Debre Birhan

I am now in Debre Birhan where I will be based for the next year. I came here on Saturday morning.

Debre Birhan is a relatively small town north east of the capital, about 117km from Addis. It is over 2800 metres above sea level which means it is an area of high altitude. It is known as one of the coldest places in Ethiopia. Daytime temperatures are are warm if not hot throughout the year; however temperatures fall sharply at night. Since I’ve been here we have had beautiful, blazing sunshine. At night I wrap up warm in bed with two thick blankets - which happen to be locally made as there is a blanket factory in town!

Debre Birhan has a small university as well as the oldest teachers training college which is about fifty years old.

My house is in the compound of the college which is huge! I got lost in it on the way to another house (– however this probably isn’t surprising to those that know my sense of direction). College teachers who do not have their own housing live on the compound.

In my house I have a bedroom, a kitchen, a living room and a bathroom. I was very surprised to find a gas cooker and a fridge in my kitchen when I arrived. They were left behind by whoever lived in this house before me. There is also an 'injera' (Ethiopian flat bread) cooker. One day I might give it a try…..

I love the fact that I am surrounded by beautiful fields and a river. The views are amazing from where my house is.

There are a few local shops near to where I am, but to get to the centre of Debre Birhan is a bit of a walk, maybe 25 minutes. There is a small market every day, but a bigger market every Saturday.

Since I arrived I have spent most of my time cleaning my house. Teaching in the college will start in two weeks so I have some time to sort myself out, and get to know the place and meet people.

The people I have met have been extremely generous and kind to me. I have been invited to neighbours’ houses for lunch and dinner every day since I arrived.

Addis Ababa

So, what is Addis like?

I loved every minute of my time in the capital. The seeming randomness always put a smile on my face. For example, the farmers taking their goats for a walk along the street, the way children came up to me to shake my hand, two donkeys grazing on the grass on a highway, a little boy carrying a chicken in a carrier bag.....Oh and I love bamboo scaffolding, watching the builders working is really scary - a health and safety nightmare.

Addis is as busy and bustling as any capital city. However, the fact that it is developing country or ‘third world’ country is inescapable. Although some of the roads are good, most of them are not. There are huge potholes and ditches which mean cars and buses often get punctures or break down.  Poverty is evident everywhere. Walking down most streets in the centre of Addis, you will see homeless people and beggars every few steps. A lot of the beggars have disabilities or mental health problems. It can be quite intimidating to walk down the street, especially as a ‘ferenji’ or foreigner, as they are perceived to be rich and some beggars are very persistent. Most houses are shacks made of whatever can be found. On the street, sellers try to sell whatever they can, even if it’s just six onions.

That is not to say that there aren’t any rich people in Addis. On the outskirts of the city there are the most amazing houses. One of them is world athlete, Haile Gebrselassie’s, house.

The city is constantly changing and a lot of improvements are being made. For example, the roads into and out of the city are rapidly getting better and a lot of new buildings are being built.

In-Country Training

I am currently in the middle if my In-Country Training which consists of learning about Ethiopia’s culture, geopolitics and language (which is Amharic) amongst other things.

Firstly, the Red Cross Centre where we are staying is nothing like what I imagined. We have running water in our showers, electricity most of the time and even Wi-Fi when it works. Every day we get up at 7.30am to start training at 8.30am – even on Sunday! We normally finish at about 6pm when we have dinner, after which we relax. Most of us including myself go to sleep quite early. This is probably due to the high altitude which takes time to adjust to and the fact that the training is quite heavy going at times. The best thing for me is learning more about the actual job that I will be doing and the Amharic lessons.

We have Amharic lessons nearly every day. The teacher has quite traditional methods of teaching which is very interesting to experience. But I love how she sometimes suddenly starts singing to us, in fact she is teaching us a nursery rhyme little by little each lesson. So far, I can count to 29 in Amharic, greet people in the morning (not in the afternoon or evening yet), say thank you, ask the price of things, and I know the names of a few fruits. Oh and I can also tell the time when it’s anything past the hour.

The food is very different to Indian or English food that I am used to. The main dish that Ethiopians eat is a flat bread made out of teff flour called injera, on which are served several different thick stews. Before I left the country (having Googled Ethiopian food) I imagined injera to be similar to a normal Indian chappati. I couldn’t have been more wrong! Its texture and taste is completely different. It’s strangely sour and spongy, and it’s served cold. The thick stews are made from vegetables, lamb, chicken, beef, lentils or chick pea flour. All the food is very flavourful and the Ethiopians are very keen on their spices including chilli. I do like the food, especially the stews that are made from chickpea flour and lentils.

Today we went shopping in the market for essentials for our house. We were supposed to use the Amharic we’d learnt and to bargain with sellers; however, those who have been abroad with me know that I can’t bargain in English to save my life let alone in another language! So I didn’t bargain much, but I did get my things – I got a cooking pot, cutlery, plates, a mug and bedding. VSO are providing us with most other essentials including a water filter, mosquito net and an electric cooking stove. The market is very big with stall holders selling everything from spices to sofas. Most of the stalls are tiny but the stallholders are eager to show you what they have got.  

I can’t wait to set up my house with my things. I think we’re all just itching to get started now.

I'm here!

I finally got myself on the flight. My suitcases scraped in at just under 46kg. (Yes I have brought my hair straightener - don't laugh). At the airport I managed to find a few other VSO volunteers who were also going to Addis. Once we were on the plane, we found nearly all of the others, about 30 in total. We were all a mixture of nerves and excitement, which meant that none of us got any sleep on the plane. We were all eager to find out if anyone was going to our final destination with us. I found that no one was going with me to Debre Birhan, but that a few others were going to be taking on the same job role as me in different town and cities. I even found a fellow ESOL tutor! This is useful to know as we can use each other for support.
The night flight was long but after the necessary security checks we were warmly greeted by other VSO volunteers and staff. Everything was well organised and we were soon directed to our minibuses which transported us to the Red Cross Centre where we will be staying until the 22^nd of September.
But this was not before my little incident! During security where all bags are checked, I accidently forgot to pick up one of my bags. I only realised my missing bag once I was out of the airport, so I asked one of the volunteers to look after all my things while I went back in. Everyone from VSO was outside waiting to be shown to the minibuses. I rushed back into the airport and didn’t have difficulty getting my bag. But when I got back outside, there was only the one volunteer looking after my bags. Everyone else had gone, and he didn’t know where the others had gone. We were alone for quite some time trying to find our group. I tried ringing the others but there wasn’t a signal on my mobile. We then thought that if we go back into the airport, someone would be able to assist us. Unfortunately we couldn’t get in, because by now there were very scary looking security guards at the door who refused us entry. There weren’t many people to ask for help and those we did ask didn’t understand English. It was quite a scary situation to be in after being awake for nearly 24 hours. I was just grateful I wasn’t on my own!
Fortunately our party didn’t go without us and someone came looking for us and everything was fine after that.

The volunteers are health professionals, IT technicians and teaching professionals. At the moment we are all in Addis Ababa for In-Country Training (ICT) for ten days. After that we will travel to our own towns or cities where our placements are.

Final Preparations

On Sunday the 11^th of September I will go to Ethiopia where I will stay in the capital, Addis Ababa, for about two weeks. After that I will travel to a town called Debre Birhan, which is to be my home for the next year. There I will work as a VSO volunteer in a teacher training college to improve the quality of the teacher training programme.

VSO are very experienced with sending volunteers abroad to developing countries to improve core structures within communities to help them progress. Their training for volunteers is thorough and intense. It consists of self-briefing, two residential training courses, two online training courses, a health and safety workshop, an accredited reflective log and in-country training! Both the residential training courses were well-structured and very thought provoking. The training helps to put things into perspective and makes you question whether volunteering with VSO is really right for you. The face to face training was also a good opportunity to meet with like-minded people to share our worries and concerns (as there’s no shortage of those!).  

I am in the final stages of preparing to leave my life in the UK. I am packing my things and saying goodbye to family, friends and colleagues. There were so many things that I wanted to do before I left but the time to leave has suddenly crept up on me and I’ve run out of time! I had a relaxing summer, but the last couple of weeks have been extremely busy.

The problem with my preparations to go is that I have very little idea of what I will need when I am there. However, I have managed to fill two suitcases. I guess I will soon find out what I should have brought.