Rewind- February 12 & 13, 2008

Well, Blogger was having issues last night when I finished work and since it was nearly midnight, I just didn't feel like slogging through.... So, here are two days worth.

On the morning of the 12th, we met with the lawyer to sign all the Embassy paperwork. After that, we drove over to Toukoul and checked the kiddos out for the day. Isa arrived looking dainty and adorable in head to toe pink with her hair done in different ponytails from the day before. It was wonderful to see that the nannies obviously took such good care of her.

Back at the guesthouse, we just snuggled on the babies and got our first real taste of parenting. Toukoul had sent bottles with us, so the babies all had lunch. Well, actually, Isa decided that she'd just rather sleep than eat. So, we took a nap together.

On the morning of the 13th, we did a little touring around Addis, including visiting a beautiful, fairly new Orthodox church.

Then we went to the Ethiopian History Museum. We were lucky to get a wonderful guide- other tourists even ended up tagging along with us because he was so funny and knowledgable. Unfortunately, Lucy- the most famous exhibit in the museum- was actually in the States while we were in Ethiopia. I especially enjoyed the top floor of the museum showing Ethiopian art.

Of course, we ended the afternoon by visiting the babies again in the afternoon at Toukoul for some love and a bottle.

During all this time, the guest house proved to be a great refuge. As I had noticed the first day, it was noticably cooler and quieter as soon as you got inside the gates- a nice change from the hot, dusty, noisy streets of Addis. The veranda outside our room looked out over the garden and was a great spot to sit and read. Or, you could just watch the giant tortoises lumber around. The staff was wonderful and the cook made very tasty Western-style meals (although I did wish we'd gotten at least 1 traditional Ethiopian meal at the guest house). Yes, the rooms were a bit primative but quite comfortable. Most of the linens were the same ones that were sold at Toukoul, beautifully embroidered with traditional Ethiopian designs. Every morning we woke to the sounds of calls to prayer at the nearby mosque. There was fresh squeezed orange juice for breakfast and, of course, the world's best coffee. We could take as much bottled water each day as we needed. Our drivers were wonderful- especially Solomon. Honestly, when we go back, I'll look into staying there again.