Monday proved to be a productive day. I handed in the first draft of the Procurement Manual to Alem and to Birkti at the end of the day – exactly 2 weeks from receiving the assignment to the hour. I knew that it wasn’t perfect, but I felt as though it was a solid first draft and a good foundation to work off of for the final draft that will be composed later after feedback from Alem and Birkti.
Birkti didn’t waste any time giving feedback. Tuesday, she read through the draft and went to town, so to speak; adding, correcting, and commenting on various parts. I really appreciated it. I don’t necessarily see that as a failure on my part but as success in establishing a firm basis for intricate details to now be added so that a complete and extensive product is finished. My work is anything but through with this thing.
Aside from that, Birkti had some purchasing to do that day as well. She, Challachew and I went to a few tailor shops in the city to price and order new uniforms for the security guards. The first two places that we visited were rather conventional. They were along main roads and visible to the general public. However, the third one and the one from which the purchase was actually made was hidden away from the main road and it would take a bit of searching to find it. While Birkti and Challachew made negotiations with the shop personnel, I was being stared at and harassed by some a few of the kids that lived near the shop. They were amazed that there was a “ferenge”, or white foreigner, in their midst. At first they just kind of stared, but after I spoke to them, their mouths came to life. I’ve attached a couple photos of that experience below.
Birkti didn’t waste any time giving feedback. Tuesday, she read through the draft and went to town, so to speak; adding, correcting, and commenting on various parts. I really appreciated it. I don’t necessarily see that as a failure on my part but as success in establishing a firm basis for intricate details to now be added so that a complete and extensive product is finished. My work is anything but through with this thing.
Aside from that, Birkti had some purchasing to do that day as well. She, Challachew and I went to a few tailor shops in the city to price and order new uniforms for the security guards. The first two places that we visited were rather conventional. They were along main roads and visible to the general public. However, the third one and the one from which the purchase was actually made was hidden away from the main road and it would take a bit of searching to find it. While Birkti and Challachew made negotiations with the shop personnel, I was being stared at and harassed by some a few of the kids that lived near the shop. They were amazed that there was a “ferenge”, or white foreigner, in their midst. At first they just kind of stared, but after I spoke to them, their mouths came to life. I’ve attached a couple photos of that experience below.
Wednesday was the last day at MVP for one of the accountants. There was a small celebration ceremony for her just to wish her well in her future endeavors and to thank her for her time with this organization. It was nothing like I am used to. Everyone from the organization as well as Laura and I were invited and gathered onto the first floor where there was a circle of chairs surrounding a coffee table piled with assorted Ethiopian snacks and bottles of soda and water. Those with whom she worked said a few bits of thanks as well as all of the administrators and directors. Most of what was said was in Amharic, so Laura and I simply listened and went along with the flow of things. Finally after everyone had said their piece, Elisa presented her with a vase and some flowers just as a sign of thanks. It was much quieter and a bit more formal than American farewell festivities, but it was a nice ceremony nonetheless. The cultural experiences keep on coming.
Sarah came home on Saturday after about three weeks in the village cluster. It was the first time that all three of us had been “home” together in Addis. We have been hoping that she would be joining us again. Her time in the village was physically trying as she had a difficult time finding ample food to fit her diet. In light of this, we met her at the airport with cookies as a part of our own “Sarah fattening project”. I’m not sure how long she’ll be with us since she’s now threatening to leave for four weeks in August to go to Kenya for some regional training. I don’t think we’ll be able to keep this girl home very much. She will be working on business planning in the village more often than originally anticipated, so I guess that Laura and I will be doing most of the holding down of the fort in Addis Ababa. All that we can do at this point is enjoy the spurts of time that all three of us are together and make the most of them, whether they involve traveling around Ethiopia or just playing card games at our dining room table. C’est la vie.
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