I owe everyone a very big thank you- only one month after being posted on the Peace Corps website the youth group project has been fully funded by your very generous donations! I am working to get a list of everyone who donated so I can thank you individually but that might be a lengthy process knowing the bureaucracy of Peace Corps Washington. Now, as soon as the money arrives in country we will be able to start both the construction of the chicken coop and the training of the youth on chickens raising techniques by the local agricultural expert (Aunt Emily, I would love any advice, knowledge or expertise that you have on chickens, you can never have too much information!). Then, after this first month we will start buying the first group of 35 chickens from Bertoua and we will be off and running! I will do my utmost to keep everyone informed of the developments of the project through this blog.

As excited as I am to start work on this I am in the middle of a wonderful vacation/family reunion/wedding in Ethiopia. In fact I am typing this in a from the Simien mountain lodge, perched high on the edge of the Ethiopian highlands with an out-of-this-world view of the ~1700m (5600ft) drop to the floor straight below me. We decided to have a family reunion this winter in Ethiopia so we could go to our friend (Adi)’s wedding. Although I think it would have been a bit more relaxing for a vacation to get away from the frustrations and delays that usually accompany the developing world (especially when traveling in one) now that I’m here there’s no where else I’d rather be. Adi’s wedding in the capital, Addis Ababa was a wonderful, although long affair. We were only there for 2 days of the week long event, but that included a reception of around 1,000 people, lots and lots of dancing and singing, and LOTS of food! Besides getting to see Adi and her family again we also go to see quite a bit of the city. At 2,450 m (~8,000 ft) it’s quoted to be the third (but probably is actually the fourth) highest capital city following La Paz in Bolivia and I’m guessing Quito in Ecuador. To me the city feels strangely like Cairo might on a massive dose of chill pills. Plus, after the somewhat aggressive (and some might say abrasive) nature of Central Africa, the tranquility and politeness of Amharic culture was certainly a breath of fresh air, even if their language is essentially impossible.

After the wedding we headed up with Adi, her new husband Samuel, and her brother (who kindly drove us up in a UN car) and sister to see some of the famous rock-hewn churches of Lalibela. Although the road wasn’t in the best condition (to say the least) the drive did provide for some spectacular scenery, including the Blue Nile gorge (which in terms of size would give the Grand Canyon a run for its money, and is also the river that gave the life giving annual floods to the ancient Egyptians) and some breathtaking mountains. I can say that I don’t envy the Ethiopian Peace Corps volunteers for the simple fact that I would be terrified to take the public buses on these winding unpaved roads twisting around cliff sides and 1000ft drops.

Perhaps the best, albeit sobering part of Lalibela however, was getting the chance to see the village of Demis, a child my parents have been sponsoring for the past couple of years through Plan International, who lives in a small mountain side village about an hour from the town. It was amazing to see the how different yet similar village life seemed as compared to Cameroon. One moment I would feel like I was back in the East province of Cameroon then the next it would seem like I was on another planet. For a continent that is consistently lumped into one amorphous entity called “Africa” this places never ceases to amaze me with its kaleidoscope of radically different cultures and its varied environments. It amazes me to see the infinite ways in which different people adapt to the same challenges of feeding, clothing, and educating their people. Yet at the same time many aspects remain the same. No matter whether people build there house from the bamboo and red clay of eastern Cameroon or the eucalyptus poles and dark volcanic soil of the Ethiopian highlands, the impression of the structures arising as part and parcel of the earth itself rather than something foreign rudely stamped over it, the feeling that they are an extension of the surrounding environment that could at anytime melt back into it without a trace, remains the most arresting feature for those visiting from the industrialized world.

I am not trying to romanticize the hardships and the deprivation that also often accompanies those living in such circumstances. It’s all very easy to talk about this oneness with nature and then head back to my comfortable bed for the night, and I would venture that a large majority of those living in such conditions would gladly give up their earthen homes for a western style house with all attached amenities. Nevertheless, as a tourist it is hard not to revel in the ‘rustic’ beauty radiating from such scenes and celebrate their earthly splendor.

After Lalibela Kendra and Dad had to get back to work, mom and I, having no such reservations continued, on to “the Camelot of Ethiopia”, otherwise known as Gondar, and then to the Simien Mountains. While the “Camelot” comparison might be due more to the creative imagination of someone on the local tourist promotion board than any actual likeness, Gondar was my favorite place that we visited in the country. It served as the capital for many Ethiopian kings from the 17th-19th centuries, ending the interesting tradition of temporary capitals composed of royal tents. The center of town is dominated by a beautiful park holding their ruins, most of which are in decent condition. Set smack dab in the middle of town it was a wonderful place to get away from the hustle and bustle of town, and served as a great vintage point to look down on the beginnings of the ‘Timkat’, or Epiphany celebration that was starting to get underway ( the Ethiopian church celebrates it on January 19th).

After a very short stay in Gondar (in accommodations that fell somewhat short of the Hilton, and for which I am very proud of my mother for staying in!) we headed to ‘the roof of Africa’ or the Simien mountains. A plateau laying mostly over 3200m (10,500ft) and peaking at 4570m (~15,000ft) I did feel like I was on the top of Africa. To make it more spectacular the escarpment is sliced by multiple canyons and valleys that plummet abruptly to the semi-desert African plane thousands of feet below. And just to top it off the Simiens contain the largest gatherings of primates (besides humans) anywhere in the world. Groups of up to 600 geladas, as the Baboon like animals are known officially, are not unheard of. These creatures live their whole life on the dramatic cliffs, sleeping deep in the gorges to avoid the leopards and hyenas then coming up to the plateau during the day to feed on the grasses and tubers. A short hike from our lodge (claimed to be the highest hotel in African at 3260m or 10,700ft!) our guide found us a group of geladas. Sitting in the midst of a group of maybe a hundred geladas who appeared only mildly nervous of me and just watching and hearing them feed and fight and play with the dazzling mountain vistas as a backdrop was one of the most memorable experiences of the trip.

However vacations always must end, and as this one draws to a close I mentally prepare to head back home I find that I am not dreading it so much as I was last time I left in June. Cameroon is now undeniably and completely “home” and I actually look forward to getting back to the familiarity of it. I will be sad to leave the wonderful hospitality and friendliness of Adi’s family who looked after us as if we were family, as did most of the Ethiopians we met. Nor do I treasure leaving the dazzling scenery and delightful climate here, but I’ve made Cameroon home and I have less than a year left so I might as well make the most of it! The next time I leave the country it will be for good!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season, and for those of you in the northern hemisphere I hope it wasn’t too cold. Hopefully this last Christmas will be the last one I have to spend away from family. I need to start making plans to get to Florida, Georgia and Ohio!