Top 10 favorite Amharic Words

These may be the centerpieces of my Amharic, as I try to use these on a regular basis. I hope to retain them as a staple of my vocabulary.

10. Icka -- stuff, things
9. Rabash -- bold, tricky, cunning, crafty, downright sneaky, mischievous
8. Ishi --- ok, thanks, fine, I understand, fine,
7. Shintabait -- outhouse or toilet
6. Wushet -- Lies
5. Bakah -- Enough
4. Chigger Yellum -- No problem
3. Ow -- Yes
2. dabtara -- chorister, poet, dancer, herbologist, scribe, wizard
1. shamaggelly --- elder, old person

So, to give an affirmative answer, just make like you have been hurt. Number 6 and 7 just have the most appropriate onomatopoeia. Put some of these together for the endlessly useful parting catch phrase "Ishi bakah ciao" to indicate "ok, thats enough, bye!"

DC

Apprehending Abyssinia

With five days left in country, its time to begin the dismount. So I will repeat what Donald Levine said 40 years ago: Ethiopia "impresses me as endlessly fascinating." Particularly by the way things have developed and the things that have not developed. The fact that Ethiopia was the second Christian nation in the history of the world. The fact that it is one of two African countries to have been never colonized. The fact that it may be one of the safest cities in Africa AND one of the most sublime climates in the world. The fact that it is the 3rd highest foreign aid recipient in the world (after Afganistan and you guessed it, Iraq). Addis Ababa is a city of juxtaposition--it is a place of extreme contrasts. But in the meantime, some other fascinations, observations, intrigues:

---Ethiopians scorn eating while walking or moving about. However, Ethiopians freely urinate in public places openly without so much as a second thought (or decent concealment).

---Drivers are afraid of pedestrians while pedestrians are afraid of......rain? (as the saying suggests).

---People live securely behind gated, guarded walls while animals roam the streets freely.
---Ethiopians are more likely to pay for multiple shoe shines per week while foregoing all but the cheapest food available.

---Look down the street and you will see men holding hands with men while women are carrying backbreaking loads. I often wonder about the dynamics of Ethiopian development since it was never colonized. Obviously, its something to be proud of, but what I would like to know--has its independence been more fruitful than the seemingly positive by-products of colonization like infrastructure and civilized drivers? What do you think?

DC

There is No Me Without You

"I am not sick, its just too cold!" Haregewoin assures us from her bed at 10 AM when we finally arrive at the AWMOSA compound (its taken us three attempts). She is all bundled up under blankets, but cheerful and warm despite the rainy season chill. She welcomes us in and has coffee made for us. When we tell her we are from Georgia, her face glows and she leans up from her bed: "I am going there very soon!" She then tells us the story of a 1 year old orphan who was raped when she was 8 months old. Haregewoin is going to take her to the states for corrective surgery sometime in the next month.

Looking around the compound, we are flooded with all the sensory images from when we first read There is No Me without You. In fact, it almost feels like we have been here before. Haregewoin is as magnetic and charming as MFG suggests, which is not surprising considering her spot-on rainy season description.

As it turns out, its good we visited the orphanage today, because they are relocating next week. Her landlord just raised the rent 30%. In fact, most of the beds have already been moved and she is not accepting any more children until she settles in the new location down the street.

Since the girls have already moved to the new home, there is only a few boys left on the compound. Four of the boys are brothers and will be heading to Australia in a few weeks for their newly adopted home.


As we leave, she asks for our contact information to have during her stay in Atlanta. When asked about how she likes the states, she says she does not like the long journey or the cold weather but has no problem talking to large groups of people. We tell her that we hope to see her while in Georgia, and that she won't have to worry about the cold.

DC

Rainy Season

When we moved here, loads of folks told us it would get cold during rainy season. We smirked, and quietly laughed. Even at night, although the guards would wear Siberian trenchcoats with hooded gabbies and whatever blankets they could wrap up in, I would wear a light shirt and jeans. But every once and a while, the night air would carry a little bite if you didnt have on sleeves.

The last week of school took the jump. When the final bell would ring at 3:20, it would start raining heavy. As soon as everyone would reach their taxis and depart the compound, the rain would be gone. Clear skies again by 3:45.

Today I am wearing a sweater and wool socks. Rainy season seems to have been graciously late this year (so I am told). It seems that the teachers who left early missed the brunt of it. I was told that if its raining in the morning, it will most likely rain all day. Otherwise, it will rain in the afternoon.

This morning, it was raining, and my wool socks and sweater dont seem to be getting the job done. Its not that its that cold by definition. Instead, its the damp cold that gets in your bones. Meanwhile, I can think of at least one friend back home driving around the GH topless in his jeep loving on the summer heat.

DC

[obviously, the photo is a poor indication of what the torrents of rain can look like]

School's out (for the summer)

Today was the last day of class, hence the Alice Cooper title, and now we can really quote the Ethiopian's favorite bit of scripture: "it is finished!" I pulled some late nighters this week working on the Bingham video---today was the deadline for a screening at the farewell chapel. This of course meant that I would have to have something respectable to show for myself and would not have the pleasure of continually putting it off and off any longer.

Its hard to say if you are ever fully satisfied with something that you spend such enormous energy on, but it has reached the point where it is leaving less and less for me to gripe about after viewing it. Once its reached a consensus as to its completion, we will put it up online on Bingham's new site.

With loads of folk's help, from a variety of continents and with a variety of content, the promotional piece runs just over 5 minutes. The response was overwhelming, but I still just barely managed to corral my Grade 8 class together one last time for a photo before they escaped for the summer. There was a luncheon afterwards to send off all the teachers who are not returning next year. Half a dozen of them are leaving tonight--which means the compound will be more or less ours for the remaining two weeks.

DC

Shopping in Addis

Shopping in Addis Ababa, I have realized, is like going to yard sales on Saturdays back home. Or perhaps the more fitting way we refer to our great pastime, garage sailing.
Note the top ten similarities:

1. To do it right, you should reserve the whole day.
2. You never know what you might to find, even at the dodgiest of places.
3. You never know how much they are going to charge for things on a given day.
4. If you dont buy it when you see it the first time, it may never be there again.
5. Sometimes you can even find brand new things and things that have not been opened before.
6. You may or may not need to ask 3 or 4 people to explain the origin of an item.
7. Items can be displayed just about anywhere, for example the sidewalk, streetside or elsewhere.
8. If you are hoping to find one thing in specific, your chances are significantly reduced.
9. There is generally at least one person who wants to stay in the car at the sight of some of the stores.
10. Haggling is the name of the game.

Now if we can just find out a way to listen to Car Talk on the way in between Fantu and Bambis.

DC

Addis Broadside

Heres a project I did early after our arrival here (it only took me 5 months to get it online!). Consider it a trailer, a tiny glimpse of a larger project yet to come. Unfortunately, the quality leaves several things to be desired.



DC

Wedding Videography

On many weekends in Addis, you will be bombarded by a barrage of horns honking, then witness a long
processional of cars led by a truck with a fellow hanging out the window, hoisting a videocamera on his shoulder pointing at a white Mercedes with a ribbon on the hood. There's a distinct sensation that this type of parading would never be permitted in 'no cruise zones," or perhaps some type of funeral procession has gone seriously wack. But as it seems, almost every wedding employs this ritual in Addis, apparently an integral component of Ethiopian weddings.

So when I filmed a wedding on Saturday, it was to my relief that I was not asked to sit on a doorwindow filming a car drive down the street. One of my student's older brother was getting married and I was asked to do the videography. I was reluctant to do it at first because my wedding videography days are in the past (so I had hoped!) and I am primarily occupied with two projects already. The fact that I had very little instruction regarding expectations concerned me because of the nature of wedding videographers in Addis: aggressive, ubiquitous and all up in the bride/groom's grill.

This of course, aint the way I like to do things, so I was happy that no one seemed to scowl at me as I did my best at 'blending' myself into the surroundings, as my uncle taught me to do. The ceremony and reception were largely western in feeling, but the entire crowd of guests sang songs throughout the duration of both. It was joyous revelry in the best sense of the word.

I was glad to have filmed the day for the newlyweds, now if I can just find a moment to edit it for them before 02 July.

DC

Attack of the Hippo

Two of the 10th graders on our trip are avid hunters. In fact, they had to be reminded not to sneak their bows or other such deadly weapons onto the van. Of course, as soon as we arrive on the compound, an air soft pistol emerges and thereafter the bargaining for new weapons ensues.

One out of every four guards down-country carries an old soviet rifle. The other three carry 6 foot long spears. The spear tips are well crafted and the opposite end is weighted to balance the piece into a flying javelin for accurate defense and other things like, hunting.

By the third day, all 7 males (5 students and both male leaders) are all slinging spears on the way to breakfast, devotions and other daily activities. The students negotiated to buy the homemade spears from the guards for 70-100 ET Birr each. Empty water bottles are practice targets, and each night several of the guys dress in their camo get-up and disappear into the forest with headlamps.

The final night, we have a bonfire on the beach and sing and talk with hot chocolate and snacks. At one point, there is a sudden crash in the water and one of the students begins beefing up the fire. Another students flips on the headlamp and peers into the darkness. The rest of us don't pay it any mind.

Before long, the two students are clutching their spears and interrupt the fireside chat: "Ok, we need to get moving." Of course, this is rude in the midst of group discussion, so they must urge us a second time: "I think we have a hippo just come offshore and we need to get out of here." They go onto to suggest that everyone should stay calm and not worry that Hippos are one of the fastest land animals in Africa and kill more people every year than lions. Before we leave, the two guys in camo grab sticks still blazing with fire in one hand and poise their spears with their other hand over their head. Of course, I have my spear and naturally follow suit. But instead of a firestick in my other hand, I have a kettle of hot chocolate. As we near the beach's end, they look over their shoulder and remind us not to come in between a hippo and the water. Apparently, thats what makes them panic.

The 12 passenger van awaits us at the top of the hill. We only have to make it back there. Right before we clear the beach, the student in the front drops his torch and we spill into each other. With only flashlights now, the groups peers left, then right. I quickly suggest to keep moving and soon we are encouraged to be loud and make as much commotion as possible. By the time the group has reached the van, the two camo students have vanished back into the woods. We get in the van, and following our good adult leader instincts, we drive immediately back to the cabin, leaving them to spear hippos alone.

DC

The final week of school

As good as it was to escape the Addis pollution and classroom shenanigans for a full week, it was even better to be back at Bingham, home again. The Langano outhouse, AKA the Shintabait in Amharic, could have been much worse. The food went over splendidly (of course), but the kids had to be tracked down for every meal and for each session of KP.

When we arrived home Friday afternoon, we realized a new void, and the creeping sensation of departure looming. Our good friends, the Millers, left while we were away. They originally had intended to stay 2 years but due to a glitch in the family planning, are now returning to Ohio to expand their empire. Little Miller #2 is due in Sept. But of course, the most painful part about this whole situation is that T-Man (age 3) has left with them.

What this means is that the mass exodus is about to begin. By next Monday, the majority of folks from Bingham will be gone. With only 5 days of classes left, our time here is vanishing before our eyes.


P.S. T-Man did not like to be disturbed while eating his precious Starbursts.

DC

Back from Langano

The trip was delightful for a number of reasons, but chiefly for getting out of the classroom and seeing more countryside over the 2 days of traveling, and 3 full days at Langano.

9 students and 4 adults is a good number for driving down country for four hours. We stayed at the SIM compound by the lake, which has a school for about 200 kids, ranging from 7-20 years old. Since no one has birth certificates, if you can wrap you arm over your head and touch your opposite ear, your old enough to enroll. We painted their 4 classrooms and then played with the school kids in the afternoons. We taught them how to play Bingo, Checkers, and the art of Legos.

I brought out the clown balloons and as soon I squeaked out a little wiener dog, the kids would all grab it and pop it instantly. Everytime. It would be safe to say they had not seen a balloon before, much less a rubber dog with a poor figure.

Since everyone there speaks Oromo, even the 10th Graders who knew Amharic were at a loss trying to say the word for Duck and Goose. So instead, we taught the kids how to play "horse, horse, donkey." It was a smash hit. After about 10 minutes into the game, a 8 year old girl patted my head and called me a donkey. Naturally, I tore off after her. She soon realized that I was going to catch her, so she quickly turned off the circle's track and ran barefoot into the woods. I had no choice but to follow suit. When I caught her, I instantly realized why she sidestepped at the last minute. I ran directly into a evil thorny briar patch of needles. At this point, the kids really like this 'horse, horse, donkey' game even more.

Black Gold

Its hard to imagine sorting coffee beans all day long for 50 cents. But thats what the women make at the Export Coffee Factory where they sit for 8-9 hours corralled in long rows, endlessly separating bad beans from good beans. The conveyor belt keeps an ample supply at their fingertips, and they hardly look up from their work when our class of 21 8th graders enter the factory to see for ourselves what the Black Gold documentary so powerfully portrays.

Even though the Oromio Coffee Farmers Union doesn't seem to have done anything for these working conditions or wages, they are dramatically improving the circumstances for Ethiopia's coffee farmers. Particularly now with the Black Gold documentary telling their story. Ethiopia, whose claim to fame is the invention of coffee, exports the good stuff all over the world. The country is pretty much dependent on it, as it more or less keeps the "economic pistons pumping." However, even as the coffee industry as risen dramatically over the last few years, the Ethiopian farmers are still getting a pitiful price for their pure product.

Our class really enjoyed watching it, and it has some great footage of Addis and the Ethiopian countryside. If you happen to see it, you might not ever enjoy your 5 dollar Venti soy latte double shot expresso Americano the same. And to hear that from my wife--now that's saying something.

DC

Lake Langano

(Written last Monday morning, 04 June)

The MTW team from Athens, GA arrived on Friday for two weeks, which makes leaving for Lake Langano on Monday somewhat poor timing. But we are chaperoning the Grade 10 trip until Friday, and it means another venture down country. It’s a four hour trip, which means it will be the farthest south we will have ventured from Addis. Our third descent into malaria country.

Betsy is responsible for all the week's cooking, and since there will only be about 13 of us, it wouldn’t seem that big of a job. She started a week in advance and has been to roughly a half dozen shops to find enough supplies, materials, etc. We also had our houseworker helping cook for the past two days. Our entire apartment is brimming with food. We have held the Andy G mantra close to the heart while planning: “The trip can be terrible, it can rain everyday, and nobody have any fun, but as long as there is great food, everyone will have a blast!” Any time that Betsy heads to the market for ‘one last thing,’ I try to eat some of the delicious food without her noticing. I have been unsuccessful so far.

Meanwhile, grades are due today (Monday), so I have done nothing else than grade tests, quizzes and assignments that have been waiting for me all semester. Finally, I am done. After hours and hours of marking, it feels good. Now, if 15 June is the last day of class and grades have already been submitted, what do we do the last two weeks of school? I have no idea, which is why I am going Langano!

If you have any ideas what we should do the last week of school, or can think of any ideas other than grade their Nintendo Wii form/skills, leave us a comment. Otherwise, we will be putting the Wii up on the big screen!

DC

Journey to Bahir Dar

Since we spent more time on the road than we did awake in Bahir Dar, its only fitting to describe the journey in all its dusty detail. Escaping Addis Saturday morning, the highway is not only paved but smooth. This lasts for almost two hours, but the superbly constructed pavement is quickly forgotten because (just like in Addis) it is mainly a pedestrian footpath and 80 kph automobiles are inconveniences. Before passing Debra Libanos, we pass at least 4 overturned, upside-down trucks. The truck's cargo still litters the roadside. Groups of people have lined up to watch the spectacle and some of them are selling portions of its contents.

From there, approaching the Blue Nile Gorge is an hour descent into dust and gravel. The road is unpaved, unforgiving, and makes both genders wish they had worn sports bras. The whole way down, bananas and pringles cans are rolling around the back and dust is pouring in the windows. At the bottom, we forget that all bridge photography is considered terrorist scheming--prompting confiscation or deletion. I stow my camera as the guard flags us down and the interrogation begins. I quickly confess that Jim is guilty and should be searched. Thus, he has to manually delete any jpeg with vague similarities to the vicinity.

After 10 hours of driving, we arrive in Bahir Dar. Its too dark to find our first choice hotel which is known for its 'personality'. Our second choice hotel makes up in cleanliness what it lacks in ambiance, or so the Lonely Planet tells us.

Sunday we pay 300ETB to see the island monasteries and the outlet of the Nile. I have the Sony FX1 wrapped up in B's raincoat and each time the rickety boat takes a surge I wonder how I am going to tread water and keep the camera above my head. Before long, we pass a hippo swimming in the water and I wish I could trade my breakfast for some Dramamine.

The monasteries are several centuries old and have communion services twice a year. Each one has a 20ETB entrance fee. If you've seen one,...

The Blue Nile Falls are instantly the highlight. Even though most of the water has been diverted to a hydroelectric dam, its breathtaking. Of course we pay for a guide, mainly to fend off children selling local fare (which might be mistaken for folk art) and to tell the little guy playing the flute to hold still for the faranj with the video camera.



The drive back on Monday is the same thing all over again except when instead of passing cargo trucks, we pass a passenger bus which has slipped off the highway over the mountainside. It dangles almost vertical on the steep mountainside, crushed by its fall. Right about then, I decide I wont be taking public trans across Ethiopia, even if an all day journey is only 50ETB.

DC