Hello All,
First I would like to say, welcome to our
blog of our Ethiopian adventures. This blog has two authors, myself, Susan
Sipos and Mannfred Boehm. We have been selected to take part in a three month
internship abroad in Ethiopia funded by the Canadian International Development
Agency (CIDA), the Nova Scotia Agricultural (NSAC) and McGill University. We
are taking part in the project called Post Harvest Management Improving
Livelihoods (PHMIL) at Jimma University College of Agriculture and Veterinary
Medicine (JUCAVM). As part of our Canadian public engagement component of the
internship we have decided to compile a blog of our daily activities,
adventures, and experiences dealing with cultural changes and our general life
as two students abroad. We have decided rather than do individual blogs to do a
joint blog featuring both of our experiences in order to allow for varied
perspectives to be shown and hopefully a more entertaining read.
Mannfred and I are both in Ethiopia already
having just begun our adventure but I would like to backtrack a few days to the
days that led up to where we are now. Looking back to our predeparture there
didn’t seem like there was possibly enough time to prepare ourselves for this
summer. We had to finish exams, complete training, get medically prepared which
included vaccines, vaccines and more vaccines, packing when we really didn’t
know what to pack along with mentally preparing ourselves for the days to come
and saying goodbye to friends and family. One question that I was frequently asked
when saying goodbye was “what exactly are you doing there?” This seemed like a
pretty reasonable question and one that I couldn’t seem to answer
satisfactorily. We had been given an outline of the tasks that would be
completed while we were away but not knowing the environment that we would be
in, made it a challenge and I think neither Mannfred nor I had any preconceived
expectations but we were ready to head
off with open minds about whatever we would face.
The actual trip to Ethiopia took us 3
flights, approximately 24 hours and virtually no sleep except in 20 minute
increments. We flew over the Atlantic Ocean, across Europe over the Mediterranean
Sea and over the Sahara Dessert and finally closer to the mountains of
Ethiopia. We spent the first night in Addis Ababa attempting to sooth our
exhaustion. In the morning we were to head off to Jimma which would be our new
home for the next three months.
I had an interesting wake up the first
morning in Addis. I woke up snug in my bed with the blaring crys from the
nearby mosque, I had been warned that this would happen but I somehow forgot
that this occured at 5:30 in the morning and would continue for another couple
hours on and off, so much for needing to set an alarm. Our drive to the
university was supposed to arrive in the morning but until they showed up
Mannfred and I ventured down the street to buy water for the 6 hour drive ahead
of us. This I would call the turning point, the point where we both realized we
were actually in Ethiopia and would be for the summer. Walking out of the hotel
all you could see around you was construction, EVERYWHERE. It was a challenge
to navigate ourselves down the street and to interpret the stores deciding what
they would be able to offer us. We successfully found water after following a
pair of confident people out of the hotel who seemed to know where they were
going, it was like being led to the watering hole. First successful purchase using
Ethiopian Birr= very smug Mannfred and Susan.
Tilhoun, a professor from the Post Harvest
Management Department at JUCAVM (who will be at NSAC later this summer) and our
very nice driver arrived shortly after we got back to the hotel. The drive to
Jimma was lovely and passing through the little villages it amazed me that even
on the long stretch between towns that people were everywhere and walking
everywhere. The road from Addis to Jimma was astonishing to me because it was
perfect, I don’t think we have roads in Nova Scotia this nice but I supposed
they don’t have snow and ice to crack their roads. The road zigs and zags
through the mountains as we drive closer and closer to Jimma with a spectacular
view the whole way that you wouldn’t want to miss (I will admit I fell asleep
partway through the drive, woops!) Along the way we stopped for lunch and had
our first Ethiopian Meal. We started off brave and had kitfo as our first meal.
We had been warned about this because traditionally it is raw meat served in a
very spicy sauce and eaten with Injera which is a sort of flat bread type
product but made out of teff which is a tiny grain that is only grown in
Ethiopia. We were with other Ethiopians so they made sure to order the Kitfo
cooked so it wouldn’t upset our sensitive stomachs which are not accustomed to
these types of food. The kitfo was actually quite yummy and we learned how to
properly scoop our food with Injera, the only thing was that it was a little
spicer than anticipated and we’ve come to realize that there is no such thing
as Ethiopian food that is not burn your tongue spicy.
Our first night in Jimma we stayed at the
Honeyland Hotel because our rooms had not been prepared yet. Mannfred and I
happened to be staying at the hotel on a busy night, there was a wedding going
on. This was a sight to see. In the back courtyard of the hotel were hundreds
of chairs set up for people and once the party got started the majority seemed
to be occupied. There must have been over 500 people attending this wedding and
I’m not exaggerating in the least. It was an interesting way to be introduced
to the country and see how festive people are. We called it an early night
while the music continued and we anticipated our arrival at JUCAVM the
following day.
Thats all for now. Mannfred will fill you
in on the first couple of days at the university.
Susan
View of Addis
Landscape on the way to Jimma
Ethiopian Wedding
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