Day 14

Friday 17th July

We awoke on Friday after a well earned rest on Thursday, knowing we had a long day ahead of us. Breakfast was at 9am, just after our thought for the day; which was thoughtfully prepared by Ashley.  We then had some time to pack before lunch. 

The food at the Kuriftu Resort we were staying at for rest and relaxation was quite western, and some members of the team were worried they had missed out on a final Ethiopian inspired menu.  Thankfully our early lunch was a buffet with plenty of Ethiopian choice... 

We left the hotel to return to Addis - about a 2 hour journey.  The return to the city was accompanied by some very apt songs from U2, The Killers and Snow Patrol (thanks to Sam). The mood on the bus was a quiet and somber one-either from exhaustion or reflection of the past two weeks.  We passed many sights along the journey, again reminding us of the extreme deprivation most Ethiopian people are living with.  Although passing familiar areas and landmarks on journeys we have taken before, the sights (and smells) of the poverty we encountered are ones that you could never get used to, or ignore.

Zee had kindly arranged for us to make a quick visit to the National Football Stadium for football shirts, to a market area to buy souvenirs and gifts, and finally a coffee shop for some much loved Ethiopian coffee.   Needless to say by 6pm, we were starting to feel the effects of being up so early and being so busy - but the day was far from over!

One last stop before the airport - the Lucy Lounge for dinner.  This was the restaurant the team visited on the second day of our trip, and is part of the National Museum.  We were joined by the rest of the Habitat staff we had met at the beginning of our building, which was a lovely final send off.  We were so humbled by how appreciative our hosts were of our work over the past two weeks, when for us it has been a massive privilege to contribute in some way.

After the Habitat guests left, Zee accompanied us to the airport for our final, and most difficult farewell of the day.  We thanked our bus driver and his accomplice sincerely for all our journeys and keeping us safe on the insane roads of Addis.  Finally, each team member gave a heartfelt thanks to Zee for an amazing experience in the country.  For looking after us all so well, and going above and beyond what is required from a Habitat host.  His personality and wit suited our Northern Irish humour perfectly, and we will all miss him  greatly. 

Our move through our first airport on our 24 hour journey home was smooth and as painless as it could be.  We particularly love airport queues, and so the two security checks, the check-in, the custom check, the boarding pass check and finally the queue for the plane were all great.  We left Addis at 1.15am on Saturday morning and ready for a day in Istanbul airport.

Post by Katie Parks

Day 13

Thursday 16th July

We woke up this morning surrounded by the beauty of Lake Kuriftu in Debre Zeit. 

Lake Kiriftu

The thought for the day was excerpts taken from Genesis 1 and 2 at the start of the Old Testament, from The Message paraphrase.

"God spoke: “Light!” And light appeared. God saw that light was good.

God spoke: “Sky! In the middle of the waters; separate water from water!” God made sky. He separated the water under sky from the water above sky. And there it was: he named sky the Heavens; It was evening, it was morning— Day Two.

God spoke: “Separate! Water-beneath-Heaven, gather into one place; Land, appear!” God saw that it was good.

God spoke: “Earth, green up! Grow all varieties of seed-bearing plants, Every sort of fruit-bearing tree.” And there it was. God saw that it was good. It was evening, it was morning— Day Three.

God spoke: “Lights! Come out! Shine in Heaven’s sky! Separate Day from Night. God saw that it was good. It was evening, it was morning— Day Four.

God spoke: “Swarm, Ocean, with fish and all sea life! Birds, fly through the sky over Earth!” God saw that it was good. It was evening, it was morning— Day Five.

God spoke: “Earth, generate life! Every sort and kind: cattle and reptiles and wild animals—all kinds.” God saw that it was good.

God spoke: “Let us make human beings in our image

God looked over everything he had made; it was so good, so very good! It was evening, it was morning— Day Six. 

Heaven and Earth were finished, down to the last detail. By the seventh day God had finished his work. On the seventh day he rested from all his work. God blessed the seventh day. He made it a Holy Day Because on that day he rested from his work, all the creating God had done. This is the story of how it all started, of Heaven and Earth when they were created."

It seems difficult for some to take a day or two of rest at a nice resort after what we've done and seen the last couple of weeks, but I think these verses are very helpful. God worked and it was good, and God rested and that was good too. We have finished our work here in Ethiopia, and the team have all given everything they have- and it was good!! Now is our time to rest- and that's good too! 

These verses give us the format of our standard working week at home- where we work for a week and then rest, and then start working again. This is what we can do. We cannot continue the same hands-on work on-site, not right now anyway- but we can continue the work of Habitat after our rest. We can get involved in the work of Habitat when we get home through spreading the word about the work of Habitat; possibly getting involved in building projects at home; fundraising for Habitat; committing to a regular financial contribution; getting involved in future Global Village teams- or even leading a team; and so many more ways. Although we may not think of these things as being as glamorous as going away, they are all equally important to keeping the work of Habitat going. 

We have worked- and it was good, we have rested and it was good, and now we can go home and continue the work- and that will be good too.

Post by Ashley Parks

Day 12

Wednesday 15th July

The final day of the build has arrived and it's hard to believe - the time seems to have flown by! We're tired but full of excitement as we pray, think about the day and have our usual nutritious breakfast. Stuart, Brian and Daniel led the thought for the day with some inspirational words - some from the Bible and others from themselves. We packed our suitcases and checked out of our rooms.

We headed off to the community site and got stuck in to making concrete for the corner columns of the toilet block. It was great to met up with Hiatz, Netsanet and the other children as well as the adults, including Zee, Joseph and Cecil. It was surreal to be working in the beautiful sunshine with plenty of playing with the kids while knowing that we would soon have to leave.

Sam showing Hiatz some of his photos

When the school teachers arrived at the community site, the anticipation of the closing/farewell ceremony began to build. We finished the job in hand and Cecil left us in no doubt that he was pleased with our work - the customary photos were taken. The local dignitaries arrived and the call came for the ceremony to begin. Zee directed the proceedings which began with a warm welcome from Habitat for Humanity Ethiopia - they presented each team member with a mug with Amharic lettering on it which was appreciated. Then the 'mama' spoke on behalf of the community which was a powerful moment as she communicated how thankful they were for our work - there were a few tears at this point. At this point, I was invited to speak on behalf of our team which was a great privilege. I thanked everyone for their tremendously warm welcome and for the way they have looked after us so well this past week. I said that we have enjoyed every moment of the experience and that we not forget the people as we have learned a lot from them. We also hope that we have made a small difference to their lives. As Zee interpreted, I described some of the gifts that we brought to donate to the school and the community, including a Belfast County Scout scarf, Northern Ireland football shirts, Belfast/Northern Ireland tea towels, balls, etc. 

David presenting signed Ulster flag (signed by us)

Fiona and Katie presented gifts to the school Principal while Stephen presented gifts to the community leader. Ashley finished proceedings by praying for blessings on everyone present which was a special moment. The team then received roses in the national Ethiopian colours which was fantastic. The traditional coffee ceremony followed with tasty, sweetened coffee accompanied by delicious homemade bread and popcorn. It was also great to have the Ethiopian Scouts present with us again especially as one of them had to travel 27 kms from his home! That's true Scouting spirit! The event ended with some group photos and lots of warm goodbyes; hugs and kisses were shared with the hope that we will meet again.

Final photo with community

It was a quiet journey back to the hotel for lunch with Habitat staff. We said goodbye and thanks to the hotel staff and to some of the guests who we have gotten to know during our trip. As the hotel hosts many people who come to Ethiopia to adopt children, it was good to see how well Finntow had settled into his new life with Danish parents Berit and Karsten.

The bags were packed high on the roof of the bus and we set off for our rest and relaxation period. It was an interesting journey through the city and out into the countryside. The farming techniques there reminded me of 1950s Ireland with two bullocks steering a handheld plough for example.

We arrived at the Kuriftu Resort and Spa which was an idyllic spot on the edge of a stunning lake. Interestingly, this resort was once owned by Colonel Gaddafi who would holiday here regularly in the past. Thankfully for us, the hotel has now changed hands and we relaxed and made the most of the good food, pool and spa. 

View of Ethiopian countryside from the bus

That evening, we met to reflect on our day where the team shared how good they felt about making such a good impact at the school and community sites. They felt sorry that they had to leave but are strongly determined to continue to work towards alleviating poverty housing through Habitat for Humanity and through Scouting. It was great to hear from Zee who said that we had empowered the Ethiopians in all that we did during the week; he added that we had achieved more than was expected of us and that he found us to be the easiest team to manage which very much suited the Ethiopians. He said that he was proud of us and that we had worked very hard which was very impressive. We retired looking forward to a rest but content in the knowledge that we have made a difference.

Post by David Scott

Day 11

Tuesday 14th July

Today started out the usual way, with a challenging thought for the day from Stephen, allowing us to consider the impact of money and food wasted in the UK, due to our consumer centred attitudes. Following breakfast we were off to site, this time the whole team were at the school for a full day. 

For many of the team, this was a positive experience as they could see the amount of progress that had occurred, from the bricklaying being completed and the mounds of clay and rocks starting to decrease in size. 

Building progress at school site

Our tasks today were very much focused on clearing away all the clay and debris around the toilet block, paving the area and mixing concrete for the columns. The team very quickly found their roles and got to work. For me this involved being part of 'Team Tetris' alongside Stephen and Sam. We had great fun making sure our rocks of varying shapes and sizes not only fit together but were also stable enough to withstand the heavy loads of more rocks and concrete.

Team Tetris' path

As this was our last full day of work at the school, we had not one but two coffee ceremonies! The afternoon ceremony involved another rendition of Ireland's Call, this time from the whole team, including our Ethiopian hosts. David was presented with the important task of cutting the bread today, and more importantly with his right hand (which is challenging for us lefties!). The staff at the school have been so generous throughout our time on site, and they showed this once again by presenting each of us with an Ethiopian scarf, which will come in handy back in cold rainy Northern Ireland. 

Afternoon coffee ceremony

Unfortunately work had to finish early due to another torrential downpour (it is the rainy season after all), however this allowed us more time to spend talking to the school staff and site builders. In particular for me I got to brush up on my Ethiopian dancing, which is always a bonus.

Back at the guest house, we were treated to good old pizza and chips for tea causing there to be smiles all around. Following our time of reflection we were entertained by Tom and Declan with another game of Family Fortunes. Although it was a brief session it allowed us time to pack in preparation for heading to Debre Zeit for some well earned rest and relaxation.

All in all today was a fantastic day, with so much progress being made. It was very difficult to leave the school and the staff today, knowing that I would not be returning. However leaving with the knowledge that I have been part of a team that has made a big difference for these children and staff is something I will never forget.

Post by Fiona Graham

Day 10

Monday 13th July

Back to building! Cannot believe how quickly this trip is going, we only have two more full days of building left.

After concluding the weekend and many late nights, the 7:00am start hit us hard, I think I had about 4-5 hours of sleep. Today's thought for the day was given by Sam and Nathan. Motivational quotes are becoming very central to these thoughts, the main theme of this message was our duty and responsibility to help each other, not a theme we have mentioned yet.

Today the team was split in two- one team went to the school and the other to a brand new site.

Half of the team went to a new community site to do the concrete flooring for a new toilet block- this was because we had made more progress than expected on the other sites. The community team worked very hard to get the flooring and the pillars complete. They also had some help from our youngest team member to date- Kanu.

Kanu helping out the team

Coffee break came at the usual time in the community site, and Ashley had the honour of cutting the bread! It was the biggest load of bread any of us had ever seen!

Ashley cutting the bread

My half of the team went back to the school. Most of our work consisted of shifting the soil away from the sides of the bank surrounding the toilets as well as making sure that the builders on the roof had plenty of cement. I was glad to have fellow bro Ben on site again as we lifted plenty of cement between us. But the most satisfying job for most was digging through the clay and removing rocks embedded inside. Sam's music selection was spot on yet again.

We're really getting accustomed to Ethiopian coffee now, so the coffee break was very welcome at midday, even if I was in the zone work wise! The morning session was definitely our most productive part of the day, as we decided to get a nice lunch at a different restaurant across town but the traffic was very bad, holding us up for about an hour. Before we finally made it back to the site, the 3pm rain and thunder showed up without fail, meaning we had to stay inside and prepare the concrete supports for tomorrow. This took only a short amount of time so we were able to go early!

Tonights entertainment was courtesy of Ashley and Katie. They very thoughtfully brought along a board game called 'Châl'enj'! (Try saying challenge in a silly French voice). It was a very fun game that was only as difficult as the challenge you set for yourself. Neil attempting 13 different laughs in 30 seconds was definitely a personal highlight.

Post by Harry Adair

Day 9

Sunday 12th July

We started off today with our usual thought for the day which was led by Fiona. She was sharing about Daniel in the Lions' Den- which was quite timely given one of the day's activities!

After breakfast we set out to visit a near-by Christian Orthodox Church. This was very unlike anything at home. When we got off the bus we could hear very loud singing over a tannoy from the church. The three girls had to wear scarves over their heads before going in. We moved towards the gate. On the right hand side of the road was a blind beggar, and on the left there was a very lavish tomb for former Prime Minister, Menes Zenawi, with two armed guards. Our guide Zee questioned the purpose of the guards and suggested that government money could be put to much better use. 

Christian Orthodox Church

As we continued to the front of the beautiful building it became apparent that there was a wedding ceremony in progress. We were lucky enough to see the bride and groom leave the church- preceded by two large drums (although it was suggested that these could've been for our benefit given the date!!) The bridal party was dressed beautifully, and the bride and groom were both wearing burgundy with crowns on their heads. 

Bridal party

We then walked around the church looking at it's fine architecture. We noticed that there were a few people kneeling at the base of some of the outside walls praying. They were outside because they didn't think they were 'good enough' to go in. 

Christian Orthodox Church

After leaving the church we visited Addis Ababa's Lion Zoo. Upon arrival we saw a sign with prices- 'Local Adult - 2 Birr, Foreign Adult - 20 Birr'. 

Price sign at Lion Zoo

We were also 'welcomed' by two armed guards asking were we planning on taking photographs or videos with a camera. We realised they were asking because there was a charge to do so. Luckily mobile phone cameras were free so we declined to pay the add-on. When we went in to the zoo we were struck by a number of things- how small the zoo itself was (we viewed the whole thing in 10-15 minutes); how many local people came, especially on a Sunday morning; and the terrible conditions for the animals. It was very difficult to see how many lions were in such a small cage, and this was repeated a number of times for other lions, monkeys, birds and deer. Needless to say- we all regretted our trip to the Lion Zoo.

After leaving the zoo we went to the 11.15am service at Addis Ababa's International Evangelical Church. The congregation had people from many different nations in attendance. It was great to be reminded that no matter where we go and what language we speak we can all worship the same God- He is truly global. This was made even more real when during the songs the worship leader would occasionally start singing choruses of well known songs in Amharic- and everyone belted it out!! It was a very special experience.

International Evangelical Church

After church we returned to the guest house for an Ethiopian lunch- followed by the now familiar coffee ceremony. We had a lovely relaxing afternoon, which included sleep for many of the team. 

Getting set up for Coffee Ceremony

After dinner we gathered together for our reflection and entertainment. Entertainment was another round of Charades led by Rachel and Harry. They reverted to the classic format of two big teams, which was well received by one of the older members of the party. It was a good end to a good day- everyone should be suitably refreshed and rested for more hard work on Monday morning. 

Post by Ashley Parks

Day 8

Saturday 11th July

A wee lie in was enjoyed by all the team after our first four days on site. A number of the team met to pray. We had our traditional breakfast of fried potato and vegetables along with finger-like sausages and delicious pancake. The usual excellent Ethiopian coffee was needed to open sleepy eyes. Declan and Tom led the thought for the day which focused on how mankind originated in Ethiopia and how far the country has moved from that Garden of Eden. They noted how wrong that turn of events seemed and we discussed the whys and hows remaining focused on what we can do to help remedy the situation.

After a well needed restful morning, we headed off to meet an Ethiopian Scout Group - Cistercian Monastery Mariam Tsion School Group. Before we left, Neil noticed that his tour polo shirt was a little tight so he handed it over to a grateful Fiona! 

Neil's Small Ladies Polo Shirt 

On the way to meet the Scouts, we passed Bob Marley Square which celebrated his One Love song,while Peter became a bit preoccupied with the many herds of goats being chased down busy city streets.

We received a very warm welcome from our Ethiopian Scouting family. They formed up to give us a guard of honour while being led in exuberant African chanting. We shook hands and saluted as many people as we could. 

Warm Welcome

We were then given presentations about Ethiopia and Ethiopian Scouting by a Cub Scout Abel Niguse and the Akela Tilahun Gitma. 

Akela

The remainder of the afternoon was spent in a circle enjoying the singing, chanting and dancing. The leaders were superb as they led us with enthusiasm and comedy - any barriers fell away and we were left with a strong sense of Scouting friendship and camaraderie. It has to be said that we didn't match the Ethiopians in this regard although Alex, Fiona, Rachel, Stephen and others did their best! Alex almost caused an international incident when he was within inches of knocking over some Cubs as he sailed round the circle at one stage-"Woooosshhhhhh!"

The activities ended with a tug of war competition which we nicked 2-1 thanks to me joining the Ethiopian team and clearly weakening it!



Tug of war victory celebrations

We visited the Group Headquarters which contained the poignant photographs of two members who have disappeared in mysterious circumstances which is one of the difficulties of life in Africa. 

Outside the Group HQ

We then gathered to present a Belfast scarf to the Akela as well as Ulster and Belfast badges to the Scouts present. The team enjoyed swapping scarves and badges as well as contact details. There was talk of a future trip to camp in Ethiopia and perhaps an Ethiopian contingent attending NIJam 2017!

Leader's Picture

The Ethiopia Scout Association were very well represented at this event - we met the International Commissioner Brook Dawit; the Messengers of Peace Commissioner Henock Amberbir; the National Programme Commissioner Belyu Tsenat Dancer (who is 16 years old - proper youth-shaped!); and the Addis Ababa Scout Council Commissioner Melak Moges. My sincere thanks go to the Association and to these Commissioners for their effort in organising an excellent afternoon.



Group photo with both scout groups

It is exciting to think that through our visit that the Ethiopian Scout Association and Habitat for Humanity Ethiopia plan to partner in future activities for their mutual benefit.

For dinner, we headed out to an Italian restaurant, Grani di Pepe, for some excellent food. There were a few power cuts throughout the meal which reminded us of the fragile nature of life here. Habitat's Dereje joined us after his busy week with our own Jenny Williams. A number of us did a shop run for Coke, Galaxy bars, biscuits, etc before the reflection and entertainment began. The reflection saw the team appreciate being members of this wonderful worldwide Movement of Scouting. The day ended with a light-hearted table quiz which was won by Alex, Sam, Rachel, Tom and Declan. Another really good day!

Post by David Scout

Day 7

Friday 10th July

Getting up this morning was made easier by being up for the best part of the night with an aggressively blocked nose. Zee told us on Thursday that after a couple of days on site its only natural that a few members of the team start to feel ill. It is a shame that my healthy start to Ethiopian life has ended, but I was lucky compared to poor Ashley who was properly ill last night, meaning he couldn't come with us. Most of the team have got colds now actually.

Today's thought for the day was brought to us by Katie. It was a very relevant piece all about us making a difference, in which she told us the story of the man who saved starfish left on the beach. I really enjoyed it as it reminded us of how, while there are many people we can't help on this trip, the  people that we can help will be much happier and safer.

I decided to work on the community team today so that this week I will have spent 2 days there and 2 days at the school. This turned out to be a great decision as our team gelled instantly and worked hard for each other. Today was a day of bricklaying, which was accompanied by Sam's fine soundtrack of our native music - namely Snow Patrol and to David's delight, U2. The Ethiopian locals gave us a truly amazing hand with our jobs, passing blocks to the bricklayers and carrying 50kg bags of cement across their shoulder blades in a way that would put even Declan and Tom to shame!

The bricklaying was difficult for me as the bricks done were in high places and it required good communication with the builders to always do the bricks they wanted done, and it was harder to be resourceful with the cement as it dropped off more readily. To add to this I was also worried about falling off the elevated platforms (concrete blocks stacked on the floor), so it was a fine balancing act; but everyone played their part with the job. When I wasn't working, I was enjoying the beautiful day.  Myself and Brian took lots of photos with the young kids here who were so sweet.

We took a well earned coffee break at about 11:30am, and I would be surprised if I ever have a better one. Rachel and Hiatz (one of the local girls) showed off their knack for dancing while we were fed delicious bread and popcorn. 

Hiatz and Netsame dancing at the coffee ceremony

We all contributed to the entertainment with a short rendition of "I'll tell me ma". The community made a big deal of coming down to see all of us and Rachel delighted them with an amazing jive performance of Shake, Rattle and Roll. 

Rachel providing coffee time entertainment

It was one of those moments where you could not help but join in with it. Quote of the day goes to Declan for shouting, "Dance with me Scotty!"

We finished our work at about 3:30pm and we were so delighted to have finished the job, at least for the weekend. We then transferred to the school and helped the rest of the team shovel some dirt away from the toilet block. It was heavy work but very rewarding to not have to worry about excessively muddy boots. We then played some football in the school yard with the local kids who turned out in force to see us. 

Football match with the local kids

The maverick Peter Watson had a typically mixed day scoring a looped back heel finish against me in nets, before hitting a child square in the face with the ball with a classic Watson 'toe poke' from a yard away. Fortunately the young boy was perfectly fine and the apology was sealed with a selfie.

Peter's post-apology selfie

When we returned back to the guest house we found out that David had been concealing something all day... Today was his 43rd birthday!! The leaders had already found this out earlier in the day via Facebook- and so we were ready with a beautiful cake to celebrate! 

Happy Birthday David!!

Tonights entertainment was courtesy of Bryan, Stuart and Daniel. We played family fortunes with the wording of the survey doing its usual job of frustrating everyone, though my team was victorious. We then played a game of Mafia. Fiona exposed her ruthless side as she killed off fellow Mafia member Sam to prevent herself from being detected. Afterwards I went up to Sam and Daniel's room where the rest of most of our team from the day met up and had snacks and chatted. Probably one of my best days yet.

Post by Harry Adair

Day 6

Thursday 9th July

This morning we woke up and had our reflection time, including an inspirational thought for the day led by Alex and Ben. After three days we acknowledged that energy levels were beginning to wane- but this was made up for by the constant encouragement and enthusiasm from everyone on the team. We had breakfast and got on the bus. On the way to our site we were stopped due to a security check. After 10 minutes or so parked midway round the roundabout we set off again. The bus dropped half of the team off at the Community site, while the other half went back to the school.

Today's work was the same on both sites- wall building. The Community site's walls were to be started and built from the ground, while the School site's walls were started yesterday, so the walls were higher. 

Both teams received an extremely warm welcome from the people at their sites as it is obvious that the locals are becoming more and more comfortable with the 'strangers' who have come to work in their areas. Stephen was made particularly welcome at the Community site by an extremely large beetle which landed on his back. (He described it as feeling like a stone had hit him.) Peter got a similar welcome to the school by a very colourful butterfly. 

We were instructed by Zee to take more breaks throughout the day so as to make sure we didn't burn out- so reluctantly we took heed. Both teams enjoyed spending time with the people at their sites, learning more about them, and enjoying the daily Coffee Ceremony. 

Despite the breaks both teams worked very well and made substantial progress before lunch. 

Wall building at School site

Mixing cement at School site

For lunch we returned to the usual hotel where the first thing we noticed was the step up in security. We were all scanned or patted down on the way in. This is undoubtably due to the UN conference running in Addis next week, when world leaders will come together to discuss Financing for Development. 

After lunch we all went back to the school site for a tour of the school. It was very interesting to find out what the children here learn. First we were shown the senior school, where pupils are studying for their leaving exams-the equivalent of our GCSEs-in a class of 65 pupils. The teacher would teach in a room smaller than the average classroom at home, from one textbook- the pupils don't have access to textbooks. We were shown the school library, which has less books in it than most classrooms at home! It was explained that they provide education for free to the local children- but this means that they do not receive government funding for resources. 

School Library

We were then shown the kindergarten section of the school. Surprisingly there were more resources here, but we were then told that these resources had either been made or bought by the teachers. We sampled some of the teaching tools including the infamous ladybird jigsaw which had been hand made by a teacher. After many failed attempts by various team members to complete the jigsaw, up stepped thee dream-team of Stuart and Ashley to show that it was in fact possible. While celebrating the victory we were told that the jigsaw was for 6 year olds and most of them could do it with their eyes closed!!

David sitting in on a teachers planning meeting (7 weeks before term starts!)

During the tour we were hit by another tropical storm, which meant that the community group were unfortunately unable to return to their site. 

During the rain we had the opportunity to teach the locals about Northern Ireland, and we also learnt some more about Ethiopia from them. Zee told us, "we are cut off from the world- not many people travel. Not many know about the outside world." He also explained that, "Ethiopians are great at marathons because they have good food- like milk and barley. They run to school 15/20km in barefoot at high altitude- so on good tracks it is no problem. We love athletics, but not as much as football- but even in football we are one of the worst in Africa!"

Alex teaching Ethiopians about Finn McCool

Due to the rain both teams had to stay at the school site after the tour. This meant there were too many people to do the work at the school so half of the team played football with some of the local children. 

Team picture with teachers

We left the site around 5.30pm to head back to the guest house for dinner and entertainment. We enjoyed a game of Empires led by Stephen and Fiona. Everyone liked the game so much (compared to the previous night's quiz!) that we wanted to play 2 or 3 times.

Post by Ashley Parks

Day 5

Wednesday 8th July

Today our team was split for the first time: half of us started work at a community site and the other half kept the work going at the school. Myself and Rachel took today's thought for the day.  I thought the holes in the ground that Katie described in yesterday's blog were the worst toilets I had ever seen, but the teams expectations were about to hit new lows. The whole team went to visit the new building site in the community where we were warmly welcomed in by the 20 families that live there. 

5 minutes into the visit we were stunned after being shown the toilet that most of the community had to use and in essence was similar to a pig sty, that was overflowing with human waste. This awful hut is still being used by the community while we build our block, and the only control they had over the volume of waste was introducing chemicals into the mixture which evidently wasn't working very well.

This was a huge wake up call and I was shocked that the people in the community had to use this as sanitation. As my half of the team transferred from the community back to the school that morning we were all visibly appalled by what we saw, we could only imagine the struggles of using this everyday and how many homes in Ethiopia have the same problem. We reflected on this as a team on the short bus ride across town, and a couple of us were tearing up. It was safe to say everyone was incredibly determined to make a difference on both sites today.

Coffee Ceremony at Community site 

Today our work at the school consisted of mixing cement and bricklaying. The weather was much better than Tuesday's downpours and we were able to make a great impact in the morning session, stacking the bricks high for the toilet blocks. This was made possible by the great help from the builders and also Sami and Dexter, our two designated policemen. We're really starting to bond with them despite the language barrier and they have taught us a few Amharic phrases.

Ashley, Katie and Hiatz at the Community site

But the best efforts of the day came from the community team; they had managed, alongside the locals, to mix, set and mould all the reinforced concrete required for the base of the block in just 3 hours and had finished their work by midday. Considering how long the concrete took to finish on Tuesday with the compliment of the full team, this was a herculean sized effort. Nathan and Peter later told everyone at lunch that the locals on the community site must have been 'half horse' which might help to explain their super strength but there was a lot for our team to be proud of today.

Wall building at school 

Entertainment was a very controversial quiz hosted by Neil and Peter. The questions were very tough seeing as Neil enjoyed film directors from the 1910s and mountains on other planets, while Peter wanted to show off his knack for (in my opinion) irrelevant biological phenomena, such as dinosaurs eating boulders to aid digestion and the giant golden crested flying fox being the largest flying mammal. I still found it very interesting, but Rachel and I didn't have the same eye for detail and came last. The winners were Ben and Alex on 13 out of a possible 36, just to demonstrate how hard the quiz was.

Post by Harry Adair

Day 4

Tuesday 7th July

Another early start for another beautiful day in Addis. Today was our first building day with Habitat and so we met early enough to have a time of reflection before breakfast. After breakfast,we grabbed our backpacks and all-important work gloves, got our boots on, and were on the bus for 8.30am!

We arrived at our 1st site- a kindergarten school- at 9am ready to go! Our welcome at the school was definitely one of the teams' highlights of the day. We were greeted by the teachers and Habitat staff, where two beautiful girls presented the team with flowers. It was a very special moment, and it was clear to see that the first meeting meant a lot to the teachers and director of the school. The ladies and children were dressed in the most pristine traditional Ethiopian dresses, and their hair was carefully braided and plaited with many beads and clips. 

Welcome ceremony 

We were then introduced to our building project-a toilet block. This will provide 8 new toilets for the 200+ pupils in the school. It will be earthquake proof and the septic tank can be emptied to be reused. This will replace a far less hygienic facility of 4 toilets...well four holes in the ground, that have literally been filled up with waste, and are no longer useable. Seeing (and smelling) the four toilets that over 200 4-6 year olds use on a daily basis was very difficult for everyone on the team. It highlighted again the great need, and the importance of Habitat's work.

Current toilets

The foundations had already been laid, and so our job today was to prepare the steel reinforcements for the concrete to make the block earthquake proof, then to fill the floor with the concrete.

The first job of twisting wire around the steel rods to hold it all together was quite technical, but we all got into the way of it quickly enough and embraced the opportunity to finally help! We had a large audience during this time, as the locals watched on. Two of which were policemen, but we were amazed to discover that they weren't actually there to spectate for an hour or so, but actually they will be with us all week to ensure our safety and the safety of the site. They were also very willing and excited to help out.

Peter, Neil, and our friendly police men

At 11am we had our coffee break. This coffee break, as Daniel correctly pointed out, would put Northern Irish builders' breaks to shame! This was a very much anticipated traditional coffee ceremony that we had heard many great things about! The ceremony is used for visiting friends or guests, as well as part of everyday life. The balcony, where we were seated, was beautifully decorated with flowers and palm leaves scattered on the floor around 6 local ladies and their coffee utensils. 

Coffee Ceremony

The first part of the ceremony is the brewing, where raw coffee beans are roasted over a small charcoal pit- a 'brazier'. The smell of the beans was delicious, and the ladies wafted the smell in our direction as part of the ceremony. The beans were then ground on a wooden pestle and mortar before added to a clay pot with a long spout- a 'jebena'. 

David having a go at coffee grinding. 

After the coffee was brewed,we were served it in the tiniest cups, alongside some traditional biscuits and pastries. Freshly made popcorn was also supplied. Although the coffee was incredibly strong, and for some hard to 'down', the ceremony was very intriguing and again a humbling experience. It gave us time to get to know the locals, and for them to know us. We learnt some Amharic, and David was very keen to teach some English- including the definition of 'fine'...

It was back to work to finish off the wire on the steel rods before lunch. We were driven less than 5 minutes away to a four star hotel for lunch. The lunch break made a lot of us think about the extreme difference between rich and poor so close to each other. Amidst great poverty was this grand hotel. The toilets that we had experienced in the school were a million miles away from the very luxurious ones at the hotel. 

Lunch at nearby hotel

After lunch,we started mixing the concrete. The work was a lot harder than the work in the morning- with heavy lifting of cement, stones and sand; then carrying the newly mixed concrete to the site to fill in the floor. 

The afternoon was broken up slightly by the most insane Equatorial torrential downpour! The work had to stop because of it, but we entertained ourselves by taking turns to run through a waterfall which was flowing from the roof of the school, which greatly entertained the locals. As the rain began to ease, we went back to work. It was still raining, but nothing we weren't used to from home. After the rain stopped Jenny Williams, the Chief Executive for HFH Northern Ireland, came to visit. We showed her around the site and we appreciated her encouragement.

Team photo with HFHNI Chief Executive, Jenny Williams

Nearing 5pm, all very tired, the final mix was being put on the floor and it looked like the end of the working day was in sight. But it turned out more concrete needed mixed to finish the floor...and just as this new mix was being finished off...another mix was needed. 

Concrete mixing

By 6.30pm we were done- literally and physically! However, spirits were still high as we worked as a great team and as we saw how much we had completed in just one day.

We got back to the guesthouse about 7pm and had time for a quick shower before dinner. Tiredness had definitely hit by the time we had finished our burgers, rice and 'Ethiopian' lasagne and so we didn't have any team entertainment- just a quick reflection of the day and then some banter before bed. 

Post by Katie Parks