Travel Journal ~ April 19th - 21st

I know that many people (friends, family, and other adoptive parents) have questions about our trip. Everyone wants to know what we did, how the process went, and so on, so I thought I'd share my journal with you. I'll try to type it all in as I have time.


Sunday 4/19


Finally a sunny and warm day! The sun began melting the snow early this morning. Marc still had to push the suitcase up the driveway on the sled, but we were able to get out of our neighborhood. What a beautiful day it ended up being.




Saying goodbye to Fletch was so hard. He was out early this morning sledding again and didn't want to even stop to say goodbye. I wish we could have stayed to play more with him but we had to get some errands done and get to the airport on time for once.

We were able to stop and get a nice leather portfolio and pen set for Milkiyas (our Bethany rep in Ethiopia), get some cash from the ATM (not enough) and stop for lunch.

Tuesday 4/21

Our flight to DC was uneventful. We stayed overnight at the Crown Plaza near the airport, had a late dinner at Taco Bell (how glamorous), and were right back at the airport early in the morning for a 10 am flight.

From DC to Rome was about 7 hours. We ate, slept a bit, but mostly caught up on movies. I saw Yes Man with Jim Carey which was cute, but not really good. I loved Seven Pounds with Will Smith. Saddest movie ever. I had to choke back and ugly cry. And I finally got to see Slumdog Millionaire with was worthy of all the awards its been getting.

From Rome to Addis was another 5 hours or so and we both slept off and on since it was going to be 8 am when we arrived.

Getting our visas at the airport was easy and only took about 20 minutes. Not anything to worry about if you're trying to decide whether to get them beforehand or not.

One of the BCS reps, Yemane, met us at the airport with a driver, Abera. They took us to the New Flower Guesthouse and left us to rest for a bit. Marc wanted a quick nap since he didn't sleep well on the plane. I napped a little bit, but am anxious to get out and see some things. I've heard several American voices come and go out our window over the last hour, but I don't think any of the other BCS families arrive until later in the week.

After waking Marc up, we hemmed and hawed about what to do, finally deciding that maybe we'd just take a walk and find a place to grab lunch. As we opened the door to leave, Yemane and Abera were walking up the stairs to find us. Seems they knew we might be needing some direction.

They took us over to the Jupiter Hotel where we ate lunch in the restaurant bar. Jupiter is a hip, trendy looking place. There were several business people their using their wi-fi. Yemane said that many adoptive families stay there. They have a fabulous burger and fries lunch for $3.50.

After lunch we were taken through Addis to the BCS office where we got to see Milkiyas and meet his staff. The office is on the other side of the city from the guesthouse, maybe 20 minutes away. The city reminded me a lot of Bangkok (only not as hot, humid, or stinky) and some parts of Panama. Plenty of slum type areas with shack built upon shack on hillsides.

The BCS offices are in a row of buildings built on the side of a hill. It's two stories with tiny little offices. We got a tour and met all of the workers there and were served tea and cookies. There were photos of the other BCS families who had already been there to adopt, so it was fun to see Bereket and the TenHankens and Kim with Savannah.

If you're wondering what happens to your dossier once it's sent to Ethiopia, forget about fancy-schmancy databases and filing systems! Sisay (the younger of the two) has them all in folders on a bookshelf in his office. The other Sisay has a big poster on his wall with every BCS family listed, their age/gender preference, and where they are in the process. They are both (as is Milkiyas) very sweet and caring men.

The younger Sisay told us "You have Misgana!? She is so smart and talkative!" and went on about what a "firecracker" she is. I can't wait to meet her.

In talking to Milkiyas over tea, we decided it would be better tfor us to leave and go to Awassa tomorrow, then meet the kids when we get back, rather than meeting them, leaving for a few days, then coming back. I thought it would be too hard on all of us to do that and Milkiyas agreed.

When our tour concluded, Milkiyas negotiated a rate with our driver for the trip to Awassa. Judging by his reaction, we're not too sure the driver was happy with the outcome.

Back at New Flower we met another guest, Julie, and her Ethiopian daughter (who I really wanted to grab & smooch all over, but refrained). Julie had been there a few weeks ago to adopt her 4 year old son, but there was a problem with her daughter's paperwork, so she was back again. She really made us feel good by telling us that her son was already speaking mostly English at home.

Marc and I sat talking outside in the courtyard for about an hour, then decided to go in, get ready for tomorrow, and get some sleep.