Wednesday 7th August- Clemy and Ione

Wednesday 7^th August- Clemy and Ione

So, second day in Addis and we are starting to feel a little more relaxed about the difference in culture. Although everywhere is poverty stricken we have noticed that most people are good natured and always have something to smile about. Driving around Addis we see the poorest of the poor but the children giggle and wave at us as we drive passed them and amongst the stares we get the odd smile from passers by.

We started this morning with a traditional Ethiopian breakfast again and then we traveled by bus to a wildlife park. When we got there we discovered that most of the park was closed due to construction. So Dawit our tour guide had a chat with the men running the park and they eventually let us in. Some of us went to use the toilet which was basically a pit with a toilet seat stuck on it – not that much fun but still usable. It was in the cubicles that we notice that there were quite a few ants in there. Now we’re not talking about the tiny, harmless ants you get in the UK. These beasts were three times as big with huge stingers on the end and a very bad attitude! It was after I’d walked several paces away from the toilet that I realised they were all over my trousers and I could feel a strange stinging sensation in my legs.

As we walked around the park- after I’d hysterically pulled several ants out of my legs to find that they’ left several red marks – we all got covered from the knees down in mud. It’s the rainy season here so we get sudden downpours but collectively they make any kind of track really REALLY muddy, so for those with sandals or cropped trousers on it was a rather squelchy experience. Nevertheless it didn’t stop us from having fun taking pictures and looking at the animals. It was amazing to get so close to cheaters and lions and a 200 year old tortoise. We were told that you can tell the age of a tortoise by how many rings they have on their shells – a bit like wrinkle lines and a person!

On the way back Dowit bought us some bananas, it was nice to know that we were eating local produce that hadn’t been flown in from somewhere. We got back and had lunch at the hotel – mostly bread, pasta and chips but it was good after a morning a being bitten and covered in mud!

We’re all having so much fun and can’t wait to get to Gondar tomorrow and meet all the children we’re going to be working with - we will report tomorrow!

Ione and Clemy J xxxxxx