It's been a long time that I have been writing. It means that I am quite busy.
And I am, since life has become 'organised' here. That is, we got our car, finally AND we got all the insurance papers, so we have numberplates now and we can drive! Hurrah! And yes, I am driving in this ridiculous traffic.
And yes, that is right: there is no spare wheel! It was stolen while the car was waiting in Djibouti (harbour) for transport to Addis Abeba. Luckily there is a big Nissan garage in Addis, we thought. But at first they didn't want to help us, since 'they were only dealing with big customers', like businesses and governments and embassies. But since Roberts colleagues have some friends working with Nissan, they changed their minds.
Furthermore, we have quite a full week-programme. When Robert goes to work, usually around 8:00 or 8:30, I go upstairs to my office room, where I work on the English translation of my book. It must be finished by April 30st, because then we will go on our annual leave, a month, to the Netherlands. I have promised my friend Lindsay to send her one chapter each week, so that she can edit it and turn it into good English. I am only halfway now, so I really need to pay attention. I work on my book on mondays, tuesdays, wednesdays, and somewhere two half days during the weekend. From 12-14:00 I go to the gym around the corner, for fitness training. On thursdays I visit Belatech, Hanna's mum, for coffee or lunch,or she teaches me a particular Ethiopian recipy, or we go to the market together.
On Fridays is my yoga day, being at 08:00 a.m. at Anne's house to pick her up; then together yoga in the Italian Club; coffee afterwards and usually something to do or dicover- an interesting supermarket, a hairdresser who can actually cut fine European hair into a reasonable model. And twice a week I have Amharic classes in town, from 17- 18:30. I am learning slowly slowly, but it is coming!
Every morning we inspect all the plants we put in pots around the house. Yesterday we had this bizarre flower coming out of a cactus. Isn't she wonderful?
We looked her up on internet and she is a Obea Stapelia variegata
On Saturdays it is weekend. It depends what we do. Today we went to Piazza, to buy a parasol for Robert's birthday party -lunch, next week Sunday, to have some shade in the garden (It is hot here around 13:00). But there were so many traffic jams in town, that it took us 3 hours to go and come back and a lot of irritation. But we realised why it was: there was a state funeral going on of the president of the state of Oromia, about the largest state in Ethiopia. That was also why so many shops had closed today.
On Sundays we go to the Tulsi wellness centre, to each get an ayurvedic massage, which is really good: relaxing and healthy. Coffee afterwards on the terrace of the German Bakery, where we then also buy nice (European type of) bread for the rest of the week. Then we have a 'free' afternoon, in which I usually call my dad and am allowed to do one of my hobbies, like working on my blog :), keeping up my photobook, or do some sewing- I got this very nice material, waiting for a pair of wide trousers.
This morning, when drinking our regular morning coffee in bed at 07:00, there was a sunbird sitting in the sun, beautiful. He has a reddish/ golden ring around his breast. I could only just capture it with my camera.
To be continued next week,
Enjoy your weekend,
Jelleke
And I am, since life has become 'organised' here. That is, we got our car, finally AND we got all the insurance papers, so we have numberplates now and we can drive! Hurrah! And yes, I am driving in this ridiculous traffic. And yes, that is right: there is no spare wheel! It was stolen while the car was waiting in Djibouti (harbour) for transport to Addis Abeba. Luckily there is a big Nissan garage in Addis, we thought. But at first they didn't want to help us, since 'they were only dealing with big customers', like businesses and governments and embassies. But since Roberts colleagues have some friends working with Nissan, they changed their minds.
Furthermore, we have quite a full week-programme. When Robert goes to work, usually around 8:00 or 8:30, I go upstairs to my office room, where I work on the English translation of my book. It must be finished by April 30st, because then we will go on our annual leave, a month, to the Netherlands. I have promised my friend Lindsay to send her one chapter each week, so that she can edit it and turn it into good English. I am only halfway now, so I really need to pay attention. I work on my book on mondays, tuesdays, wednesdays, and somewhere two half days during the weekend. From 12-14:00 I go to the gym around the corner, for fitness training. On thursdays I visit Belatech, Hanna's mum, for coffee or lunch,or she teaches me a particular Ethiopian recipy, or we go to the market together.
On Fridays is my yoga day, being at 08:00 a.m. at Anne's house to pick her up; then together yoga in the Italian Club; coffee afterwards and usually something to do or dicover- an interesting supermarket, a hairdresser who can actually cut fine European hair into a reasonable model. And twice a week I have Amharic classes in town, from 17- 18:30. I am learning slowly slowly, but it is coming!
We looked her up on internet and she is a Obea Stapelia variegata
On Saturdays it is weekend. It depends what we do. Today we went to Piazza, to buy a parasol for Robert's birthday party -lunch, next week Sunday, to have some shade in the garden (It is hot here around 13:00). But there were so many traffic jams in town, that it took us 3 hours to go and come back and a lot of irritation. But we realised why it was: there was a state funeral going on of the president of the state of Oromia, about the largest state in Ethiopia. That was also why so many shops had closed today.
On Sundays we go to the Tulsi wellness centre, to each get an ayurvedic massage, which is really good: relaxing and healthy. Coffee afterwards on the terrace of the German Bakery, where we then also buy nice (European type of) bread for the rest of the week. Then we have a 'free' afternoon, in which I usually call my dad and am allowed to do one of my hobbies, like working on my blog :), keeping up my photobook, or do some sewing- I got this very nice material, waiting for a pair of wide trousers.
To be continued next week,
Enjoy your weekend,
Jelleke
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