Ethiopian Guest House and what they do to help Ethiopia

I recently saw this video about the Ethiopia Guest House and what they do to give back to Ethiopia. If we were going back.......... and we hope to visit again one day, this would be a great place to stay. This is a place worth checking out. See the video at the top video section of the blog. See their web page here. Ethiopian Guest Home.

Guest House Review: Addis Guest House

Thank you to Kelly for this helpful review of the Addis Guest House.  If you also stayed here please comment on it in the comment section! The more info. the better for anyone looking for where to stay.

 

We stayed at Addis Guest House and would stay there again.  Our room was a very nice size with a large living room which would seat 6 or so, hallway, mini kitchen, private bathroom, and bedroom.  We had one full sized bed in our bedroom and they brought a toddler bed in for our son. The people who ran the guesthouse and worked there were incredibly helpful and nice helping us translate when our son was having a rough time, playing hours of soccer with our son in the little enclosed concreted area, immediately repairing anything in the room we needed repaired, and finding us a way to call home and communicate, even giving us their personal cell phones to use for the duration of our stay.  We had private dial-up internet in our room which was like the rest of the country, in and out.  They had a generator so we never lost power at night. We did loose power during the day as they didn't use the generator when most guests were gone.  We never had a problem with warm water for our showers.  Some of the rooms had balconies as well, and all of them had huge windows that opened to let the breeze in.  We were in a convenient and very safe location just far enough outside the city in Bole to avoid a lot of the vehicle exhaust problem. 

 

Although we loved staying there and would again, we did have a few complaints.  The food took hours to get after we ordered it, but this is something we quickly learned our way around (ordering it hours before we knew we would be hungry).  We didn't like the food very well at Addis Guest House and ordered out frequently.  They were very helpful when we decided to order out. The guest house would either send a cab for it or go get it themselves.  Another complaint was the room kitchen wasn't really in working order.  The refrigerator wasn't plugged in and the kitchen sink wasn't useable.  We did still have the bathroom sink and this could have just been our room with this problem.  It wasn't a huge problem for us, but had I been there with more than one child, I probably would have wanted to use the kitchen more.

Many blessings,
Kelly
www.thecashcrew.blogspot.com

Yebsabi Guest House review

Lisa and Steve recently stayed at the Yebsabi Guest House when they were there to adopt their new daughter, and I have asked her to write a review of her experience there. Thanks Lisa! Here is what she says:

The Yebsabi Guest House was a welcome reprieve in the busy city. It was
clean, quiet (except for a few barking dogs and a Friday night party in the
streets) and the service was outstanding.  They have a full-time chef who
prepares a complimentary breakfast daily. Our favorite was a "pita pancake",
but he would also make omelets or eggs by request.  If he was informed by
4pm, he would make dinner. We did this several times because it was good,
safe and easy.  Our favorites: 1. Yebsabi pizza and 2. chicken and rice with
a yummy tomato sauce

We had a suite with a kitchen, which was so helpful for the times we cooked
for ourselves. I wish we would have brought more pasta and sauce and we
would have cooked even more ourselves. It was a comfort to have "safe" food
to eat. The best food choice I took was a large bag of mixed fruit and nuts
from Costco. That lasted all ten days for me (my husband wouldn't eat
"rabbit food", but I was satisfied).  We were very cautious about eating,
drank only bottled water and fortunately, did not get sick.

I pondered the contrast of our lodging with the surrounding buildings. I
looked out of our window daily at women who were hand washing their laundry
and preparing food in pots on the floor. One time a woman was snapping beans
then laying them on the concrete. Their concept of germs is quite
non-existent. Their immune systems must be amazing in that so many survive
so much unsanitary living.

I was so pleased that the owner accommodated all of these families who were
adopting.  After we received our children, it was busy and some of the
parents were not as sensitive to their behavior as I was. However, the owner
was gracious about it and it obviously does not keep her from welcoming
these small children into her business.

Where to stay/ Guest Houses

There are so many places to stay when you are in Ethiopia. If your agency is urging you to stay at a guest house rather than a hotel then your options are even greater.

We stayed at the New Flower Guest House and would recommend that to anyone.
A year and a half later there are sooooo many more options. Some of the web sites that I have looked at after others have stayed there and loved it are following:

Here is our recommendation post for New Flower. Recommendation for Yebsabi from a friend of ours.

Yebsabi
Yeka
Ethiopian Guest House
New Flower Guest House
Addis Guest House
Dimitri Hotel
Addis View Hotel
The Union Hotel (Holt uses this hotel, but there is no web site, just some blogs)
Bole Ambassador Hotel
Oziopia Guest House I think this would be a wonderful place to stay, It was our first pick, but they were moving house when we needed to be there..... so, if anyone has stayed here please write us a review! I would love to go back and try out this one.
List of Adoption Friendly Guest houses on Ethiopian Hotel site, not that I know a lot about most of these, but it is a place to start.
A list of hotels and information to compare

What about this one Ayat House
What about Bole Rock Hotel??? I hear it has a natural spring swimming pool and suites. Sounds nice, is it?

I know it is a short list..... if you have stayed at another one and would like me to add it that would be great. I would also like to have your recommendation for any of these if you have stayed there. A paragraph on your experience would be great. Just post in the comments for this post. Or send it to me via email and I will post it as a separate post and link it here. jillanddave@yahoo.com Thanks! If you are looking for recommendations you must check the comments as people are leaving their experience stories there. :)

travel to Ethiopia --site links

Travel information:
http://ethiopiaguesthome.com/index.php?id=2 Ethiopia Guest House
Addis Ababa Local Customs Tips by DAO - VirtualTourist.com
Addis Kidan Guest House, Addis Ababa Ethiopia on Vimeo
Addiskidan Baptist Guest House
Beza International Church where we worshiped while we were in Addis Ababa
Immunizations, Health and Environment, El Paso County, CO
International Traveler’s Health Service at University of Colorado Hospital - University of Colorado Hospital
Port Angeles, WA - Welcome to Susan Parr Travel Agency Travel Agency Extraordinaire!!! Who we used and liked.
New Flower Guest House, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Guest House Extraordinaire!! Where we stayed
Passport Health Colorado, Denver Travel Shots, Colorado Immunization Services, Boulder Vaccinations, Malaria, Typhoid, Yellow Fever Vaccine, Travel Medicine, Global Travel Health
Center for Disease Control

Other posts:
Expectations
Arriving
Traveling through Frankfurt Germany
New Flower
Other ideas on places to stay
Packing list
What to do and see and shopping tips  For shopping.... IF you are a woman going alone and you do not feel up to going out alone or can not find a reliable driver to take you and barter for you...... Get a driver to take you to the Haile Selasse Market. It is a one stop shopping experience under one roof. It is fixed price and very reasonable. They have linens, clothing, books, baskets, carved animals, wool animals, flags, post cards, crosses, jewelry, etc.....

HOPE Enterprises, meal tickets to buy and give to beggars and others in need. Post with link to web site.

Reasonable expectations for your trip to Ethiopia

I just want to give you a little tip for travel preparation.  It is not my intention to be negative, however some may choose to take it that way.

I have lived in the third world before and so for me Ethiopia was not a big shock, but for the vast majority of families who will travel there to adopt, whether they have done so before in China, Guatemala, Vietnam, etc..... Ethiopia will be a shock.

You all know what I am talking about on the socio-economic scale, the poverty is huge, the starvation, the disease, the lack of everything. You have seen videos, you have seen other families photos, you have read news reports, etc. You might even have an idea about the dirt, the mud, the trash, the smells, the filth that is everywhere. The bumpy, unmaintained roads, the lack of road signs and street names making navigation difficult, the millions of metal shacks that many call home. The idea of time and schedules, the difference in climate, cultural norms. Be careful of the water and the food, etc. We all do the best we can to prepare ourselves for those things.  After all it is a third world country.

But, what you may not be prepared for is that in no way does America go with you to Ethiopia. Even if we try not to be, we are still American and the standards of our country are ingrained in us weather we expect it or not. No matter where you stay Ethiopia is not America and your standards will be assaulted. Unless you stay at the Hilton or Sheraton and do not get to have your child with you........ things will be on Ethiopian standard.  There is nothing wrong with Ethiopian standards.  It is all a matter of perspective. You have to know they are different. It is the same whenever you are in a new situation, it is good to know the standards/expectations of the other party, whether that is a friend, company or culture. There is nothing wrong with the other standards, what is wrong is when we drag ours in and expect theirs to be the same. It is important to be on the same page, hence this post. Just a few things to clarify the difference, so you can be on the same page as the amazing and wonderful country you are traveling to. You may not like this post, but it is not my intent to be idealistic. I am a realist. Make it to the end and you will see my love for Ethiopia.

At a guest house: the floors are all tile, sound travels. The walls are mostly plaster, the sound travels. The windows are not insulated, sound travels. It is not quiet there, ever. The beds are not comfortable, they are ET standard great, not American. The kitchen is half outside and looks nothing like any kitchen in the US. The plumbing is more than likely to leak, it just does. The shower is a 2'x2' square pan with open sides and a not so adequate curtain. I have seen several, they are all the same. The shower head is either too low or out of reach... sometimes it has to be held to use, not fixed to the wall. If you have a tub it may or may not have a shower head, but some of those are great, in comparison. The water, if heated on site, is on an individual electric water heater IN the shower. You have to turn it on prior to use. They sometimes don't work. It takes a long time to get things fixed. If it is not heated on site then the hot is variable and you never know when you will have it or not. The water sometimes goes out, in the middle of the shower, for a few hours. The pressure is variable and not predictable. More often than not you share a bath with other guests. Ours was accessed outside on a balcony, and shared with two rooms. The electricity goes out regularly and at random times. There is not a plentiful supply of internet connection, DSL is hard to find, dial up is unstable and you may or may not be able to get on. You really can't send photos. Skype works out well for some. The computer for use is public, so your time is short. You can not access blogs, but you can access facebook. Oh, the electricity goes out too, sometimes when you are in the middle of the second or third email you have been working on and re doing after other outages. In most guest houses there is no adequate place for children to play, at least like we may expect, the kids will think it is great. There are lots of others there. It is nice to be with other families and other kids too, but lack of family time and privacy can get to you after a while. And all that dirt outside, well, there is no way to keep it out, even the cleanest guest house will not be to an American standard of clean. It just is not possible. I am not saying it is not clean, I am just saying if you are used to a 4 or 5 star resorts, well it just isn't that. I am used to camping and it's sure cleaner than that! The food you will be served will be "American" when you are not indulging in the yummy Ethiopian fare. But nothing like anything American you have ever tasted. Ethiopian food is their specialty, and that is a treat to be sure and comfort for your kids if they are older. There is no Walmart, no Target, no McDonald's, picking up something you have forgotten or find would make your stay more comfortable is a large task. Some guest houses cater to the adoptive family and will go out of their way to help you, others don't. I over heard a discussion between two Ethiopian women when we were there. They were discussing the excessive needs of these Americans. Ok, the standard is different. You and I think it is no big deal to ask for new towels every day or every other day. You may not get new towels but once a week. But, this is a big deal to them. They have to be hand washed and air dried. In the winter it takes days to dry. It takes a lot of time. Everything is time intensive, washing the floor and cooking and shopping and laundry. It takes a lot of work and they work very hard to be hospitable and welcoming and clean and to provide all you need and I think they do a really great job. I'm not saying don't ask, I am saying expect the standards to be Ethiopian- maybe not quite like what you are used to. And, it is often difficult to find someone to help you out. If your guest house is not helpful, that is that.  I think mostly they are, ours sure was, but I have heard of some who were not.  Most agencies do not have staff there to do things for you. They only do the stuff directly related to the adoption. That is enough work in itself. Some agencies do have courtesy staff for families, but those are few.  In general if you think about a motel, like Motel 8 for example, the standards in Ethiopia will be lower. Like bed quality and the bathroom and the privacy will also be less. You will wake up to the call to worship, dogs barking in the night and your friendly neighbor's crying baby. In general Ethiopian standards will be The Hilton, for royalty. The guest house, for an ambassador, a wealthy person, but not royalty. You get the picture.

I know we think about this but I am not sure the reality or the extent of it really hits us until we are actually there. It is all a matter of perspective and a choice of attitude.  I know that if we focus on the fact we are there for our children then it is all manageable and the discomfort for us is thankfully temporary. You can do anything for a week! Just hoping to let you know a bit more of what to expect.  Soak it all in and enjoy your trip. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity to live and learn and be able to pass something of this wonderful place on to your precious children. Savor the call to worship, be thankful for the watchdogs barking in the night. Rejoice for your neighbor's baby who cries in the night because she has parents to love her. Know that though it is not your lifestyle, it is a life style that has significant meaning and purpose and it is wonderful in all it's differences.

Once you are home you will look back and remember the beautiful, sincere people. The amazing culture that has withstood so much. The strong people, the beautiful country. You will long for it in your soul. Which is good, you can give your son or daughter a sense of history from your heart.

Happy travels.
Jill

Another tid-bit from Matt a fellow IAN parent:
Ethiopia is an absolutely beautiful country, one that I hope to revisit in the future when our daughter is older. The people are so friendly and greatful for what they have, as well as so willing to share with you.
Some other things that I noticed:
- Kids begging in the streets was tough. Keep your coins in one pocket and hand those out when your approached by one child. Try not to hand money out to groups.
- Saw a lot of people "relieving" themselves on the street. However, once you realize they don't have a home to go to you start to understand why.

driver recommendation

Here is the driver we liked best. He speaks English well and will take you wherever you want to go. He has driven almost exclusively for adoptive families for the last 12 years. Take him a bumper sticker of your state, He puts them all over the inside of his car and tells his clients about them. He took us shopping, for a tour of the city and all around to wherever we wanted to go. He knows every place and the best way to get there. He even translated all the jabbering of our boys. That was priceless. While we were there the going rate was 50 birr an hour. Pay him whatever is the going rate, rounded up and give him tips every time. Not at all expected but SOOOO appreciated. He is a great guy. Take his number with you and when you want to go out give him an advance call to reserve him as your driver. He will be happy to drive you.

Terefe Konde: 091-121-05-17 or at 011-122-26-22.

Guest House recommendation New Flower Guest House

Guest House Recommendation:
We stayed at the New Flower Guest House in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia while we were there for the adoption. The New Flower is run by Helen and her very capable staff. It is a great place to be. This new house is really a great place. It has a large courtyard for kids to play in. While it is centrally located and very convenient to the city in general it is in a very safe neighborhood and feels secluded. While the guests are not limited to adoptive families it is frequented by such. It is really nice to be with other families who are adopting. It is also great to have someone who can translate for you what your child is saying, if you are adopting an older child. It is also really handy that they will also tell your child to listen to you, Mom and Dad. For translation they are always helpful and we felt they were not intrusive.

A word on bathroom accommodations in Ethiopia in general: Hot water is not often plumbed in like it is here. Nicer accommodations like the New Flower have installed hot water heaters in each shower. It take some practice but is a definite luxury in Ethiopia. Most of the rooms have showers but larger plastic tubs are available to wash your baby or toddler in.

The New Flower recently got a dryer! This is a huge perk and luxury. When you have your laundry done it is done MUCH faster and this is especially good in the winter when nothing every drys.

You can expect to be treated well and you will find yourself in good and helpful hands with Helen and her staff at the New Flower Guest House in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Please check out their web site by clicking on New Flower.

A dad from our agency recently stayed at the New Flower and this is what he has to say about it:
The New Flower is maybe a 4 minute drive from the airport, really close. (New Flower will have someone pick you up if you need it). The New Flower was really nice, but the people who worked there made it an even better experience. Yonathon, the main man, was awesome. The two drivers, Ayela and Alozar, were great as well.
For the first week we stayed at the New Flower with only one of us leaving at a time as to not ruffle any feathers. However, once you start venturing out you begin to see something that you didn't expect. Families from all over the world with their Ethiopian children in the middle of the grocery store, a cafe, a museum, etc... You also find others that may have said you were wrong in wanting to venture out, out with their children as well. Hmmmm. :) I will say that the New Flower Guest House is located in the middle of a nice district/area and that the people here might be more accepting than some of the other Guest House locations. The NF was approximately 1/4 mile from the Friendship Mall, which was a 4 story building that housed a grocery store, internet cafe, a place called Kaldi's (looked exactly like Starbucks). It's located about 1/2 mile from a really nice cafe called Limetree that has WiFi where some families have been able to Skype with video. It's about 3/4 mile from a pharmacy where you can get antibiotics, cough medicine, etc.. over the counter without prescription. The (IAN) Care Center and Sele Enat are about a 10 minute drive. All in all, the New Flower is in a awesome location.  If you need to buy something and you think your getting ripped off have someone at your guest house who is Ethiopian buy it for you. I needed a 4GB USB Flash Drive and they were quoting be 1500 Birr ($120). I knew that was ridiculous. Yonathon went up there and got it for 450 Birr ($35).

Thanks Matt for letting me post this for other families!