Life in Ethiopa

Well life is going great over here in Ethiopia. I am learning about the culture and having a great time! Ethiopian people are very polite and hospitable. Even though I can barely communicate they still greet me and smile. Everyone looks at me but doesn't stare, except for little kids, so I don't feel too much like an outsider. We went to the bank yesterday and a little girl stared at me the whole time she was there (she was being held by her mom), so i made some faces at her and she laughed. I kind of wanted to take her for the day but I don't think it is alright to borrow kids in this culture, although I haven't tried it yet so I can't tell you for sure.

The first day I was here Melaku (My host "dad") was very busy writing his thesis (he just finished so next week he graduates from a theological school here), so I was shown around the city by a close family friend named Mohammed. He is a great guy and really nice. He was raised Muslim but is now a Christian. He has driven a taxi so he knows his way around here very well. It was great to see the city and see things that are different here. Driving here is a real adventure. There are lane lines but no one really pays attention to them, and horns are used very frequently. There are always people walking across the street and they don't really look so if they are in your way you give them a little 'beep beep'. All the horns are the high-pitched beeping ones. The cars here mostly all small compact cars and Toyotas. They literally drive their vehicles until their wheels fall off. We are pretty spoiled in America. It is not uncommon to see goats or oxen being guided on the street to be sold. The streets are also lined with many many shops, especially fruit and vegetable stands.

Coffee is very popular here, which is great. The coffee bean was actually discovered here and it is one of their main exports. Melaku loves coffee so we get it a lot. We stop and have Makiatos (That's how they're spelled here) quite often and it is a good time to sit and talk about anything. The coffee is here is much stronger than in America and served in smaller portions. You wouldn't want to drink a full cup of this stuff, you would probably be awake for days. Since it is so strong they load it up with sugar. Right up my alley! They buy fresh coffee beans and sort and grind them themselves. I helped them yesterday and they sorted about three times as fast as me.
I am meeting many family friends at their church and just around. They are all awesome people. They think Americans, especially me are very 'ebta' which means crazy, but it is considered a good thing, not an insult. I am sharing our culture with them as well. Only the important stuff though, like 'rock-paper-scissors' and knock-knock jokes. They like those. A typical week here is similar to ours. They work Monday through Friday, although many work weekends as well. They are hard workers and not complainers.

Ethiopians are family oriented and very caring of others. They are a 'touching' culture. What I mean by that is it is not uncommon at all to see two males or females with their arms around each other, even holding hands at times. This seemed strange to me at first but I am getting used to it. Melaku warned me of this when I got here so I didn't think anything of it. Their 'bubble' is just smaller than ours. It shows friendship and caring and is actually pretty cool. You greet each other with a hug usually or kisses on the cheeks.

This week I will start working in the school here and doing some other things, more about that later.... I spend a lot of my time during the day reading and working on Amharic (as it has been the weekend), which is the language of Ethiopia. It isn't the easiest to learn but it's cool. The alphabet has 33 characters plus almost 200 additions so memorizing that is difficult.

I went to a church service last night that Melaku was invited to teach at. It was entirely in Amharic but was probably one of the most amazing church services I had ever been to. It was a small one of only pastors so it wasn't really a church service but they had a lesson and worship. A person next to me helped translate the points of the lesson to me. The worship was awesome to listen to and here they have a longer, more personal prayer time which I think is a great example of submission and commitment. They aren't in a hurry here as much as people are back home. After church they stood around talking for almost an hour before leaving (mom you would like this) and after meals they aren't in a hurry to get a check right away.

Anyways that's a lot for one day. I love and miss you all and keep praying! We are starting a bible study this week and Melaku has asked me to teach in the school and a lesson or two at church coming up so please pray for guidance in that! I am having a great time here and feel very loved and accepted by this family, which is such a blessing! Thanks for reading, you are awesome (yes, you)!

Grace and peace!