Finding solace in the unfamiliar
Addis Ababa, September 2017
Julia Gershenzon. No amount of reading, researching or listening to other people’s stories could have prepared me for the feelings I had travelling through Ethiopia. Our group of six students and three teachers had been planning the trip for months. When we finally arrived and took our first seatbeltless cab ride through the busy capital of Addis Ababa at night, I found myself lost for words.
The first two nights, we had the pleasure of staying with an old friend of Felix’s family who is a merchant and has a wonderful home near the center of the city. After being let into the fenced-in property through a heavy gate, we almost missed the sheep hanging upside-down in the tree: dinner for the next day.
The sheep was one of many experiences I barely had the time to digest (ha!). Looking back, those two weeks flew by so fast. I did not even have the time to take enough pictures so I have to hold on to the images and experiences that are burned into my mind. Some of my personal highlights include: a view of the beautiful Addis Ababa by night from the rooftop of a hotel; holding our hostess’s grandchild; joining traditional coffee ceremonies and enjoying freshly roasted, strong Arabica coffee; dancing with the villagers of the coffee farm in Bonga; marvelling at the landscapes and experiencing local wildlife, especially the various monkeys.
However, the part of the trip that will always be closest to my heart, is being able to engage with the students that go to the secondary school in Yayu. Hearing their stories made me feel helpless as an individual but it also opened my eyes to how impactful a project like Green Academy could be if we work hard enough and collaborate effectively.
