homebound!

definitely won't be missing this place once i leave on sunday! the political situation has been pretty interesting, especially since it turns out it'll only be a one-candidate election and everyone knows the president's going to win again. still, there's not much of anything here, nothing to do really, and no one to hang out with....very unlike addis.

still, it is right on the water, and i have some fabulous pictures of the beach. actually spent the entire day today (friday is their only day off during the week) on this island off the coast of djibouti, and aside from the heat and having taken my malaria pill on zero food (don't recommend it as i got kind of sick), was very relaxing, and the water was soooo nice, very warm and super-clear. i've heard this area and up north (red sea) is beautiful for scuba-diving and snorkeling, so maybe that's their claim to fame here....



wrapping up my stay, none too soon, and will be back in dc on monday night, just in time for the ncaa championship game!! will be holding my breath this weekend for carolina to pull through the semis, should be a great final four! can't wait to get back to the states, will see you all soon....

settling in...

well, even though it's only thurs night, it's the weekend! being as it's an islamic country, plus the weather makes it impossible to work entire 8-hour days here, people get fri off and work sat and sun...although i think in the american spirit we're going to take both fri and sat off... would you expect anything less from me?!

so it's much much quieter here than in addis, it's a smaller country, people aren't as visible in the streets, and everything pretty much clears out in the afternoon. very different from what i was expecting after being in a bustling, dirty, crowded african capital, but at least i get to breathe clean air here and am not having problems walking around due to the high elevation!

sometimes i forget where i am, since so many things here remind me of france, from the language (duh) to the architecture, to the food and supermarket products! i'm running out of moisturizer, but never fear since they carry my french brand here!



have no idea what to bring back for souvenirs, since there are no indigenous natural resources here really, no handiwork or craft-type things like in kenya, sudan, ethiopia, nigeria. better for me, although would be nice to bring something back to remember this little country by. maybe this weekend if i manage to get out of the city! otherwise i'll be lounging by the pool for like 15 minutes before i decide it's waaaay too hot to be outside. take care and will write again soon!

from djibouti!

hope everyone is doing well!! just wanted to send a quick note and let everyone know everything arrived in one piece this time, luggage and all! after almost 24 hours (plus a 12-hour layover in paris), got to djibouti sun morning, with the hot sun and humid air to greet us.

the first thing to hit me was how much stickier this place is than ethiopia, which sheds light on why people here only really work from 7:00am to 3:30pm, since it's just too hot to be active at all in the afternoon. once things close up, most people spend the rest of the day chewing qhat (sp?), the local drug of choice, a plant with hallucinogenic properties that you chew for hours....guess they get any amusement here they can! and for those of you wondering, no i'm not going to try it!!

i have to say, traveling with a former u.s. ambassador is definitely the way to go, as the ministry of foreign affairs was on-hand to meet us at the airport, shuttle us into a private, air-conditioned room, take care of customs matters, and collect our luggage for us! and saying we're with the u.s. embassy helped secure some pretty decent hotel rooms in an otherwise completely-booked hotel. so, all in all, a good day's work....with some long (and early!) days ahead of us. we'll be meeting with opposition and governing political parties, media reps, civil society organizations, other international organizations, and whoever else wants to give us their opinion of how the elections here will go.

so far this place has a very different feel than addis, much quieter and more low-key. djiboutiville is located right on the gulf of aden, so is surrounded by water, and its port is extremely busy, with thousands of containers coming through every day. there's also the presence of numerous military forces: u.s. camp, french camp, and german offices in our hotel! aside from the smoking, the germans haven't been too bad, and think we'll be bumping into them quite a lot. haven't seen many u.s. or french soldiers yet, since they keep on-base most of the time, but there are quite a number of expats in the city, probably how the french supermarket and the few higher-end restaurants stay in business!

anyways, will send more updates as i get settled in... am glad it's only for two weeks, as this weather is waaaay too hot for me!!

stateside for a weekend!

i'm back in the u.s. now, arrived in d.c. fri afternoon and then promptly spent about 6 hours in the car during rush hour on the drive down to nc... not so fun! but definitely good to be home, even if just for a few days....

yup, as most of you have come to expect, there's no such thing as stability in my life! here i was, having just gotten to rome on my way back from ethiopia, and the receptionist at the hotel told me i needed to call the office back in d.c. so the next thing i know i'm being asked whether i want to go to djibouti for two weeks, to help iri out with a pre-election assessment (election day is april 9). the temptation to continue making some sort of living, and the chance to practice my french, was too much for me to overcome, so i agreed!

so...after spending this weekend in nc doing laundry and running errands (bank, library, post office, etc.), i fly back to d.c. on monday morning and then leave for djibouti on thursday... craziness!! the current plan is to come home on april 2, so shouldn't be too bad!

had a fabulous day in rome, wandering around the city on foot (it's the best way to see a place!) and visiting st. peter's, vatican city, the coliseum, spanish steps, a few different piazzas (practically on every block), tons of fountains, eating delicious homemade tortellini and relaxing at an outdoor cafe with a cappucino. oh yeah, can't forget the yummy gelato either!!



as soon as i get my computer fixed up, i'll send pictures... can't wait to see some of you in d.c., and promise to respond to emails the next few days!! have a great weekend!

heading back...

this'll be my last post from ethiopia...since i'm leaving tomorrow! amazing how fast a month can fly by, although i have to say i'm ready to go home. maybe that's my limit in foreign places these days, around a month. for a variety of reasons, i've decided not to extend my stay here, and will be back in d.c. by friday!



it's been a whirlwind last week, but i finally got outside the city for a little bit! went hiking at mt. zuquallah -- an extinct volcano -- with a bunch of friends, about 45 km from addis...and let me tell you, the altitude kicked my butt! now i know i'm not the most in-shape person in the world, but it's not even that my legs were tired, just that i couldn't breathe!! had to stop about every five minutes to prevent myself from having a heart attack! our incentive to keep going was the pepsi stand at the top of the mountain, that and the monastery and crater lake. the view from the peak was beautiful and extends for miles...and it was nice to see a bit of greenery amidst the dry plains.

then the country director for iri got here on thursday, so it's been back-to-back meetings and administrative matters since then. have handed everything over to her so i'm breathing a big sigh of relief that it's all over and i'm no longer responsible for anything here! today will be spent packing and relaxing...maybe a chance to finally use the pool here, which i haven't yet done. apparently there is an abundance of natural hot springs in ethiopia, and the pool water here is hot spring water. hopefully it'll soak away all the stress of the past few weeks....

so it's off to rome for a few days, maybe i'll catch a glimpse of the pope from his hospital window....heehee. then landing at dulles fri afternoon, will probably spend the weekend in d.c. and then head back to north carolina on sun. i promise once i get home i'll send pictures and respond to emails individually! you'll also be able to reach me on my cell phone: 919-946-7777. can't wait to see people and catch up in person!!

home stretch?

Well, looks like I might be getting my wish of losing weight here, despite the bad start these first few weeks…. Think I had some bad Italian last night, and I’m hurting today! The food was excellent, but maybe I should pay more heed to the advice of not having too much salad or raw fish in Africa, since those kinds of foods might not always be the freshest…although I figured I was probably safe eating at one of the Sheraton restaurants. Oh well, there went my Sunday plans to get out of the city and take in some of the natural sights around here! At least Wednesday is a national holiday, so hopefully I’ll be feeling better then and can explore a little more!



It’s also been raining a lot the past two days, so probably couldn’t have done too much outdoors anyways. Started hailing like crazy yesterday afternoon and the storm cut off electricity a few times here…luckily the hotel has back-up generators on hand to make sure guests aren’t too uncomfortable… Plus staying inside just gives me more time to get work done in my hotel room/office, I guess…

Figure I must be doing something right since I’ve now had an offer from one of IRI’s partner organizations to stay in Ethiopia through the May 15 elections…. I’d be involved in long-term observation out in the boonies, probably in the southern regions, talking and interviewing local officials and residents, finding out what the conditions are like in advance of elections. Not sure I’m cut out for roughing it like that though….and for another two months! Part of me is definitely ready to go home, this whole working-all-the-time thing is starting to wear thin…but another part of me would love to stay on and at least see the outcome of the elections, see if all of this activity actually results in anything. And life in Addis can actually be pretty fun with all the expats around, and I’d look forward to getting to know the country better too. Then again, I didn’t come prepared to stay more than a month, and I’d need to file my taxes while I’m out here, among other things!! Perhaps the U.S. Embassy could come in handy here…

So once again, time to make a serious decision, something I really hate doing these days, especially when it concerns what I want to do with my life! In the grand scheme of things two months isn’t so much, but I really wonder if I have it in me, somewhat cut off from civilization as I know it. It’s strange because I never had these concerns when I spent those months in Kenya and Sudan, but I think it’s because I cared a lot more back then…. It’s somewhat harsh and perhaps a bit melodramatic, but I definitely feel much more disillusioned and jaded about development work now, which makes it difficult to sustain any sort of enthusiasm or excitement about what I’m doing.

Okay okay, enough introspective reflections!! I’ll let you all know whether I’m going back to the U.S. or sticking it out for another few months….ahhh!!

another long week!

Can’t believe another week is almost over… but continually making progress, so at least that’s something! Office is all set up, with supplies and furniture and equipment, just no phone lines or internet connection… welcome to Ethiopia!

The socialist-leaning government means almost everything is state-controlled, from property (government owns everything and leases to the people) to phone lines to cell phone sim cards (only available to people who are officially registered as ethiopian residents/citizens) to television stations and newspapers. Makes it that much harder to get things done here, but we get around….like registering things in our local staffs’ names and sub-leasing office and residence space. Just another layer of bureaucracy to get used to!!

Still in the midst of meeting different people and trying to figure out how we’re going to get everything we need to get done in the next few months!! Even though I’m not staying through the elections, a lot of the foundation has to be laid now…meeting with the electoral board, political parties, media groups, civil society organizations, and other government representatives/donors. For someone who’s not a fan of networking in general, keeping all these people straight and figuring out their “angles” is starting to become torturous!! Still, events do have their up-sides, like getting to meet the U.S. Ambassador and other high-level government officials at the Embassy National Day celebration this afternoon. Apparently the Embassy here doesn’t celebrate Independence Day on July 4 because the rains here are so heavy here during the summer, and most people leave town then anyways…so they hold their “National Day” in February….isn’t that hilarious?! I was looking forward to hot dogs and hamburgers (I know, I know….my all-organic diet has definitely gone out the window since I’ve been here, considering African diets are very meat and starch-heavy!)…but no such luck. Still, the food was excellent, catered by the best restaurant in town, and we had a mix of different ethnic foods, from Mediterranean to Tex-Mex to Italian (of course!), plus an array of drinks (I’m starting to become a gin-and-tonic girl…heehee) and delicious chocolate cake!! I could get used to this… Plus the U.S. Embassy compound is gorgeous, with huge eucalyptus trees (brought over from Australia) and an expansive lawn and tons of flowers. As lavish as the U.S. Embassy is, the Brits have it even better, complete with the best medical clinic and a private golf course on the grounds!! Think the Ethiopian government strategized and decided to grant these huge tracts of land to foreign countries to appease them and discourage them from colonization….just a theory though.

Anyways, it’s been a packed week, and think I’m going to have a quiet day of reporting and phone calls tomorrow. Plus I have yet to spend more than one hour on my exercise bike!! Need to stop eating so much and start exercising more…