From Ethiopia - Post 4 - Debre Libanos

As we got closer and closer to the monastery, the number of beggars lining the streets increased.  I don't know if it was because of the monastery and possible charity coming from it, or if it was because the roads got more and more windy and hilly the closer we got.  It seemed that all along the way, the worse parts of the roads, the places where vehicles would be forced to slow down, were the places where the beggars tended to gather.  There were also a lot of people out -- carrying sticks to sell, selling hand-carved marble crosses, displaying marble candle holders and crosses on small tables along the road.

The monastery was gated with a small, simple stone marking the place.  After we parked and entered the gated area, we were asked to "read the rules" that were posted outside a tiny little shack-like building.  We all wanted to take a picture of the rules but refrained for fear that it would be considered too irreverent.  But, we did laugh about them later.  I can't remember the exact wording now, but basically, the rules that caught our attention were:
1) No woman who is currently menstruating is allowed to enter the sanctuary or the prayer cave.
2) No man or woman who has had intercourse within the last 48 hours is allowed to enter the sanctuary or the prayer cave.
3) No shoes will be worn in the monastery or the prayer cave.
I can't remember the rest, but Eric about had me in stitches joking about how he wanted to start counting out hours on his fingers....."hmmm...let's see....today is Thursday....45, 46, 47, 48...oh, yay.  We're good, honey!"  At the time, I was more focused on rule #1 and thinking how embarrassing it would have been if Stephanie and/or I weren't in the clear!  Regardless, I am glad that I worship in the post-Jesus era and in a church where sacrifices and "cleanliness" are no longer issues and I can "come as I am to worship".

Another interesting thing was after we all read and agreed to the rules, we were ushered into this tiny little room, the door was closed, and there was a priest sitting behind a desk.  It was there that we had to pay our admittance fee.  And, we still don't know for certain, but we think he actually offered to "exchange money" for us.  We were really confused because from all that we had been told, it is illegal in Ethiopia to exchange money anywhere but at the banks.  Another thing we chuckled about....you know, keeping money changers out of the church and all that.... we're guessing that's why we were closed into a tiny room that wasn't attached to the church.

Debre Libanos Monastery

Tile art over the doors to the monastery

After removing our shoes, we all entered the main sanctuary.  On each side, there were large stained glass windows.  The windows on the right were pictures from Old Testament Bible stories.  Those on the left were pictures of the Apostles.  There were only 10 though.  Judas wasn't there, but we never did figure out who else was missing.  It was hard to understand at times due to the priest's English (as a second language). 

Old Testament windows

Old Testament windows

As you moved forward toward the front of the sanctuary, there were separate areas in the sanctuary.  There was a completely off-limits area in the front -- the Holy of Holies where no one is allowed; a curtained off area in the center for the priests where the altar sits; and then on each side of the curtained off area, there was a woman's area on one side and a man's area on the other side for singing and worship.  There were more stained glass windows to the sides of these areas and a beautiful stained glass window above the Holy of Holies of Jesus on the cross.

I was a little surprised that they allowed Stephanie and I on the men's side and they allowed Eric and Mike on the women's side.  I was also surprised that they not only allowed us to take pictures, but the priest kept actually encouraging us to, "take picture".  They also allowed us to go down to the basement area where the chanters were chanting.  We stood down there and listened for a while.  I felt a bit intrusive being there, definitely felt strange snapping flash photos, but again, the priest kept insisting. 

front of the sanctuary

Chanters in the basement

After we toured the sanctuary, we toured the museum next door.  It was interesting.  It was a strange mix of politics and religion there.  Displays of past Emperors' clothing, Bibles, portraits, chairs, etc. were plenty.  There was a case of swords that the priest proudly told us how the various owners of the swords killed the Italians when they invaded Ethiopia and reportedly massacred inhabitants at the monastery.  The surviving parchment paper Bibles and prayer books were amazing to me - that they have survived for so long.  There were loads of hand crosses and even a "fly swatter".  It looked like a bunch of hair tied onto the end of a stick.

The monastery's museum

After the tour of the museum, the priest asked if we had time to "walk to the prayer cave".  We said "sure" (little did we know!).  He explained that the monastery was founded by the 13th century mystic, Saint Teklehaimanotsome.  He had reportedly stood in the cave and prayed for 7 years.  At that point, his other leg wasted away and fell off.  He then stood on the remaining leg for some number of years until he died in the cave.  There is a natural spring in the cave and people think that the water has healing powers so they collect it and use it for healing.

The trek up to the cave was quite a hike!!  A little warning might have been nice.  Although, when the priest said, "I will get you a guide to go with you to the top." and said guide happened to be a man with a machine gun strapped on his shoulder, we probably should have wondered.  The path was rocky, with not nice little rocks, but BIG, uneven, unstable rocks.  Also, some of the steps that you had to take were NOT small for someone like me with little short legs!  (Seriously, my thighs hurt like I had done a stair stepper for hours the next day!)  We finally reached the cave and were able to enter.  The priest who was at the cave would not allow any pictures inside, but you're not missing much.  It was a cave.  A large cave with water dripping all over the place and large plastic drums sitting around catching the water.  We were required to remove our shoes to enter the cave. Eric and a few others stepped in water in their socks.  Again, Eric irreverantly joked about his "blessed wet socks" and his "Holy socks" for the rest of the day.  Of course, he also surmised that IF the saint stood in the cave praying with the healing water dripping on him and his leg fell off and then he died, then maybe it wasn't so Holy & healing after all.  ;-)

Looking out from the monastery courtyard towards the Prayer Cave

The entrance to the path leading up to the Prayer Cave (notice sweet Workineh carrying Stephanie's backpack & our guide with the automatic weapon leading the way)

Eric on one of the more easily navigable parts of the path

I didn't really want a picture, I just needed to catch my breath!  ;-)

"Thank God!  We made it!" That was my prayer at the Prayer Cave

The priest unlocking the door to the cave

Oh joy, now we get to go back down the path.

My sweet hubby helping me with a big step.  (BTW, one way to keep the sweet men in ET from insisting on carrying your bag is to carry a large purse instead of a backpack. Next time, I'm taking a backpack!)  ;-)

This would normally have been the time to celebrate the fact that we made it back to the monastery, except that, unfortunately, it was about where the location of the outhouse was and it was truly one of the most horrendous smells that I have EVER smelled.  We all had to pee, but decided that we could hold it for another hour or so if we had to.

It was an interesting place.  It was a beautiful place.  It was neat to hear the history and see the artifacts.  We enjoyed it.  We laughed....possibly more than we should have, but YOU climb to that cave in the extremely high altitude and see what it does to you!

From Ethiopia - Post 3 - Traveling North

Prior to traveling to Ethiopia for our second trip, we had been in contact with Workineh, one of the guest house employees whom we had become friends during our first trip.  We had asked him to plan out a few suggestions of day trips that we could take from Addis Ababa in order to see more of Ethiopia.  So, on Thursday morning, Mike & Stephanie and Eric & I  met up in the lobby, ready for our trip North.  Workineh had lined up a driver to take the 5 of us for the day; however, after what sounded like a tense conversation on the phone, he informed us that it would be a few minutes, that the driver had canceled but that he had arranged for Isaias, the guest house driver, to take us.

The roads and the landscape changed dramatically the second we left the city of Addis Ababa.  One of the seats in the van faces backwards, and at first, we discussed who would not get car sick riding backwards.  Not too long into the trip, however, we realized that sometimes it's much better NOT to be able to see out the front of the van.  The random herds of cattle and other animals crossing in front of the van were not nearly as frightening  as the driver passing a large truck or bus on a blind-curve, on a steep hill, going really fast, with no guard rails to prevent you from plummeting off the side of the road.

The views were amazing.  Beautiful countryside, traditional huts, lots of green foliage.  We tried to take a lot of pictures.  We each had certain things that we were looking for.  Mike was trying to capture the perfect pictures of children shepherding.  I was looking for wells and people carrying water jugs.  We all wanted pictures of the beautiful children.  None were hard to find.  We saw them all along the trip.

The problem was trying to actually get the shot out the rapidly moving windows of the van.  We had quite a few laughs at the pictures that we managed to capture -- a donkeys back leg or rear-end, a child's leg or arm, empty roadside where we completely missed the image we were trying to capture.  Then, about 90% of the time when we actually managed to get the image in the camera field, it was totally blurry.  But, that's the beauty of digital cameras, right?!  As Eric used to tease me when I would brag about getting a great picture before the digital era, "well, if you take enough pictures, you're bound to get at least one good one!"  It was frustrating though because I so wanted to share with you the 'pictures' that we saw, that we still see with our mind's eye.  But alas, you'll just have to go to Ethiopia sometime to see them. 

Young man hauling water

A well out in the country

A mom with a baby on her back and 2 children walking, carrying water

Traditional huts

Beautiful countryside

As we drove around in Ethiopia on each trip, there were several things that stood out to me.  One was how often very young children are expected to work.  We frequently saw young children out carrying water, shepherding herds of various animals, driving donkey-pulled carts loaded with sticks or hay or water.  I tried hard to get a picture of a boy that I saw, completely alone, probably 7 or 8 years old, shepherding a herd of BULLS!!!  He was all by himself with a stick in his hand that had a piece of string tied to the end of it, with which he was hitting the bulls to get them to move.  The bulls towered over him and surrounded him, but he was not afraid.  I, on the other hand, was flabbergasted.  Seriously.  I would not even let my own children near ONE bull like that by themselves, let alone a whole bunch of them. 

Children helping Dad move hay

At some point when one of us expressed disappointment at missing yet another picture that we wanted to get, the driver caught on to what we were trying to do so he would occasionally slow down for us to get some pictures.  When we were stopped, we saw these children out working in the field with cattle.  When they saw that the van had stopped, they came running.  We had loads of snacks and treats to pass out and we were out in the middle of nowhere so we were happy for them to come.  There was also a group of older women, carrying large loads on their backs, who happened to be walking by.  They saw that we were giving the children something to eat so they came over and were thrilled when we gave them some crackers and snacks, too.

Children out shepherding cattle

Women bearing heavy loads

A sweet smile for our pictures

A little leery of us, but notice the happy women tearing into their treats in the background

Another memorable scene during our drive north was this father and his two children walking their donkey, loaded with an enormous bunch of straw.  The little girl was walking along with her shepherd's stick.  But, as they walked, the load began to slip.  We were all gasping as we watched the little girl struggle to try to push the load back up onto the donkey's back.  It seemed that she would surely be pinned beneath the falling load, but somehow the three of them managed to keep the donkey in control, and managed to keep the load on the donkey's back.

The 3 of them walking with the donkey

The little girl under the load trying to push it back up onto the donkey

Another thing that always struck me as so different from here was seeing unsupervised, tiny little kids out by themselves.  You'd be riding down the road and a little 3 year old would be standing right on the side of a busy road by themselves.  Or, a 7 year old would be out in the field with the animals by themselves. Or, children would be sitting on the side of the road all alone.  It's so different.  I couldn't help but frequently think things like, "ahhhh, don't go out into the road!" or "where are your parents?" or "what are you doing out all alone?".  But, then I'd remember where we were and that, not only might they not have parents, they might be serving AS the parent to their siblings.  It's so sad that children can't just be children.  That they don't get to go to school, that they don't get to just have fun and play all day.

Little boy out in the field all alone

We stopped along the way at a overlook for the Gorge.  Unfortunately, it was very hazy and overcast at that point in the day and the view of the gorge was not good.  When we stopped though, a big group of children and a few adults came from out of nowhere selling baskets and hand-carved marble cross necklaces.  This is how it is.  The people have their little areas, their little "businesses".  It is so hard to say no when this happens.  First, they're generally selling things SO CHEAPLY.  Second, you know they need the money SO BADLY.  Third, they literally beg and plead.  And yet, it's also hard to say yes because how do choose who you're going to buy from when 10 kids are all trying to get you to buy a similar basket from them?  How do you say yes to one and no to another?  I had left my bag in the car so I didn't have any money and therefore didn't have to make a decision.  Eric ended up buying a few more necklaces, I think. 

Locals selling their goods at the Gorge overlook

And lastly, another thing that always struck me as weird was how excited the children got when they saw us.  I realize that their belief is that the "ferengi" have money, but it's still strange to see the genuine smiles and excitement on the childrens' faces from just a wave or a "hello" from one of us.   I guess some might like the seeming feeling of 'superiority' - like being a rock star or something.  Frankly, it made me feel sick.  I smiled at them and waved and said hello, certainly not because I felt so grand, but because I just loved seeing their little faces light up.  I loved hearing their proud little English, "hello"; seeing them run alongside the van smiling and waving; watching them giggle and laugh with their friends when we'd answer them.  THEY are the special ones.

Settling in

Just a quick post to let you know that we're still alive and doing well.  Markos is settling in and bonding well with everyone.  He and Daniel are beginning to play together a lot more, which means certain destruction of our house, because they play like....well.....BOYS!  *gasp*




Unfortunately for Markos, Daniel has a significant size advantage over him.  But, it doesn't stop Markos from trying to keep up.  As soon as he's willing to put down the toy that he was playing with before, he might do a little better.  It's hard to be a swordfighter with an over-sized whistle necklace on, a car in the other hand, and a sword that is a bit too big for you!





We're still working on the sleeping and eating areas, but neither is too horrible -- I just spend a lot of time walking on egg shells and/or sneaking out of rooms.  The communication is coming along as well.  He is beginning to use more English and occasionally, we can actually tell that it's English!  :-)  Lots of times, we can't tell.  He seems to be the kind of kid who wants to get things right the first time, so oftentimes when I try to get him to repeat after me, he won't for a long time, but I can tell he's thinking about it, then all of a sudden a few days later, he'll just say it perfectly.

He has a few little electronic toys that teach letters and their sounds.  His two favorites are:
"R is for Rooster.  cock-a-doodle doo" and "K is for Karate Kick.  Hiiii yaaa!!"  They both crack him up.  He will say the cock-a-doodle doo and the hiiii yaaa all the time.  He finally said "rooster" at the table this morning, but when I tried to record him saying it, first he said what I was working on with him last night, "I love you" -- which is way better than rooster anyway! 

Last night, we took Markos to Daniel's hockey game. It was his first evening outing. He seemed to enjoy it, although he was a little mad at first that he didn't get to go out on the ice and play. Ummm. Learning to skate first might be a good idea, and some equipment wouldn't hurt either, especially when you only weigh about 32 pounds.

Anyway, all is well here. So far, the transition is going better than we ever expected. Someday, I will be able to talk on the phone again and perhaps leave the house more to see some of you.  Oh, and please forgive the condition of my house in the videos and pictures that I post over the next few weeks/months.  Cleaning is last on the list at this point and, in my defense, the vacuum cleaner isn't working and needs a new filter which was supposed to be delivered on Tuesday but has apparently been way-laid by the various storms around the U.S.  Someday, I will also be able to vacuum again. 

Our Adoption Story

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

From Ethiopia - Post 2 - Celebrating Timkat!

We arrived in Ethiopia a few days early due to it being the only way for us to secure a direct flight from Addis Ababa to Washington DC on the way home.  We were thrilled to have, in essence, 2 full days free before our arranged adoption schedule (aka. fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants adoption chaos!).  We had spoken with one of the guest house staff prior to our arrival and had planned a day trip north of Addis Ababa for Thursday, but decided to play Wednesday by ear.  We were concerned that we'd be too tired from our travels there, or would be delayed, and felt it was safer not to plan anything "big" for the day. 

Another couple who was traveling on the same flights to and from Ethiopia as we were, with whom we had become friends during our court trip, were also planning to do the sightseeing with us on Wednesday and Thursday.  We were to arrive in Ethiopia at 8 AM on Wednesday morning (after having left Pittsburgh on Tuesday morning at 6 AM ).  The snow/ice storm that hit the east coast delayed our flight a little then held us hostage on the plane in DC for a short time while they cleared the inch of ice from the stairs that we were to use to exit the plane; thankfully, however, it did not affect our flight to Ethiopia.  Unfortunately, it completely way-laid our friend's plans - trapping them in Burlington, VT.  Thankfully, with the help of their travel agent, they were able to rebook their flights from Montreal, rent a car and drive to Montreal, and still make it to Ethiopia on Wednesday, but at night instead of in the morning.

We actually were very tired and feeling mighty gross when we arrived, so we unpacked, got showered (er, rinsed off in the speediest way possible with freezing cold water), ate some lunch, and then ventured down to talk to Workineh to see what we could do for the day.  As it turned out, it was a great day to be in Addis.  It was the festival of Timkat.  If you, like me a few short weeks ago, don't know what Timkat is, here is a great explanation from the Ethiopian Embassy's website.

'Timkat' - The Feast of Epiphany

This is the greatest festival of the year, falling on 19 January, just two weeks after the Ethiopian Christmas. It is actually a three-day affair, beginning on the Eve of Timkat with dramatic and colorful processions. The following morning the great day itself, Christ's baptism in the Jordan River by John the Baptist is commemorated. The third day is devoted to the Feast of St. Michael, the archangel, one of Ethiopia's most popular saints.  Since October and the end of the rains, the country has been drying up steadily. The sun blazes down from a clear blue sky and the Festival of Timkat always takes place in glorious weather.  Enormous effort is put into the occasion. Tej and tella (Ethiopian mead and beer) are brewed, special bread is baked, and the fat-tailed African sheep are fattened for slaughter.Gifts are prepared for the children and new clothes purchased or old mended and laundered.

Everyone - men, women, and children - appears resplendent for the three-day celebration. Dressed in the dazzling white of the traditional dress, the locals provide a dramatic contrast to the jewel colors of the ceremonial velvets and satins of the priests' robes and sequined velvet umbrellas.

On the eve of the 18 January, Ketera, the priests remove the tabots from each church and bless the water of the pool or river where the next days celebration will take place. It is the tabot (symbolising the Ark of the Covenant containing the Ten Commandments) rather than the church building which is consecrated, and it is accorded extreme reverence. Not to be desecrated by the gaze of the layman, the engraved wooden or stone slab is carried under layers of rich cloth.

In Addis Ababa, many churches bring their tabots to Jan Meda (the horse racing course of imperial day) accompanied by priests bearing prayer sticks and sistra, the ringing of bells and blowing of trumpets, and swinging bronze censors from which wisps of incense smoke escape into the evening air. The tabots rest in their special tent in the meadow, each hoisting a proud banner depicting the church's saint in front.  The priests pray throughout the long cold night and mass is performed around 2:00 a.m. Huge crowds of people camp out, eating and drinking by the light of flickering fires and torches. Towards dawn the patriarch dips a golden cross and extinguishes a burning consecrated candle in the altar. Then he sprinkles water on the assembled congregation in commemoration of Christ's baptism. Many of the more fervent leap fully dressed into the water to renew their vows.  Following the baptism the tabots start back to their respective churches, while feasting, singing and dancing continue at Jan Meda. The procession winds through town again as the horsemen cavort alongside, their mounts handsomely decorated with red tassels, embroidered saddlecloths, and silver bridles. The elders march solemnly, accompanied by singing leaping priests and young men, while the beating of staffs and prayer sticks recalls the ancient rites of the Old Testament.

Although we missed the 2 AM mass and the morning festivities when apparently EVERY church in Addis and the surrounding areas were at Jan Meda, Havit and Isaias from the guest house took Eric and I out to experience some of the Timkat festivities.  We were able to see some of the processions as they left the area.  Seemed as though every new street we turned down, we passed another procession.  They came along and decorated the streets with flags and banners.  It was a BIG deal.  You could tell when a  procession had already passed because the street would be covered with confetti.  It was amazing to see so many people out, worshiping God, and spending the day celebrating their faith.  We stopped a few times to watch processions.  The different youth groups in the churches would do dances and sing songs, while wearing matching outfits.  We got out and joined one of the processions for a while to get an up-close and personal view.  So fun to be out amongst the people.

Timkat procession from Jan Meda back to their church

Tabot in the center of the procession, surrounded by priests and covered by umbrellas

Loved this billboard (and appreciated the fact that it was the ONLY landmark that actually helped me to know where we were while driving around Addis!)

Another procession - we got out and walked with this one for a little while

And it keeps going and going and going!

After walking with one of the processions, we went to Jan Meda and spent some time just walking around the grounds.  It was so much fun.  There were still a lot of people there.  They were still celebrating and laughing and playing games.  Little boys were running games where people tried to toss coins into a styrofoam container.  They had big games of 'heads or tails'.  There were huge groups surrounding an Ethiopian version of a pinata.  We had fun watching this.  Someone, usually a confident young man, would be blind-folded and taken some number of paces away from a clay coffee pot filled with candy, hanging from an Ethiopian soccer goal overhead crossbar.  They would then be turned around, handed a big stick, and would then attempt to walk the same number of paces back, take one swing, and hope to hit the coffee pot.  The funny thing was that the crowd surrounding the game would get involved.  Isaias laughed and told us that half the crowd was trying to mislead the participate, the other half was trying to help.

A tree just inside the grounds at Jan Meda

Timkat celebrations continuing at Jan Meda

Occasionally the priest at the nearby church would spray holy water out onto the crowd as a symbol of Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River.  We had to laugh at this a little because it reminded us of our own children at the misting tents at the zoo and amusements parks.  All the kids were standing in the water and would come out completely drenched, all smiles and laughs. 

People running to get sprayed with Holy water

As we strolled through the crowds, people were friendly and sweet.  Thankfully, it was mostly a reprieve from the heartache and pain of the poverty.  Only once the entire time we were there were we approached by a small child, begging for food.  Mostly it was a day of fun and celebration.

These three cuties were so excited to come and shake our hands and show off their English, "hello".  They loved having their picture taken and begged, "again, again!"  They wouldn't stop dancing, so I switched to video. (Watch video below.)  Their mom was so sweet.  She just covered her face in embarrassment that her children were such hams.  I would have recorded them all day though, they were so darned cute!

As we strolled, Havit and Isaias filled us in on the traditions and the games that were being played.  Havit shared stories about how she was not raised Orthodox, that she was raised in more of a protestant church and when she was a little girl, she always felt left out during Timkat because all the other children wore the Orthodox crosses and she was the only child in her class that didn't wear one so the other kids made fun of her.   Eric bought a few beautiful handcarved wooden crosses that a little girl was selling.  We also bought some food that everyone was walking around eating.  They were these shelled beans that were sold in a big bunch.  They tasted like fresh pea pods.  Isaias bought some and shared with us, but Eric really liked them so he bought some more.  Although they were good, I refrained from eating too many because I was thinking, "raw food in Ethiopia, shells or no, I don't want to take any chances".  Eric, on the other hand, thought, "yummy!!!"   Silly Eric.  Silly, silly Eric.  Let's just say that he took this remainder of his bunch back to the guest house and spent the next few days offering them to anyone who might need something with a laxative effect.  :-)

Wish I could remember what these were called.  I won't tell you what we were calling them a few days later.

When we went back to the van to leave, these three ran over to shake our hands and again attempt to impress us with their English.  What sweet hearts!

Sweet boys who came to talk to us as we were leaving the Timkat festival

After we paid the guy who was guarding the van, Havit and Isaias dropped Eric and I off at Avanti's and we enjoyed a great late lunch.  Eric was a little smarter this time and did NOT order a nearly raw steak.  He stuck with the pasta - good choice!  Then, we returned the guest house to unpack, relax and wait for our friends to finally arrive.  It was a wonderful day. We were happy just to have the time to go out and spend the time with the Ethiopian people. How can you not love this?!!! 

From Ethiopia - Post 1 - The Hut out Back

The last time we were in Ethiopia, work had begun outside the Jemimah Guest House on a "Cultural Center".  As I understand it, men from the Southern region in Ethiopia had been hired and brought to Addis to construct a hut, like the ones that they build to live in down south.  Their families came too; and they all live on the premises.  The last time we were there, the center post was up, and a framing of sorts was completed on the sides and roof.  The sides were nearly finished, but that was about it.  This time, however, the entire hut was nearly complete.  There had been some hold-up as they had run into difficulties being able to get the straw that is used for the thatched roof, so it was not quite complete.  Regardless, it was amazing construction.  A lot of bamboo was used, along with some other type of wood, of which we never did find out the identity.  When we drove north our second day in country, our guide from the guest house showed us the area where they went to cut down the tree used for the center post. 

Look at the inside of that roof.  It was beautiful - like a giant hand-woven basket!

As seems to  always be the case in Ethiopia, there is never any "waste".  They use all the shavings, cuttings, and little left-over pieces for other parts of the process or for other things.

This is one of the builders.  He was SO proud of his construction.  There was a TOTAL language barrier between us when we were out there, but he made it very clear that he wanted me to take his picture with his project.  When I showed him the picture, his smile was huge!  He also eagerly showed us his "tools" that he was working with - a stick with a piece of metal tied to the end!

This is the other gentleman who was working.  He was thatching the roof (in his bare feet - owww!  Although, I have to say, they looked WAY tough enough to handle it!).  He wanted us to climb up on the roof with him.  I politely smiled, giggled, and said, "no thank you!".   I still haven't quite figured out the ladder contraption he was using.  There was a regular (also hand-made) ladder at the bottom, but then the top was tied to that little segment of a ladder which he moved around on the top of the roof.

Last time we were there, we were told that the workers and their families had been offered a room in the guest house during the construction.  They proudly declined and are instead living in the area outside - where the sheets are hanging, and also to the right where you can see the "door".    My guess is that it's probably still a step up from their home as they are being provided food and water in addition to payment for their services.