Divided… (31/7)

…is apparently what Mekele means. Although it seems no one can tell us by what it is divided or by whom. The Queen of Sheba used to hang around in these parts so perhaps it goes back that far. If I get any
further in solving mystery, I'll let you know. It is certainly a rapidly growing town and it is suggested that now it is in the top five largest Ethiopian cities. It is also the capital of the Tigray region (impressive given the historical importance of Axum).

Me and Tommy are both continuing to get a better idea of the task in front of us. It seems that in government schools students are taught English in classes of around 50. This leaves very little possibility for individual development, questioning and conversation. This is where we step in it seems. I feel now that I am getting to know the
children individually, and equally importantly they are getting to know me. They keep asking me to look at the school prospectus and want to look over and over at my photo album. My photos fascinate the children: my sisters are apparently very pretty (I told them it was a family thing), my house is 'sooo lovely', Southend looks 'amazing'
(Gebreyesus promises me one day he will visit me there), and my 'chick' is 'hot' which I think roughly translates as Naomi being very pretty too. It seems the boys are big fans of English girls as well English football. It's reassuring to know that they have more than one topic of conversation!

On Monday evening, Seamus and Hilu from the CAFOD Addis office met us for dinner. I am reluctant to admit we went to a very pleasant restaurant and ate pizza and drank Italian wine. However, to remind me that we were still in fact in Mekele, when I went to the toilet the corrugated metal roof was leaking on my head. We spent the evening
discussing the project work that Seamus and Hilu are involved in which is mainly agricultural. They work with communities trying to find more effective ways for them to farm. Apparently they (some Ethiopian
farmers, not Seamus and Hilu) have just discovered that apples grow very well in Ethiopia and this may a future market for farmers. We also discussed at length the fascinating, but sometimes bizarre, practises of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. This is something I am desperate to find out more about (especially as their singing and drum
banging through the night adds further to my sleep problems!).

Plans were discussed of how best to spend out weekends outside of Mekele. I am most looking forward to hearing tales of the weird and wonderful with perhaps a smattering of truth when visiting the rock-hewn churches of Tigray. There are many stories connected with these churches that are mixed with cultural and religious input from
the Coptic Church, Judaism and Islam. We also hope to travel to Axum where we can visit the church of St Mary of Zion where the Ark of the Covenant is kept, but only one living priest is allowed to see it so I don't hold out much hope of being convinced its resting place is Ethiopia (but don't tell the Ethiopians I said that!).

On our return from dinner, we met John. A Mayo man, he is staying in Mekele as a volunteer with the Daughters for the second time. He visited for two weeks last summer and returned on a 3-month secondment from his job in an industrial pharmaceutical firm. He had just returned from Alitena where he has been for the last 3 weeks. He
worked in the street children project earlier in his stay and has been a good source of advice already! After meeting John we decided to move to the lounge to see the sisters. What we walked in on had to be seen to be believed! Sr Abeba and Sr Abeba (one from Alitena, one from Addis) were both dressed for bed and wrapped up in blankets, beds were laid out on the floor and all the sisters were in high spirits. It was like some big nuns sleep over party!

Our second day of teaching was naturally much better than the first. I did some work on grammar with the students, which was interesting. They were far more responsive and enthusiastic to this than I though they might have been and this gave me great encouragement for what would be possible over the next few weeks.

I am very glad that I have never followed the rule of not smiling in the classroom. Already it has become clear that the beneficiaries at the project love to be smiled at and smiling back in return. I guess some of them have rarely experience the love and warmth that is given to them at the Abba Gebremichael School. Their faces show such joy as they light up. I don't think it is something I will be able to capture on film, but certainly something that will never leave me.

I had to go to sleep for an hour after lunch, firstly as I had probably eaten too much again, "Please – have some more!" and secondly as I am having real difficult sleeping. We are having many electrical storms and very heavy rainfall at night, which is keeping me up. My sleep is also very restless and each day I make my bed, only to awake
to find it totally trashed again! The sisters are now getting concerned about my tiredness but I tried to explain to them I am used to only getting 6 hours sleep. The altitude, change of climate, change of diet and everything else totally different in my life at the moment can't be helping!

In the afternoon, we actually stayed a bit later after classes. Up until this point we had been encouraged to get back to St Vincent's to relax. I am finding I have too much spare time; I wouldn't miss Essex and those I love half as much if I was busy all the time! I am trying to busy myself a little more by working on my laptop, although with
the storms power cuts are getting more frequent and no power means candlelight and time alone…

We witnessed the music club, dance section, rehearsing which was fascinating. They performed Tigrignian, Amharic, Oromignaian (south Ethiopian) dances, being lead and taught by 'Mango'. He is one of the older beneficiaries who has been involved in the project for many years. He has received training in photography from CAFOD and teaches
dance in his free time to the very enthusiastic children. Like at the coffee ceremony there was lots of shuffling and shoulder wiggling and dropping, They wanted me to join in, I said maybe next week…

Another new thing today was walking home from the project. Our 'guards', Gebreyesus and his friend escorted us to Comel internet café. It was interesting to walk and gave the opportunity to look into all the small shops, and see exactly how delicately some of the buildings are constructed with bits of wood, corrugated metal, cement
and brick. I even noticed a cactus growing, quite contently, on the roof of one building! I had felt a little sheltered from the reality of Mekele by sitting in the 4x4 with Gary! It also meant we got more calls of "Faranji" than usual, but also reassuring that if need be there were a great deal of 'sooooft tisssuuuues' on sale from the children on the main road. A few beggars asked us for money, but did not give us any hassle when we said we had no change – most people
just wanted to say hello, or "Hi man" or "How you doing?"; interesting to see American culture has even hit Tigray!

I have made a valiant attempt at learning the beneficiaries' names, although with the lack of consistency in attendance and whether they turn up to the morning or afternoon session, this will be a tough task! I took photos of all the students at the end of the classes today and wanted to print them off so I could write names (and pronunciation of names) on the sheet. This proved more difficult that I though, and it seems not many in Mekele use the colour printing facility in Comel! It took 20 minutes and in the end we had to settle for a black and white copy. At least it was cheaper…

Dinner was again like a party. There were 12 of us and it was Sr Medhin's last night before heading to Addis for a retreat. We were playing a game of guess the sisters age and taught them the phrase 'thick skinned' for someone who can take a lot of micky taking – as Sr Fana did during the meal! We had many power cuts and half of dinner
was eaten by candlelight.

After dinner, Tommy and I got down to business with Sr Medhin. We wanted to ask her, before she departed for two weeks, as to how best to use the items we had brought with us as well as the money we had collected. The books and pens we had brought would be saved until September; this will save the Daughters having to buy new equipment
for the beneficiaries for the start of the new academic year. The reading books will be added to the school library that is mainly full of badly worn and out of date books. We are also going to have a school trip to Alitena, taking a load of the boys up to near the Eritrean border for a few days. They have been asking to go for months and Sr Medhin thought this would be good for them as many have never left Mekele. Alitena is certainly of the beaten track and I have been unable to find it on any maps I have looked at!

The project is also building a new school; they currently rent the premises where Abba Gebremichael School is currently situated. It has moved a few times over the last 14 years, and pays rent of around 1000Birr (£55) per month to use the less than adequate compound. A new site was found and some building has already taken place. The new
building has a large hall, several classrooms, proper offices, a space where Tedros can actually do his social work and counselling without interruption, better kitchen and shower facilities. The project staff are very excited about this, but still do not have all the funding. There is no money currently for any equipment to go into the school,
which is where we can help out. On her return, Sr Medhin is going to price up all the things we want to do with the street children and hopefully make improvements both in the immediate and long term futures of these very special young people. Here is a good place to thank you all again for your generosity. It really will be life changing for these children.

Already each evening the students ask excitedly and expectantly, "Are you back in the morning?" and I have learnt my first Tigrignaian, 'naga-negane' – 'see you tomorrow!'. They are also desperate for us to go to their football training, 1 o'clock. This seemed okay, until they said, 'that's 7am European time'. However, a compromise has been made
and we are all off to see the Charity Shield somewhere on Sunday afternoon.