INTERESTING THINGS

There are some things about Ethiopia that are different than home. First of all I am in a home with twelve people. The five family members, the five volunteers and two maids. There is no such thing as privacy but I do have my own room. The other girls each have a roommate, so I feel blessed.

Up until yesterday we had no running water. So after you use the bathroom you pour water into it from a bucket sitting on the tub edge. Showering is also interesting. I stand out of the tub and wash my hair over the side and then get in to wash myself, I do this because it is cold water and the thought of the quantity of water I use to wash my hair coming down over my body brings me no joy. It is not as bad as it sounds and I am quite used to it. This morning the water was gone again. It is a fun little chore to go fill the bucket from the huge buckets kept by the front gate. Tolli, the eldest maid, always tries to take the bucket from me. She is 17 and her 12 year old cousin is here in training. They sleep on a small mattress in the kitchen. They are so lovely. Chatu is the 12 year old and she is gorgeous and so helpful as well.

Walking around Ethiopia is quite interesting, so many people walking around with no where to go. The weather is beautiful, around 70 with a great breeze. It does drop to about 50 at night and very quickly goes from warm to cold quickly so I always carry a sweatshirt with me. It also get dark quickly so I carry a flashlight at night.

The family loved the gifts I gave them, they are so wonderful. I have given some toiletries away and it is like giving a million dollars to someone, so thank you to everyone who donated they are truly appreciated.

Another thing I am getting used to is carrying toilet paper everywhere. Nobody keeps toilet paper so you must have your own, even in the house.

So happy I could do all of these posts today. Maria showed me how to get here again and we are having lunch together soon, when we finish up on the Internet.