Today started very early for myself (Vanessa) and Abi.....12.45am to be precise. That was when Abi came into our room saying that she felt very sick!! That was the start of a very long 6 hours...most of which was spent in the bathroom; Abi being very ill and myself being the support system. Andy accompanied us with his gentle snoring and the odd encouraging words....I guess he would say that he played a part during the long, dark hours!
We worked out that it was probably the fish we had eaten at lunchtime in the restaurant we had gone to after church. Abi had felt a bit funny after eating it but seemed alright during the afternoon. I had had the same thing but thankfully escaped the food poisoning...a real blessing as 2 of us being ill at the same time would have been awful (and Andy would have had to be on the front line!). What was ironic, was that we had only been saying at lunch how great it was that we had all stayed so healthy!!!
I managed to grab 2 hours sleep in the early morning and then we had a lazy morning. We had been planning to spend the morning at Little Ahope but those plans had to change...a real shame but it was the way it had to be.
In the afternoon, Wit and Azeb took myself, Andy and David to see the rest of Addis Ababa. It is quite a large city with both old and modern sections. There is also the largest outdoor market in the world...the Merkato. We had imagined something a bit like Covent Garden but it was far busier and open to both pedestrians and vehicles....absolute mayhem! It was actually fairly grid-locked in places, which meant a lot of “horn honking,” and Wit said that it was a real hot-spot for pick-pockets. We drove through the market and we were actually quite pleased not to be walking. Anything and everything is sold at this market and we were met with many interesting sights....one man carrying 3 mattresses on his head and another carrying a large amount of egg boxes on his head. There were also other modes of transport such as wheelbarrows and donkeys...anything goes in this fascinating and amazing country!
One thing that struck us was how one minute you are driving past nice clothes boutiques and the next minute you are faced with children begging by the car, trying to sell you a packet of chewing gum, or a woman with her baby, explaining to you that they are hungry. Whilst driving through the Merkato there were mothers with all their children sat on the road and crippled beggars trying to get whatever money they could get. Theses sights were very upsetting and it was so sad to see so much poverty and need.
It is hard to believe that tomorrow is our last day here before we fly home. We have been so blessed since being in Ethiopia and it has been far more than we ever expected. There are so many things about this wonderful place that we will miss and so many things that we will try and incorporate into our lives once we get back to England. One thing we have realised is how busy our lives can get and how we are always rushing and “clock watching!” Clocks and time-keeping don’t feature much here and I think that the people here are happier because of that....there is far less stress and worry! And for many, Jesus is also right at the centre of everything that they do...we have a lot to learn!
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