The British Red Cross Compound, Addis Abbaba 01/02/2010 - 08/02/2010
on Paul Stanley (Ethiopia), 12/Feb/2010 13:29, 34 days ago
Flight over was uneventful- met a few of the VSO crew on the first leg from London to Cairo, and by the time we had boarded the plane for Addis, all 11 of the UK contingent had found one another. Landed at Addis at just gone 4AM Ethiopian time, and was greeted by the very cheery In Country Trainers- it’s strange walking out of arrivals to find 5 people all waving and saying “Hello Paul!”. Addis airport was a surprise- startlingly modern. For some reason I was expecting a shack in a field, with elephants grazing next to the runway!A quick bus ride delivered us to our new home for the next 9 days, the British Red Cross Training centre on the outskirts of Addis Ababa. We were quickly dispatched to our rooms, and told that proceedings would not begin until 14:00 the next day. I find I’m sharing a room with Kees Schippers- a veteran volunteer from the Netherlands. It’s his third time with the VSO in Ethiopia. He’s an excellent room mate- I believe he is a retired teacher, and he is an invaluable source of information on life in Ethiopia.I found it very difficult to get off to sleep- a blend of nerves and excitement, and the call to prayer from the mosque next door kept me awake for a while. Eventually I managed a few hours sleep, and awoke about 9. A quick cold shower helped me awake- quick tip, before you assume there is no hot water, check the water heater is turned on... whoops. No more cold showers since.Off to the canteen for my first breakfast in Africa, and my first chance to check out the Red Cross Compound. Its a great environment to start you off in Ethiopia, very safe and secure, nice gardens, great friendly staff, and lovely food. Oh yes, and the weather is lovely. The altitude of Addis means not too hot, but it is so nice to be in sun again. First breakfast was uneventful- spotted the Injera straight away, and dove in. It looks like that is going to be my staple diet for the next couple of years, so time to get used to it... The other volunteers arrived throughout the morning, and we all started to get to know each other. The group is great- 24 in total representing the UK, America, Canada, Kenya, Uganda, Holland, Australia and the Philippines.After lunch (more Injera) we are greeted by the VSO’s Ethiopian Country director, and a traditional coffee ceremony. Then its straight into the first batch of a lot of form filling- a necessary evil.We are advised to stay on compound the first night, and everyone is so tired from their journeys, there are no disagreements...Next day begins the In Country Training proper. We start the day with 2 hours intensive Amharic- I’m picking it up, but its very hard to learn such an alien feeling language. Still, I’m determined, and I’m enjoying it so far. As are all the Ethiopians whom I try my language skills out on...I won’t go into the in’s and out’s of all the other training- but suffice to say the VSO know what they are doing, and I feel they are preparing us well for the journey ahead.There are three of us heading to Awassa- myself, Laura from the UK and Karen from Australia. We think we will all be living fairly close to each other. Karen and Laura are sharing a house, and I will be sharing with a volunteer from Uganda, Lubowa. I won’t be moving in straight away as Julius, the current resident hasn’t left yet- so for the first week or so, I will be in a hotel. I’m trying to get into one of the five star ones by the lake, but I think its unlikely!On the Tuesday evening the volunteers headed out to the local quiet bar for our first taste of life on the streets of Addis- and our first Ethiopian bar! Its a nice little place- very basic, but the staff are very friendly and the beer is cheap (9 birr a bottle/less than 50p)Wednesday sees us travel to the VSO programme office in Addis, and our first real taste of Ethiopia proper. In country training spoon feeds you Africa- I think it’s a great way of not overwhelming the incoming volunteers. We are dispatched on to the streets of Addis on a scavenger hunt- a chance to use our 2 days of Amharic, and see a little of the city. The first trip on a “Line Taxi” (small minibuses used to get round Addis) is thrilling to say the least! It’s a crazy city- the poverty is as I had expected, but I was pleased that we were not hassled very much- and a white newcomer stands out a lot! What struck me most was what a gracious and friendly people the Ethiopians are- I had learnt this a little from the staff at the Red Cross, but itwas nice to see similar on the streets as well. We return from the Scavenger hunt to the Pride Bar, a VSO haunt, and await the return of the other volunteers from their adventures. Some of the existing volunteers join us at the bar, and everyone I tell I’m going to Awassa responds the same way- “Awassa, you are so lucky!”. I think I’ve come up trumps with my placement! Once all the volunteers return, we had back to the compound- and also find our team have won the Scavenger Hunt. Woo hoo!Ethiopian food, for those who haven’t tried it, is unique to say the least. It revolves around a pancake like bread called Injera- which various volunteers refer to as “Bath Mat” or “Grey towel”. Myself, I really like it. Onto the Injera is served various types of Wat or stew. These are either spicy or mild, and may or maynot contain meat of some description, usually chicken or goat. The Ethiopians also like pasta- but it usually comes with a spicy kick.Thursday, following the days training we are dispatched to the British Embassy to meet the ambassador- this I was not expecting! The embassy is amazing- a massive, heavily guarded compound in the hills surrounding Addis. It’s an old palace that Hailie Selassi gifted to the British, and is every inch what you would think a colonial embassy should be- it even had a giant tortoise! The reception for the volunteers was amazing- champagne, beer and gin and tonic was flowing, as were the hors d’ourves! I was disappointed at the lack of Ferrero Rocher though. The Canadian, Dutch, Irish, Indian and US ambassadors all arrived to meet and greet us and an excellent time was had by all. I had a lengthy chat with Norman Ling, the British Ambassador- nothing like I imagined at all!Friday was a relatively quiet day- there were a few hangovers following the Embassy trip... hic! Training continues- language is coming along, but I am glad I can employ a language tutor when I get to my placement for some extra tuition. We have a good meeting with Margaret Happy, a volunteer from Uganda who is also at Awassa, who fills us in on the situation in the town- It sounds better and better all the time... We find we will all be living fairly close together and the compounds have guards day and night- security is paramount for the VSO, though it sounds like there are very little problems in Awassa. We all head out in the evening to the quiet bar for the Volunteers Pub Quiz, our team (Team Meta Beer!) come in second place- not too bad.Saturday is shopping day/equipment day. The VSO provide us with a box of essentials for our placements- it contains a blanket, pillow, water filter, mosquito net, electric hotplate and a kerosene stove. Ato Demis from the VSO programme office gives us a demonstration of how to set up the water filter and kerosene stove. Then a demonstration of cooking Ethiopian food on the kerosene stove by one of VSO staff follows. Once we receive our equipment grant from the VSO, and head out in small groups with a couple current volunteers into the streets of Addis. I’m accompanied by Margaret from Kenya, and Kevin, a UK volunteer, and we head to Shola market. Shola is one of the smaller markets in Addis, but is known for being safe and a friendly place for “Ferenji” (Foreigners) to visit. The big market “Mercato” in Addis has somewhat of a reputationfor pick pockets and inflated prices. In Ethiopia haggling is key- one of the first language lessons we had taught us the term “Wid now! Qonis!” (Too much! Lower!) and the theatricality that accompanies haggling. There is Lots of walking away in mock disgust. I don’t have too much to pick up for my placement as I’m staying in hotel to begin with and Awassa has most stuff available there, but a lot of the volunteers are going to far more remote places where household equipment is scarce. I pick up some storage containers, sheets and a can opener. Oh, and some “soft” which is Amharicfor toilet paper. I venture into the spice section of the market and purchase some “Barbary” spice- unfortunately the spice fumes are somewhat overpowering and I’m left coughing and spluttering for half an hour.Saturday evening we have been invited to a social event at the Kenyan embassy- drinks, dancing and a BBQ. Ethiopian Lent starts Monday, so everyone is feasting this weekend. Ethiopian Christians fast Wednesday and Friday so no meat, fish, eggs or dairy produce. I really like the fasting food- it’s a vegetarians dream. The Kenyan embassy is no vegetarian’s dream- the food consists of two very freshly slaughtered goats. And that’s it. Not even a bun. It’s a very strange place- like a very heavily guarded working men’s club really. The biggest feature is a giant screen showing British premiership football- which appears to be Africa’s national sport. The evening culminates with dancing- which as far as I can see is the national obsession of the Kenyans: at least those with the VSO!Saturday and Sunday see no let up in language training- its coming along slowly, but its hard to absorb all the information. What with the language and the other training, its quite relentless. And on Sunday, it all caught up with me and I had a migraine. I made it through language training, but had to bow out of a couple of training sessions whilst I put my head down for a couple of hours. However, I was determined not to miss the afternoon attraction- the Addis city tour. Mary, one of the VSO trainers wife (known as accompanying partner in VSO parlance) acted as our tour guide, and did a sterling job. Up until this point our main experience of Addis has been the part between the Red Cross, and the VSO Office- and that’s not the most attractive part of the city at all. The tour was superb, even with a Migraine- we headed up into the eucalyptus shrouded hills north of the city to the Intoto hills, for a visit to an ancient church, and some amazing views.Sunday night, I retired early in an attempt to shake the remnants of the migraine- unfortunately, the“Little Rains” have started and the tin roof of the accommodation didn’t lend itself to a particularly restful night... There are two rainy seasons here- one in February/March (Little), and one in September/October (Big). Both are characterised by the rain mainly coming at night!It’s now Monday afternoon, and in a way, ICT has drawn to a close. Language training is over, and the last training sessions are complete. Tomorrow, we meet our partner organisations during an all day workshop, and that is the next part of the journey really...