A Traditional Coffee Ceremony
One of the best parts of our orientation programme was the opportunity to visit the homes of some of Bingham’s Ethiopian employees for a traditional coffee ceremony. I went to the home of Embet, who is the houseworker for several Bingham families. She is a delightful woman who lives about a 20 minute walk from the school. I visited her home with Randen, Christina and their three girls, and with Tessa. Randen and Christina are from the US; Randen is the new student counsellor, particularly focusing on assisting the Grade 12 students as they apply for universities in one of the many countries Bingham’s graduating class leave for at the end of their time here. Tessa is the new French and German teacher and is from the UK.
On our way to Embet's Place.
Our walk was a pleasant one, but it reminded me that Kolfe, the part of the city in which we live, is very poor. There are ramshackle slum dwellings just a couple of hundred metres up the road; my Year 12 Studies of Societies class from last year would recognise the type of dwelling from our Slum Survivor simulation camp last year (See TEAR Australia’s website for more information: http://www.tear.org.au/education/slum-survivor/). The difference was, of course, that we could chicken out and sleep in Quicky, the high school groundsman’s shed when it got too wet that night; these people have no such choice in this wet and muddy rainy season! We passed many shops and a large vegetable market.
Shops along the way.
A fruit and vegetable market.
Embet had everything prepared for our arrival. The little stove on the right of the photo below what filled with hot coals and she began to roast the raw coffee beans. It was a slow and methodical process that was very relaxing! In the meantime she served us freshly popped corn which is usually served with traditional Ethiopian coffee.
Embet roasts the coffee beans over hot coals.
Once the beans were roasted, they needed to be ground up by hand, in Embet’s mortar and pestle which she had inherited from her grandmother. We all had a go at grinding the coffee, but none of us were as efficient as Embet!
Tessa grinding the coffee.
The ground coffee is placed in the traditional coffee pot with fresh hot water, and then allowed to brew over the hot coals.
Placing the ground coffee and water in the coffee pot.
What results is a lovely strong, black brew of coffee, which is served in tiny cups.
Embet pours the coffee into tiny cups.
I generally avoid coffee; as a rule it makes me quite ill with an unpleasant case of nausea and a headache. Apparently Ethiopian coffee has no such effect! Yes, it is very strong, and I confess I added a generous helping of sugar, but I really quite enjoyed it! I’m not saying I will be suddenly drinking lattes from the Bakehouse in Clare, but if there is freshly-made Ethiopian coffee to be had, I will indulge, I think!
O., M., Christina and Tessa savour their coffee.
After several hours of talking with Embet and her teenage and adult children, we made our way back to Bingham for a late lunch! It was a wonderful way to have spent a morning!
Taking our leave from Embet's house.
The photos have been helpful. They give me a much more realistic idea of the area you are living in. I forget just how much of a contrast it is!
I was looking at the lovely coffee pot. Is there a traditional form of ‘pottery’ in the country? Great photos to give a wonderful idea of where you are.
Fantastic post Rose! I was keenly interested in the ‘coffee ceremony’ when you mentioned it in an earlier blog spot. What I’ve recognised from your description are the commonalities that a good ol’ coffee and chat offer the world over. Embet’s home looked very welcoming and how lucky are you to have that direct link into a community/family. Go embrace that! And cheers, how about a cuppa?
Mum, there is a local form of pottery here. I have already bought three candle holders for my room (not just for decorative purposes!) and am toying with buying a coffee pot at the next craft market at ETC! Kathy, if I buy said coffee pot, I shall invite you over for fresh Ethiopian coffee when I get home!
Wow! Shall keep my fingers crossed that an Ethiopian coffee pot finds you and says “buy me buy me buy me”. x
Dear Rose,
We happened to come across your posts while surfing the internet. We served at Bingham from 2001-2004. It was great to see Emebet. Would you give her our love and tell her we miss her.
Blessings!
Lovely to hear from you! We had such a lovely visit at her home. I see her often as she works for the Michlers who live below me, so I will pass on your greetings.
I love that you now love coffee! (OK, that you “survive coffee without violent illness”) I think the difference between the natural, made-from-bean-ness of fresh REAL coffee, versus the over-processed and treated version we call coffee, would be part of it.
Now I just need to plant a coffee tree, grow the beans, harvest, roast, crush, brew and invite you over to share a pot of sweet coffee! (My coffee ritual might take an extra year or 2 than the Ethiopian version where they already have the beans harvested.)
xx
How about I save you the effort of planting your own coffee tree and bring you home a bag of roasted Ethiopian beans. Unfortunately I believe customs will not allow me to bring in the raw ones! Then I’ll plan another road trip to Queensland and we can share a coffee together… I take mine with four sugars!