I have not written in what seems ages to all us mortals but it only feels this way because so much has happened. "This is the way of things" to quote Yoda.
The past few weeks have been filled with teacher observations, cultural exchanges, meetings and living and learning (to say the least). Our lives have become a tumbling of moments and a web of new experiences. I have about eight schools in my cluster. Each school has about 14-16 English teachers. My main school where I have an office (yes, an office) is where I have been spending the better portion of my weeks here. I have now observed all of my English teachers, grades 1-4, at Adi Haki Complete Primary and I have begun my tour of the other schools starting at Adi Howsi Primary which is closer to our house.
Today I went to Adi Howsi Primary with my Wareda Supervisor, Fantay who when I first met him told me to remember his name like the soft drink, or like Coke if I couldn't remember that. Coke, he explained, because he is dark and I am light. He is one of those people who seems constantly driven and always looking for solutions. He always wants to know my opinion of the schools and their teachers. He also wants to know what I have planned for making Ethiopia's teachers better. Good thing he is always smiling and making funny jokes. I am thankful to have such a driven colleague I just hope those expectations are not disappointing when I haven't changed the whole of Ethiopia's education woes. We met the principal, Atakilty (meaning literally, vegetables) in his office and immediately got to work. He is a funny man with a beer belly except here we call it an injera belly. He brought in all the English teachers grades one and two and I introduced myself and why I was there. I am not sure if Atakilty pulled these teachers out of their actual class but long gone are the days that I question or intervene on how things are done. I'm just happy to get things done.
We end our meeting and I walked with one of the teachers to her classroom.
As I am observing the classes it is so obviously impossible for the students to concentrate because I am probably the first "Ferenji" to have stepped foot in their classroom or better yet, on their school's campus. Before I enter a teacher's classroom I apologize for the utter chaos I am about to inflict on her students. It is truly like being an alien. The children just stare at you or giggle at you because they are so embarrassed that you even caught their eye. They tap each other on the shoulder and point you out even though everyone has seen you enter the class and know that you there. How could they not? Children from other classes will surround the door and yell into the classroom to gain my attention. I give these teachers immense credit for trying to teach their classes as normally possible.
Most of the teachers I have seen have impressed me very much. During training we were given a certain idea of teachers and how they teach. I was terrified that I would go into every classroom and see the same idea that was instilled in us during training. I won't really go into this generalization seeing as I think most, if not all, of these teachers are products of their environment. But yet again, I was forced to change my opinion and not generalize. When will I learn? A lot of my teachers practice Active Learning Techniques, in America we just call it teaching. You can tell that the teachers here are trying to make connections between the activities and the subject material the students need to know to go further with their education. But there is a disconnect that no one can seem to pinpoint. This is where I and my husband come in. We are supposed to help these teachers with their English teaching methodology, speaking, reading comprehension (not just decoding), and proficiency. We have to improve all of these things that take most teachers in America four years and a degree to master. These teachers have been teaching longer than I have been alive and they barely speak the language they are teaching. But they are trying! You can see how eager they are to improve their skills or at least their student's skills.
So far I have observed 19 English teachers at two schools. This week I will finish at Adi Howsi and move on to Zekere Primary. The momentum has started and I now feel that I am on a ride that will only slow when we are on the plane to our In-Service Training that will last for two weeks in November. There we will see all of our friends again, get hot showers, and food is provided. A vacation with lots of work to do. So American.
On October 5 Scott and I had our Installation Meeting. This is a meeting where we invite the best English Teachers, our counterparts, all of our Principals, Wareda Supervisors, and our Zonal Head to discuss Peace Corps and our roles within the community and their schools. Every new Education Volunteer at site has this meeting and before ours we were roaming around the internet and scoping out our friends to see how their meetings were going. Across the board it seemed that people were having a difficult time getting people to even show up. Determined for this not to be our fate Scott and I set out to make sure this meeting would be a success. Thanks to my counterpart, Igziharia (who I will forever owe for all she has now done for me) and one of my colleagues at work, Dessalay, we were able to secure a location for the meeting at Seti Hotel in Downtown Mek'elle. Thanks also to Dessalay we were able to secure the attendance of our most important guest and supporter, the Zonal Office Head. A teddy bear looking man named Zemenphis. Yes, just like the city.
The night before the meeting we had dinner with Daniel Okubit our APCD or Education Program Director at one our favorite restaurants in town that we now take everyone to if it's their first time in Mek'elle. It's a great, locally owned (by a woman!) place that has a great traditional food called "Tihlo" and the best tasting honey-wine called "Tejj". The atmosphere is relaxed and the staff welcome you like an old friend. I have actually made a friend there. Her name is Ako and she has taken to the habit of embracing me like a sister when I enter and leave the restaurant. She will put her arm around me and I put my arm around her shoulders. We stay like this for a while. We ask how we are doing in the limited language we can speak to one another. I in Tigrinya and her in in English. I look forward to these embraces whenever we decide to patron the place. It's like coming home sometimes.
At dinner we were able to relax and talk about our new life at site. Daniel wanted to know how we were settling in and we told him exactly the truth. We are extremely happy.We told him that we feel incredibly lucky to have been placed in such a magnificent, diverse, and prosperous city that is continuing its journey through development right before our eyes. How we instantly became friends with our fellow volunteers at site, Brittany, Keith, and Diane. How we couldn't be happier in our schools and with our counterparts. He responded by saying that it is nice to hear those things because it means that someone has come along and "put their hands under my heart to keep it from sinking." Daniel has the very distressing job of placing volunteers in their prospective sites and then overseeing the Peace Corps Ethiopia's entire Education Project framework. In other words he is in charge of every volunteer's happiness during their service. He weighs his decisions with bull's eye accuracy and sometimes people aren't too elated by his decisions. He needs more credit from us Volunteers and a vacation.
Dinner ended happily with jokes and another lovely and warming embrace from Ako.
The next day I was so overwhelmed with anxiety about this meeting that I thought I needed about two hours to prepare. Mostly to make sure I wouldn't sweat through my shirt and pants. When we came to the Hotel after a day of observing we met Daniel and gave him our PowerPoint presentation and discussed the outline of the meeting while waiting for everyone to arrive. And arrive they did. Early too! We were able to get started about 15 minutes after the scheduled time which is pretty good here. The presentation (on Daniel's side) lasted about 1 hour and 30 minutes (all in Amharic, which he apologized for seeing as he was in Tigray). He would often pause and give us the translation of things in English. Then it was our turn. Our presentation was much shorter consisting mostly of our qualifications and our time spent in Ethiopia thus far. We added some pictures for some entertainment and aesthetic purposes.
However, when we told our teachers, supervisors, and the zonal head that this experience would most likely be one of the most significant experiences of our lives you could see the comprehension flicker on their faces from the idea that we were not just here to change what and how they do their jobs but that we were also here to change ourselves for the better through them and our time here. After this exchange we had a better appreciation of one another and how we could now move forward with our mutual goals.
After the meeting we had dinner and began preparing the foundation of our professional relationships for the next two years. There was definitely a change in the way people thought about us and why we are here. And we have since experienced a wave of understanding and determination from our colleagues that I can only hope results in the best of successes in the coming two years.
On to the more social aspects of living in this culture.
I and Scott were recently invited to the wedding of one of my teacher's sons. Scott couldn't make it so I went alone so as not to burn any bridges before I can even walk over them. Here in Ethiopia (as in some very extravagant weddings in the US) the weddings are a three day event and I was invited to the third and final day of the festivities. The event took place at Haymanot's (my colleague's) house but the majority of the guests were from the bride's side. Igziharia, again, was my guide and as we both walked up to the compound we could hear drums and singing from the inside. As we waited outside for someone to open the door I looked down to my right and through my sunglasses I saw this older man beaming at me. I really don't know why he was so happy to see me but I took this as a good omen for the festivities to come.
I knew I was in for something amazing. As we walked in I saw a sea of white. For special occasions, weddings and funerals, everyone wears white. I wore white knowing that it would probably be a good color to wear. (Imagine in America if other people wore white to a wedding. The bride might kill someone.) I was immediately offered food (of course) and then I was sat next to the bride and groom! Apparently I was considered an honored guest. In an American wedding if you didn't know the bride and groom and you just sat down next to them someone may kindly, or not so kindly, ask you to leave. The bride was dressed in a traditional dress. She did wear a western style wedding dress during the second day ceremony that greatly resembled an American wedding. It was held at a hotel and she was decked out in a princess-style gown and veil. She looked incredibly beautiful in her traditional dress though. Her hair was adorned with lavish gold jewelry and her hair was done up in what I am calling the Tigray Pimp My Hair style. (I know I am getting old. Sorry for the MTV early Millennium reference.) For being completely "traditioned" out, this young couple was fiercely modern. They made fun of me when I was fumbling with my very state-of-the-art camera.
The food was heart crushingly good. Spicy and Ethiopian. Just how I am starting to like my food. Because I had brought my camera and was instantly asked to take some pictures, messy fingers and all. I didn't have to take pictures for the bride and groom or their families, but I took them for my sake because as my very good friend Igziharia explained so well, this was culture. (Most pictures can be found on the Facebook.)
I was eager to document every moment of my time there. Everything was so new and wonderful. Everyone was so happy and happy that I was there. It was hard not to be grateful and excited to even have the opportunity to be a part of this celebration. The only thing that could have made that experience more perfect is if Scott could have seen it too. But I still had a blast and Scott got to take his nap. To each their own!
I needed to leave in a timely fashion because Scott's mom was going to call from the US. My only problem was that I was offered three different kinds of homemade drink. Wine and beer both made by my friend Haymanot. The beer called "Suwa" looked like it was poured from the ground complete with dirt and tiny bugs. But it was delicious. I was fine to leave because I was merely sipping but Igziharia being truly Ethiopian, was not allowed to refuse the drink put in front of her. Her being truly Ethiopian also means that she drinks on seldom occasions. Like holidays and celebrations. Suffice it to say she is a light weight.
When it was time to leave she asked me if we could just stay a little while longer so she could try and stand properly. I was all giggles at this. She was then telling me that her husband Gebre Merriam was at home and all alone just like "Mick" was. (Again, Mick is the name Scott has been deemed because our counterparts originally thought his name was McAllister and that is much too difficult for them to pronounce.) I replied, "Well, Igziharia, I think you will have to sleep at my house." She lost it. I mean she almost fell over laughing at my jest. She translated it to everyone there and they all began laughing. Maybe my jokes resonate well here or maybe Igziharia just had too much Tejj. Either way it was a nice moment and laughter and humor always cement friendships. Eventually we made it to the taxi with Igziharia holding onto my arm the whole time even in the taxi.
Since those last few weeks we have been working and finding time to relax with friends. We indulged in a marathon binge of Lord of the Rings accompanied by great food, compliments of this budding chef. It doesn't seem hard to find balance here and for that I'm grateful and fiending for more from this country and our life here.
The past few weeks have been filled with teacher observations, cultural exchanges, meetings and living and learning (to say the least). Our lives have become a tumbling of moments and a web of new experiences. I have about eight schools in my cluster. Each school has about 14-16 English teachers. My main school where I have an office (yes, an office) is where I have been spending the better portion of my weeks here. I have now observed all of my English teachers, grades 1-4, at Adi Haki Complete Primary and I have begun my tour of the other schools starting at Adi Howsi Primary which is closer to our house.
Today I went to Adi Howsi Primary with my Wareda Supervisor, Fantay who when I first met him told me to remember his name like the soft drink, or like Coke if I couldn't remember that. Coke, he explained, because he is dark and I am light. He is one of those people who seems constantly driven and always looking for solutions. He always wants to know my opinion of the schools and their teachers. He also wants to know what I have planned for making Ethiopia's teachers better. Good thing he is always smiling and making funny jokes. I am thankful to have such a driven colleague I just hope those expectations are not disappointing when I haven't changed the whole of Ethiopia's education woes. We met the principal, Atakilty (meaning literally, vegetables) in his office and immediately got to work. He is a funny man with a beer belly except here we call it an injera belly. He brought in all the English teachers grades one and two and I introduced myself and why I was there. I am not sure if Atakilty pulled these teachers out of their actual class but long gone are the days that I question or intervene on how things are done. I'm just happy to get things done.
We end our meeting and I walked with one of the teachers to her classroom.
As I am observing the classes it is so obviously impossible for the students to concentrate because I am probably the first "Ferenji" to have stepped foot in their classroom or better yet, on their school's campus. Before I enter a teacher's classroom I apologize for the utter chaos I am about to inflict on her students. It is truly like being an alien. The children just stare at you or giggle at you because they are so embarrassed that you even caught their eye. They tap each other on the shoulder and point you out even though everyone has seen you enter the class and know that you there. How could they not? Children from other classes will surround the door and yell into the classroom to gain my attention. I give these teachers immense credit for trying to teach their classes as normally possible.
Most of the teachers I have seen have impressed me very much. During training we were given a certain idea of teachers and how they teach. I was terrified that I would go into every classroom and see the same idea that was instilled in us during training. I won't really go into this generalization seeing as I think most, if not all, of these teachers are products of their environment. But yet again, I was forced to change my opinion and not generalize. When will I learn? A lot of my teachers practice Active Learning Techniques, in America we just call it teaching. You can tell that the teachers here are trying to make connections between the activities and the subject material the students need to know to go further with their education. But there is a disconnect that no one can seem to pinpoint. This is where I and my husband come in. We are supposed to help these teachers with their English teaching methodology, speaking, reading comprehension (not just decoding), and proficiency. We have to improve all of these things that take most teachers in America four years and a degree to master. These teachers have been teaching longer than I have been alive and they barely speak the language they are teaching. But they are trying! You can see how eager they are to improve their skills or at least their student's skills.
So far I have observed 19 English teachers at two schools. This week I will finish at Adi Howsi and move on to Zekere Primary. The momentum has started and I now feel that I am on a ride that will only slow when we are on the plane to our In-Service Training that will last for two weeks in November. There we will see all of our friends again, get hot showers, and food is provided. A vacation with lots of work to do. So American.
On October 5 Scott and I had our Installation Meeting. This is a meeting where we invite the best English Teachers, our counterparts, all of our Principals, Wareda Supervisors, and our Zonal Head to discuss Peace Corps and our roles within the community and their schools. Every new Education Volunteer at site has this meeting and before ours we were roaming around the internet and scoping out our friends to see how their meetings were going. Across the board it seemed that people were having a difficult time getting people to even show up. Determined for this not to be our fate Scott and I set out to make sure this meeting would be a success. Thanks to my counterpart, Igziharia (who I will forever owe for all she has now done for me) and one of my colleagues at work, Dessalay, we were able to secure a location for the meeting at Seti Hotel in Downtown Mek'elle. Thanks also to Dessalay we were able to secure the attendance of our most important guest and supporter, the Zonal Office Head. A teddy bear looking man named Zemenphis. Yes, just like the city.
The night before the meeting we had dinner with Daniel Okubit our APCD or Education Program Director at one our favorite restaurants in town that we now take everyone to if it's their first time in Mek'elle. It's a great, locally owned (by a woman!) place that has a great traditional food called "Tihlo" and the best tasting honey-wine called "Tejj". The atmosphere is relaxed and the staff welcome you like an old friend. I have actually made a friend there. Her name is Ako and she has taken to the habit of embracing me like a sister when I enter and leave the restaurant. She will put her arm around me and I put my arm around her shoulders. We stay like this for a while. We ask how we are doing in the limited language we can speak to one another. I in Tigrinya and her in in English. I look forward to these embraces whenever we decide to patron the place. It's like coming home sometimes.
At dinner we were able to relax and talk about our new life at site. Daniel wanted to know how we were settling in and we told him exactly the truth. We are extremely happy.We told him that we feel incredibly lucky to have been placed in such a magnificent, diverse, and prosperous city that is continuing its journey through development right before our eyes. How we instantly became friends with our fellow volunteers at site, Brittany, Keith, and Diane. How we couldn't be happier in our schools and with our counterparts. He responded by saying that it is nice to hear those things because it means that someone has come along and "put their hands under my heart to keep it from sinking." Daniel has the very distressing job of placing volunteers in their prospective sites and then overseeing the Peace Corps Ethiopia's entire Education Project framework. In other words he is in charge of every volunteer's happiness during their service. He weighs his decisions with bull's eye accuracy and sometimes people aren't too elated by his decisions. He needs more credit from us Volunteers and a vacation.
Dinner ended happily with jokes and another lovely and warming embrace from Ako.
The next day I was so overwhelmed with anxiety about this meeting that I thought I needed about two hours to prepare. Mostly to make sure I wouldn't sweat through my shirt and pants. When we came to the Hotel after a day of observing we met Daniel and gave him our PowerPoint presentation and discussed the outline of the meeting while waiting for everyone to arrive. And arrive they did. Early too! We were able to get started about 15 minutes after the scheduled time which is pretty good here. The presentation (on Daniel's side) lasted about 1 hour and 30 minutes (all in Amharic, which he apologized for seeing as he was in Tigray). He would often pause and give us the translation of things in English. Then it was our turn. Our presentation was much shorter consisting mostly of our qualifications and our time spent in Ethiopia thus far. We added some pictures for some entertainment and aesthetic purposes.
However, when we told our teachers, supervisors, and the zonal head that this experience would most likely be one of the most significant experiences of our lives you could see the comprehension flicker on their faces from the idea that we were not just here to change what and how they do their jobs but that we were also here to change ourselves for the better through them and our time here. After this exchange we had a better appreciation of one another and how we could now move forward with our mutual goals.
After the meeting we had dinner and began preparing the foundation of our professional relationships for the next two years. There was definitely a change in the way people thought about us and why we are here. And we have since experienced a wave of understanding and determination from our colleagues that I can only hope results in the best of successes in the coming two years.
On to the more social aspects of living in this culture.
I and Scott were recently invited to the wedding of one of my teacher's sons. Scott couldn't make it so I went alone so as not to burn any bridges before I can even walk over them. Here in Ethiopia (as in some very extravagant weddings in the US) the weddings are a three day event and I was invited to the third and final day of the festivities. The event took place at Haymanot's (my colleague's) house but the majority of the guests were from the bride's side. Igziharia, again, was my guide and as we both walked up to the compound we could hear drums and singing from the inside. As we waited outside for someone to open the door I looked down to my right and through my sunglasses I saw this older man beaming at me. I really don't know why he was so happy to see me but I took this as a good omen for the festivities to come.
I knew I was in for something amazing. As we walked in I saw a sea of white. For special occasions, weddings and funerals, everyone wears white. I wore white knowing that it would probably be a good color to wear. (Imagine in America if other people wore white to a wedding. The bride might kill someone.) I was immediately offered food (of course) and then I was sat next to the bride and groom! Apparently I was considered an honored guest. In an American wedding if you didn't know the bride and groom and you just sat down next to them someone may kindly, or not so kindly, ask you to leave. The bride was dressed in a traditional dress. She did wear a western style wedding dress during the second day ceremony that greatly resembled an American wedding. It was held at a hotel and she was decked out in a princess-style gown and veil. She looked incredibly beautiful in her traditional dress though. Her hair was adorned with lavish gold jewelry and her hair was done up in what I am calling the Tigray Pimp My Hair style. (I know I am getting old. Sorry for the MTV early Millennium reference.) For being completely "traditioned" out, this young couple was fiercely modern. They made fun of me when I was fumbling with my very state-of-the-art camera.
The food was heart crushingly good. Spicy and Ethiopian. Just how I am starting to like my food. Because I had brought my camera and was instantly asked to take some pictures, messy fingers and all. I didn't have to take pictures for the bride and groom or their families, but I took them for my sake because as my very good friend Igziharia explained so well, this was culture. (Most pictures can be found on the Facebook.)
I was eager to document every moment of my time there. Everything was so new and wonderful. Everyone was so happy and happy that I was there. It was hard not to be grateful and excited to even have the opportunity to be a part of this celebration. The only thing that could have made that experience more perfect is if Scott could have seen it too. But I still had a blast and Scott got to take his nap. To each their own!
I needed to leave in a timely fashion because Scott's mom was going to call from the US. My only problem was that I was offered three different kinds of homemade drink. Wine and beer both made by my friend Haymanot. The beer called "Suwa" looked like it was poured from the ground complete with dirt and tiny bugs. But it was delicious. I was fine to leave because I was merely sipping but Igziharia being truly Ethiopian, was not allowed to refuse the drink put in front of her. Her being truly Ethiopian also means that she drinks on seldom occasions. Like holidays and celebrations. Suffice it to say she is a light weight.
When it was time to leave she asked me if we could just stay a little while longer so she could try and stand properly. I was all giggles at this. She was then telling me that her husband Gebre Merriam was at home and all alone just like "Mick" was. (Again, Mick is the name Scott has been deemed because our counterparts originally thought his name was McAllister and that is much too difficult for them to pronounce.) I replied, "Well, Igziharia, I think you will have to sleep at my house." She lost it. I mean she almost fell over laughing at my jest. She translated it to everyone there and they all began laughing. Maybe my jokes resonate well here or maybe Igziharia just had too much Tejj. Either way it was a nice moment and laughter and humor always cement friendships. Eventually we made it to the taxi with Igziharia holding onto my arm the whole time even in the taxi.
Since those last few weeks we have been working and finding time to relax with friends. We indulged in a marathon binge of Lord of the Rings accompanied by great food, compliments of this budding chef. It doesn't seem hard to find balance here and for that I'm grateful and fiending for more from this country and our life here.
