I only spent one full day in Addis Ababa, because when I travel I prefer to see cities and towns other than the capital, although I do like to at least see them for one day to compare with other big African cities. We spent a lovely day in Addis exploring the market areas, and… Continue reading Ethiopian Adventures: Addis Ababa and the East to Harar
Ethiopian Adventures: Gondar and Bahir Dar
I arrived in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, in the evening to meet my college friend Tristen for an 11 day trip around Ethiopia. We choose the country because we are both a big fan of Ethiopian food and it seemed like it offered a lot of diversity in terms of things to see… Continue reading Ethiopian Adventures: Gondar and Bahir Dar
Tolerance, Peace, and Value Systems
“It may seem naively idealistic, but I know that as long as we can imagine a better tomorrow, we can work towards a better tomorrow.” –James Orbinski, An Imperfect Offering About two weeks ago I had a session with my students on stereotypes and how we should not act on them in order to avoid… Continue reading Tolerance, Peace, and Value Systems
Promoting Discussion
Before leaving for my vacation to Ethiopia, which I will soon blog about, I had the pleasure of spending a week surrounded by talks of promoting discussion of various topics from witchcraft to stereotypes to sexual abuse. It is a topic important to me because the simple act of promoting discussion is what opens doors… Continue reading Promoting Discussion
A Return to Togo
Things I learned on my second trip to Lome, the capital of Togo, where I went to enjoy a weekend and re-stamp my visa into Ghana: If you travel with a man, no one will direct questions to you—even about your own passport. If you don’t present it yourself, sometimes people never ask for your… Continue reading A Return to Togo
The Ones That Slip Away
It is hard for people with personalities like mine to feel as though someone has “slipped through the cracks” on “our watch.” We believe as though we can help everyone. But the truth is that it is sometimes beyond our control. Even upon realization, however, it is sometimes still hard to cope. In October of… Continue reading The Ones That Slip Away
Like Candy from a Stranger
Most of us have seen the public service commercials about it and have learned about it from our parents and at school. DON’T TALK TO STRANGERS. And especially when we are young, we are told not to go with strangers and never take candy or other presents from them. They just want to lure poor,… Continue reading Like Candy from a Stranger
Island Adventures
This past Saturday I threw aside stress and dusty Accra air and planted my feet in the warm sand and beautiful scenery of Ada, Ghana with Fred. The area is comprised of several different islands, that house many different resorts and a large casino. It was a wonderfully relaxing day filled with good food, lots… Continue reading Island Adventures
Being ‘Madame Younge’
It would be an understatement to say that I love my work. And I especially love Thursdays when I get to teach another session at my pilot school in Adenta. I have 37 students, which is a combination of Class 5 and Class 6. This puts the students’ ages between 10 and 12, which was… Continue reading Being ‘Madame Younge’
Living My Questions
Last October, I finished reading James Orbinski’s An Imperfect Offering, which took a hard look at humanitarianism and politics. Orbinski’s job as head of Doctors Without Borders and his founding of Dignitas International exposed him to the type of preventable human suffering that raises a mountain of questions surrounding why things happen and how can… Continue reading Living My Questions
Odelia Younge 