Gotcha Day Part 2

This picture is of Yohanna before we got her I haven't had the chance to upload any yet.

Out and off again to the Golf Course for lunch and to visit with each other and enjoy the kids. We sat at an umbrella table. They asked if you wanted Cold soda. They open up the bottles and pour it for you even if you have been drinking it for a while and you glass is less than 1/2 full they come back and pour. I think they would wait on you hand and foot if you let them. Abel (Ebel) said the pizza here was great. But the waitress told us only Pizza at night. The 3 of us had beef stroganoff (sp) and rice. I kidded Gretchen that the only reason she ordered it was because it was made with wine. It was really good. 190 birr for 3 meals and 6 drinks. 11 birr for a large bottle of water, 32 ounces or comparable, ($1) Remember we have to drink bottles water and carry it with us. Lunch was just over $14 US dollars. We visited at the Golf Course for a long time. I'm going to tell you everything I wrote down during the trip so don't be surprised at what you read. The toilets at the Club were both in the same room, men and women. The men on the left and the women on the right and you share the same sink. There was an open window in the toilet area, there was a door on this one, not all of them had doors. The window was about waist high and open for all the world to see. The flush system here was a pull up the knob thing. They don't always work the first time. There was running water, a bar of soap and a blow dryer. Very up scale.

I got to give Yohanna her first bottle. She sucked it down in about 2 seconds. I tried to burp her half way through, but she COMPLAINED. She really spits up, I think that they feed her all the time. Gretchen says they won't let the babies cry. So they pick them up, walk them, rock them or feed them. I think most of the time they feed them. She's tiny. The clothes Gretchen brought were too big. I got to carry Elliott around for a while. The Golf Course was beautiful, they were setting up for a wedding, with tents on the lawn. After the Golf Course on the way back to the guest house I took a few pictures.
Abel stopped to get copies of our schedule. We dropped off Emily, Terri and Elliott. When we got back to the guest house Gretchen gave Yohanna a bath. Yonatan found a baby bath tub, but the water was cold. She didn't like it one bit. We expected the house help to come in to find out what we were doing to her. Hopefully Yonatan told them she was getting a bath. She had another bottle and a nap on the couch next to Gretchen. Gretchen slept too, she can do that at the drop of a hat. Bill was juicing up his equipment, camera, video camera and computer. He also downloaded the photos we took and we visited.

Cars here are twice what they are in the States, US= 10,000 dollars Ethiopia = 20,000 dollars or about 260,000 birr. Gas is a $1 per liter or $4 a gallon. Lots of Diesel Vehicles, so lots of fumes. Black clouds of smoke coming out from tailpipes. I know I said this before but it is worth restating several times.

Abel says there is much construction going on, investors from other countries, and we can see it all over. Most has happened in the last 6 years. The road we were on was less than 6 years old. Big Potholes, places where they stop and then start construction again. And the roads don't meet up. Cement then dirt, not gravel. Gretchen brought books from Drew and Jamie to Yonatan and Abel. They were soooo excited to get them. Abel's was The Love Dare, he is engaged, he read as we drove. I'd've been sick. Everyone here has a cell phone, they have nothing else but they have a cell phone. Some places have Wi Fi and there are cyber cafes. There is a fellow, Eyob (means the same as our Jacob) who is the gate keeper. He unlocks the gate and takes care of things, he is constantly washing and if you come out the door and he is heading your way he evades you and goes around the building. He also bows to greet us.

There are flowers everywhere, marigolds, roses, 4 o'clocks, everything we have in the summer is in bloom here I think almost all year. Not much grass though. The mower at the Golf Course looks like a snow blower. I think they rarely mow the grass it is long and the animals on the street take care of any vegetation that grows there.

Yohanna likes to have her had in her mouth, maybe she is getting a tooth, I think I felt something. She makes a big noise when she fills her pants. She stretches and squirms, holds her head up very well. Little whisps of curly hair. One curl on each side looks like horns.

We had a power outage for a couple of hours that night. We enjoyed sitting around and talking to Yonatan. He ordered us pizza, he says that is an American thing and he doesn't really eat it. 1 ham and 1 sausage. It was very good, stone oven baked that came from an American Pub. I think I might just go back to Ethiopia just to show them exactly how to make American food. they try but it is often weird the way they make it. It rained and was cold out. Other places around had power but Yonatan said that's because they have generators.

The house ladies lit a fire. They also lit candles, no candle holders, just plates they light the candle and then us the match to melt the bottom and set in on the plate. Each of our beds has a plate, candle and matches beside it. We talked about names. Here they are given a first name, ( and they all know what everyone's name means or they say it comes from the bible), their middle name is their father's name and their last name is their grandfathers, so my name would be Renee Roy Carl.

There are lots of misconceptions about Africa. They do have electricity most of the time we were told only 35%. There is plenty of water, maybe not for drinking but Eyob is always washing, letting the hose run. Monkeys do not run wild here but I did see one run along the top of the wall in Awasa. A few monkeys are used as pets and even trained to do household chores. It does rain at other times than just the rainy season. I think it rained almost everyday we were there, just a little bit. We really have seen very few beggars, two at the airport and 2 while we were driving. The driver told one woman to go away so she just went to the other side of the car. Yonatan says there is little crime here . But then I'm not sure how they would get in with gate keepers, barbed wire, glass shards and electric fence. Some theft, very few murders or suicides. Car insurance is very high, no wonder the way they drive.

This is the end of day two in Addis, only 122 more pages of my journal and the who knows how much more of my after thoughts.