29th November, 2008

Things are busy at the orphanage at the moment – which is great! I like to be busy and feel like I'm being useful!

One of the main things I'm doing is attempting to computerise the orphanage's records. As with many organisations that have grown so organically (in this case, from Hanna taking in one child around 24 years ago) the information is often held in people's minds and in the collective memory of the organisation, and not always shared effectively. The orphanage do actually have hard copy information on every child – and every staff member knows each child personally – but they are handwritten and in Amharic. This doesn't make it very easy for funders (such as us) to be able to access them, and it makes them quite difficult to update on a regular basis. There are also some gaps in the information.

So currently I am working with T, a psychology student who volunteers for the orphanage, to translate the current files, fill in the missing bits of information, and transfer it all on to computer. We will then have a typed file on each young person, as well as a database to enable us to monitor and analyse the information. We will also ensure that there is a computerised version in Amharic. This kind of thing will help the school to keep track of the children's academic performances, share information to enable better care for them all, and will enable them to compile data quickly for project proposals and reports etc.

It's quite a time consuming job, and tedious in places, but it's been a privilege to be able to read the individual stories of the children. Some I knew, some I didn't, but all of them show just how important it is to look after these children. So many have lost their parents, only to be abused by the people who were supposed to be looking after them, or they were simply left out on the streets when other relatives couldn't – or wouldn't – take them in. In the next few months I hope to be able to share some of the stories with you (with permission from the children, of course).

Maybe it's because I'm doing this work that I have a sudden fascination with what everyone is doing in Ethiopia. Today we went to an 'NGO Fair' and a 'Diplomatic Bazaar' (no, I wasn't sure what they were either!) and there were faranjis as far as the eye could see! In between eating fabulous food sold by all the embassies, and buying hand made crafts from NGOs, I just kept wondering how on earth all these people had ended up in Ethiopia. The few non-Ethiopians I know in Addis are here doing internships for various charities or aid agencies, but I am always seeing young families around, and at these markets today there were people of all ages and from as many countries as you can think of. As J pointed out, it was probably the most white people we've ever seen in one place since we came to Ethiopia!

As it's probably not polite (and definitely not British!!) to go up to strangers and ask 'why are you here?', I was left wondering as I walked around the stalls. Had that English couple over there come to Ethiopia specifically to adopt the Ethiopian baby they had with them? Or were they babysitting? Or had they adopted the baby in the UK and come for a visit? What about the woman in the Channel twinset, with the immaculately coiffed hair and string of pearls? She must be something to do with the embassy, surely? Is the teenager with the long blonde dreadlocks here because of his parents, or is he on a freakishly early gap year? What about the old couple who are rushing around, making sure everyone has coffee? And the man over there who must be at least 6 foot 4, with a long silver ponytail – what's his story?

In fact, there were some moments at the NGO market, which was held in a Lutheran Church, where I felt I could have been at a church fate in Surrey. It was a slightly surreal feeling! On a slightly different but related note, I was quite impressed with the variety of things on sale at the Diplomatic Bazaar, where every country with an Embassy in Addis was showcasing the best bits of its country. I was a bit disappointed that the UK stall was selling copies of Heat magazine and 'Take a Break', but U was impressed with the mulled wine, and I loved the Harrods biscuits and packets of Foxes Glacier Mints (what's the betting someone picked them up at the airport? They were on special offer when I left!). However, U and I are still a little baffled over the fact that the Austrian stall was selling screwdrivers. Is that really something they're famous for?! Apparently so!