Safe In Addis

We arrived last night.

Our two flights were as smooth, (including the only two hour layover in Frankfurt) as one could ask for. No delays. Great food...apparently Luftansa's meal plan includes short ribs among other yummy offerings. If ever you take a long haul flight and they are in the running, fly with them.

Visa purchasing, immigration, baggage, and then baggage clearing all went very smoothly and quickly. We arrived at our Afro Land Lodge guest house around 10pm. We were asleep by midnight-ish...heavy on the ish for some of us, but there's nothing a little sleeping aid can't help, right?

The noises we can hear from our (beautiful, large!) room include a rooster, dogs, and a mosque screaming out sometime around 5am briefly roused me. Ear plugs are a fantastic investment (especially when they are free!). I have to say, however, I am loving the noises. Each and every one. Okay, the rooster could shut up for a few minutes but even it symbolizes something.

{the view from one of our windows...this is the "front yard"

...we believe they are storing many

of their belongings in the car.

a few moments later they were washing their dishes in a plastic basin

between the car and the laundry line}

The noises, smells (good and not-so-fragrant), the sights, it's all part of our journey. I am not annoyed or fussed by the incessant goings on below us. I am aware of it. I am trying to engrain it all in my mind, memorize it all, appreciate it all.

{apparently the best way to keep your satellite dish attached to the roof...this method is a common

sight from our room's view}

Internet (wireless) is slow, hit and miss...but available. So, as I am able I will post.

Tomorrow or thursday we will meet The Reason for our journey. We met with friends this morning who are returning home with their sweet 10mth old bundle and they saw our babe yesterday. She is long (if you know us, you'll find the irony in that one...at 7 months she is apparently longer than our friends' nearly 10mth old). Her little legs are just that...petite. Her hair...she has a head of beautiful curls. And these are some of the reasons I know she is meant for us.

Keep checking in. I'll do the same, and post whenever I can...and by that I mean whenever I can access the internet. I'll go into more detail on our excursion this morning and just some of the culture we experienced.

And please, please keep praying.