May 19, 2010 - Embassy Day

We woke up on Embassy Day ready for an exciting day! Today was the day that we would present our case to the US Embassy and ask for the boys Visas to get into the USA. We got them dressed and ready in their traditional clothing.

Bizayehu

Sintayehu

Sintayehu (Silas), Mintesinote, Tazita (Eliza), Bizayehu (Blake)

The trip to the Embassy was fairly painless. The one thing I didn't expect was the emotions that it raised in me when the "interview" was over. It was just so final. So absolute. We learned that they would loose their Ethiopian citizenship when they entered the US. I struggled before this point with the fact that they would lose so much of their culture by coming to America, and this just made the impact even greater in my mind. It would be official as well as emotional. It just meant that even on paper (let alone in their hearts) that the next time they entered their birth country they would be foreigners.

After my little break down Lincoln decided it was time for me to take a break from it all, the culture, the kids, the orphanages. So, we took the kids to Layla for art class and we headed to the Adams Pavilion, like a mini mall, and used the Internet to shoot an email home. I also went to the salon (a VERY nice one) and got my hair washed and blown dry for 2.00. I left a 10.00 tip. Maybe not the right thing to do culturally, but I was so grateful I couldn't walk out of there only giving 3.00! We also sat and had some coffee with Joanna.

They were having the elections while we were there, and people rode around Addis in vehicles shouting for their candidate as well as handed out fliers and piped music over their loud speakers.

Goats. A very common sight. You can see their Shepard crouched down in the left hand side of the picture. This is still an occupation there. They roam all over. We actually did see a goat sale one day where each Herder had their goats spray painted with a different color to keep them separate.

We were carrying our donation tubs back to the Ritmo Guest House from Layla one afternoon and the boys wanted to help. Lincoln gave them each a lid to carry and they immediately put it on their heads. This is very common practice in Ethiopia. (They still, 1 year later, occasionally do this to carry something...it warms my heart.)

In the midst of all of the financial poverty that there are very nice homes like this one. Unlike the US where there are "nice neighborhoods" and "not so nice" ones, they are all just intermixed in Addis.


This young man cracked. us. up! He just walked up to us on a walk on afternoon and said "Hey, what's up?" It was soooo funny to hear such a common English phrase with such a thick Ethiopian accent!

Wednesday evening consisted of a visit to Layla House and dinner at The Caribou, like usual. It was out last evening with Sheryl and Joanna before they headed out of Addis to Mintesinote's home town.