… that’s why they hand out plastic baggies (maybe they should open a window?).

On a completely side note, here are some photos of our last day of school tree planting at the high school!



First a little demonstration on proper tree-planting techniques...





By twos, students selected a hole and planted their trees!





Some of the girls planting their trees




I think they had fun...



World Maps, Project Proposals, and Operation Smile; wasn’t I just complaining about not having anything to do?!

Blog Entry 22.05.2012

Back in my town after another busy week out; it’s been a few of those weeks where I not only have things to do, but I’m scrambling to get them done (which, I’ll admit, feels nice).  While it is sad that very little of the work I’ve been doing lately has had anything to do with Environment, it is extremely nice to be busy and I have enjoyed every minute of my other random jobs.

World Map:

There are exactly three primary schools in my town: one that I tried to get involved with in Environmental Education earlier on only to be frustrated with certain teachers demanding extra pay and trainings on subjects I had no intention of teaching, one that only has younger grades (which, I will admit, I am scared of- that’s the age that throws rocks), and one on the hill that I have truly enjoyed working with.

 While I’m just starting out, so far I have met with the teachers about environmental club and English curriculum ideas, provided seeds and project ideas for the club, and games and resources for remedial English lessons.  So, as I walked around the school grounds one day, I realized that not one of the murals on the school buildings was a world map, and, as Peace Corps has a great ‘World Map’ project (a manual of how to draw the world map in a grid, color code it, and label it) I decided it would be a great way to spend some time.

I spent the first few days drawing out the grid (it was over 2 meters wide and 1.25 meters tall…) and the next few days Katherine, a neighboring volunteer about 2 hours to the South East, and I drew and painted in the World Map.  I always tend to think highly of my geography skills until I do a project like this; usually as I search for 20 minutes to color in ridiculously small countries like Seychelles or Maldives, I realize I know nothing, and that I’ve been to a very small part of the world.  There were also other challenges like, where exactly should I put the line for South Sudan?  And what on earth is Zaire called these days??  Possibly the most frustrating moment though was one afternoon I set out to continue working on the map only to find some kid had taken a pen to Antarctica and (rather stupidly) written his name all over it.  At the moment I threw what I’m sure the teachers considered a right little fit and they assured me they would speak to the students and find the kid who did it (which, as they had his name, shouldn’t be too hard).  I slightly dramatically told them if it kept happening I wouldn’t bother finishing it- but this had taken us nearly 5 days, so I thought I had the right. 

One of the biggest surprises I found with the world map came from when a few of the other teachers asked to help.  We would give them a color of paint and then read off what countries were that color.  As I read down the list, I truly didn’t expect her to know where Thailand or Kyrgyzstan was, but when I announced Somalia, she hesitantly looked at the map and pointed to… South Africa?  As a neighboring country to Ethiopia, I thought for sure she would recognize the country; however, maybe the map is there to benefit the teachers as much as it is there to benefit the students.



Phase 1: believe it or not, the grid was the hardest part!!



Phase 2: getting closer...





Phase 3: and the finished map!!



Project Proposals:

Within the past month, I have been meeting regularly with the environmental club and its supervisor at my local high school and we are finally on our way to getting this well and tree nursery idea underway.  After a great discussion with the whole club, we decided that what the club really wanted to gain out of the following year was tree planting know-how, knowledge on tree varieties and uses, and irrigation and tree maintenance techniques.  So, with that in mind, the club advisor and I devised a plan to encompass all the students’ ideas.   And, now the fun part, I get to pull together all the information to write a grant proposal to get our well and supplies funded.  Things are moving along, although, we’re at a standstill until we can meet again and discuss the project budget… that always seems to be the hard part here; just getting people to find the time for a small discussion.

Operation Smile:

WAS SUCH A GREAT EXPERIENCE!!  We, being 10 Peace Corps volunteers, volunteered for 5 days a piece of the 10 day operation smile mission here in the Tigray region.  First off, Operation smile is an NGO that provides medical surgeries for cleft lips and cleft palates- they work all over the world, but this is their first mission in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.  We were divided into two shifts, the first half of the mission and the second half of the mission, and I and 4 other PCVs chose to work the second half.  We spent the first couple days at the hospital during their final two days of operations- I spend a lot of time working in the medical records and filling out charts, and then separating charts, but I also got to spend a lot of time in the pre-op room and the post-op room helping with (minor) translations, playing with kids, and just talking with patients and answering questions.  The last couple days we were there  we spent at the shelter that operation smile had set up for the patients (about 120 patients, which means over 300 people) working again to just answer questions, monitor patients who were having complications, and, of course, play with kids.  The last couple days of the mission are also doctor check-ups and clearance for the patients to leave, so we were really busy with that whole procedure- although, myself and one other volunteer got the fun job of compiling donated clothes and toys from the states into goodie bags for each of the patients; we had fun discussing if this would fit this kid, or if this girl would like this toy- it was especially rewarding to give the child with no shoes on a brand new pair of sandals (or the kid with no pants a brand new pair of pants.. how he got here with no pants is beyond me). 

It was very rewarding to work with operation smile; as Peace Corps volunteers we don’t always, if ever, see the benefits or outcomes of our projects; usually our projects are teaching skills and sharing knowledge- something we hope is making a difference, but not something we can always see.   With Operation Smile, you got to see a child with a cleft lip or palate go into surgery scared but determined, and then again on the other side, with a completed surgery making a wonderful, visible change.  We got to hear families thank us over and over again for the surgery and the chance for their child to have a normal life without discrimination and ridicule, and after a few days of recovery we got to see children and adults see and adapt to their new lifestyle and get ready to go home.  I was glad to be a part of it.

At the rock hewn church Gabriel Tselamao, my friend Kibrom and the priest showing me how the drums are used.



Posing with the Priest for a picture in front of a few of the beautiful murals at Gabriel Tselamao



A little late, but blog entry from May 8, 2012

Blog Entry 08/05/2013



Beautiful Eastern Tigray...the view from my house



Back in Tigray, and I have to say, after bussing to and back from Hawassa, I really have found a new appreciation for my home way up north.  While, sure, Hawassa was beautiful, the bus ride to it was not so much (sorry to any volunteers that have their post somewhere in that vast stretch of sand and acacia trees…).  My only point is that as we stepped off the plane in Mekele after three weeks out, it was a relief to breathe in the high-elevation cool air and see the surrounding mountains (though I did miss the trees).  It was even more of a relief to be back in my town in my own house and finally cook for myself again after eating out three large meals every day (not to mention tea and coffee break twice a day every day). 

I’m not sure if I appreciate or detest this, but Ethiopians seem to be as honest and blunt as they can be about everything including your appearance, and when I got back a few different people exclaimed, “you got fat!” -I would just like to note that fat is beautiful here, thank you very much- and thank you to one particular friend who compared me to John Seena…  Also people would pull this ‘eeew’ face and ask what was wrong with my skin (sunburn, mosquitos, and bedbugs...).  While this probably should have affected me far more than it did, I did at least start back on my Insanity workout every day, and I was just announced by a friend that I’m “no longer fat”.

Anyway, moving on to work!  I think every PCV experiences those first few months when it just seems like nothing will ever work out and work is never going to happen... and then bam!  One day it just all seems to come together.  I have finally got things rolling with my high school environmental club and have met with the students and discussed project ideas for next year.  Our plan is the apply for funding to put in a well and pump system so we can start some projects; one of the largest interests we found with the club members was learning about tree varieties and benefits as well as proper tree planting techniques and maintenance for trees.  So, what I proposed was to create a club tree nursery in which we could explore all of those things.  I want to include a demonstrative forest to show all the indigenous tree species for that area, experiment with fruit trees: lime, papaya, mango trees don’t grow at this elevation, so instead I want to see about apple trees and other typically western fruit trees (plums, cherries, etc.).

Secondly, I and another volunteer, Katherine, have started a world-map project at one of my primary schools just for fun more than anything else, but it’s nice to be busy and be painting.  This particular primary school didn’t have a world map yet and I thought it was a perfect opportunity to start the project.  Then, in a few weeks we will head to Katherine’s site to help with a world map painting at one of her schools. 

Thirdly, I have volunteered for a week with Operation Smile, and NGO that works with cleft palate children to provide corrective surgery.  Next week I’ll head into Mekele and spend a week volunteering at the hospital with them which is pretty exciting to be working with such a well-known NGO.

Finally, the Tigray group of volunteers are putting together a summer camp this summer and I just met with my high school director about this and about the selection process for our campers (each PCV is bringing 3 campers from their site).  It was just really exciting to see how well the idea of the summer camp was expressed; I don’t know who was more excited about the idea, the assistant director of the high school or the potential campers!  It was just really great to see people get excited about something we’ve been working on for so long.  Later this week I’ll head back to the school to have an informational meeting those interested in attending.

So as far as work goes, that’s where I am, and I just finished another meeting with my counterpart and the head of the tree nursery site here in town about a few projects in the planning stages with them- such as composting, a seed collection bank, and getting their well repaired.



Mmmm, Doriho Wat, or Chicken Sauce; my favorite Ethiopian Dish!




Drumming for Ethiopian Labor Day!