June 21- June 29

On Thursday, market day, I headed into town to get some food from the market. As I walked up one of the back streets, a large ox was in the middle of the street getting a bit agitated. It was romping around in circles, its owner trying hopelessly to calm it. I stopped in my tracks, but the ox decided to come in my direction. The ox and its gigantic horns got dangerously close to me, I would say within 3 or 4 feet and then suddenly changed directions as I backed away.

As if this weren’t enough, a crazy man then decided that I had provoked the ox. He started to scold me angrily in Amharic, as he walked in my direction. He was gesturing wildly at me, getting closer and closer. Everyone just watched as he approached me. I kept backing up as he got closer. He finally slapped me on the arm! What?!?

I looked around, making sure the ox had cleared the area, and then scrambled off toward the market. I was a bit shaken. As I walked along my way, a young boy, no older than 10 yelled at me, “Hello SEXY”
This made me chuckle a bit. Only in Ethiopia, can all of these events take place in less than 5 minutes.

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The photos below are from a teachers’ appreciation meal and celebration that we had the week after school and finals were finished. My school is amazing and has been so great to me. They have always been so welcoming and hospitable to me. I actually ate a ton during this meal. Since we had our celebration on a fasting day (no animals were slaughtered), we had lentils and vegetables instead. All the dishes that I LOVE.

It was a little different from the “No Thanks, I’m a Vegetarian” meal that we had at the beginning of the school year. Read all about that meal by clicking the link.