Hello From Addis Ababa!
Happy belated Halloween! So first week complete. Here is a mini update of all my doings. I am living with 5 volunteers, all from the U.S., where we live in a 4 story house. The digs are nice but the water is shisty.. AKA goes out for days at a time. The first day was spent at Layla where the kids live. We set up a haunted house for them which was a great success. The orphanage is really nice and the kids don't listen but they aren't beaten soo it is a good environment for them. Ivy is the program director who has lived here for 2 and a half years and is a total jersey party girl haha. I love her and I love watching her. It is really preparing me for my roll in Uganda.
We all dressed up for halloween, I painted my face like a zebra. It was a hit! They pronounce zebra with a short e kinda like debra. I think I may change my name and therefore tattoo the zebra print on my face. I think it will complete my look.
After the weekend I spent most of my time at Layla learning about the organization, and meeting all the women and children. The other volunteers have been here for a while so I decided to work in the baby house. I have made significant positive changes already. I scrubbed all the baby rooms and put borax done to fix the roach problem(my mom would be so proud).
So most of my time is spent with the babies feeding them bottles, cooing at them, and whispering in there ears(shuushhhuushhuushhh). I love them. The women watch me play with the babies and I think are mirroring some of my behaviors. If one is not eating enough I give them more attention, if one is turning I am helping them try and crawl. So therefore I love them all and want to bring them home with me. I can now take care of 5 babies all at once!
So that brings us to this past weekend. A bunch of the volunteers and I went about 2 hours outside Addis to a place called the Portugues Bridge. There were amazing waterfalls. We all jumped off the waterfall! Sorry mom I know you said no death defying stories until I return.. It was the most amazing panoramic view. The pictures just do not do the scenery justice.
The night life in Addis is also pretty cool. Alot of rasta places to dance at and tons of different kinds of food. Next week the plan is to go to Awash for the weekend! Thats all for now! Stay Tuned
Happy belated Halloween! So first week complete. Here is a mini update of all my doings. I am living with 5 volunteers, all from the U.S., where we live in a 4 story house. The digs are nice but the water is shisty.. AKA goes out for days at a time. The first day was spent at Layla where the kids live. We set up a haunted house for them which was a great success. The orphanage is really nice and the kids don't listen but they aren't beaten soo it is a good environment for them. Ivy is the program director who has lived here for 2 and a half years and is a total jersey party girl haha. I love her and I love watching her. It is really preparing me for my roll in Uganda.
We all dressed up for halloween, I painted my face like a zebra. It was a hit! They pronounce zebra with a short e kinda like debra. I think I may change my name and therefore tattoo the zebra print on my face. I think it will complete my look.
After the weekend I spent most of my time at Layla learning about the organization, and meeting all the women and children. The other volunteers have been here for a while so I decided to work in the baby house. I have made significant positive changes already. I scrubbed all the baby rooms and put borax done to fix the roach problem(my mom would be so proud).
So most of my time is spent with the babies feeding them bottles, cooing at them, and whispering in there ears(shuushhhuushhuushhh). I love them. The women watch me play with the babies and I think are mirroring some of my behaviors. If one is not eating enough I give them more attention, if one is turning I am helping them try and crawl. So therefore I love them all and want to bring them home with me. I can now take care of 5 babies all at once!
So that brings us to this past weekend. A bunch of the volunteers and I went about 2 hours outside Addis to a place called the Portugues Bridge. There were amazing waterfalls. We all jumped off the waterfall! Sorry mom I know you said no death defying stories until I return.. It was the most amazing panoramic view. The pictures just do not do the scenery justice.
The night life in Addis is also pretty cool. Alot of rasta places to dance at and tons of different kinds of food. Next week the plan is to go to Awash for the weekend! Thats all for now! Stay Tuned
