Well, what have I got myself into. 6 mths in Ethiopia, off the grid was quoted to me as my location. Pulse GSK a worthy cause - time with an NGO and its people.
I have managed to contact the other 4 GSK personnel going to Ethiopia, Sarah and Bridget already there, Laura and Delphine to arrive before I do. Skype is great for a quick chat which I have done a few times to learn about the challenges of daily life.
Its been interesting to talk to people about my volunteering to Ethiopia - work colleagues, friends, family. A common theme from the majority ( 70%) is that I must be crazy. Most work colleagues think I am crazy or neutral on the idea, so little support from there. Friends no more encouraging especially in relation to NGO's having no impact. Maybe there is more to be told of my story there during and after than I expected.
Well tomorrow the real pain begins - 12 injections - hepatitis, cholera, yellow fever, rabies and more.
Sunday 26 June 2011
Columbia University and the Earth Institute
I met Yanis Ben Amor today, my manager/project leader for my assignment in Ethiopia. From the Hilton Hotel on 6th Ave it was 8 stops on subway Line 1 from Columbus Circle to 116th St. A little trouble getting into the station when my multipass ticket failed and I lost $10. But got on I did. Was almost pushed of at one of the following ststaions when a whole crowd tried to get off - some swearing at me....The Columbia University precinct is a nice area by the Hudson River, I arrived early so managed to walk over to Grants tomb and around some of the streets. Lovely architecture, well at least it stood out from some grey drab buildings.
I met Yanis in his office in the Interchurch building on 120th St. The subsequent 2.5 hrs was quite divergent. I also met Eliana from Millenium Global Villages for a short period. Yanis and I covered alot but key was the date of arrival and trip to Mekele and Hawzen. We settled on about 26 August to go to Addis Ababa and spend a week before meeting up with Yanis about Sep 2 and flying north on Sep 4. Where to stay initially in Addis -the Hilton - the Australian embassy is based there so a good choice. In Hawzen, the choice was really only the Gheralta Lodge otherwise a place in town. - Mud brick huts either way. Phone SIM card and USB dongle for internet of which the best service I am likely to get is e-mail. Transport will be supplied by the MGV team as I will spend 2-3 days in the villages around Koraro and 2-3 days in the office. The work load is high with Yanis mentioning that they stay back to 11 pm.
Hygiene is important - wash your hands with sanitizer even after shaking hands with someone - discretely of course.
I met Yanis in his office in the Interchurch building on 120th St. The subsequent 2.5 hrs was quite divergent. I also met Eliana from Millenium Global Villages for a short period. Yanis and I covered alot but key was the date of arrival and trip to Mekele and Hawzen. We settled on about 26 August to go to Addis Ababa and spend a week before meeting up with Yanis about Sep 2 and flying north on Sep 4. Where to stay initially in Addis -the Hilton - the Australian embassy is based there so a good choice. In Hawzen, the choice was really only the Gheralta Lodge otherwise a place in town. - Mud brick huts either way. Phone SIM card and USB dongle for internet of which the best service I am likely to get is e-mail. Transport will be supplied by the MGV team as I will spend 2-3 days in the villages around Koraro and 2-3 days in the office. The work load is high with Yanis mentioning that they stay back to 11 pm.
Hygiene is important - wash your hands with sanitizer even after shaking hands with someone - discretely of course.
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