Our dear daughter is from the north of Ethiopia, but she was adopted from an orphanage in Addis Ababa called Toukoul. She was in room 12 with a dozen or so other babies, and taken care of by nannies, or as they refer to them, "mothers" who rotate through on 12 hour shifts. She went outside in the morning sun for 20-30 minutes every sunny day, and had bottles with her nannies, and some play time on a big mat in the room. She was very used to the sounds of the orphanage, the sounds of many children and babies, but very few technological sounds, just the sounds of children and Amharic. She spent a lot of time, I imagine, in her very small crib, waiting for the next thing to happen.
Adoption Avenues and Dove both process adoptions from Toukoul. Toukoul is a group of orphanages started by a Frenchman, Mr. Ferez. From what I read, he began helping children find homes over 30 years ago, adopted children himself, and built up an orphanage group that has more than one building, and more than one age level represented.
The original Toukoul has a blue gate and several buildings with children from 0-7 or so. Then, there is an orphanage for the next age range and the next, and a work-study and family foster program for the children as they get to the teenage years. They are half finished with a new orphanage in the country outside of Addis, and some of the HIV children that have been housed at one of the Toukoul's have been moved there, as well as children that are waiting to be adopted and children that may very well move through the various stages of the group of orphanages that is Toukoul.
The Toukoul Guest House is directly associated with the orphanage and partially run by one of Mr. Ferez's children, Gabriel, a Frenchman adopted from Ethiopia. It is called YGF for Yves (mr. Frez), Gabriel and Ferez. It isnt a fancy place, but it is inviting and the staff is very supportive and wonderful.
When you stay at Toukoul Guest house, you are connecting your child to an adoption story that goes back 30 years. We met 4 adult adoptee's, two returning for the first time to visit the land of their birth. I feel so luck to have that connection for our daughter. The generation that has gone before, paving the way, and connected to her. What a gift. This is the true gift of staying here.
Also, the staff is very helpful. All speak a little English and they are all incredibly trustworthy. If you ask them, they will help you. The names are so wonderful and difficult to try and learn. From the fabulous people that work the front desk, Asayde, Mimi and Bebe, to the people that work everywhere, Alemtsayhay, to the people that work helping feed you, Andage, Hewit and several others, to the people that actually cook and plan the meals, head chef Wendil and his assistant Mumbi.
Many of the staff have children of their own at home. Asayde has a nephew and is great with kids, our daughter loved him and he grabbed her right up. His English is excellent and I was always happy to see him; he is really good at his job and has a kind heart. Alemtsayhay has a 3 year old at home with her mother and husband and he is usually asleep when she leaves for work and when she returns. The assistant chef has a new daughter, less than 5 months and he is so proud of her, as he should be.
Andague is a kind and beautiful man and I know that when we return his English will have soared leaps and bounds. He served us 3 meals a day and was ever so kind. He lives at the guest house, also there is a night guard, who's wife just had a baby and whichever person is working as the night clerk always stays.
We were lucky and had a fabulous driver, Ibrihim. Not only an excellent driver, who knows all the good routes if there is traffic, but a wonderful person. He was a tour driver all over Ethiopia and knows many tribes, places and things about his country. We felt so lucky to get to hang out with him for so many days. We both wish we could have traveled Ethiopia around with him, but we wanted to be with our daughter. we will return.
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