Day 6: Sunday (11/17): Day of Rest

Sunday, 11/17. Sunday mornings in Ethiopia are supposedly the most relaxed days. And I guess I can confirm this, since there were no screaming soccer playing kids waking me up this morning. Today, I woke up early, got ready for the day, and spent sometime with God before the day began. How blessed am I to be in Ethiopia right now? God is good. 

 

I thought it would be an appropriate time to share this picture of Ethiopia and God's Beauty.

Once everyone got up, we went to Kaldi's for breakfast. It's a coffee place that serves some pastries and some other foods. The logo is a green circular image... sound familiar? After breakfast we headed to IEC (International Evangelical Church) for church this morning. It's a church that Mindi and Dereje have gone to a few times. And wow, I was SO SURPRISED at the diversity at the church. There were so many people. I didn't even realize so many non Ethiopians were living in Addis. It felt so weird to see so many different people, not only Americans or Europeans, but also people from other African countries. When I asked Mindi why all these people were here, she said that there are a lot of international jobs here. There are embassies, non profit organizations, missionaries, and those involved in the African Union (AU) and other organizations. Also a lot of business happens in Addis. So there is a lot of diversity in the city, so much, that the church has francophone and Korean service as well! The message was great, and it was really nice to worship (in English) with so many people from all over the world. Seeing so many different people praising God together brought happiness to my heart.

After church we headed to the Sheraton to relax, eat and get some Internet access. Yesterday, we tried to go to the Golf Club to use their wifi, but like most places they use the Ethiopian internet system which is always down. Sheraton on the other hand, uses their own completely different Internet system. So we paid a little fee (hence why some of my blog posts made it) to use the Internet. But anyways, the Sheraton is Addis is REALLY NICE. They actually have a miniature model of the property to help you find your way around. Yes, it's that big and fancy.  Plus the prices are… well the same as in the states. Lunch cost me about $20, whereas in the rest of Ethiopia you can get a full meal for about $5.

The pool at the Sheraton

Being at the Sheraton made me realize that Ethiopia has two very different extremes. There are the poor who beg on the street, who don't have food or homes and then there are the very rich. Yes, I do realize that most of the people at the Sheraton today were guests, but we did see about 5 different wedding parties and wedding guests. All dressed in beautiful gowns and suits. I can't even imagine how expensive it must be to have your wedding at the Sheraton, but I'm assuming A LOT. I know that almost every city has this dichotomy, but I think I was just naïve and didn't expect it here in Ethiopia. Just to give you an even bigger picture: the 10th wealthiest man in the world lives in Ethiopia and owns the Sheraton here. Actually before it was build, the Sheraton area was a ghetto. But this man decided he wanted to build the hotel instead. So what do you think he did? He tore down the whole area and reallocated everyone that was living there to condominiums. Can you believe that? Wow. You got to be really rich to do that. I wonder how the extreme wealth makes the extreme poor feel and vise versa?!

Anyways, after that we went up the mountain to Entoto. It was the place where the first church was built and where past Kings and Queens lived. We got to see and walk around in some of the original homes. It was really neat to see this piece of history. (I also learned today that the Ethiopia calendar is about 6 years behind us. The tour guide continuously said, Ethiopia year XXXX. I also found out that Ethiopian time is different. They start the day at the time the sun rises. So for example, 6 p.m. on a Sunday in Ethiopia would actually be around Noon for them.

The church at Entoto (this is the one they rebuilt. The original one was built close by was very small.

--> That's the highlights for today. Tomorrow, my project coordinator at my organization will be out of the office, so instead of trying to make something work while he is gone, I'm going with Amy to visit Salam. I will tell you more about it when I learn more tomorrow!