snapshots of Ethiopia – First Trip Day 3

{In case you missed it, here is Day 1 & Day 2}

We were excited to be finally going to bed early on Saturday night, since we had been up for over 30 hours.  It had been an emotional day as well — meeting our sweet girl for the very first time!

So, at 1 a.m. on Sunday morning, we were awakened by singing from a church.  It was being played on speakers all morning long.  We somehow managed to snooze but were awakened every hour with more singing.

At breakfast, we asked the ladies at the guesthouse where the singing was coming from.  They told us it was from the Ethiopian Orthodox Church on the hill.  Since it was Sunday, John asked if we could visit an Orthodox Church.  He really wanted to observe their worship service.  Instead, our driver took us to the big “tourist church.”  It was the Holy Trinity Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

But I can’t complain — it was a really neat outing!

Don’t forget that the Queen of Sheba, who visited King Solomon, was from Ethiopia.  Ethiopian rulers have traced their lineage to the Solomonic dynasty through Sheba.

Ethiopia has an amazing history, as the oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world.  Except for a few years from 1936-1942, when Italy invaded, it has remained free from colonization and outside control.  Emperor Haile Selassie fled Ethiopia during this time, and is buried in the Holy Trinity Church.

We visited with our girl for as much as we could.  She started opening up little by little.  She is tiny!  We think she is about 18 months old (we don’t know her exact birthdate so this is the best estimate).  However, she was wearing size 12 month clothing.  Oh, so sweet and little!

We ventured out for dinner on Sunday night to the Yod Abyssinia Cultural Restaurant.  We tried traditional Ethiopian food.  John had lamb and I had chicken with injera.

What is injera?  Wikipedia answers:

Injera is a sourdough-risen flatbread with a unique, slightly spongy texture. Traditionally made out of teff flour, it is a national dish in Ethiopia and Eritrea.

How was the food?  One word in capital letters:  SPICY!  Makes our American food seem really bland in comparison.

The crazy part of this trip was that we did not have internet access from the time we arrived until probably Monday.  Even at that point, internet connection was still spotty at times.  We felt very disconnected from our boys back home!   It’s amazing how much we have come to rely on technology for fast communication.  When you don’t have it, you miss it.