Eid Mubarak

Yesterday was Eid-ul-Adha or Eid-ul-Arafa as they say here. I knew that this would be the day that I miss my family and I was dreading spending it alone. However I needn’t have worried as I was surrounded by friends all day.

First I went to the mosque for Eid prayers with one of the teachers in my compound. It was great to see so many Muslims at the mosque as they are definitely a minority in Debre Birhan (The vast majority of people here are Orthodox Christian).

Then straight after, I was invited to a friend’s house. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I went to her house as she doesn’t speak much English and my Amharic isn’t good enough to have a conversation yet. But all was well as her husband and children’s English was very good. They were all welcoming and I really enjoyed my time at her house. But it did feel like I was being fed constantly for the six or seven hours I was at her house! It was the first time I ate meat in Ethiopia as I there aren’t any Halal butchers in Debre Birhan and I don’t fancy buying a live sheep (which is what everyone else does). I was able to try dorro wat, which is a traditional dish that Muslims and Christians make on special days, to be eaten, as always, with injera. It was very nice.

After that I went to another friend’s house for a coffee ceremony and then I visited a fellow volunteer who was also celebrating Eid. In the evening I went to another friend’s house. Overall, it was a great day even though I missed my family.

(I'm sorry that there aren’t any pictures this time. I did take my camera to the mosque but ended up being too scared to take a picture.)