Ethiopia- part one

Ethiopia. Aah, Ethiopia.

Ethiopia is a bit of an enigma, really. Proud, fascinating, beautiful, but with a troubled past and a more recent image problem. It was never colonized, so it has a culture that has remained remarkably intact - undiluted from outside influences (unlike much of the rest of Africa.) Its history is deep. Ethiopia was one of the first countries to adopt Christianity as the state religion and it has its own unique brand of Orthodox religion. The country also has its own languages and script, its own food and drink and its own calendar and clock... but, despite remaining uncolonized, Ethiopia was late to democratize- not until 1991 and the fall of The Derg (and the corresponding atrocities.) Famines in the 70s and 80s and their portrayals by journalists gave Ethiopia even more of an image problem for awhile (remember 'We are the World,' Bandaid and Liveaid?) The image is changing, though - as it should... Ethiopia is an amazing place with an amazing history - Rastafarianism, ancient hominids, the ark of the covenent... all have their links with Ethiopia. The landscape is stunning, the people exquisitely beautiful (and very friendly for the most part) and there are very few travelers. Most importantly, and rare in today's world, Ethiopia retains her soul!!

The truth is that Ethiopia is one of the most culturally interesting, lovely, and friendly places I've been (and, yes, I even thought that on my first trip in 2001, so I'm not just saying that because my boy is from there :)) This trip was to be a homecoming for Z - he hadn't been back since I picked him up when he was 4 months old. He asked a lot of questions, but more for information's sake- he didn't seem to be too emotional about it. He IS still pretty young... I was hoping to also time the trip with some step of the second adoption, but so far there is no movement in that, so it wasn't to be.

On day one, we visited the new children's home of our adoption agency. It's not in the same building where Z lived, but the nannies are the same and they remembered him! One of the ladies told me that she even cried when little 'Josie' left. Zavion wasn't too interested in the nannies and pretty much just hid behind my legs the whole time. Could be he was worried, confused, shy, etc. - or just in the mood to be rude. We then travelled to the home where he DID live (it's now the administrative offices.) Z's faded pictures are still up on the walls and when I showed him the spot where his crib used to be, he said, 'What? I used to sleep on a DESK?'

Zavion is Yosef T. :)

We also spent a day at the Hilton pool - which also brought back memories as we had done a day there in '07 with Miles, Eliza and Z. This time, we rode on the same merry-go-round and swings (last time he was on my chest in the bjorn,) swam in the warm spring-fed pool, had some milkshakes, etc.

Next, it was off to Lalibela- one of my favorite places from '01. It's still beautiful- though more starkly so in the dry season (last time, in July, it was green and very wet.) Lalibela is in the highlands about 9000 feet,) surrounded by layers and layers of huge, table-topped mountains punctuated by deep gorges and chasms. We enjoyed clear, warm days and cool nights and mornings. Nice :) The town itself is full of atmosphere and character. There are HUGE rock-hewn churches, people living in caves and round houses made of stone (some 2-story with open, arched doorways.) There is very little that resembles a 'modern building' - it's truly a funky place. The 11 rock-hewn churches - built in the 12th and 13th centuries (from the top down) are truly impressive - reminds me a bit of Petra. Many are joined by tunnels carved through the rock and there are caves and a number of nooks and crannies (some still housing nuns and priests) adding to the ambiance. The churches are amazing sights and the main draw of the little town. Because of this, the 'little town' has changed dramatically in the past 11 years. The population has tripled (from 12,000 to nearly 40,000) as folks are moving in from the rural areas for the better schools, hospitals, etc. And let's face it-many are here to capitalize on the tourist industry which has picked up markedly in the last decade. In '01, there were but three hotels for us to choose from- now, there are close to 30 with more being built. Last time, Lisa and I didn't see another foreigner the whole time, and now there are certainly a handful. While still off the beaten path for most, more and more intrepid travelers are making it here and we probably saw at least a dozen a day. Of course, if these rock hewned churches- and their connecting tunnels, caves and surrounding stone houses- were anywhere else in the world, it would be even more built up... Pyramids, anyone? Still a lovely place, though, and a must-see for any Ethiopian trip.

Downtown Lalibela

Some of the residents of the village/slums immediately surrounding the churches have been relocated to homes outside of the center because they were 'bothering the tourists too much.' Our guide told us this was a good thing, but what about those that were displaced? Wasn't this THEIR place? It IS more peaceful around the churches, but has less character/genuineness- part of the charm was that you were in the middle of real life and got to catch a glimpse- now it all feels removed. True, many have benefitted from the increased influx of tourism, but some have definitely been hurt. Food for thought...

We had fun touring the churches, the caves and the tunnels. Z was really into it and seemed pretty interested in the details - 'Mom, this is SO COOL! Can I go in that cave? How did they build these? How old are they? Is that even older than Grandmommy? She's 91 now, ya know... what are those hanging things for?' He also had some personal questions for our guide- 'So, were you born here? Did you ever live in Addis Ababa? Did you live next to where I was born? How old are you? You're younger than my mom...' Our day ended nicely with a pretty sunset from the deck of our hotel and yummy dinner. Lovely.

The next morning will now be referred to as the 'Morning of the Cranky Kid.' In retrospect, if I had known how much driving and walking was entailed, I would have reconsidered this day-trip. We were headed to another cave-church - only about 40 kms out of town. Sounds easy enough, right? Wrong! After a very early morning start, we embarked on a long, hot, bumpy, dusty drive that took over 2 1/2 hours (that ought to give you an idea of the state of the roads.) The landscape was interesting and there was some good people watching to be had, but nothing to keep a 5 year old amused. We got to the area around the church and waited while a funeral procession went by - hundreds of people on foot. Z complained that there were too many people and they smelled funny. And it was VERY HOT! 'Mom, why would you take me to somewhere where someone just died? Why would you do that?'

To get to the church, we had to climb hundreds of steps in the heat - which didn't sit well with an already exhausted little boy. When Z isn't happy, he doesn't throw a tantrum or stop walking, but he makes no hesitation in verbalizing his dislike in the situation. The kid certainly can express himself. I actually admire this quality as I never was comfortable enough to really express myself while growing up. And though it's sometimes funny how outspoken he is, it can also be a little exasperating and embarrassing.

Here's a tidbit- "See, this is exactly why we shouldn't always do what you want to do. I don't like this church and I don't like this mountain. I hate walking and it's too hot and I'm tired and thirsty. You just always want to walk, walk, walk and see stuff and go, go, go. Why can't you just relax once in awhile?" (The kid's got a point - people have been telling me that for years) At the top of the hill/ entrance to the church... "I'm not happy and I don't want to go inside - I will stay here with these people." Later... "Don't ever leave me with those old women again. They were freaking me out! They had no teeth and smelled funny and kept trying to give me a Coke. I don't even drink Coke!" But later... "Mommy, I made a mistake. I should have come inside with you. I got worried and scared and it's my own fault." And even later, in the car... "Mommy, I'm just sitting here thinking about my behavior and I'm a million thousand google infiniti times sorry. Now can I have the phone?"

It definitely wasn't a very good decision on my part to do such a long, hot, tiring daytrip at this stage of our trip - had I known how arduous it was going to be, I wouldn't have scheduled it. Major mommy fail. Well, hindsight is 20/20.

After this outing, Zavion and I came to a compromise- we would spend half a day sightseeing, and half a day relaxing. We skipped the afternoon church tour and rested a bit. But, we did make it out in the early evening to see the St George church - the biggest and best. It was allegedly built in the night aided by angels and is shaped like a giant cross. Like the neighboring churches, it was built from the ground down and one must go through a series of tunnels to get down to it. Zavi was fine and enjoyed the secret tunnels and playing hide and seek in the caves. "Follow me Mom, and if you slip, you can hold the sides like this! I'll protect you!" The late afternoon light was so beautiful and the air was cooling down nicely. The rough morning all but forgotten:):)

The next morning, we headed back to the Lalibela airport - about 25 km from the town (but on a good road - thanks to the Chinese...) As usual, I love the mornings in Africa - the place comes alive. On this drive, there were so many people, donkeys, cows, etc. on the road - we saw hundreds (thousands?) of pedestrians, but, in contrast, we only saw three other vehicles (and this is the main road to Addis!) Other than taxi drivers and the uber rich, nobody owns cars here.

Our first flight was delayed by a couple of hours because of a power failure at the Addis airport (all flights grounded,) but we eventually made it to our next destination - Harar. Which we will 'visit' in the next post...

I will leave you with a couple of Z quotes/questions once again...

"Mommy, when will I get my third kidney? You have three, right? Maybe you should go live at the freak farm!"

"Do you really think it's the best idea for Santa to bring naughty kids coal? Doesn't he know that diamonds are made out of coal?"

"OK, there's solid, liquid and gas, right? And gas is like air. SO - why do we call the stuff we put in cars 'gas' when it's really a liquid?"   (good question!)

"Mommy, you are a mad genius! You are the best Angry-Birds expert in the whole world!"

　

Re-visiting paradise

But first, a little about leaving Kenya... Our time in Kenya was great and I could have stayed much longer. Zavion really enjoyed rural life - the animals, the walking, etc. However, he tired quickly of all of the attention from the kids... I think if we had stayed longer than 10 days in any one place, his novelty would have worn off and he would have warmed up to the kids more. Still, I think he got a lot out of it and I am looking forward to bringing him back when he's a little older :) For his birthday, though, he wanted some beach time so.... it was off to Zanzibar!

"ZANZIBAR......　The name alone conjures up images of a veritable island paradise... and the reality does not disappoint.　There's the windy, narrow, labyrinthine streets of Stone Town - oozing with character and steeped in an enigmatic and contrasting history.　From the richness of the spice industry to the desperation of the slave trade.　Here Africa meets the Arab world and you feel a true mix of cultures.　Stone Town has a character all her own. And there's the idyllic, azure, dhow studded sea lapping up to the impossibly white, sugar-soft sand of the surrounding beaches...."  From my journal - February, 2001 (2nd visit to Zbar)

 Ten years and a couple visits later and the place still has a magic to it.

We arrived on his birthday after a VERY early start/ plane ride, went through the (very slow) visa formalities and went to meet our pre-arranged transport. We waited. And waited. To no avail. So much for pre-arranged. We took a taxi to Stone Town and the driver didn't quite drop us off at the most convenient spot - we ended up having to walk through the narrow streets with all of our bags, already feeling over-tired, in the stifling heat for far too long. We were hot, tired and cranky, but glad to finally get to our room. We rested under the fan for awhile, had some fresh juice and were renewed.

The obligatory wander through Stone Town then commenced. Stone Town -- like a step back in time. Even on a fourth visit, it doesn't lose it's appeal and still oozes with charm and character. It's so great to wander the the narrow alleyways lined with crumbling yet ornate Arab buildings with great wooden doors, decorative balconies and overhanging verandas.　 To peek into the little, hole-in-the-wall shops, tailors and food stalls. To people watch. Zavion was especially impressed with the women in full hijab - he kept nudging me and saying, 'Mom, look at the ninjas! - what are they doing here?'　One of my favorite things to do while traveling is to get lost in towns like this and to experience a new surprise around every twist and corner.　Usually I let go of time and let myself wander and wander, but with a tired birthday boy in tow, we cut it short and found a place by the water for a bite. Zavi played on the beach, we ate French Fries and curry and birthday cake and I sang him the requisite song. Which he appreciated, but later said that it was just a little sad that I was the only one singing and why didn't any of his friends or cousins make it to his birthday this year. :( After an afternoon nap, we headed out again - enjoying dinner at the numerous open-air food stalls at Fordhani Gardens which offer true sensory overload -- a plethora of smells, sounds, sights and tastes.　We enjoyed fresh fish, fruit, etc. Zavion SAID he was excited to try the octopus, but once he got a glimpse of the tentacles and suction cups, he just couldn't bring himself to try it. He DID try (and love) the nutella/banana crepes and the sugar cane juice. But then, who wouldn't? Being a Saturday and with high tide coinciding with sundown, the place was packed. Everyone jumping off the walls into the water - all manner of flips, dives, etc. Zavion's favorite activity was playing on the canons and pretending to be at war. Oh, the joy of a five year old boy.

The next day, we planned a boat/snorkel trip to Prison Island, but it was windy and the water was a little rough. My mother's intuition said to postpone the trip, but we boarded the boat anyway. The boat was rocking and rolling over the waves and it didn't seem like the best conditions for someone's first snorkel trip, so I asked the boat to turn around and bring us back. Which it did. Zavion was carried to shore and, as I was waiting to climb off the boat myself, a huge wave hit and sent me flying. Well, it sent part of me flying. My foot got caught on the boat, but the rest of me fell into the water - breaking my flip-flop (therefore, putting 'Margaritaville' in my head for the remainder of the day) and pulling my hamstring in the process. (Now, two weeks later, the hamstring isn't healed and I still can't run - I'm hoping to be good in time for soccer in a few weeks!) I'm just glad it was me and not Zavion. Turns out, we needed a down day, anyway, and just enjoyed hanging out with eachother.

We had a good trip to see dolphins the next day and joined a school of about 20 of them for a bit. Zavi loved them! Afterwards, we had a nice romp on the low tide beach. Later, we had a great time seeing the red colobus and blue sykes monkeys. We were able to get really close and saw several young ones romping and playing. They really look like little, old men.

Our next stop was Jimiani beach for a few days - a lovely spot on the east coast. It has a nice, wide beach, but there was a bit too much seaweed this time of the year. The guest house was nice - all manner of hammocks, swings, etc. and no shoes necessary :) We enjoyed wandering the tidal pools at low tide and adding to Zavion's 'collection.' I made the mistake of saying, 'let's see how many shells we can find,' not realizing how many there'd be! We poked along the beach and filled our entire shopping bag with lovely shells. 'Mom, in my entire imagination of a million years, I never thought I'd find this many shells!' There wasn't much ocean swimming to be had at low tide, but we enjoyed our time on the beach - building castles for his gogos, playing ball and frisbee, corraling ghost crabs, having sandbending wars, etc. We also did an entire track meet - including all of the events -Z now has dreams of becoming a decathlete and I suffered a slight elbow injury trying to shotput a beachball. Between my hammy and my elbow, I realize that I am, officially, OLD not as young as I used to be. We had a lot of fun, but being his only playmate means there's no downtime for me - we are constantly playing... mostly battles and play-acting- and it does get exhausting. I'm ready for him to have a live-in playmate. He still asks about his cousins daily and was upset when none of them showed up on Zanzibar to spend his birthday with him.

High hurdles and gogo fortress

The hotel had a pool, so we spent some time in that. It's really great how well Zavion is swimming on his own now - floaties are definitely a thing of the past ('I think the floaties were holding me back anyway, Mom.') He is now able to swim the entire width of the pool unaided. He is also much more comfortable - jumping off the sides, holding his breath longer and longer, being thrown by me, climbing on my shoulders, etc. Yay!

We didn't have electricity for much of the time and we ran out of batteries on everything -- it's amazing how dependent on electronics we've become. No camera, no phones/movies, not even a book to read (when the Kindle ran out...) It was actually a good thing, though - lots of playing in the water/beach, cards, etc. And we enjoyed watching some rainstorms come in. Our trip coincided with the beginning of the rainy season and we welcomed the break from the oppressively hot, humid weather.

Next, we headed to Kendwa Beach on the NW coast for a week. This is now my favorite beach on Zanzibar. I can't believe it took me this long to discover it! It's just south of my previous favorite spot, Nungwe. Kendwa comes complete with huge swaths of perfect, powder sugar white sand, impossibly clear, cerulean water which was absolutely perfect for swimming - perfect clarity and color, perfect temperature for lounging in for long periods of time, perfect balance of calmness and small waves, and is suitable for swimming at any tide level (rare for a Zanzabari beach - most lose the water at low tide and/or the beach at high tide.) Kendwa lacks the funky village feel of Nungwe, but it's better with a kiddo in tow. We still spent a day in Nungwe - wandering the tidal pools, watching the boat builders and fishermen and checking out the turtle sanctuary. We also enjoyed watching the fishermen from Kendwa and the dozens of traditionally clad women wading out to the fishing boats to collect their daily catch. Part of the magic of Zanzibar is that it's so much more than a tourist/beach destination. It's a real, working island steeped in history and culture and so much character.

A typical day for us included meals on the beach with our toes in the sand - there's something to be said about not wearing shoes for a few days..., hanging out/playing on the beach and bobbing about in the water for hours (Zavion loving when the small waves came in - he enjoyed the pummeling,) eating fresh fruit, people-watching, swinging in the hammocks, chatting around the bonfires, watching the sunset and moonrise, etc.... it was rough. We also enjoyed a moonlight swim - it's much warmer (air and water) in March than in July (my last visit.) At our usual dinner place, Zavion befriended a couple of boys - Sebastian from France and Augustin from Italy. They didn't speak each other's languages, but they all 'spoke' the language of little boy - chasing, wrestling, play-fighting, etc... And a pretty humorous moment consisting of them all falling out of a hammock- hands, feet and sand flying everywhere, boys giggling, patrons suitably amused.

There was definitely some confusion brought on by Zavion and I and our relationship. He does resemble the Zanzabari. The locals were shocked when he didn't respond to their Kiswahili; he was, on more than one occassion, shooed away from our table by a waiter telling him to leave the tourist (me) alone; a few other travelers made comments like, 'how long has this kid been hanging with you?... he really likes you!' ... When I tell people he's mine, they first assume that he's biracial (which instantly gives me street cred with the locals) and, depending on where we are, I get the 'Oh, his father must be Kenyan... Or, his father must be Zanzibari... or Maasai... wink, wink, nudge, nudge.' Interesting studies into social interaction...

Another interesting social phenomenon in Zanzibar is the huge number of older, Italian female tourists that pay for, by the week, local 'Maasai beach boys' (aka prostitutes.) They can even be 'rented' as part of a package tour at the many large, Italian resorts. So there are many 60 year old women hand in hand with stunningly attractive 20-something local men in full Maasai garb (even though, apparently, many aren't true Maasais.) Weird - I've been in many places where sex tourism of a different sort exists - middle-aged men with very young female prostitutes (many under age) but people's gut reactions are definitely different (including mine.) Is it a double standard?

But I digress...

We also took a few boat trips - a lovely sunset dhow trip and two outings to go snorkelling in nearby reefs. The snorkelling was excellenct - great visability and a myriad of colorful fish, sea stars, urchins, etc. And Zavion really got it! I was surprised he picked it up so quickly and was so comfortable - it was awesome. We started out holding hands, but he eventually took off on his own and even mastered the art of blowing water out of the snorkel when necessary. At one point, I could hear him humming the Tuff Puppy theme song through his snorkel.

And, of course, a trip to Zanzibar would not be complete with my requisite sunburn - Apparently, a morning application of SPF 15 doesn't quite cut it in the equatorial sun - especially when in the water all day. Zavion said, 'I'm really sorry you got sunburned, Mommy. Don't you wish you had brown skin like me so you'd be protected?'

Our last day on the beach - Z and I both got henna tattoos - he wasn't so sure at first, 'Mom, are you sure this is a good idea? Are tattoos only for girls?' but he ended up getting four - a lizard, a dragon, a scorpion and a dolphin.

We spent our last day back in Stone Town and I got to meet up with a friend of mine, Heather, who I'd met in 2002 at a work-camp in Bulgaria. Thanks to Facebook, we've recently been back in touch and she just so happens to be teaching in Zanzibar now! It was great to hang out again after all these years and Z took an immediate liking to her :)  We have an invitation back at any time :):)

Suffice it to say, we had a great time and Zavi definitely enjoyed it and already speaks wistfully and fondly of our time on the island. The island sent us off with a bang - as we were boarding our flight out, we were treated to the full moon rise - in true,giant African orb fashion. AND we got to view Kilimanjaro by moonlight from the plane. Pretty sweet.

We are in Ethiopia now - I'll have much to say about that soon... and we'll be home in less than two weeks...