Ethiopia: Give to receive

This is a running blog but I cannot resist to post one article not related to running. This post is a short report about our amazing experience in Ethiopia for almost 3 weeks over the Holidays. (Although running was not part of our humanitarian mission, I did manage to run about 60 miles in this special place for distance running as you could read in my late December and early January posts.) This is a very belated post. Initially, I thought I would just have to reference the group journal that the students had decided to do while there. But, like me with work, everybody got caught up with the workload and the report is still being worked out (at the time I publish the post, all the students have sent their own page --each had one day to recount-- to Derek who has proposed to work on the compilation). In the meantime here is what I had written on my way back to Ethiopia, 4 weeks ago...

11 days in a remote and desert place of Ethiopia, without Internet, where to start from...?

1. The logistic?
2. The weather?
3. What the group has accomplished in Gara Dima?
4. What I learned from our African journey?
5. Our experience of the Ethiopian health care system?
6. The photographic experience?
7. The running?

There are so many things, too many for one post. Besides, the students have agreed to each take turn to tell us in details about one of the days of our journey so you will have plenty to read from all these perspectives soon. I will update this post when the journal is uploaded. And, as you may guess in this digital photography era, there will be hundreds of pictures available. Tens of thousands actually so a lot of selection to be made in the upcoming few days. While we all catchup with work and school. [Since I wrote this, who did work on the photo albums although not to the extent I was hoping for, and here are two links to a shorter version (155 pictures) with Agnes' comments, in French, and a longer version (642 pix!) with some of the pictures I took with my Nikon D50).

In the meantime, here is a breviary, a series of vignettes which came back to mind randomly during my flight back to Paris. I have seen...

1. Hundreds of bright smiles welcoming us every day in Gara Dima.
2. Dozen of barefoot kids running faster than our bus on rocky and dusty trails.
3. Dentitions perfectly white and others brownish and very damaged by the fluorite.
4. Animals you expect in a safari (crocodiles, monkeys, birds, antelopes, Oryxes, insects).
5. Bumpy roads on which I ran faster than our bus.
6. Many hard working Ethiopians using ancestral agricultural techniques and traditions.
7. Villages made of dirt huts like the one I could see in my geography books in primary school.
8. A health care system really cheap and rudimentary, with a questionable hygiene.
9. Desert areas transformed into fields thanks to basic irrigation with dirt-made canals.
10. Exceptional kids from all horizons and background, joining forces and ideas to build a "World Family" (the name of Emebet and Joseph's association).
11. An amazing Ethiopian Minister (His Excellency Dr. Tewodros Adhanom, Minister, Federal Ministry of Health) who gave all his attention, support and consideration to the Gara Dima community by presiding the inauguration of the Community Center on the last Sunday of our stay.
12. An air pollution characteristic of the developing countries which cannot afford the extra cost of green and sustainable development.
13. Hundreds of goats, sheeps, ox, cows, donkeys, sharing the roads and streets with smokey cars and trucks in the capital.
14. Models of French cars (Peugeot 403, 204, 504, Citroen DS, Renault R16, ...) which I had not seen for 30 years.
15. Californian kids capable of leaving their comfort zone very far behind to help a country in much need.
16. Waiters trying so hard to cope with our high level of expectations in terms of quality and promptness of service.
17. A Christmas celebration on January 7 (Orthodox/Julian calendar).
18. Landscapes, trees, sunsets, animals corresponding to the most popular and common African post cards.
19. People living so simply like we read in the Bible, embracing the toughness and rigor of the desert; with the same people discovering our modernization with wonder, amazement, curiosity and natural at the same time (digital cameras, computers, electrical drills, medical equipment)
20. 6-year old girls carrying on their back their younger brother or sister the whole day.
21. The largest market in Africa (Mercado), as busy as a anthill.
22. A coffee darker than the skin of Ethiopians, amazingly sweet, and prepared in a peaceful and ancestral ceremony.
23. A very devotional country where Muslim and Christian communities coexist admirably, providing a great lesson of ecumenism and civism.
24. A place where time does not mean anything, where you live in the present moment because each day is a miracle and you cannot make plan for the future in such precarious conditions.

Overall, I've seen the crib of the World with millions of people perpetuating traditions, ways of life and agricultural techniques from several thousand years ago. And, as much as I believe we accomplished a lot to help and support the village of Gara Dima, there remains a bit of doubt about the pertinence and appropriateness of knocking over this traditional boat and potentially generating frustrations from needs which we may create artificially through accelerated change and development. Time will tell how sustainable and good this is, for us to propose our own view of progress and material and financial wealth...

As I reflect about our experience, I am most thankful to:

1. Alex who got us all of us there as the vice-president of the United Nations club that he co-founded with Derek at Cupertino High School three years ago;
2. Greg who noticed the prospectus of the World Family at the Ethiopian restaurant we were eating with the family two years ago; and also for getting very well integrated to the group while being the youngest;
3. Max for belonging to the club Alex leads and for having given us this opportunity for this family project, before he leaves for College;
4. Agnès for the hundreds of hours put in the organization before, during and after the trip; I still don't know how her hip supported the travel and all the time standing to negotiate all the detailed logistics;
5. Emebet and Joseph, the co-founders and co-presidents of the World Family; what an amazing work they do for their country, with a direct impact on thousands of lives!
6. The students who responded so positively to Alex and Derek's call to action; what an experience for them (and all of us) and a true example of the "20 teachable virtues" that Barbara Unell and Jerry Whychoff list in their book: Empathy, Helpfulness, Fairness, Tolerance, Caring, Courage, Humor, Respect, Loyalty, Courtesy, Patience, Resourcefulness, Pacemaking, Self-reliance, Self-motivation, Responsibility, Honesty, Trustworthiness, Self-discipline, Cooperation. It would be easy to illustrate each of these qualities with an anecdote, but the list is long so I will leave it here, with my profound reconnaissance to the 15 of you!
7. The parents of these kids for having trusted us and let their kid go in such an uncertain but rewarding adventure;
8. The other chaperones: 3 parents (Luisa, Seema, Charles), 1 teacher and club advisor (Bobby) and 1 phenomenal ex-teacher and globe-trotter (Kory), who rerouted her around-the-globe trip to join us in Ethiopia, between Tanzania and South Africa (see her blog).
9. The staff of the World Family in Ethiopia and especially Teddy who spent countless hours away from his family to take care of us and show us all the facets of his wonderful country, always with a smile;
10. The staff of the two hotels we stayed at in Addis Ababa and Gara Dima and our bus driver, Mohammed, and his son.

As I wrote in my initial draft during my connection at the Cairo Airport: "Back to the crazy Internet, digital and industrial civilizations. Back to work...!" Still, after 4 weeks passed, it has been a shock to switch civilization indeed and we still feel the effect of it. However we have to move on with our lives so we can continue helping our new friends overseas. Certainly this is a life changing experience in our journey toward a "flatter world" (in reference to Thomas Friedman's book: The World is Flat).

Gara Dima 30K: flat and dusty!

As I mentioned in my previous post (Running in Addis Ababa: Meskel Square), we did not go to Ethiopia for the running but for the humanitarian mission led by Alex. However, in addition to running in the capital, I was able to do two long runs while we were in the remote countryside in the East part of Ethiopia. Our hotel was in a truck stop, Metehara, on the road between Djibouti and Addis, a very busy and noisy place. The village we worked in is called Gara Dima, although not the one you would find in Google Maps. This one is too small and recent, corresponding more to a refugee camp and composed of people who fled war, drought and starvation in the North of the country a few years ago.

Gara Dima is 30 kilometers South of Metehara. The road between the two places is made of dirt and is very dusty and bumpy. Our commute on the bus varied from 1 hour 30 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes which was tiring for all especially in temperatures around 100F. Twice last week I was able to run back to the hotel from Gara Dima after our work at the village. Although running is Ethiopia's specialty, soccer is more popular and the people along the road was surprised to see a runner, moreover Caucasian. A few of them accompanied me for a few miles on their bikes and encouraged me. It took me 2 hours 26 minutes the first time and 2:20 the second. The air was very dry and temperatures quite high (90-100F), not exactly the conditions you would expect in winter to resume training (I did not run between Quad Dipsea at the end of November and my second days in Ethiopia, that is for a 4-week break).
On this satellite view you can see how dry the area is except for Lake Basaka near Metehara, the governmental sugar factory (the main patch of green corresponding to fields of sugar cane) and a fruit farm at the bottom of the view, near Gara Dima. Irrigation comes from the Awash river and that's all the water Gara Dima gets to grow plants and crops, wash or drink. A muddy water full of all bacterias and germs you can find in Africa...

Here is a series of pictures taken by Agnès from the bus as I was passing the sugar plant (which is also currently building an ethanol plant aiming at producing 50,000 liters of ethanol per day).
Who knows, this may become an official 30K race some day and draw tourists to the area (which is not the case today, even with the nearby Awash National Park).

After these two runs to conclude 2009, I got sick pretty bad and diagnosed with Typhoid by a tropical clinic in Metehara. Thankfully, the antibiotics (injected through IV) did their work and I was back to Gara Dima last Sunday for the official inauguration with the Ethiopian Minister of Health. What another overall experience, with the joy of combining some running with it!

Running in Addis Ababa: Meskel Square

I already mentioned last month that I ran at Meskel Square but, now that I am back to the Internet civilization, I wanted to tell you more about this place. Besides, I had a second run there upon our return to Addis after our 10 days in Metehara and Gara Dima.

Our trip to Ethiopia was first and foremost a humanitarian mission and I did not want to derail its focus with my passion for running and strong desire to take the opportunity of visiting this land of amazing long distance runners to meet them. I did some search on Internet before leaving and, among several contacts, heard back from Owen Barder, an Englishman taking a sabbatical in Ethiopia. In addition to great traveling tips posted on his blog, Owen advised me to go to the central Meskel Square at 5:45 am where I would find some runners there. Luckily it was conveniently located 3 kilometers from the hotel. Yet, it was pitch dark at this early time of the day and, despite the road being covered with asphalt in this area, there were a few scary holes to keep away from, on the road or the sidewalk. Here is a map of Addis Ababa with the trace of my first route around the city to visit it. Meskel Square is right in the middle, next to the Addis Ababa Museum.
Indeed, you will find runners training in the morning at Meskel Square. However, I was expecting that was just a meeting place to gather, form groups and start runs through the city. No, the plaza is actually where we run. It is large (about 300 meter long) and the workout consists in running back and forth on the benches forming an amphitheater on the South side of the square. On side of the bench for the 5,000-meter runners, the other and longer side for the runners focusing on 10,000 meters.

As I wrote a few weeks ago, this is where I met Mengsitu Abebe, one of the top Ethiopian runners and representative of the new generation of half and marathon runners. Mengsitu's main achievement so far has been to finish 3rd of the London Half Marathon in 2008 in the amazing time of 1 hour 1 minute (the same time Meb Keflezighi ran the San Jose Half in October before winning the New York Marathon a few weeks later). Mengsitu introduced me to the Meskel Square workout and we ran on the 5,000-meter side (which my Garmin GPS indicated to be closer to 4 kilometers).Mengsitu is highlighted in a recent documentary recounting the amazing story of Alex Vero who moved from an average and overweight runner to a top class marathoner in a matter of a couple of years. Although Alex didn't qualify for the Olympics (his initial goal), that shows how the body is capable with a lot of will, motivation, work and proper training. Not being in the UK where the movie has been available on Channel 4 these past weeks, I look forward to the release of the DVD, mid January (you can also join the Running to the Limits group on FaceBook). And read more about Alex in Runners' World (Zero to Marathon Hero).
Before flying back to Paris this Thursday morning, I went to Meskel Square early Wednesday morning for another run and used the 10K side this time (9K on my Garmin).Besides the high elevation, the smog really made it difficult on the lungs and I'm glad to be out of this pollution to train most of the year... Of course, the Ethiopian being more efficient, they don't have to breathe as much as we do. Yet, I wish for them that this pollution is contained rapidly.

So, if you ever visit Ethiopia, here is a place you should visit to start your journey in the land of long distance running!

Run Happy in 2010 and the new decade!

The business of giving

In this Advent time and a couple of days before Christmas, you would rather expect a title such as "the joy of giving," wouldn't you? Surely, today, I witnessed the joy of giving but, as genuine as it was, it is the result of a complicated and long process, a real business process.

This morning, Birt and I joined Emebet and Joseph, the co-founders of The World Family, to visit two hospitals in Addis Ababa: Saint Peter and Gandhi Memorial. The former is part of 50 hospitals that Joseph equipped with 2nd-hand and refurbished medical equipments from the US. It specializes in tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS treatment and asked for equipment to expand in the orthopedic and reeducation field. The second is on the candidate list for an upcoming project and is the largest maternity in the capital, the hospital where Emebet was born. The two institutions being at very different stages of the project, that provided a great opportunity to seize the broad spectrum of activities and hoops that Joseph and Emebet have to go through just to... give! Which include a call from the Minister of Health on Joseph's cell phone while we were driving through town. We should actually see the Minister himself at the inauguration of the community center in Gara Dima in one week!

At Saint Peter we conducted a review of the content of the three containers which have been shipped this year. Explaining to the local staff what some devices are meant for or how to reassemble and set them up. A dozen of articulated beds have been placed in a special pavilion which is empty today but has been setup in case of a swine flu epidemic.

At Gandhi Memorial it was a very different story: Joseph and Emebet were trying to convince the Director of the hospital to use some of his budget to cover part of the transportation costs and get a lot of needed supplies in exchange, instead of spending all his budget on much fewer brand new equipment. It seems like a no-brainer from an economical standpoint, but it is not that simple from an administrative point of view and also because it requires change of habits. The same issue we encounter in the... business. The discussion was all about submitting a wish list that Joseph will fulfill. Quite timely as we approach Christmas... Working from hospitals' wish lists is actually the very unique value proposition of The World Family, a much more sustainable approach than the one of other associations who decide on their own what they ship. It makes the logistics much more complex with very specific needs to meet, and that is one of the purposes of The World Family's Oakland warehouse which serves as the Santa Claus' hub to handle and mitigate this complexity.

We visited several sections of the maternity starting with the emergency room, in full swing (one lady in labor arrived with her husband with blood on his pullover). A room smaller than our car garages or not as clean... It would have been indecent to take pictures... We stopped by the consultation room, then the brand new premature section which only Emebet got in after putting some protection on. Overall, certainly the local state of the art which the Director and his staff can be proud of, but so far behind what we have in the US, health care crisis or not.

While the four of us had lunch in an Indian restaurant, the cell phones kept ringing to track the progress of the rest of group and we arrived just in time at 1:30 to see most of the group coming out of immigration and customs controls. With the remaining 6 exiting 15 minutes later after they checked on the missing luggage that didn't make through the connection and change of airlines in London (Agnès reported it was a total mess in the luggage warehouses at Heathrow). Everybody was looking so pale and exhausted after this 76-hour journey, door to door. Back to the theme of the title, the kids were given the opportunity to experience what it takes to fly overseas to conduct business. Although, fortunately, not all our business trips turn to such an awful adventure. What a way to give up three days of your vacation to such a noble cause. The business of giving...

PS: one quick word on running (the original blog theme...). None today as Mengsitu canceled our morning meeting last night. If we are leaving for Metehara tomorrow as scheduled (we'll decide tonight based on the form of the troops after their 4-hour rest this afternoon), the next opportunity will be there. In a much warmer weather as it is raining again today in Addis.

Connecting with a distance running incarnation

As announced in my previous post, I did woke up early to get to Meskal Square by 5:45 am. My hotel is only 3 kilometers away from the city landmark and the road is paved (which is not the case for many nearby roads) but it was pitch dark and difficult to see the holes in the pavement or sidewalk. The sky was full of bright stars but that was not helping. When I reached the plaza, I saw a few runners gathering indeed and asked one if there was some groups going out for a run. His English was very approximate and he shown me the benches forming an amphitheater around the plaza. Basically you run one length of the bench then move one step up and come back, and so on for 30 or so times. He shown one side was for the 5,000 (meters) and the other for the 10,000. And he invited me to follow him on the 5,000 side.

It was still very dark and the "benches" made of irregular dirt with holes and rocks. I kept my eyes down and fixed on my "personal trainer"'s shoes. He was running as smooth and light as the distance running elites. He didn't seem to pay attention to me except when pointing his finger on larger holes or rocks. It was a comfortable pace. I wish I could upload an image with the trace of my Garmin to show you the convoluted run which came to a total of 4,000 meters actually. There were about 50 other runners going back and forth with us, mostly men.

After that we did a few 200m sprints along the entire plaza and that is when I discovered that he was really really fast. After a few of them, I asked him what is his main distance and, with modesty, he replied with something which says long: he finished third at an international half-marathon in London recently in 1 hour and 1 minute which is world class. He accompanied me back to my hotel, with a friend of his, so we could exchange emails. He is definitely interested in learning more about running opportunities overseas. His English was not permitting a lot of exchange but we planned on meeting again tomorrow morning so he can give me his resume.

Back to my hotel room, searching his name (Mengsitu Abebe), I actually found that a documentary on distance running just got released this month in the UK, which includes Mengsitu. See http://www.theroadtobeijing.co.uk/documentary.htm. It was particularly moving to learn from this website that Mengsitu was a former goat herder as I see these herders from my hotel room.

This morning I also had breakfast with Birt who is joining our group. Birt has worked with Joseph (the co-founder of The World Family with Emebet) for 2 years. He lives in Palo Alto and arrived here on the 17th which gave him some time to visit many places in the city looking to buy supplies and wood to build looms at the village. And there is not such thing as Home Depot or Lowe's, so everything is complicated and takes a lot of time (yes, requires patience, cf my previous post...). We were joined by Teddy, the local representative of The World Family, who will be our interpret during our two weeks in Gara Dima and Metehara.

And now for the scoop on the weather side: it is raining in Gara Dima this afternoon! Not pouring rain but enough to fix the dust. As for the pollution it is actually pretty bad and, between the high elevation (2,300m - 7,550ft) and the chilly temperatures this morning, my throat is bothering me. Now looking very much forward seeing the rest of the family and the group landing at Bole Airport tomorrow morning so we can move to Metehara on Thursday!

Ethiopia: false start and switch to ultra!

Not for me, I did manage to reach Addis Ababa 2 hours only after the scheduled time. 3 am instead of 1 am, plus 1 hour to get the visa, 15 minutes with the customs' officer, I got in bed at 5 am. Not too bad given the circumstances, the transportation nightmare caused by the winter storm over the "developed" countries...

But false start for the group. Leaving Cupertino at 10:30 am on Sunday, they were supposed to land in Addis Ababa tonight at 2 am, this Tuesday morning. They made their connection in LA but the flight was delayed by 2 hours and they are now stuck in London like thousands of other travelers (I saw on CNN this afternoon that even the Anglo-French bullet train, the Eurostar got issues with no train circulating for several days!). Thankfully, Agnès just called to confirm that they got hotel rooms in London, and a new itinerary, switching from BMI to United, and from connecting in Jordan to Dubai. But they have to get the 1,300 pounds of luggage, in addition to their carry-ons, and check them again tomorrow morning). It was expected to be a marathon, it is now turning to an ultra for them. They are scheduled to arrive on Wednesday morning at 11:35, that is 72 hours after having left home (including the 11 hours of time difference)!

In the meantime, I did a short run of 8 miles to get acquainted with the city. Tomorrow morning, I will try to find a group of runners meeting at 5:45 am at Meskal Square. I got the word from a British blogger, Owen Barder who is spending a few years in Addis on a sabbatical. Meskal Square is huge and it will be dark (sun sets and rises at 6 am/pm as we are close to the equator), so I hope I will find them.

In the meantime, I will have to exercise patience, one of the 20 virtues highlighted in the book 20 Teachable Virtues: Practical Ways to Pass on Lessons of Virtue and Character to Your Children. This is a book Agnès and I like as we are glad to see our kids implementing as many as possible. Since our trip is 20-day long, I had planned to use one virtue for each page of my daily journal, here we are with the first one, then: patience. I would say that patience is most needed in this part of the world, but that would be a cliché and not conveying the efficiency and business that I've seen in Addis so far. Anyway, patience is what the group will need the most of for this 72-hour journey. And, to remain connected to the theme of my blog, patience is also a virtue which we need a lot in ultra running. Patience and flexibility to get over the things which do not go according to the plan.

I was going to add a few pictures of the beginning of my trip but the wireless connection is way too slow, like 10 minutes for loading one page. That is beyond patience... ;-)

PS: oh, and just as I was waiting in the lobby while uploading this post, a rat passed by. Fast. Quite a runner!

En route to... Ethiopia!

You might have already gotten the scoop if you read our 11th issue of our yearly newsletter, Le Cupertino. That is if your read French... Or if you received one of our previous calls for donation related to Alex' project. Tomorrow is the day: I will be leaving from Paris where I stayed for 10 days, and the rest of the group and family will leave 8 hours later, from San Francisco and arrive in Addis Ababa 24 hours after me...
We all packed as light as possible in order to bring as much extra luggage full of school and sport supplies, or tools and computers. The village we are going to, Gara Dima, is not the one that Google Maps knows. It is not on any map actually. The closest you will find of a map is this link to the other village we will be sleeping in, Metehara. It is close to the Awash National Park from which you can have an overview with this short clip. You can also have a feel of where we are going thanks to the pictures posted by Emebet on her association's website, The World Family. Emebet and Joseph will be there to welcome us (they spend their Holidays over there, without their respective families, to visit the hospitals they provide equipment with).

Will I be running in Ethiopia? You bet! But this is definitely not the main goal of the trip. Our goal is to help the village, especially the nearby school which, we have been told, gather 500 students between 6 to 12 year old. They do not have school supplies, no paper, no pen. The group is bringing chalk and enough paint to build 200 blackboards for the students (with wood we'll buy upon arrival in Addis Ababa). After three days in Addis Ababa this week, Friday will be out first day helping out at the school. Friday December 25th, on Christmas day?! Yes and no. Christmas for us but not in Ethiopia which lives on a different calendar. Not our Gregorian, but Julian. See what Wikipedia says on the Ethiopian calendar. And here is a calendar converter to keep up with us over the next three weeks... This Sunday will be April 11, 2002, a nice way to get 7 years younger! Guess what? Now we can even predict the next financial bubble/crisis!!!

For now, here is the list of supplies I've packed tonight (since I had to do the list for the customs, I thought I'd share it with you ;-):

1. 6 screw drivers
2. 8 chisels
3. 6 wood and metal files
4. 2 pairs of pliers
5. 2 hammers and 2 mallets
   
6. 3 electrical extension cords, 1 power strip, 2 adapters
   
7. An assortment of 950 screws and 500 nails
8. 4 saws
9. 2 tape measures
10. 1 plane tool and sharpening stone
    
11. 2 pairs of gloves
12. 1 tool bag
    

That's for some wood shopping. On the sport side, no, I don't come with a truck load of Brooks running shoes but items on the soccer side to complement the 15 footballs that the rest of the group has collected in the Bay Area:

1. 2 goal nets
2. 2 10-football net
3. 12 team tops
   
4. 4 whistles
5. 2 air pumps and 6 needles
   

A total of 35 pounds, and I hope Turkish Airways takes good care of my bag (I'm connecting in Istanbul).

Needless to say, with no electricity, no water, no cell coverage, you will not get any news during our 2 weeks in Gara Dima and Metehara. So it's time to wish you Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, lot of fun in celebrating the end of 2009 and all the best for 2010. Talk to you all in the new year, with many news to share. Definitely going farther with this incursion in Eastern Africa! And far from the snow we got this week in Paris...
(From my parents' apartment, views of Paris' roofs and the top of the Eiffel and Montparnasse Towers in the background on the right.)