Travel Day 4--Addis Ababa (aka July 18)

This morning the rooster was late (didn’t start crowing until about 530) in waking everyone up—but the Islamic call to prayer was right on time about 5am. I believe that woke up the rooster. A short while later there was some commotion downstairs maybe at the family compound next to us. I hate not knowing the language. During the commotion outside, there was a man yelling (and laying on a car horn). The tone of the man seemed either urgent or angry, I couldn’t tell which (not knowing the language). That was a bit distressing. Was someone ill, injured, trying to break into a house or to the hotel? In the dark, not knowing the language and being separated from your kids (albeit by a 2 doors and about 10 feet), I don’t think being a little nervous is unwarranted. Anyway, as the light came up, it seemed business as usual everywhere.

Our driver for the day, Dawit, arrived right on time at 10am. He was recommended by Gail at AAI—mostly because he had a van that could comfortably seat several people. We were a bit more comfortable today. We delivered a package to Layla House for one of the volunteers from her mom. We then went and booked our hotel at the Green Valley Hotel for when we get back from our tour. Green Valley is just down the road from Kidane Mihret (5-10 min walk with only one big street to cross). We drove up to the gates of Kidane Mihret and I so wanted to go visit, but we weren’t expected and I don’t think It’s fair for Hanna to see us for a little today, not again for a week then for another few days. I also don’t think I’d handle that very well either.

We went to a market and I was able to buy some cloth--one silk piece and one cotton piece. I probably paid more than a local would have paid, 1000 Birr for both pieces ($73). I think it is a better price than I would have paid in the states though so I’m happy. The shopkeeper was going to charge me 2400 Birr for both, so at least I haggled some. We wanted to go by a book store today because I wanted some books in Amharic but they were closed. We were able to buy an Amharic Bible. It was interesting in that you buy Bibles not necessarily from a bookstore but around a church. There was a roadside stand with sellers set up to sell Amharic gospel music, Bibles and Christian literature. We paid about 80 Birr ($6).

We went next to the Ethnological Museum. That has been the most interesting place other than seeing the Lucy bones yesterday. The museum was sectioned off by life stages, childbirth, adolescence, adulthood and death. There was also a lot of interesting art work from the 16th century on, a lot of them religious paintings that were vibrant in color and painted on wood or canvas. Our driver took us back to the same restaurant we ate at yesterday, but as the menu was different, it was fine. The weather today was a bit chillier…maybe in the high 60s as compared to the low 70s yesterday. Not cold, just a slight chill in the air that made a long sleeve cotton shirt comfortable.

When we got back, everyone took another of those long naps…even the girls were ready for a nap today! Sarah and I both felt the altitude more today. I’ve been feeling a little more short of breath that comes and goes. Sarah was notably out of breath and breathing hard after going up a flight of stairs.

Travel Day 3--Addis Ababa (aka July 17)

I forgot that roosters crow at daybreak…or sometimes before. That was our ‘alarm clock’ this morning. Following that was the Islamic call to prayer—there must be a mosque nearby. I had heard about the call to prayer, not the roosters. We laid around in bed for a while (Tony still sleeping, me somewhere between awake and asleep). It would be about 930pm Texas time when that rooster started crowing. The girls came and knocked on the door about 630 or so dressed and giggly…they said they’d been up since 5ish this morning. It’s now about 730 am. We’re waiting on breakfast. We asked for breakfast about 745-800am but now I’m thinking the 730-745am time would have been better. We also just realized that you have to turn on the hot water heater in the bathrooms so we’re waiting on that now so we can shower. I’ve also been thankful that there was a water boiler (this neat coffee pot looking thing that boils about 1.5 liters of water in about 2 minutes) that we used last night to fix our noodles and this morning to make instant coffee.


So our first order of business (after waiting for that hot water heater to heat up) was to call Gail with AAI to find out how to deliver those packages. It was a little odd, we can’t make calls from our room to an outside line, we had to go to reception and have the receptionist dial the number. We finally got through and found out all we need to do is drop the packages at Layla. She suggested we call Dawit, a driver, to show us around and get those things to Layla. Dawit wasn’t available today but he’s meeting us at 10am tomorrow.

We had the receptionist call a driver for us today Yonas, who took us to the National Museum and the Museum of Natural History. He then took us to the Blue Top restaurant for lunch. It seemed to be some sort of Italian/American/Worldly mix of cuisine. It was Pizza for the girls, pasta for me and some kind of pepper steak with veggies for Tony. The pepper steak was odd, but had a great spicy sauce. We then went to a shopping center where we were able to buy some ‘traditional’ Ethiopian clothing (ceremonial type) and probably paid too much for them although all in all it was much less than we’d have paid in the states. There was also a grocery store there where we were able to buy some bottled water and soda.

Points so far:

Altitude. While no one has been sick, I’m definitely exhausted. I don’t know if it’s jet lag or if it’s the altitude. I felt a little winded going up the stairs in the museum but that could just be me. I also now have a headache that is getting worse by the minute—but that could be my kids that are causing that. I’m very thankful now that the girls have another room where they hang out and we have one that is quieter where we can sleep. Right now I’d love to go lay down and rest but our room is being cleaned—hence we are all spending ‘family time’ together. That’s great in theory, but the girls haven’t caught up on sleep either so they are either giggly or at each other’s throat.

Driving. You couldn’t pay me enough to drive in this city. Few street signs, no traffic signals and it appears to be a free for all for both pedestrians and for drivers. I don’t think I’d like to cross any streets either, especially any of the big ones. I will say I feel safer in the car than I would walking on the street (for the simple fact that the pedestrians appear to be at risk of being hit by one of the drivers).

Children. Everywhere you go there are kids begging. At your car window when you slow down, especially if they are rolled down. At the entrances to the museums, stores, etc. We even encountered women begging with their small babies. You want to do something. You want to give them money but you also know that you can’t help all the kids. All the travel guides caution that giving to kids (or adults for that matter) only perpetuates the behavior of begging and urges would be ‘givers’ to use agencies or services that provide things like food and shelter to those in need. Even though I felt like I was warned about the begging children, I am still surprised at how widespread it is. I can remember being in Mexico and around the outdoor shopping areas, airports and ‘touristy’ areas, it was worse than in the indoor shopping centers and hotels. We didn’t encounter any kids asking for money (or as is more popular trying to sell you something like Kleenex or gum) once inside the gates of the museum, restaurant or inside the shopping center. While we were there, one little child, maybe 10-12, was thrown out of the shopping center for shoplifting. We had seen him outside earlier asking for money. This shopping center appeared to be a mix of shops designed for travelers and for locals. I kept wondering what hardships our daughter and her family had experienced. Had they been begging like these families, did they decide they couldn’t care for Hanna before they got that destitute? I guess with time we will know but probably not until Hanna decides to tell us.

We were finally able to lay down and take a nap after they finished cleaning our room. We ended up sleeping about 4 hours. We got up and decided to ‘order in’. When we asked for a to go menu from local restaurants, we were given a basically American menu. I am wondering if there are any Ethiopian restaurants in Ethiopia.

Travel Day 1 & 2 Houston to Addis Ababa (aka July 15-16)

So, as of now, it is 1557 (Ethiopia time) we are over Al-Kharijah, Egypt, about 1294 miles (just about 2.5 hours) from Addis Ababa. Just an FYI, we are flying at about 533 mph (ground speed) at 37000 feet. The temperature outside our plane is -40 degrees Celsius. If you count the time since we left Houston, we have been traveling now 15.5 hours. Mostly in the 'economy' class seat hosted by Lufthansa with about 1 hr 45 min transiting through the Frankfurt airport. I have decided that in the future if it doesn't cause me to go too much in to debt, Business Class is the way to go. I was honestly hoping more from our layover in Germany, like we'd get to wonder around the gift shops but we barely had time to make our way off the plane (took 20-30 min to debark from the plane), get onto the transport bus, go back into the terminal, back through security (at least security here was more efficient than in the states)—note to other travelers, if you have a REALLY thick book in your bag, be prepared for your screener to check it out. After security, it was down more hallways and stairs, a quick stop at the ladies room, back on a transit bus, then LONG wait on said transit bus until it was full, then back to another plane.

I do have to say that Xanax has been wonderful. Just a little dose has kept me quite calm this trip. We've had more turbulence that I'd imagined you'd have flying this high on a larger plane. Even Tony says it's a bit much for the circumstances, but I guess jet streams are a crazy thing. I'm certainly not looking forward to spending even longer in the air on our way back. The girls have done pretty well too. Hailey was a little nervous on the first takeoff but has done great since. Sarah just wants to sleep (that's what they're both doing now). Tony and I napped a bit too on this flight, in fact we both slept through what I'm sure was a lovely airline lunch. Our previous breakfast and dinner were both very good.

I'm not sure what all I'm feeling right now. I'm tired, that's for sure. I'm excited about seeing the country where my daughter is from and getting to know more about her culture. I'm very anxious to meet Hanna, but I'm trying not to get too worked up about this or let myself think about it TOO much, since I won't be able to see her for 9 more days. I think it would be harder to visit early then be here in the country with her and not be able to visit more. I understand why the directors of the orphanages don't want us to spend a really long amount of time with our kids before they are ready to come home. It must really be hard for them to see us and then we disappear for who know how long—maybe 4 weeks, maybe 8 weeks—maybe longer. I also know that the younger the child, the more difficult the visits must be. It's easier to explain to a 12 year old what the situation is than it is a 12 month old.

Anyway, our flight in to Addis Ababa was on time but it did take us a couple of hours to get out of the airport. The line 'visa on arrival' was a little on the long side, but not as long or as slow as the line to get our 'visa stamped' in order to leave the airport. We managed to get through those lines uneventfully then to the bank to get some dollars exchanged for Birr--$400 for 5428 Birr. That felt awkward holding such a stack of cash. The exchange rate is 13.55 Birr to $1. I do find it somewhat interesting that the fastest line the whole trip was the final one to get out of the airport through customs. Our driver from the hotel was waiting for us (I felt bad because I think he had been waiting since shortly after our flight arrived—but it took us a long time to get through the airport). The drive from the airport to the hotel was pretty short—10 minutes maybe? It was already dark so it was hard to see much of what was going on. There were a lot of people out for 830-900 at night (both pedestrians and cars). It seemed that a lot of the shops were closing up, especially street vendors. I'm not sure what the traffic rules were—I'm just glad so far that I'm not driving in the city.
Our hotel is pretty nice. I've been very surprised as I was looking around online before the trip that rooms with 2 double beds for families are nonexistent. You can have cribs brought in or sometimes a rollaway bed, but certainly not for girls the ages of Sarah and Hailey…they get their own room. And, they are so hyped up from the trip, that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Our hotel, the Afro Land Lodge, is a newer guest house/bed and breakfast. Our room rates are pretty good by American standard although slightly higher than what we had hoped for. Our rooms do 'connect' albeit by an outdoor 2^nd floor patio. There are also only 3 rooms on the 2^nd floor, two of them being ours. There is also someone at the desk 24 hrs/day and there is apparently security. Which from what I read having a security person is very common although crime is pretty low here.
Everyone was happy that we had packed snacks (ramen noodles, oatmeal, peanut butter crackers) so we didn't have to go out for dinner last night. Our dinner consisted of ramen noodles, peanut butter crackers, trail mix and soda. So--not the dinner of champions, but we all just wanted a little something before we went to bed. By the way, temperatures here are in the 50s at night.

Back....

So, we're back, have been since July 29th. I just haven't gotten around to posting anything yet.  As an update, we've passed court (officially).  We're just waiting on our adoption decree. That will be sent to the embassy and we'll be working on a passport and hopefully returning to Ethiopia to attend our embassy appointment early October.  I've decided to post my 'journal' if you can call it that...ramblings is more like it.  I only journaled the first few days then we were traveling so much (then I contracted the plague) and the journaling sort of fell by the wayside. I'm hoping to catch up and some some 'late entry' journaling about the rest of our trip.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Yes....after much packing and many WalMart and Target runs....we are leaving for our first court visit and some Ethiopia travel.

Stay tuned..

Dawn

Tuesday's Thoughts

YEAH--yesterday we recived the photo of H with her Welcome Bag.  For those of you that don't know, the Welcome Bag is traditionally how kids find out they have a family waiting to bring them home.  I am pretty sure H had some idea she had a waiting family because other traveling moms have taken a couple of picturs of her.  I would imagine that when this happens, kids have a clue that someone is wanting to see them and probablly that someone is thier new family.  Also, in the past, sometimes the orphanage director would tell the kids about thier new family as soon as they knew.  We were told it didn't happen like that anymore, but we can now be assured that H knows she has a family since she has our Welcome Bag in hand.  In case you are wondering....our Welcome Bag included a photo album with pictures of our family and a map pointing out where we live, a t-shirt (of which we all are wearing matching ones in the family photo we sent), a disposable camera where she can take pictures of her friends, a paint your own magnet kit, a small puzzle, crayons and a drawing pad and of course the letter that tells her about us.

I wonder what her reaction really is.  She looks happy in the photo.  She has a beautiful smile. Someone who saw her picture once said that a true smile can't be faked, it is a sign of a beautiful heart.  That's what I really feel too.  I am so anxious to learn WHO she is.  We've seen a little snippit of her personality on video and she seemed a bit shy.  There is something about her that makes me think she might be a little like Hailey.  Seeing her in her t-shirt she apppears to be about the same size as Hailey is (as thier shirts are the same size and fit the same way).  I still want to know who she really is though.  What makes her happy, sad, laugh..what is her favorite color, can she ride a bicycle, is she scared of the dark.

As we're packing to go to meet her, I'm becoming an excited kind of nervous.  Will we click immediately as a family, will there be awkward silence?  Will she be happy to have 2 sisters, will she decide that she would rather not have a new family?  What will I say to her the first time I meet her?  "Hello" at once seems like a good start and at the same time insufficient.  I suppose I'll trust that the right words will come at the right time. 

I've still got tons to do before we leave in 2 days.  Today is my last day of work (a call day) and I'm hoping it will be slow.  So far so good as I'm sitting in the middle of my bed typing this. I plan to get up and get going, shower, get some laundry started and then head into work to do rounds.  Hopefully I'l be able to get back home and do more laundry and start picking up the bedroom and clean the bathroom.  I really want to come home to a clean house when we get back.  It sounds good in theory but not necessarily in practice :)  I also have small group tonite so we'll see what happens. At least the living room and kitchen will be clean tonite.

I'm planning to post a 'what did I pack post' so stay tuned !!!

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Ok...so I'm hoping that our adventure to Ethiopia doesn't run too much like that movie "Planes Trains and Automobiles" did.  I suppose in the end everything worked out, but WAAAYYYY too much drama in the middle.

I'm pretty overwhelmed by my lack of  travel preparations.  I have tickets to Ethiopia.  I have an itinerary for a tour in the middle of our trip that I haven't confirmed yet because it just seems a little too expensive.  I think I know where we're staying when we get there, but I've not confirmed a hotel room yet. I know where I want to stay at the end of the trip but haven't heard yet if I can stay there.

Everytime I look at travel information I realize there is something I hadn't considered yet.  On the bright side I do have 24 ridiculously expensive and better be worth it lithiom ion 'AA' batteries to run my sister's asesome camera.  I have also received the replacement chargers for both my camera and Sarah's camera.  Of course the first time I plugged in Sarah's battery charger it overheated but still managed to charge the battery.

A short to do list:

• Call FEMA to help clean my house since it appears a tornado has been through the middle of it--you know your house needs professional help when your kids rooms are the neatest in the whole place
• Figure out what needs to go in my suitcases so I can determine if I need to beg, borrow or steal new ones
• Laundry so I have something clean to put into said suitcases
• Locate all chargers, buy memory cards, etc
• Locate and make copies of all important docuements
• Go to bank for 'crisp new bills' so I can exchange them for Birr (Ethiopia's national currency)
• Book hotel rooms

My schedule over the next 5 days...

• Friday--finish this post, pick up the kids from swim, clean my bedroom/bathroom so I have a packing station--consider moving the packing station to the dining room that isn't too messy right now, start putting things in suitcases, laundry, continue putting things in suitcases, cook 10 pounds of pasta for a swim meet concessions stand tomorrow (yes, in my post call hazeI volunteered), start making a list of stuff I need from target, maybe try to go to target to get said list, continue to recover from severe indigestion secondary to tasty rib dinner on previous night
• Saturday--maybe try to do some more cleaning, go to Reserve Swim meet with the girls and spend all afternoon making lists and sitting and waiting for the girls to spend about 3 minutes each in the pool for thier races
• Sunday--get up too early, spend all day at the Championship meet and come home exhausted, too tired to do anything else except talk about what else needs to be done
• Monday--work in the office all day, probablly with an overbooked schedule.
• Tuesday--another day of call, fight off Satan as he sends me complicated things in the middle of the night keeping me from sleeping
• Wednesday--recover from whatever Satan had planned for my previous call day, finish packing, going to target (I'm betting at least 3 trips)
• Thurday---finish up last minute stuff and LEAVE

I'm planning on having a very exciting post following our trip entitled "What I Forgot to Pack" so stay tuned.  On the bright side, maybe I'll be so tired by the time we leave, I won't need anything to help me sleep on the plane.