So it seems like all PCVs do this at one point or another on their blogs so I figured I would get it over with.
Things I take for granted in the states. Hopefully you will use this to take a second and think about all the little things that you take for granted on a day to day basis.
1. You would think that the daily (and sometimes week long) power outages or the water that only works during the first few hours of he morning would make my list. But honestly that doesn't really bother me. What gets me is the cell reception, or rather lack there of. We have two cell towers in the town, but despite the fact that I can see them both out my front door, I have no cell reception at my house, only certain areas along the road (and beside the bathroom at work) have cell reception, and often even those spots do not work.
2. Pizza, you can get it at almost any restaurant in the US, but here even the places that have beautiful pictures of it on the wall are only really teasing you. I have taken to pointing at the picture and ordering it, just so when they say they don't have it I can ask them why not. Maybe one day they will get the idea and learn to make it. But honestly, this goes for all food. There is really only foreiner food in Addis and I am a day bus ride from there.
3. I know I already mention food, but food DIVERSITY. In Ethiopia they eat the same thing EVERY DAY. I am not kidding. They cook about three types of wat, but it seems that each family usually only cooks one type. They occasionally have chopped up bits of meat cooked called tibs, and fir fir (the cooked remains of what ever injera they had left over). There are a few special occasion dishes, but in general there really isn't a whole lot more. Even when I try to cook something new for myself there isn't enough food diversity to do much new. To get a different selection of vegetables I have to go to the special place in Robe, and then most of the squash, peppers, or egg plant are over ripe and wilting.
4. Privacy, not like at my house, when I am here I am in my own space. Just out and about. I have gotten used to the stairs and people yelling at me. Thankfully here it is just a couple groups of kids in a few places. But sometimes it is just too much. Last weekend I went to the gorge to sit and relax while reading. But first I had a kid come up and stare at me, then that kids (I assume) grandad came up and tried to get me to give the kid money. I refused and told them to go away (not rude here), then a few minutes later another kid came over and started staring at me. I ignored it, until her parents and some more kids created a crowd around me and started trying to look over my shoulder at what I was reading. At that point there was no relaxing and I just had to go home. As I said, I am used to it and usually it doesn't get to me, but some times you just want your personal space and having people come take the thing out of your hand to look at it gets on your nerves.
5. Things to do. I have read twelve books since I have been here, and during PST I think I only read two or three of those. I have watched about nine different seasons of various TV shows. There is truly nothing to do on the weekends in this town. I try to make a trip out during the weekends to get coffee and read in public so I can at least say hi to the people I know that I see on the street. But there is no movie theater, mall, public park, I don't have my dogs, or any other thing that you would normally do on the weekend in the states. I have not even gotten a feel for where I can and can not go hiking yet. Everything around me is crop land and I haven't been to the gorge yet to get my bearings down there. (right now that trip is planned for Tuesdays)
I think friends and family go without saying, but I do miss you all.
Honestly it has not been that hard to adapt to life here. It is far different that what we are accustomed to in the US. But the things that we find indispensable in the states are really not that big of a deal. I could add hot showers (I take a shower about once a week, and it takes me about half an hour to boil enough water to make the shower water not icy), but really it doesn't really matter to me. I could add cars, everywhere I go I walk. Once every two weeks I take a bus into town, but otherwise my feet are my ONLY transportation. I could add supermarkets...well I do miss those, just not enough to make my top few. I could add being able to microwave a meal right out of the freezer, but I have gotten pretty good about planning my meals and heck, all my ingredients are fresh, how can you beat that. So really, there are a lot of things to be thankful for in the US. But I challenge you to stop your day, and think about a couple things you take for granted. And if you are the adventurous sort; actually go without something for a week. Anyway, obligatory post out of the way.
On a more normal note. This week has been as slow as every other one. Only real difference is I finally got the material together for my garden. I have finished two of the three beds. Using a hoe on the end of a eucalyptus handle I had to assembly myself, I have single dug one ~6meter bed, and double dug another ~5meter bed. I have ten large blisters on my hands, and still one more bed to go. Once I find something I can use as a watering can I will start planting, but for now not only do I not have anything, but the water source is about forty feet away from my garden so I have to figure something out. This weekend I am going to start working with another volunteer getting some hands on experience working with some bee hives. Next week I am going to try to start really working on my community needs assessment. It is not do for another two months, but I am bored, so might as well start working on it. That is about it. A whole week summed up into one small paragraph. I have a couple plans for possible projects. So lets hope one or two of them pan out.
Trey
6/8
So as I said I was supposed to go into the gulch last week, however, because I had installation visit by Peace Corps I wasn't able to find the time. I do plan to make it this week though. I also am planning on going to the Sulfumar caves in the next few weekends. Installation went well. Because of a bunch of unforeseen events I was not able to pass out the invitations until the day before. I expected only a few people to come, but out of about 45 invites, almost 40 people came. (Installation is where PC comes out and explains to the community why we are here and what as volunteers hope to accomplish, etc.) After I was getting even more greeting on the street and people telling me they want to work with me. Otherwise it has been the same old same old. I reaffirmed there is NOTHING to do in this town just to relax. The pool "hall" is one table where the teenagers of the town play a game I have never seen, and gamble. So I will be reading a lot of books and getting really good at doing nothing. But my landlord the last two weekends has invites me over for coffee and breakfast, and I will probably be getting a horse after the next two months so I will have some places to visit on horseback. Anyway, yesterday my counterpart and I went to the market to pick up some supplies. He LOVES playing with my camera so I have a lot of pictures of it. I am going to try to upload them with this blog post and give some explanations so here goes.
Market day:
In every town (pretty much) in Ethiopia there is a day or a few days where people come together to show of their products and sell supplies to the local community. For example my town has two, a small one on Wednesday, and a large one on Saturday. They sell everything from fruits and vegetables, to livestock, to clay pots and even manure. Usually depending on what the product you can save as much as 1/3 the price you would pay for things in town. Eggs in town are 2.50birr, at the market they are 2.00birr. Most of the town will at some point on Saturday end up at the market. It is where most people buy their weeks supplies of food. For me it is an excellent opportunity to see the local culture and my counterpart was in a very sharing mood this weekend. He pointed out different things that meant people were looking to be married and explained different styles of dress among other things. The first picture is of some hand made clay pots, as well as hand made Jebanahs (coffee pots). These are made from the local clay around the river. The second is of spices, these are mostly collected locally, although some of them are imported from other parts of the country, as you can see some of these are very familiar to Americans, I can get cumen seeds, mustard seeds, rosemary, among other things. The third is some traditional Orthodox wraps. These are draped over the shoulders or wrapped around the heads as a traditional part of their religion. Next is some home made baskets, these are made to hold decorations as well as to use in sorting t'eff. It is required that as a way to symbolize a women is ready to marry that she be able to make these. Finally the last picture shows some Sudanese women. In the very bottom of the gulch some Sudanese have migrated, they are prominent for their clay making. They bring everything from pots, to injera pans for the injera making machines. They are easy to ID because of their different style of dressing.
Family: I know you want pictures of me, but there are none. The only one he even tried to take of me was of me eating a prickly pear and that wasn't about to happen. Sorry. So I hope from this you can see a few similarities as well as differences, not only between America and Ethiopia, but also between the different people of Ethiopia.
Trey
I'm going to have to research some of the words you use.
ReplyDeletePeople staring at me, asking for money, or taking things from my hands would freak me out.
Love the pictures.