Ethiopia- Day 3

Children would gather and walk with us
These boys were selling items at the bus station
Our first squat hole-not an exaggeration
3 story LDS building being built
What town looks like-


Day 3 we headed to Shashamane which proved to be no easy task. We thought we'd contract a mini bus (van) to drive the five of us the ? miles. The bus station is a volatile place. You don't just find a bus schedule and buy a ticket. You wait as people fight over who gets to drive you. They grab your bags and lead you off while others try to get in their ways and convince you to get in a different bus. They also take turns tripling the price because you're white.Poor Nati finally banished us to a cafe so he could make arrangements without us white people causing such a scene. As we left the cafe to board our mini bus an older, respectable looking couple passing by warned Nati not to go with our chosen mini bus.

"They mess around with black magic and other nasty things. They'll probably take you off somewhere, rob you, leave you in the middle of nowhere. Or worse." A quick, well timed exchange between strangers drastically changed the outcome of our day. God is good!

We opted for a public bus. Safety in numbers you know? All transportation remains so strange in Ethiopia. The public buses fight over passengers as well. Still no schedules and the bus doesn't leave until all the seats are filled. Beggars and sellers enter the bus while passengers wait to depart. One day I waited almost 2 hours for all of the seats on the bus to sell.

Children in Shashamane were very welcoming. Not trying to sell anything or get anything from us. Children walking home from school would gather around us and walk along side us. They were curious about white people and wanted to show us their English skills. Nati asked if I liked the attention. Everyone staring. I felt like I was somewhere between a parade participant and a death row inmate headed for the chair. I wasn't sure why people were staring.

Everyone proved to be kind and curious. Adults would wave from far off distances and children would giggle and follow close by. We spent the evening talking with Sonnet. He is the father of a teenage son who was adopted into a young American family along with 4 of his friends. Sonnet's story is sweet, heartfelt and eye opening. A parents love in Ethiopia knows very different bounds then many others.