Wow! Yesterday was day 100! Unfortunately I was tired and in a bad mood because I was kept up by mosquitoes invading my room. But when I did get up around 9, I started my day off with a run around part of the Hawassa lake.
The lake is close to 50 miles in diameter, so I knew I was only going a small section of it. I made it about three miles and decided I was too tired to go any further. I remember my days when I could run five miles fairly easily, it’s a bit irritating to struggle to make it three.
When I got home after walking the same three miles back I was pretty exhausted and sweaty. I watched a movie after showering and then went to the market for some groceries.
I like going to get fresh food every day rather than pulling something from the freezer or fridge. It keeps me active and forces me to interact with the community here. I’m learning a little bit of Amharic, but it’s definitely not enough to get me by in the local environments, so I have to use some pretty funny strategies for communication. One that has worked very well when determining a price is just using my calculator and having someone type in the number I owe. But sometimes I know I’m being over charged and that’s when the funny negotiations come in. I’ll shake my head and start walking away and then they’ll call me back and put in a lower number. Hopefully someday I’ll be able to speak enough Amharic to where this awkward process is unnecessary.
This way my dinner yesterday (and the kitchen I used to cook it). Even though I still live in relative luxury, I’m really learning how little I actually need.
Last night I went to bed super early because I was feeling a little lack of sleep. Unfortunately the mosquitoes still pestered me and I woke up with bug bites all over my arms and hands. Today my goal is to come up with a solution for this problem.