Phil and Chris in Ethiopia

There’s an Ethiopian game that consists of hanging up some clay pots full of various things (water, sugar, flour etc.) and getting blind-folded people to hit the pot with a stick until it breaks and they get covered in a surprise something. A bit like an Ethiopian version of a Piñata. Back in 2007 when I worked a the Myungsung Christian Medical Center (MCM, or popularly known as “the Korean Hospital”) the hospital’s third birthday was celebrated and (largely thanks to Gary and Peggy who were working there at the time) such a game was played. Mr Henry Moon, the South Korean hospital administrator was inveigled into playing and here’s a short video of the outcome:

“They’re fries, Phil, but not as we know it.”

Chris’s birthday is 5th May, always close to a bank holiday weekend and not infrequently close to a general election. It’s often been an opportunity to get away for a few days and happily the situation continues here, as her birthday is always a public holiday.

Around twice a week Chris and I head off to the gym. We joined last summer and bought a six month membership. the promised membership cards never turned up (despite our photo being taken and several promises) so I had no real idea when we needed to renew. Our gym in Hatfield would remind us by email – Chris and I had smiled at the thought that we might get a reminder here.

Seble (our house worker) told me that the same day that we met Handana (the lady living beneath the bridge) and gave her a small gift of money, someone else brought her a few clothes and a little money.

• When passing a yellow crayon to a child who was drawing a beach the child said “No Mrs Griffin, sand is grey I need this one.” (Ethiopian sand is grey).
• When using fruit and vegetables for printing this week a child asked “Did you bleach them?”
• When going to see what a group of children were doing in the corner of the grass they said “We’re building a trap for termites.”
• When asking a child if I would see their Mum or Dad at the end of the morning they reply “No my driver’s picking me up.”
• When going to look at children engrossed in the sand pit I find small sand cakes with a fruit from the overhanging trees carefully placed on each one, “Would you like peach or avocado?” they enquired.
• When doing a traffic survey “Who has been on a bus?” no one. “Who has been on a train?” one child. “Who has been on a boat?” two children. “Who has been on a plane?” everyone!

It’s Easter again, for the second time in two weeks. Today (the second Easter Saturday) we wanted to do some shopping. As we emerged from Bingham into the mayhem that is the local area of Kolfe there was substantial evidence of live meat trading. From energetic young boys to wizened old men, skills were being honed in driving reluctant sheep along and across the road. Probably the most effective and comical method, which gains the greatest degree of compliance, is when they hold onto a front leg and the poor sheep has to follow along on the other three in a rather lop-sided manner.

Resigning/retiring from our respective professions in the UK and moving to Ethiopia took Chris and me away from the increasingly burdensome bureaucracy in the education and medical systems. Chris doesn’t miss “Ofsted”, and I don’t miss the CQC (the Care Quality Commission). We both think these august bodies do a great deal of good but under rather oppressive political pressure and sometimes go perhaps a little further in their relentless pursuit of ever tightening “standards” than is absolutely necessary.

Our school director Brad is a bit of a birdwatcher (I’d call him a “twitcher” but he isn’t, and anyway that would be a bit rude – see here for an explanation). He’s combined this with being a keen photographer and has some superb pictures. He’s convinced I shall develop into a birdwatcher too, as my curiosity gets the better of me sometimes as I just have to find out what that bird that just hopped into my lounge and is pecking around on our carpet is called (a “Brown-rumped Seedeater” I think…)  It’s very difficult to resist wondering what a bird is called when they are all around me and they all look different from anything I’ve ever seen in the UK. Even the pigeons.

Our plan was to attend our church in Addis Ababa prior to travelling down to a holiday resort by a lake 3-4 hours drive out of the city. After the service we had an unexpected meeting with Gary and Peggy Ifft. We had first met them in 2007 (when they and Phil worked at the Korean Hospital in Addis). A chat over coffee in a nearby cafe led to us travelling behind them to their home in Ziway - a small rural town on our route. We left with a promise to call in on our return. We learnt that they arrived in Ziway through contact with an elder of the local Miserete Kristos Church in Ziway. A subsequent meeting with the church elders confirmed that there were various development needs in the area, ideal for a visionary couple who were experienced in working on a range of projects within Ethiopia.

Both kindergarten classes had been learning about life cycles, so we wanted to give the children a good experience to enhance this. We chose Sabahar, where moths are bred for their silk, and planned a half day trip. My teaching friends may like to spot how many UK health and safety regulations we would have contravened!