This idea of journey seems to be the way things are here in Ethiopia. Everyone seems to be going some place. It’s not even obvious where they are going. People on bikes, walking with and without shoes, donkeys, horses, cows, goats, trucks, busses and the list goes on and on. Here I am with my two girls on our journey as well. We travel our way across the long dusty roads that make up the arteries of this country. We left the paved roads just as we started this second day. The Toyota bounces and sways like a boat in the middle of the ocean. I try to keep my eyes forward looking for on coming trucks so I can roll up the window before we get showered in dust. “roll em up”  then “roll em down” is how it’ goes.

The girls are really starting to open up today. Smiling and generally in a happy mood. They now know they are headed home. For the first few hours they were not really sure where we were going and if they would be heading back to the hospital. Breakfast was the usual continental style with coffee. They make the best coffee here. I have not been a big coffee drinker since college but I have jumped back in. Comparing the coffee here to the coffee in North America is like comparing Coke to milk. The flavor is amazing. Making coffee is not just turning on a machine in the morning while you read the paper. No, this is a ceremony in all its glory. They roast the beans by hand, then crush them in a mortar and pestle always stopping to smell the beans to make sure they are giving off the right amount of aroma. The coffee is then put into the boiling water and poured in to these cool little clay cups. Absolutely no milk to be found here though. You may find honey or salt though.

Lunch is at this little hole in the wall place or maybe I should say it’s a place with many holes in the wall!. In fact there are not much in the way of walls at all.  It’s just another building that is basically half built. It seems like concrete is in short supply here. As a result buildings seem to start and then stop without being completed. The landscape is littered with these half made structures. Also lacking is scaffolding but in place of it you will see a birdcage worth of wood. It seems to working so who am I to judge.

With some time to kill after eating I take a walk across the street to find a bunch of guys stuffing green leafs down their mouths and in their gums it is called Khat but pronounced chat and seems to have the same effect as smoking pot.

It’s looking like we will make it to the village tomorrow to get the girls home. Long drives and dusty roads. Who knows what else is in store for us.

I’ve had some very generous gifts to help with the cause and I’m very appreciative of it. I feel like a PBS promo but I could still use a bit more help in raising money to offset the cost of getting these girls home. So please pass this blog on to anyone who might be interested.

Here is the link for donating to PayPal

Here is the link for the SocialWish donating page

-david