The other day at the clothing store I spotted two adorable little green and pink sleeveless dresses for my preschoolers. They were on the clearance racks for $6 each. I brought them home, happily imagining the girls looking utterly adorable wearing them at their big sisters' embassy appointment in Ethiopia.

But then I remembered what our agency had told us about clothing in Ethiopia. No shorts. No dresses that show off the knees. No tank tops. Nothing sleeveless. Ethiopia, you see, is a very conservative country, and all of these things are considered immodest-- on adults anyway. Suddenly wondered if the adorable dresses would really be okay. I tossed off a question to our agency's e-group.

Turns out sleeveless clothes on little kids are fine. The problem is, if this Friday's court date goes well, we will be traveling in August, smack dab in the middle of the rainy season. The rainy season is cold, and people in Ethiopia believe in bundling up their precious little ones when it is cold. To make my cute dresses work, I'll need to layer a long sleeve top underneath, or a sweater on top.

The comments about the weather being cold got me wondering. When we were in Ethiopia in February, we experienced lows in the mid 50's and highs to the low 80's. Early June in Addis was almost the same, except that the highs topped out in the mid 70's. It rained once while we were there, and I think there was only one day where we wore jackets.

However, according to the BBC News Weather page for Addis Ababa, things change by late June. When I checked the forecast a couple days ago, there were five straight days where the high temperature was expected to be no higher than 62. Brrrr. In June rain tends to be a little more sporadic in Addis. By August, the rain is in full swing. It rains in several short bursts nearly every day-- downpours that can fill a bucket within minutes. Also, in Addis there is no heating inside the homes.

All that knowledge has made me change my choices regarding clothing. I'm packing lightweight clothing that dries quickly. I'm packing at least two jackets per person, in case we get caught in a downpour and need to let a jacket dry for a day or two before being worn again. I'm packing plenty of long sleeves and long pants to layer, so we can have warm things to wear when we're holed up indoors during the rain.

I'm also thinking seriously about borrowing my daughter's Crocs to wear around town, since they would be extremely easy to wipe down if they got muddy. I may spring for some Crocs for my kids too. The hubby is on his own. He wouldn't be caught dead in the things.

The joys of the rainy season in Addis. I can't wait to get there and tell you all about it first hand!

(48 hours till our court date. Think good thoughts for us, OK?)

Related Links

Addis: how's the weather?
Bugs in Ethiopia