Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Its a long way to Ethiopia

(Sung to the tune of It's a...Tipperary).


Left Auckland on a beautiful spring morning - it was just about daylight by the time we took off. Landed to a cool morning in Sydney then shot down to Wollongong for Ascilite and Leadership Project evaluation meetings. A bit rushed but very productive. Just as well the rental car didn't have a governor on the speedo for the trip back to the airport!

It was well worth observing the British Airways dress code for guest travelers for the comfort we got to travel in. The design of the cabin is very unusual and couples traveling together seem uncomfortable (or maybe it just unfamiliar) with the idea of sitting facing each other. But when you can get horizontal on a plane I think anything that seems strange becomes just fine. Food and service were EXQUISITE. Wish I could afford to travel this way every time.

The first hop over to Singapore passed quickly - then on to London and the wonderful country where it once cost a penny, now 20p just to have a pee. Getting caught short takes on a whole new meaning when natural bodily functions can't be entertained until he correct sum has been paid!



On that note - have you heard that the old saying "going to spend a penny" has been superceded by the somewhat inelegant "euro-nating' No wonder the UK refused to switch currencies!

Anyway, it now costs 12 quid to have a shower to clearly progress is happening here! After the first 36 hours of travel I would have paid ANYTHING for that shower - and I did! That plus the wonders of wireless access that have allowed me to clear my over-capacity mailbox, move forward the plans for project selection and embarrass my travel companion by putting his picture on this site! Ha - you notice I didn't put my own 'smart-dress-traveler' pic up. Such is the power of the pen pusher...



Have been reading Bob Geldof's book - Geldof in Africa - on the plane. Very fitting for the occasion - also very humorous, informative and incredibly well written.

Next stop Addis Ababa - via Beirut as far as I know. By the time we get there we will have been on the move for more than 48 hours! To get to our final destination at Degan we have another full day by road - via hired minibus and driver. At least we get to wait a day until the rest of the Cunningham whanau arrive from UK and Tanzania. The two hour flight up country would have been stunning but better pictures on the ground. So good morning / day / evening to all you lovely readers. I will keep you posted as and when I can.
Cathy

Monday, September 24, 2007

Some info on the DESTA project


It seems from various comments that people are actually visiting this blog, so just to fill in some details, here is an extract from the exec summary of the last trip report in 2006.

(DESTA means Joy in the Amharic language - in the context of this project it is an acronym for Development, Empowerment, Sustainability, Technology and Accountability)

"The team has continued development work to grow and extend the Desta Project. The following goals were achieved in 2006 with the support and assistance of many people in Ethiopia, New Zealand and the UK.

1. EDUCATION:
- Degan Secondary School library built with British Airways donation
- Deliver funds to Girar Amba Primary School
- Deliver an autobiographical scrapbook from Gulf Harbour Primary School (Auckland, NZ)
- Facilitate production of a similar scrapbook by Girar Amba students
- Record this for later use in fund raising

2. HEALTH
- Consult women’s health pioneer and gynecologist Dr Catherine Hamlin
- Visit new Degan Health Centre under construction
- Investigate facilities at the new health centre
- Consult on maternal mortality reduction strategy next step
- Deliver donation to Degan Clinic medicines fund

3. MICRO ENTERPRISE
- Follow up with farmers on cattle fattening project
- Research costs and strategy for micro enterprise research project
- Follow up on gloves for rope makers

4. CONSULT THE COMMUNITY ON THE NEXT PROJECT

5. GROWING DESTA

6. DIRECT SUPPORT TO INDIVIDUALS"

A note of caution

The NZ government travel advice site contains this warning:


Making travel insurance something of a challenge. There is little or no risk in the areas we will visit. None are close to borders with Eritrea (currently closed), Somalia or Sudan. A trip via Google Earth worked for Sam's company. Mine was fine as long as I don't expect to be covered for any act of war, terrorism etc. My immediate thought was 'that's just as likely in London.' I made the mistake of voicing that thought. The lady on the phone was not amused :-( but she took my $ anyway!

Off tomorrow so must get work finished.

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Prep for the trip

Two days til take off and there is a bit of confusion around the house. This is normal with 5.50am departures. What to pack and what to leave? Have I done everything I need to before exiting from work for three weeks? What have I forgotten? Appeased by the thought that most things don't really matter that much - unless they are in the tickets, passport, credit card category.

Another picture from the archives in anticipation of more up to date shots. These women damage their hands and feet by handling toxic plant material used to make rope. The earnings are not great, but they don't have a lot of choice of ways to make a living.

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Why the title?

In my younger days I used to travel a lot, and once wrote a funny little poem with the lines:

moving, moving
always moving
restless like the sea

When I set up this blog to report back from a trip to Ethiopia in September / October 2007 and had to think of a name, that is what came to mind. I don't know how accessible the internet will be along the way, so here are a few shots from an earlier trip by a travel companion.

These people are very resourceful but they are also very poor. They rely on rainfall to produce crops for food and that doesn't always come. So they can always use assistance with sustainable development initiatives. That is how someone like me gets lucky enough to go there.


Building a new classroom for Degan High School. Sponsors supplied the funds, the community provided labour and the government gave them certification and other resources. Collaboration works!

The school day runs in shifts so more students can be accommodated. Many have to work as well as study, so couldn't attend full time even if the school could take them.

Watch this space for updates on the trip.