Odds and ends near trip’s end…

Well, this was a fairly short stint, just more than four weeks, and so I shouldn’t be surprised that it is nearly finished. This may or may not be my final Ethiopia entry, but it is a good time to pass along some miscellaneous things that didn’t qualify for their own topic.

Plus, I need to share some corrections and amplifications.

CORRECTION: This isn’t a correction of a blog entry, but of an email I sent earlier to family members. It might be interesting to others as well. The item was about different legends and traditions different cultures have for common experiences – such as a child losing a tooth. The story I told the family came from Tenaw, my boss. He said that the child takes the tooth out under the bright moon, hurls it at the moon and shouts at the moon to give the kid a bright new tooth. If the child doesn’t do that, Tenaw said, a rat will find the tooth and give the child an ugly rat’s tooth.

Well, you know how parents can get confused. Tenaw went home and told his kids that he had told me this story. I didn’t hear the exact conversation, but I’ve heard others myself that I’m sure resemble it, and it went something like this: “Oh DAD,” his son says in his most exasperated voice. “You got it all wrong. How could you do that? What are the ferenjis going to THINK about us?” (That is Tenaw and his son in the photo.)

So here is the corrected version, courtesy of Zelalem Tenaw: Actually, it is GOOD to get a rat’s tooth. It is big and healthy and strong, and can chew through anything. So, yes, you do go out and throw it under the bright light of the moon, but that is so the rat can find it and reward you by giving you a strong new rat’s tooth.

Hmmmm, I don’t know if that would go over well for American children, but the rat has more stature here. In fact as I mentioned in the family email, a rat figures in the Ugandan version of this ritual, as well. In Uganda, though, it’s a bit more like our tradition. The child takes the tooth and places it near a hole where the rat is likely to show up. The rat comes, takes it, and leaves a little money behind.

AMPLIFICATION: One of my first Ethiopia blog entries was about how much livestock you see in the roads. There was nothing inaccurate about it, but perhaps the tone was a bit off. It was soon after I arrived, jet lag, culture adjustment and altitude were all in play and, as Theresa pointed out, the voice of that entry had a bit of a “pensive” note. Fair enough.

So the amplification is this. Yes, the livestock are everywhere; yes, some of the animals are scrawny looking, and certainly nobody who is buying or selling them has very much money. On the other hand, plenty of these animals look in pretty good condition. And setting aside for the moment the legitimate issues of vegetarianism, you have to admit that when people buy a goat or a sheep that has just been delivered to the roadside market by a farmer out in the country, they certainly know where their meat is coming from, and they know it is fresh. It is a far distance from buying a plastic-wrapped package of meat at Safeway, for what it’s worth.

My conclusion in the pensive blog had to do with the common expression, “This Is Africa,” and had to do with thoughts of disparity. Well, this amplified version is Africa, as well – because so many more things here are direct, personal, and from the source. That may not always be good, but it is definitely a refreshing thing to be reminded of.

On to the odds and ends.

Speaking of rivers: One of the big tourist destinations in Uganda is at the north end of Lake Victoria, in the city of Jinja, where you can visit The Source of the Nile. We went there several times, and even though the “source” has been a bit obscured by a big hydropower dam downstream, it still is kind of neat to imagine that this is where it all starts.

What a coincidence! Here in Ethiopia, hundreds of miles to the north, you can ALSO find “The Source of the Nile.” This one is in the northwest part of the country, also coming out of a huge lake – Lake Tana.

So come on, guys, which is which? I mean, if we’re going to get goose bumps over standing by the source of the Nile, we would like to know that it is the right one!

Of course, it is really one of those silly notions, fueled, in great part, by explorers from England and elsewhere who wanted to be the one to discover the source of this, or the highest point of that. Naturally, the “source” of the Nile is up in the skies, whence drops all the raindrops that eventually find their way into its ultimate course through Egypt. Along the way, several major rivers and watershed contribute, and there’s the seeming conflict. Uganda can claim ownership of the “source” of what is known as the White Nile, which winds its way west and north toward Egypt. Ethiopia can claim ownership of the Blue Nile, which our guidebook states produces the largest volume of the final Nile River.

Incidentally, both countries have dammed their personal version of the Nile at least once and perhaps several places, and that has helped fuel a fairly contentious international dispute. You see, Egypt – and perhaps Sudan as well, but I’m not sure of that – has some treaties written in the colonial era that guarantee it certain water rights related to its River Nile, which of course was “discovered” first so took primary place in colonial minds. Egypt is not always amused when some upstream country starts restricting flow in one way or another, or otherwise tampering with “their” river.

Not surprisingly, in the post-colonial era those upstream countries are not all that interested in colonial treaties. Thus is born the Nile Basin Initiative, which brings together all of the “Nile Riparian Countries,” as they are known, to iron out their little differences. It is not always successful, but at least they are talking.

More “Seen here and there”:

In the departure lounge at Addis airport: “Prayer room for males,” and “Prayer room for females.” It would make a wonderful research project, I thought, to do a survey and see which room produced better results.

There does seem to be a lot more street-cleaning going on in Addis than in Kampala. Yes, I know, that is not saying much, but you do see lots of people sweeping up the garbage off the streets – mostly women, dressed in long outfits to cover themselves, with masks on and huge floppy straw hats and reflective vests. And generally speaking the results are good. Now if they could just figure out a way for vacuuming out the pollution from the air.

On the streets – women with large circular platter-shaped parcels on their heads, maybe two feet in diameter and 10 inches tall, all wrapped in some towel-like fabric. The women are delivering fresh batches of injera, the delicious soft bread/pancake stuff that serves as both the place you ladle your various traditional Ethiopian sauce concoctions onto, and also the “utensil” you use to pick up and eat that delicious stuff. (Right hand only, please, and don’t be dismayed if some of it ends up in your beard as you are getting the hang of it.)

Who knew there were so many saints? I guess there really are a lot of them. Anyway, the Ethiopian Orthodox Church – which has its own official designation in World Church Hierarchy, along with roots back to the 4th century – celebrates an awful lot of saints’ days. And you can tell early in the morning, whether from the chanting coming from one or another of the scores and scores of churches in the city, or from the crowds of people, many of them women, clustering around the church. On certain days, they are carrying bunches of some sort of green grass all tied together. Always, they are wearing lovely white cotton shawls, so thin you can almost see through them, with narrow borders of brightly colored material – orange, blue, yellow.

Big Issues in Ethiopia

What are the things that really matter to people who live in Addis? Well, this is a small peek. Below are extracts (a few of them slightly edited to adjust for English not being a first language for anyone here) from ideas my students submitted for in-depth stories – this will be their final project for their reporting class. They perhaps provide a bit of a window on today’s Ethiopia – even without the full details. And the photo? It shows a few of my students hard at work as part of their newspaper design class, trying to master the intricacies of Adobe’s InDesign software.
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The African Union head office is found here, and many international organizations. But Addis Ababa is suffering out of a garbage and sanitation problem.

The problem in condominium homes. A recent phenomenon in Addis city, where the government made things convenient to gather people in living together inside huge buildings, but, because it is a new style of living, people are facing problems.

The increasing number of missing children.

Newspaper vendors who do not sell newspapers at their actual price but charge 50 cents for “shallow reading.” [This is 50 Ethiopian cents, which is less than a nickel.]

The Oromo language is one of the most widely spoken languages in Ethiopia as it is the mother tongue of the largest ethnic group in the country. It has so far been given only the status of a regional working language. At the university it is studied as a minor subject [beneath Amharic, which along with English is the official language of Ethiopia]. Oromo students are pushing the Ministry of Education to recognize their language as a multidisciplinary medium.

Electric power cuts make citizens lose their dreams. Some residents of Addis Ababa express their disappointment over the recent scheduled and unscheduled power cuts for it’s forcing them out of their business. Backed by the government’s Small and Micro Business Development Institute, women engaged in secretary and photocopying businesses are unable to cover their house rent let alone gain benefit out of it.

“Lords of Poverty” are still taking food out of the poor’s mouth. An international NGO operating on various social issues in Ethiopia appears to be a giant monster. The case in point is the project assessment of the organization, which is found to be very annoying and inhuman.

Kaht fun in dormitories has special features. [Kaht, also called chat, is a narcotic plant, a stimulant that is chewed throughout East Africa, and who knows where else.] Frequently, students are addicted with it, they stick to it intentionally or unintentionally. Although they perfectly recognize the side effects, they make fun out of it.

In the last two years, prices of goods, particularly food items like cereals, have been persistently high. According to the Central Statistics Authority, general food inflation has reached 29.6 percent. A recent study indicated that Ethiopia is one of the most affected countries with the strongest acceleration in food price inflation. Everyone in Addis is surprised by the uninvited guest – “Inflation.”

Old age streetism and beggary has been increasing alarmingly in different towns and cities, particularly the situation is getting severe and worse in Addis Ababa. The real situation in the streets of Addis will be uncovered.

It is about a girl who is working for graduate students in Addis Ababa University. She is paid 180 birr per month [about $16] for cooking and cleaning. She represents many teenagers who preferred prostitution and ended up giving birth to children while they stopped learning. Most of them hardened their lives by becoming parents and victims of many problems including HIV/AID. Therefore she can be a good example for millions like her.

In every speech delivery/propaganda, the government is saying Ethiopia is progressing and growing from every angle. One of its pros of prosperity, according to government media, is allocating its people with pure water. But the reality is different. I am curious to see why people are suffering water scarcity and wander here and there in search of water. Why is the plight of pure water escalating?

“Quorale” are people who travel from home to home to collect old used materials and goods that are rubbish. When they move across the village they say “quorale,” telling the people that they are looking for goods that are out of service. I’m always wondering when I see “quorale” strolling here and there. What is the motive? What is the purpose? Who controls/supervises the routine? Do these people pay tax? What is the overall advantage of collecting trashes/rubbish materials? Do they participate in the sanitation process, protecting or reducing pollution?

Transport shortage and its impact on working hours in Addis Ababa.

No, it is definitely not Starbucks

You probably have heard of the Ethiopian coffee ceremony; it’s one of the best-known aspects of the culture, and for good reason. I experienced my first one when Tenaw, the assistant dean at the graduate school, invited me and my fellow American professor Peter out to his house for a mid-day meal one Sunday.

He lives with his charming family – wife Emebet, an elementary school teacher; and children Yordanos, Zelalem and Tsion – in a somewhat rural setting in the foothills. You can see Addis proper, but you are well removed from its pollution and congestion, and the fields are dotted with grazing cattle, goats and donkeys. (And also dotted with new houses rising that will inevitably change the rural nature in a few years.) Tenaw has a commute of more than an hour each way, but it is obviously worth it to him, and you can see why when you walk around his little neighborhood, where he knows everyone, the air is fresh, and his kids can walk through the fields to get to school.

The meal was what Theresa and I came to expect when we were invited to people’s homes in Uganda: gracious hospitality, wide-eyed children (especially in the neighborhood; Tenaw’s kids are more used to ferenji -- foreigners) – and delicious food served in WAY too generous quantities. After having three helpings of six different dishes thrust upon us – and I am not exaggerating here – we finally were able to take a break, take a walk … and prepare for the coffee ceremony.

It took place out in the lovely little garden in front of the house. Emebet had changed into a traditional white cotton dress and shawl, and laid out the setting: broad grass leaves spread on the dirt; a tiny table on top of them, with a tiny tray and six espresso-size coffee cups. On the side, a porcelain milk pitcher and sugar bowl, a black narrow-necked ceramic pitcher, and a small charcoal stove. In front, a small incense stick.

As we relaxed and appreciated the scene from the porch, she first placed a handful of coffee beans in a rounded metal plate atop the small charcoal stove, and stirred them as they roasted. A fragrant smoke rose, and when she judged the beans done, Emebet brought the plate over to let us see and smell close up. Mmmmm. Delectable.

Then she went back to her station, putting the beans in a pestle and crushing them with a long heavy mortar. After brewing in the ceramic pitcher over the charcoal, she served us in the small cups – black, with sugar. And it was unlike any coffee I’ve tasted, with a fresh and fruity flavor that just makes you savor it in your mouth.

Over the course of the next hour or so, tradition dictates that you get three different servings of coffee. Sometimes it was in the small cups, sometimes in larger cups with warmed milk. (“Natural milk,” Tenaw said proudly. We had talked earlier about how so much of the milk sold in supermarkets here is not milk at all – “Ethiopian milk is just water!” he complained.) Macchiato, they call it – one more relic of the Italian past and present connection here.

I asked Tenaw how often they have a coffee ceremony, assuming this is something you do mostly for guests. “Oh, we do this almost every day,” he said. Sometimes people do it in the morning and again in the evening, but he and his wife both work, the kids have to go to school, and there is not time in the morning.

But almost every evening, he said, they gather as a family and have their coffee ceremony. The kids don’t have any coffee – usually they start in high school, he said – but it is a time for the family to be together, to make plans, to talk. Not really a “ceremony,” in any ceremonial sense. But what a lovely daily tradition. It was well worth the fact that I couldn’t fall asleep until after midnight!