Pam’s Travel Log – Ethiopia Fall 2009 The Flight:

There is one benefit to this being my 4th flight to Ethiopia in 18 months….the little tricks and comforts that you learn each trip. For example, this time I came equipped with a face mask for sleeping, a head cushy for my neck, comfortable workout pants for sleeping, and a reading light. I asked if the flight was full when I checked in and stood at my seat until I saw the incoming people really slow down and then nabbed a 3-seat section in the middle that was not yet claimed, sitting on one side and laying my stuff in the middle seat. When the fasten-seat-belt light came on and the engines revved up, I realized I had scored a great little bed for the 15 hour trip…praises to Jesus! Just after they finished the security and safety talk, I spread out with a blanket, my cushy pillow and my face mask and crashed until about 1 hour before Rome. It was a surprise benefit of travelling by myself and not feeling responsible for anyone else. There were 5 other adoptive families travelling on this flight and I enjoyed spending time visiting with them.

When I arrived at the airport, I got through visa and stamping fairly quickly and my luggage was some of the first to arrive, so I felt really encouraged as I headed through customs screening. That encouragement quickly faded as I realized that for the first time in 5 trips to Ethiopia I was flagged for having 2 laptops and an LCD monitor (that I had brought as donations) in my luggage. They wanted to charge me $120 for the broken laptop with non-working screen and $30 for the monitor as a “tax” and I wasn’t happy and tried my best to argue and call the director of ORE and have him talk to them to tell them it was all for the children. We first made plans to leave it there and have ORE pick it up on a later trip with their tax-exempt status, but then thought it might be easier to pay and get it now for convenience. After about 90 minutes of hassling, I knelt down on my knees before the most sympathetic handler and begged for his help, tears coming to my eyes because I was so tired and just wanted to go meet my friend who was texting me from outside the airport. He walked me over to the payment counter and another Ethiopian passenger seeing my tears heard I was bringing it all for charity and said, “I will pay her whole bill – whatever it is…it is not for her but for charity”. I objected at first but than another Kenyan passenger said, “sometimes you have to be the receiver” so I agreed and told him, “Amesedgenallow and Exsabier Yistillin” (Thank you, and may God cause you to have more and more). The man told me he had been to school in the states and had that great opportunity and was now running a business in Dubai. Another little gift from God on the trip.