arriving in addis

Day 2: November 18, 2007

Like the cattle that commonly cross the country roads of Ethiopia, the passengers of flight 501 headed off the plane and into the line for visas. With a simple form and 20 bucks each, we obtained temporary visas and were allowed to enter the country. We quickly changed $100 to birr, found our luggage and headed out to the waiting crowd. Since you are only allowed into the airport if you are traveling, the House of Hope director (Tsegay) and the driver were waiting for us outside the doors of the airport. After a traditional 3-kiss greeting, we headed to the mini-bus that would take us to the transition home. It was dark out, so there wasn't much to see on the 20-25 minute trip. What we did see threw us into instant culture shock: child beggars, people walking in the streets, cars seemingly driving in a haphazard way, whole carcasses hanging in small street-side meat shops, a bumpy dirt road taking us to our children. What would we see in the daylight?

When we arrived at the House of Hope, the children were already asleep. Still, Tsegay and his wife took us to see our new son and daughter and also to see all of the other kiddos. They were all so beautiful!! One baby girl, Jill's daughter, woke up and gave us a smile. Oh, how she made my heart melt! It was hard to go back to our room and turn in for the night, and we didn't find sleeping any easier. Not only were our internal clocks all screwed up, but we also knew we would be meeting our children the next day. Who could sleep??

So now we come to today's cliffhanger. Will the first meeting be a fairy tale? Drama? Nightmare? Will we accidently drink the water? You will have to check back for the next installment -- whenever that may be.
:)