Final stretch

There is much to do as I near the end of my assignment in Ethiopia. This
morning I took my laptop out on the balcony along with my iPod and a
bottle of water and began tapping out my report. The sun was shining,
but luckily the far wall of the balcony provided shade in one corner
where the chair is. I realize I only have about 4 days left, and it's
unfortunate that this will be the busiest part of my trip. That means I
only have limited time to take the last-minute pictures, go to the
restaurants I've still haven't had a chance to go to, go back to the
shops I've visited to pick up items I thought about buying before and so
forth. This is inevitable at the end of any trip, I suppose. In any
case, it is of some comfort to know I will come back to Ethiopia later
this year. That makes it easier to leave some things to do next time and
also easier to say "so long" to the many people I've met while here.