Wonderful and Delicious Food and Hospitality

Of all the experiences we had on the trip to Ethiopia, my favorite was being invited to peoples’ homes and getting to eat lots of food and hang out. We were invited for dinners and lunches and always overwhelmed with home cooked meals and hospitality. We ate traditional fare mostly, shiro, injera, doro wat (chicken stew), vegetables (carrots and cabbage), bread, eggs, beer, and coffee. The first home we went to was my teaching partner, Genet’s, for dinner. Kidist did the coffee ceremony for us there. I don’t have any pictures of the wonderful meal that Genet made, but it was delicious.

Kidist pouring coffee for the coffee ceremony at her family home

 The second home we went to was Tedalech’s, Barbara’s teaching partner for lunch. Tedalech and her sister made an amazing meal and presented us with a traditional coffee ceremony. We also had an Ethiopian liquor that tasted like ouzo and was quite powerful.

Tedalech and her sister

The beautiful meal they prepared

Injera under shiro and an assortment of veggies and rice

Mulu invited us to her home for lunch the following week. Mulu was Stacy’s teaching partner and is a young, independent woman. She has her own apartment in a complex. The choice to live on one’s own as a woman is still a social-demographic trend gaining traction in Ethiopia.

The meal mulu prepared

Stacy, Kidist, me, Elaine, and Dag

Sisay the bajaj driver and Elizabeth at Mulu's

The last home we were invited to was Elizabeth’s (pronounced Elza-bet in Amharic), Elaine’s teaching partner and the principal of Negat Kokeb. Elizabeth made another beautiful meal and invited us all to participate in the coffee ceremony, grinding the coffee became a team effort.

Mulu at Elizabeth's doing the coffee ceremony

Me in Elizabeth's living room with the dinner meal behind me

Being invited into homes was fun and so special, we were able to not only see another culture but participate with joy. I am excited for our Ethiopian teaching partners to come to Vermont so we can share our foods and culture with them.

Teaching

After two days of observation, one day in Genet’s classes and then one day observing other teachers in the school, I had two days of teaching on my own…well I was observed by an average of 10 teachers in addition to the 50-60 students who were in each class. The curriculum in Ethiopia was completely scripted; I was told to follow the book and kindly chastised when I did not, which was always. The two lessons I prepared for (there was some impromptu teaching thrown in to the mix as well) were a grade 9 geography class on temperature and weather and a grade 9 English class on types of nutrients and nutrition. 

Genet's Grade 5 Geography (this class was all in Amharic and I could understand none of it)

Mintesnot's 5th Grade English

In Ethiopia, classes are taught in Amharic until grade 9, at which point all instruction happens in English. High School goes through grade 10 and students who wish to go on to college must pass a state test in order to go onto their last two years of high school and another test to go on to college. Students who do well on the test to go to college are allowed to pick their majors all other students are assigned a major by the state.

Vice Principal Adela's 5th Grade English Class

Teaching under this model gave me a deeper appreciation of the autonomy we have as educators in Vermont and the importance of preserving that professional autonomy. While designing our own curriculum is a lot more work than reading from the state-created script, it is so much easier to respond to the needs of students when you have the freedom to reteach what needs re-teaching and shift gears when an unexpected, but extremely important question arises. I don’t have pictures of me teaching, unfortunately, but I do have pictures of the classrooms in which I was working for the two weeks I was in Ethiopia.

Genet's 9th Grade Geography Class

We were starting right at the start of the second semester. Over the course of the two weeks we were there, the classes went from about 5-10 students to about 60-70 students (yes, in one class, at one time). Genet explained to me that the children and youth in Ethiopia often work and will help their families during the school breaks. Many families are living a subsistence existence and students will take extra time at the start of the semester to work before returning to school. Genet shared that this can be a big problem as it leads to students getting behind in classwork and dropping out eventually. While an education can lead to a bigger income and greater socioeconomic mobility, the reality of eating or not on a day-to-day basis trumps the dream of situational improvement. We had many conversations about this and the challenges students face in Ethiopia.

The Wedding

One of the highlights of the trip for me was being invited to the wedding of one Dag Zeru's sister. 

The wedding was a combination of traditional Amharic culture (an ethnic group in Ethiopia) and more common western traditions. We went for the lunch portion of the wedding (which included vows at the church, lunch at the family home and exchanging rings, and an evening dinner and reception with dancing).

We had the opportunity to witness an Ethiopian Orthadox ring ceremony, hear traditional call and response Amharic music, and eat delicious food. We were seated with honor across from the bride and grooms' families at the front of the tent. The bride wore a white wedding gown and the groom wore a tux. The bride's mother and grandmother wore traditional Amharic clothing and hair stylings. In this instance, the pictures can express more than I ever can with words:

Entering the tent, lots of guests, singing, and music

Dag's mother and grandmother in traditional Amharic clothing and hair

Ethiopian musician playing a massinko

Dag's family dancing at the wedding

Dag, his sister (the bride), and me

The priest, Dag's mom, Dag, and his grandmother

Overall, a wonderful and exceptionally special event to be invited to, we were honored beyond words to be included in the special day.

Bethel Pension

The Bethel Pension, motel that we stayed at was across the street from a famous hotel in Awassa called “Mountain Snug.” We would go across the street for breakfast, dinner, or an evening beer, but we spent a lot of time hanging out chatting, working, and resting at our home away from home. A practice that a lot of Ethiopian hotels use is having security guards who sleep just outside of the gates in a small hut. Bethel Pension has two young men who act as guards and gate keepers. In addition to opening the gates for us to go in and out all day and into the evenings, the guards at our hotel also served as bellhops getting us bottled water, toilet paper, and SIM cards.

Binyam, one of our security guards/bellhops and me. Seriously, the sweetest kid.

We all adored them and at the end of our stay we gave them each a headlamp since the electricity, including street lamps, goes out just about every night in Awassa.

Thing I Didn't Expect...

The thing that made me feel the most “I am not in the US any more” feelings in Ethiopia: scaffolding. I know that sounds random but this is what scaffolding looks like in all of Ethiopia, seriously, no reinforced metal or safety lines. 

 The scaffolding is made from trees; these trees are also used to make wheelbarrows, carts, and support beams in structures. Over the two weeks I was in Ethiopia, I grew accustomed to a lot of things – as in they didn’t even register for me as being different any more (animals in the streets, no flushing toilets, bajaj, etc) – but no matter where I was or what I was doing, seeing the tree scaffolding always made me stop and feel both amazed and terrified.

Coffee (Bunna) Ceremony

One of the major cultural differences between Ethiopia and the U.S. that hit me right away was the importance of honoring guests and ceremony in Ethiopian culture. An important ceremony in Ethiopia is the coffee ceremony, it happens daily and for significant events. The arrival of four American teachers was deemed an important event and the coffee ceremony is also a way to share Ethiopian culture with visitors. The coffee ceremony can happen indoors or out, we usually did it inside. Electricity is less available and not consistent in Ethiopia so much of the cooking, including roasting the green coffee beans happens over coal fires. The coffee beans are roasted and the water is heated over a small brazier filled with coal, there is little smoke generated in the process of roasting the beans…a phenomenon I have not been able to replicate when roasting beans over my stove back in Vermont.

Coffee Ceremony at Bishan Guracha school

The coffee ceremony has several parts, first the accoutrements:

Pot (jebena)

Jebena

Roasting pan

Mortar (mukecha) and pestle (zenezena)

Mat (grass or woven plastic, which symbolizes abundance)

Incense

Cups (cini)

Coffee Ceremony at Naget Kokeb school

Tedalech's sister grinding the coffee.

The process:

First the beans are roasted over the coals, the beans are rinsed thoroughly before they are roasted but not soaked. Next, water is heated in the coffee pot over the coals while the beans are ground. The traditional way of grinding the beans is with a mortar and pestle, but now electric grinders are also used. 

Once the beans are ground and the water is heated, the grounds are added to the water and placed back on the coals. The coffee brews, is cooled, and then reheated over the coals. 

I take a turn grinding coffee at Elizabeth's, I was not that good at it.

Once the coffee is ready for consumption a filter is placed over the spout, it is poured into small cups, the pour is not stopped completely as each cup is filled, so a continuous stream of coffee flows, some might spill but this is part of the ceremony. 

Kidist doing the continuous pour of coffee.

Bunna in a cini at Genet's 

The coffee is served black with sugar, or in more rural areas with salt. Milk or cream are not usually had with coffee and certainly not during coffee ceremony.

The traditional way of doing coffee ceremony involves three pours: the first round of coffee is strongest, water is added to the grounds again for a weaker brew, and finally the third round is weakest yet. The significance of the three pours is spiritual with the third cup being the most blessed and bringing the drinker closer to spiritual transformation.

While the coffee is being roasted, ground, and brewed, incense (usually frankincense) is burning in a small container in front of the brazier. The incense clears the air of bad spirits and, of course, frankincense brings to mind Christ’s birth. Coals from the brazier are added to the dish of incense throughout the ceremony.

The coffee ceremony can take up to two hours, it is a time to talk, relax, and appreciate and honor family and friends. Before and during the ceremony traditional snacks such as popcorn, bread, and toasted barley are shared.

Tedalech (right), her family, and Mulu after the coffee ceremony at her home.

First Full Day at School

I had my first full day at Bichan Gurascha School today. I observed Genet's classes and met her students. I also met with one of the English teachers and learned about the English curriculum and had an opportunity to speak with some of the other teachers during a break between classes. My fellow teacher traveler, Stacy Carter, has been kind enough to share her pictures and computer with me so I can finally share pictures of Bichan Guracha and the faculty and students I am spending time with during my two weeks. These photos are from our first day (Monday). 

Students greeting us at the gate

Students and a teacher at Bichan Guracha

Students in front of a mural.

                                        

Second Visit to Bishan Guracha School

Today I went to Bishan Guracha school and met with my teaching partner, Genet. She shared a wonderful plan for my time over the next two weeks. I also met the school principal and was re-introduced to the assistant principal and teachers of science, civics, English, Oromo, and math. I went to each of the classes in session and was welcomed by the students and introduced myself. The faculty and students were once again kind and generous in their welcome.

I am looking forward to the plan that Genet has proposed, as I will get to experience a number of classrooms and interact with students. Next week I will even have the opportunity to teach an English lesson.

The Plan:

• Observation of the teaching and learning process in Genet's classroom and those of her colleagues
• Observation of student group discussions
• Observation of continuous assessment
• Arrangement of the class
• Activities of students in different clubs (departments)
• Student engagement in culture (clothing, food, language, etc)
• Meeting with the teachers
• Teaching an English class
• Sharing a video created by my fellow Vermont teacher traveler Elaine Pentalari.

I have two additional items for my time at Bichan Guracha:

•  Share photos of the Walden Project and explain the program to the teachers
• Generate ideas through observation and participation about school culture and teaching practices I can bring back to the U.S.

In Awassa

We have arrived in Ethiopia after 36 hours of traveling (leave Ferrisburgh at 3:30, fly from Burlington to New York to Dubai to Addis Ababa then drive 4 hours to Awassa). I have so much to share but I am having some serious technology issues, so many of my detailed posts with pictures might have to be put up after I return in 10 days. We were met at the airport by Kidist, the director of AYCC. She is wonderful and is doing amazing work with AYCC and creating amazing opporunities for youth in Awassa. Dag, the financial officer of AYCC has also helped us navigate our first couple of days in Ethiopia.

Today we went to two schools, Neget Kocheb and Bichan Guracha. These are both elementary/middle schools and while the resources available to students and teachers are scarce, the teachers are enthusiastic, welcoming, and dedicated to their vocation. We were greeted with tremendous warmth and I am excited for the next two weeks. The students were curious about the "ferengi" or foreigners in Amharic and loved to greet us and introduce themselves to us.

I will write more when I can

What I Will Bring

Over the past month I have been getting items together for the trip. I got the requisite shots (yellow fever, typhoid, hep A, polio, etc), prescriptions for an anti-malarial, anti-biotic and picked up a bunch of over-the-counter meds (pepto, imodium, tums, sudafed, ibuprofen, etc), and hopefully found some clothes that will be conservative enough for Ethiopian Orthodox culture but not be too hot (we'll see). Also included in my bags: mosquito net, bug spray, sunscreen, and toilet paper).

In addition to my personal items, I am also carrying a number of items that have been donated to the traveling teachers to bring to Awassa. I have a number of gorgeous books that Elaine Pentaleri arranged with Flying Pig Books as donations for the schools we will be working with. The books were specially selected to be relevant for the students in Awassa. You can find plenty of donation horror stories online (Harlequin romance novels for school children, seriously) and we did not want to perpetuate that ridiculousness.

A selection from the beautiful books we are bringing with us to Awassa.

I am also bringing several pairs of shoes with me, donated by the Outdoor Gear Exchange consignment department. These shoes will go to Action for Youth and Community Change, who have a system for making sure donated items are distributed to those most in need.

The donated shoes.

Based on conversations I have had with my teaching partner, Genet, I am also bringing books that I have found useful in my own teaching practice to share with her and Bishan Guracha Primary School. Most of the books are about formative assessment and English instruction to second language learners. I hope these resources are useful to her and her colleagues, I will share more as these conversations unfold during my visit.

Only two more days!

Vermont to Ethiopia: a teacher exchange

Ever since I was a little girl, I have dreamed of going to the horn of Africa. I can't explain exactly why I have this dream or where it came from: perhaps it was bedtime stories of adventures that instilled a desire and love of travel or maybe the beautiful photographs of people, places, and animals in National Geographic that we got every month. Wherever this dream came from, I am able to realize it in one week. I am part of a group of five teachers from northern Addison County, Vermont, USA who are headed to Awassa, Ethiopia as part of a teaching and cultural exchange.

Awassa is in south-central Ethiopia. Image from: Waterman

This blog will be one way I document the experience and share my travels. We are working with two wonderful non-profits, the Willowell Foundation in Monkton, Vermont and Action for Youth and Community Change in Awassa, Ethiopia. I am partnered with Ms. Genet Gebregiorgis at Bishan Guracha Primary School, a social studies and geography teacher for grades 5-9. I am excited for my journey and looking forward to learning about education in Ethiopia and reflecting on my own practice as an educator.