Just a quick update on my social life too. I THINK I’ve solved my mosquito problem by rigging a net above my bed. Yes, I know I look like a princess, but I was being eaten alive by mosquitos and in a malaria-rich environment, thats probably a bad thing.
Skype and her puppies appear happy and healthy. They are growing quickly and all have their individual attitudes now.
This Saturday myself, Clark (peace corps American), Elisa, Judith (and her two friends visiting from Spain) and her two-semi adopted Ethiopian boys all rented and van with driver and headed up north. There we would hike up this beautiful mountain to a church carved into the rock-face of the mountain. Ethiopian is famous for these churches and I was excited to finally see one. In an area closer to the Eritrean border (Hawzen), we hiked up a pretty difficult climb to the church. At one point, we had to take off our shoes and use experienced local men to help us climb a rock face. It was pretty perilous and terrifying at times, but the rewards were amazing. The experience of being up in that church and the realization that is was built 1600 years ago was mystifying, but also calming and meditative. I will absolutely go up there again sometime before I leave.
After the hike, we traveled further north to Adigrat to visit Judith’s boyfriend Joseph who is doing a month rotation of general surgery up there. We made it home around 10 o’clock, exhausted and without power. Elisa and I made bread, tomatoes and olive oil sandwiches and ate them on the roof. A beautiful ending to the day.
Global Head and Neck Surgery 