Our first day in Addis Ababa was full and very rewarding. Our first priority was to meet Dr. Akeza Teame, one of Jean’s favorite students at Hesston College. Akeza is now the Medical Director at Saint Yared General Hospital in Addis and also one of two infectious disease specialists in the entire country. Ever since we began to plan this trip, Jean has hoped that we would be able to see Akeza. We began by trying to reach the hospital by phone. That didn’t work so we hired a cab to take us there. We immediately learned from the hospital receptionist that Akeza was in the US for the entire month of February working on a special project and wouldn’t be back until March 10. We were, of course, very disappointed. Then, in an almost off-handed manner, the receptionist stated that Akeza’s wife Melat, was expecting us and was waiting to meet us on the 6th floor in Akeza’s office. Melat, while also a Hesston College graduate, was at Hesston a few years after we left. So we didn’t know her. That didn’t matter. She welcomed us in a very warm and spirited manner, and told us how sorry Akeza was to be out of the country while we were in Ethiopia.
After welcoming us, Melat led us to the conference table in Akeza’s office and spent nearly an hour telling us about her wonderful experience at Hesston, about how she and Akeza met, about their life after Kansas but before returning from the States to Ethiopia, and about the dreams that they share for their country. It is wonderful to see how Akeza has found a life partner who shares his values, dreams and goals. After that, she took us on a tour of the hospital. We were impressed with its cleanliness and the fact that it didn’t smell like a hospital. Jean had already asked the receptionist if she enjoyed working there. Her eyes had lighted up and she emphatically said, “Yes, it’s wonderful.”
Before we left the hospital, Melat graciously invited us to join her for coffee and to meet their two daughters in the late afternoon at their home. Of course, we immediately accepted her invitation. So about 5:15 pm, we caught a taxi. We called Melat’s cell phone and she gave the driver directions to their home. Their house is located about a fifteen minute drive from the hospital in a new and very upscale subdivision with several young families. Melat graciously welcomed us and introduced us to Sophie, who is about five years old, and Henon, who is about 18 months old. I am terribly sorry that forgot to ask Melat to help me spell Onnan’s name, so it might actually be Henon, or something similar.
It is my mistake! Sophie is already in kindergarten and is the cutest little girl, very comfortable speaking in English and very outgoing. She brought us three photograph albums which she enjoyed showing us and which we enjoyed seeing. She is going to be a very poised young woman! Onnan was at first very shy and clung to her mother. However, it wasn’t very long before she was laughing and trying to tell us something.We enjoyed a light snack of injera, beef stew, shiro, and beets. They were all delicious. Then we enjoyed coffee and popcorn. Henon thought she was in heaven as she tried to get some popcorn to eat while her mother wasn’t looking. After taking several pictures, we bid Melat, Sophie and Henon good-bye and returned to the hotel. While Jean was disappointed that she couldn’t meet Akeza again, she was thrilled to meet his family and to see that he is accomplishing the high goals that he had set long ago when she first met him at Hesston College.
After visiting with Melat at the hospital, we took a taxi to the Hilton Hotel where we enjoyed lunch and hired a guide and car to show us the sites in Addis Ababa.
Addis is a very massive, old, sprawling and chaotic city of 4 million… and we only had a half day to tour… so we selected several sites to see and ended up having a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon. For Ethiopian Orthodox Christians, Monday was the first of 55 fasting days that lead to Easter. To celebrate the occasion, between noon and 3:00, the city was full of masses being sung over loudspeakers with large crowds present to worship and pray. It was an impressive visual and oral experience for us. During the afternoon we visited the National Museum. We went immediately to the palaeontology exhibit where the star attraction is Lucy,
a 3.2 million year old fossilized hominid discovered in 1974. We also visited the very large and ornate Holy Trinity Cathedral where emperor Haile Selassie and his wife are resting in massive granite tombs. Then it was on to view a few monuments, the first palace, and several notable churches. Our driver also took us to Churchill Avenue and its shops, the Piazza, through a variety of residential areas, and finally to the very active Bole Road where our hotel was located. It was then time to drive to the Teame home where our visit with Melat has already been described by Jean. We then ended the day by stopping at a restaurant that provided entertaining Ethiopian music and dancers. We've had a great day, but will get a good night's sleep because we have to get up very early in the morning.
Love to all of you,
Kirk and Jean
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