Ethiopia Itinerary

So Brent and I spent this weekend nailing down what we would like to do with our 3 weeks in Ethiopia.  Our original idea had to be modified because the very nice eco-lodge, the Aregash Lodge, in Sidama was full.  We threw around a lot of ideas, some of which included multiple in-country plane trips, but ultimately decided on an itinerary not too far from our original idea minus the Aregash Logde.

We will spend the first 5 days of our trip in Addis Ababa getting to know our kids.  We will also appear in court on November 12th to become their legal guardians.  Five days seems short considering this is something that we have been waiting for for months, but the social worker at our agency cautioned us about spending too much time with them on this trip.  Because of their age, they will have a hard time understanding what is going on and that we will be back in a month or so, so she recommended that we don't get too attached to each other.  Saying goodbye will not be fun.

We also hope to spend some time in Addis Ababa checking out the sites.  There are supposedly two great museums - one of which holds Lucy "the missing link".  I am quite excited to see Lucy.  There is also a huge market to get lost in and some great places to pick up souvenirs.  We also hope to catch a cultural dinner show with traditional Ethiopian music and dancing. 

I am wondering though, once we meet the kids, if we are going to want to do much of anything in Addis but spend time with them.  We are still not sure how visiting them will work.  We pretty much have unhindered access to Ashegre's orphanage, but it might be more difficult to visit Elsa.  We should hear from the in-country coordinator about this soon.  I am hoping that we also get at least a few hours to spend all together, but this might not be possible.

After 5 days in Addis we are going to hire a driver and spend 3 days exploring the Sidama Region of Ethiopia, near Ashegre's birth place.  We will likely base ourselves out of Awasa, the capital of Sidama, and explore from there.  We are going to hire a driver for this leg of our journey so we have the flexibility to go where we want to go and hopefully learn as much about Ashegere's first home as possible.

After that, we will have our driver drop us off in Dodola where we will depart for a 5 day, 4 night horse trek near Bale National Park.  We will hire horses, a horse handler, and guides through a non-profit eco-tourism outfit based out of Dodola.  We will ride horses/hike for 4-5 hours each day and stay in huts/small lodges each night.  This tourism outfit has been established to bring money to local villagers.  The villagers provide the horses (a new set each day) and are employed as guides and horse handlers.  Despite what looks like wooden saddles and small horses we are very excited about this part of the trip.  You can check out their website here.  They have a slideshow you can watch about the horse trekking trips.

Once we are done horse trekking we will relax for 2 nights at the Wondo Genet Resort Hotel, about 3-4 hours east of Dodola before heading back to Addis via public transportation.

We will have a couple of more days in Addis for additional sightseeing before heading home.  We will likely not visit the kids during this last stay in Addis, as it would be too tough on them (and probably us too).

So those are our plans for now.  Things could definitely change between now and our departure and again once we actually land in Ethiopia.  We are laying the groundwork for this itinerary right now, but it might not all come together.  I have requested our room in Addis Ababa (for the first stay there) - its within walking distance of Ashegre's orphanage.  I have emailed a driver that another adoptive mom who made a similar trip recommended and have requested our horse trekking dates.  Nothing is really confirmed.  Beyond these contacts, we hope to work everything else out once we get to Ethiopia.

Oh, and if you were wondering what Buster and Lola will be doing while we're gone, a new but already great friend here in Ventura has offered to stay with them and the chickens while we're away.  Thank you Roberta!  You don't know how much your offer means to us.