Danielle says:
Indamin dahna amassu?
That's a form of "good evening" in Amharic. But we've only sort of mastered "good morning" and "good afternoon" thus far, learning each when that part of the day comes. There are quite a few syllables in this language, and it may be slow going. And we still need to learn the 237-ish characters in the alphabet. Here's a link with some phrases in audio:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsp_Un77dlo
We are having a great time. It still seems very surreal, especially considering we are within the walls of a modern hotel for most of the day (we have a working sink, toilet, and shower; these are good things. There is also a malfunctioning alarm clock of a rooster that crows about every half-hour). But when we venture out, or encounter the hotel staff, we are noticing how beautiful the Ethiopians are, and trying to practice our Amharic. "Thank you" is "Ama-sega-nalu" said quite fast; this has been the word of the day, as we hesitate (and count on our hands the number of syllables) each time we try it out. We are staying in this hotel for the first 10 days or so, with a field trip thrown in there, called "demystification weekend" or something. We will be visiting another volunteer at his/her site, to get a feel of Ethiopia and our assignments, outside of the capital.
It has been great getting to know the other volunteers; there are 71 of us as individuals, and there are 4 young married couples, total. Great, fun people from all over the nation.
We went to a bank today to exchange our US dollars for birrs (17.6 birrs for every dollar), and the classic "Today is..." sign posted in the bank read, "April 30, 2004/ June 7, 2012." Apparently Ethiopia's Coptic calendar has 13 months (hence her motto 13 months of sunshine). The Ethiopian and Gregorian (our) calendar apparently calculate differently the Annunciation of Jesus, hence it's still 2004 here. Daniel's dad did the research for us and found that we were technically, Ethiopianally, born in 1979, and my sister and I now share a birthday. Looks like I get to eat two birthday cakes before the year is out.
The hours here are also calculated differently. The sun rises at 6 and sets at 6. Ish. So at our 6 AM, it is zero o'clock Ethiopian time (Besha time); our noon is their 6 AM; our 6 PM is their 12 PM. No one has told us what happens with the rest of the hours. Perhaps we should ask.
One volunteer suggested wearing two watches. If ever we need to meet up with an Ethiopian, we will have to verify which clock they are referring to.
We.are.loving.the.food.
We will try to post pictures soon (we haven't taken a single one).
Indamin dahna amassu?
That's a form of "good evening" in Amharic. But we've only sort of mastered "good morning" and "good afternoon" thus far, learning each when that part of the day comes. There are quite a few syllables in this language, and it may be slow going. And we still need to learn the 237-ish characters in the alphabet. Here's a link with some phrases in audio:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsp_Un77dlo
We are having a great time. It still seems very surreal, especially considering we are within the walls of a modern hotel for most of the day (we have a working sink, toilet, and shower; these are good things. There is also a malfunctioning alarm clock of a rooster that crows about every half-hour). But when we venture out, or encounter the hotel staff, we are noticing how beautiful the Ethiopians are, and trying to practice our Amharic. "Thank you" is "Ama-sega-nalu" said quite fast; this has been the word of the day, as we hesitate (and count on our hands the number of syllables) each time we try it out. We are staying in this hotel for the first 10 days or so, with a field trip thrown in there, called "demystification weekend" or something. We will be visiting another volunteer at his/her site, to get a feel of Ethiopia and our assignments, outside of the capital.
It has been great getting to know the other volunteers; there are 71 of us as individuals, and there are 4 young married couples, total. Great, fun people from all over the nation.
We went to a bank today to exchange our US dollars for birrs (17.6 birrs for every dollar), and the classic "Today is..." sign posted in the bank read, "April 30, 2004/ June 7, 2012." Apparently Ethiopia's Coptic calendar has 13 months (hence her motto 13 months of sunshine). The Ethiopian and Gregorian (our) calendar apparently calculate differently the Annunciation of Jesus, hence it's still 2004 here. Daniel's dad did the research for us and found that we were technically, Ethiopianally, born in 1979, and my sister and I now share a birthday. Looks like I get to eat two birthday cakes before the year is out.
The hours here are also calculated differently. The sun rises at 6 and sets at 6. Ish. So at our 6 AM, it is zero o'clock Ethiopian time (Besha time); our noon is their 6 AM; our 6 PM is their 12 PM. No one has told us what happens with the rest of the hours. Perhaps we should ask.
One volunteer suggested wearing two watches. If ever we need to meet up with an Ethiopian, we will have to verify which clock they are referring to.
We.are.loving.the.food.
We will try to post pictures soon (we haven't taken a single one).
You are missed already! I read every word and will read all other words posted and every picture will be read too (after all, it's worth a thousand words!)
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