Febraury 8th 2008 (Journal Entry)

We woke this morning at 8AM and probably would have slept longer if Mesfin had not knocked on our door. We ate breakfast-more of the same-scrambled eggs-although, I just ate a breakfast bar that I had brought from the States. Mefin thinks that I need to eat more and doesn't understand why I eat what he calls "peasant food".

We then walked to the Market in hopes of finding the Mursi tribe there. On our way, we ran into our little friends Bobbi and Benjamin-synchronicity. Fortunately, they had found a ride back into town last night and didn't have to walk. Bobbi found some of the Mursi and took us to meet them. They are by far the most aggressive and unfriendly tribe that we have met so far. They were extremely rough with the boys (Bobbi and Benjamin). One Mursi woman actually pushed Bobbi or should I say she picked him up and threw him. They were fighting with each other and Bobbi about who we would get to take a picture of (because they would charge you birr for each picture). They would charge an extra fee if you took one with a baby in it. This same woman that threw Bobbi took the plate out of her lip & handed it to me and said "10 birr"...weird experience. It was actually, kind of disgusting; but I gladly accepted it, thanked her and paid her 20 birr-as I didn't want her to hurt Bobbi anymore or one of us?

I guess the lip plates are unique to this tribe. I was told, that the men in the Mursi tribe didn't want their women to be taken by other tribes so they made them wear these plates-a symbol that they were spoken for (married) and from the Mursi tribe. I guess when a woman is an adolescent in the tribe and is unmarried she starts to stretch her lip out with a small plate and progressive stretches out her lip with a larger and larger plate. Then when she gets married she pulls her bottom 4 teeth and cuts a slit in her lip for a larger ring to fit. Over time the plate gets larger (the one I was handed was approximately 4 inches in diameter). Now, it is seen as a sign of beauty in their tribe. The larger the plate, the better. They also wear plates in their ears and gauge them as well. It looks odd when the plate is out-their lip looks like a thick worm but it dangles down. This tribe also practices scarification; the women have elaborate scars that make beautiful designs. They also start this at a young age. We also learned that many of the adolescent women that pull their teeth do not make it; due to infection. That they are bed bound for a month recovering from their teeth being pulled; the other women in the tribe or the other wife cares for them during this process.

An adolescent girl that is stretching her lip (it is not cut yet); she also has an example of the scarification that this tribe does on her left upper arm.

Mursi woman (this is the woman that gave me the plate in her lip).

Mursi woman without the plate in-she is chewing on bamboo-this is how they clean (brush) their teeth.

Mursi woman and her baby-they are not diapered (the women know when their baby needs to go and set them down in a bush); the child breastfeeds when she is hungry.

Mursi woman and her baby-she has saved the baby's head into a design.

Mursi women-some with their lip plates out, the baby is breastfeeding in this picture.

Next, we went to the Jinka Museum, that was dedicated to the tribes of the Omo Valley. They had an interesting spread on the women-the Hammar women. It had a display that chronicled the evolution of womanhood in the Hammar tribe; from childhood to womanhood, to motherhood, to becoming an elder. It was extremely interesting but yet disturbing at the same time. The woman were beaten and whipped during many stages of their life by their fathers then by their husbands, and then finally by their sons? This tribe also practices female circumcision. We were told that this happens after child birth so that the woman no longer enjoys sexual intercourse; so she doesn't leave with another man or tribe. The mother-in-laws in this tribe are also in charge keeping their son's wife in line. The women are also servants to their husbands and have to obey his orders or risk getting whipped. A life I cannot even imagine. The women have hard life's both mentally and physically. They work hard in the fields, care for their children, and do as their husband's request.

We also watched a video about the Jumping of the Bulls-it is an elaborate ceremony that gets the boys in the Hammar tribe ready to become men-ready to marry. It is about a 4 day scene. During this ceremony the boy's sister gets whipped; she looks forward to this day...it shows her dedication to her brother and the tribe to take the beating.

Jinka Museum with our little guide Bobbi and a boy that sold us some Mursi bracelets.

Then our guide went to go chew some Chat (the narcotic/stimulant plant that is chewed by many men in Ethiopia); while the boys took a nap in the hotel. Lance and I went on a walk through town and met up with Bobbi again. Bobbi told us that he had 50 birr taken from him by the Mursi after our run-in with them this morning. He did notify the police (not sure what sort of policing system they have-as I have not seen anyone looking official). I felt bad for him and asked him if he wanted to make some extra money and take us on a guide through town. We walked past many small markets selling fruit, shoes, clothing, spices, etc. He took us to the school that he goes to. There was a mural painted on the school that was composed of: wildlife, tribal people, and a tourist. Weird that their was a painting of a tourist on their school (but I guess it makes sense as this is a good part of their economy here-as that is what Bobbi is going to school for, to become a guide). We just returned to the hotel and are having a beer outside while the boys sleep. Our guide just showed up-until later...

We ate at the same hotel after walking around the Jinka market again. We saw our friend Bobbi again; however, he was with some other tourists. We had to switch hotels-to the G_ _ _ (cannot read my writing and I cannot remember) Hotel-not as nice as last night-pretty disgusting actually. However, nothing compares to horrific night's stay at Konzo. Tonight I ate some soup-I think. The meals are starting to blend together. I can no longer say that I am a vegetarian-as I have no idea what all I have consumed on this trip (1st day raw beef). Today was an extremely educational day.