Revolutionary Thinking

This week I did a lesson drawing comparisons between the country information of both Ethiopia and Great Britain. The number one controversy arose from the breakdown of Britain’s different religious beliefs – “how could so many people have no religion at all”?! This seemed like a completely crazy idea to my class, all of which seem to be affiliated to a particular religious group. The next controversy was comparing the economies and human development indexes of the two countries. Many of the students had no idea that Ethiopia is one of the poorest countries in the world (ranked 169 out of 179 countries), and were surprised at how they were even one of the poorest countries in Africa. We looked at the difference in doctors’ salaries, and how a British doctor would often earn more than thirty times the salary of an Ethiopian doctor. The British minimum wage also shocked many of the children – how could the bare minimum a British person earns in an hour be six times more than a waiter in Mekele earns in an entire day (about $1)?

I was really surprised at just how unaware the students were of their economic poverty. Whilst it was not a pleasure to inform the students of just how poor they are in comparison to the economically developed world, many of them seemed to leave the lesson determined to push for Ethiopia’s development. They mostly agreed that leaving Ethiopia to seek higher paid jobs in the West was a bad thing to do – the consensus was that they should all work hard to help Ethiopia have a better future. Anyway, fingers crossed they’ll use their new found awareness in positive ways...

Trip to a local swimming pool - After all of this heavy stuff, it was good to spend our final day together doing something a bit more fun. The school organised a day trip out to a swimming pool on the outskirts of the city, and we all had a good time. I spent most of the morning on the nearby field trying to copy the acrobatic skills of the students, and also joining in with the boys’ favourite past time of wrestling (although most of the time was spent trying to react the wrestling poses of their favourite American wrestlers!). After a very enjoyable day we all returned back to school. I then spent the remainder of the afternoon clearing out my classroom and desk in preparation for...

The Goodbye Ceremony – On Thursday it was finally time to say our goodbyes and finish our work at the school. In true Ethiopian style a big ceremony was laid on for us “guests”, and so Ged and I were treated to songs, dances and poetry readings (and of courses copious amounts of lovely coffee). There was even time for a report from the local “newsdesk” on how our time at the school had gone. We closed off the proceedings with our goodbye speeches, and then made an emotional farewell to the project and the fantastic students. I will miss them all in different ways, and just hope that they will have good futures. With the help and opportunities that the project gives them, they have every chance to go on and be successful.

Cultural Observations of Ethiopia – One thing that has both confused and interested me during my stay in Ethiopia is the different time and date system that is used here. Perhaps most immediately striking is the time difference – Ethiopians start timing the day from sunrise, and so our 06:00 hours is actually 00:00 Ethiopian time. This system seems to make a lot of sense, with sunset occurring around 12 o’clock local time (6pm our time). However, confusion is obviously bound to arise when English-speaking Ethiopians suggest to meet at a particular hour – is Gabreselasie being sensitive to the foreigners’ understanding of time, or is he seriously suggesting to meet at 4am in the morning?!

Another complication is the differences in dates. Not only do Ethiopians start their year at a different time (Ethiopian New Year will take place on the 11th of September), but they also have 13 months! Each of the first 12 months are exactly 30 days long, so another month with 5 extra days is tagged on at the end. Difference number three is that the Ethiopians are 8 years behind the Gregorian Calendar we use. This is the result of a dispute on when exactly Angel Gabriel informed Mary that she would give birth to Jesus. Thus, the current date in Ethiopia is 11/12/01. For a much better explanation of all of this, please check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethiopian_calendar

The result of the Ethiopian Calendar is that my journey back to the UK should take 8 years! On that note, I now have to pack my bags and prepare to say a sad farewell to this very interesting country. I’ll write more when I’m back home, but for now lots of love and take care,

Robert

The Afterschool Coffee Club

The last week has been packed full of interesting trips. I’ve been to the countryside to see some rural development projects, visited the houses of some of my students, and have had a trip to Mek’ele’s monument. There’s a lot to tell you all...

After School Visits – Whilst I’ve had plenty of time to get to know my students in the school setting, it’s clear that I’m not seeing the whole picture. The children all come from difficult backgrounds, and yet the school does its best to provide most things for the children within its walls. Thus, after lessons I’ve taken the time to visit the homes of two of my students. The living conditions are very basic (often there are no tables or chairs, and the only form of cooking equipment is a charcoal burner), and the families all seem to live in very cramped spaces.

However, everyone is extremely generous – as soon as I walk through the door I’m sat down and a “coffee ceremony” begins... The ceremony starts with the women roasting coffee beans. Once roasted, the smoky beans are passed under the noses of all present, to ensure everyone appreciates the aroma. After this, the beans are hand ground and then put into boiling water. The result is a lovely, strong coffee (even I, someone who usually shies away from coffee, like it). The coffee is given to the guests, and then incense is lit. This invariably leads to the small single-roomed house becoming engulfed in smoke, but it’s all very lovely! The women of the house will then patiently wait for the guest to say “tuum boona” (“nice coffee”), before they can relax and get back to their regular duties. Coffee ceremonies seem to be a big part of Ethiopian culture, and I’ve certainly enjoyed the chance to get to know families during these coffee-fuelled events.

I’ve been able to visit the students in a home environment mainly due to the work of the Aba Gabremichael Project. The project has meant that the vast majority of the students no longer live on the streets, with most being reconnected with their relatives, or given temporary accommodation at the school. However, there is one group of orphans who have taken matters into their own hands, and are renting a single roomed mud house close to the school. Seven teenage boys live in what they call the “San Siro”, and they have made the place their own – the walls are a bizarre collage of posters of footballers, scantily-clad women and religious icons! They all seem well organised and happy, and support each other very well.

Visit to Mai Zeg Zeg – On Friday the 31st we were very kindly invited to see some of the projects run by the regional Catholic authorities. The vast majority of the day was spent going to see the Mai Zeg Zeg (Spiralling Water) project, which was nothing short of astounding – a word which I don’t use lightly. The project has focused on improving the lives of the people in one rural area outside of Mek’ele. Its primary focus has been on developing the agriculture of the region through the use of water management techniques. The result is that the whole area is green and fertile! This is in stark contrast to the area outside of the project boundary, which is dry and arid. The difference is striking – it’s rare to see the benefits of a project so visually. Needless to say, the locals now have a steady flow of food and income, and their future looks brighter. The project has been such a success that the prime minister of Ethiopia visited it himself recently. It just shows that with a little bit of aid and expertise from charitable agencies, local people can really achieve great things.

Mekele’s Monument – as soon as you enter the city of Mek’ele, you are confronted by a gigantic pillar. Apart from being a very striking part of the skyline, it also has a special place in the hearts of the local Tigrian people. The monument commemorates the role that the Tigrian People’s Liberation Army had in freeing the nation from the tyranny of the DERG regime. The DERG? Just from the name you can tell that this is an unpleasant organisation! The DERG ruled Ethiopia for over 25 years (between 1976 and 1992), and from what I can tell seemed to inflict a lot of pain and suffering upon the Ethiopian people. Whilst calling itself a socialist regime (mainly to ensure that it got weapons from the USSR) it did little for the poor, and brutally clamped down on any opposition groups.

One of the best parts of the monument is found at its base. Amongst various statues is that of Desalegn, a mule who famously transported arms and supplies through enemy lines. Desalegn’s crucial covert activities helped ensure that the Tigrian rebels had the necessary tools to take the fight to the DERG! Today, the former rebels hold key posts in the national government, and seem to be doing a good job in pushing Ethiopia’s development forwards (that is at least what people from national and international aid agencies have told me).

Just one more week to go before my departure from Mek’ele, and I’ve got a lot to fit in. Our last day of teaching is Thursday, so I’ll be spending my time trying to round off the classes and organising an “end of term” trip to a nearby waterfall. On Friday we’ll be off for two days to Alitena (a town further north), and then we’ll make a tearful farewell on Monday the 17th. Expect an update shortly afterwards. For now though, a big Tigrian hug to you all,

Robert

Beatles To the Rescue!

The English lessons continue to go well, and most of the students seem to be really improving. We’ve just about got the grasp of when to use “I’m playing football” and when to say “I play football”... However, there continues to be a group of children who bring out the disciplinarian in me! My new tactic is to make my lessons and teaching style a bit more fun and relaxed. We’ve just studied “Yesterday” and “She Loves You” by The Beatles, and it seems to be paying off! The students and I really enjoy it. Surprisingly, no one seems to know the Beatles in Ethiopia (a far cry from my past experiences in Mongolia, where they’ve even built a statue of the Fab Four), so I’m enjoying the chance to expand the fan base.

This week we’ve also looked at the family, a topic which the students seemed to really get into. However, the lesson brought up some interesting points – I’m surprised that for such a traditional culture many of my students come from divorced families. Perhaps my “sample” of people is a bit skewed, being that the students are all either street children or are from the poorest families in the city, but nevertheless it’s a bit strange. Another thing that grabbed my attention during this particular class is that I’ve noticed the English language can be a bit sexist! One cannot really say “how many sisters and brothers do you have?” or “do you have any daughters or sons?” – the males must come before the females!

Cultural observations – Spend a day as a white person in Ethiopia, and you’ll surely hear at least one child shouting “farangi!” (white person!). The local children are very friendly, and get excited when they see a farangi. They run after our car when we’re driving through the city, and will sometimes jump up and down in excitement when we walk past! Whilst I’m sure it would really grate after a while, I have to say that it’s been lovely to have children follow me around and grab my hand, wanting to talk and play games. They seem happy, and are quick to laugh. The same cannot be said of babies however, most of whom are petrified of whites. Sadly, I’ve brought a few babies to tears!

The Power is On – Newsflash: we’ve had our first two days of consecutive power! Why this change? Well, Mek’ele has been enjoying a period of heavy rain, and thus more electricity is being generated by the hydroelectric plants. If the rain continues, we may soon have the luxury of not having to plan our photocopying and printing well in advance. The only downside would be that we’d have light in the evenings – I’ve grown strangely attached to whiling the evenings away by candlelight...

The street children’s entrepreneurial skills – I take my hat off to one of the street children I work with, who told me that he managed to gatecrash his way into a wedding party. The boy in question found a wedding invitation that someone had lost, and then decided to make the most of this good fortune. Taking on the persona of “Mr Getachew” (the name on the invitation), he went along to the wedding and enjoyed an evening of food, drink and dancing! He was happily recounting how he ate 12 different types of food, including many different types of meat. This was a far cry from his usual existence, in which he cannot afford to meat and works in order to get the leftover scraps from local hotels. Needless to say, “Mr Getachew” didn’t have the appropriate attire to attend the wedding party, arriving in a dirty Manchester United top and sandals. Thus, many people were suspicious of him (although the guard on the door seemed happy just to see the invitation). He said that whilst queuing for food the other guests would stand side on to him, because they were worried about being pick-pocketed! Anyway, “Mr Getachew” said that he loved the evening, and the feeling of just having a full stomach. After eating, he even had the audacity to have a dance with the groom before leaving!

Time for me to sign off again. All the very best from a hot and rainy Mek’ele, take care of yourselves,

Robert