Return to Abyssinia . . .

To the mother of mothers - the home of Lucy, whom I will see in all her ancient skeletal glory in this cradle of our civilization.

Labrador coast

Departed early this morning for Toronto, and then on a very long, nearly 14 hour flight to Addis Abeba, Ethiopia.  Lucky for me, I was enjoying an empty seat beside me on this brand new 787, making the tight squeeze for a tall fellow a bit more manageable, but largely sleepless.  Cloudy most of the way, though a "window" opened up on an island in Labrador, still showing snow and ice floes.

 Of course, it was quite dark for half the journey, but did manage a glimpse of the central Egyptian desert in the very early morning sunrise - a desolate barren place indeed. I particularly enjoy the view on approach, when from on high one can peer upon the landscape and detect its unique characteristics. Once we descended below the hazy cover, I noticed many of the traditional African circular thatch huts, usually in a cluster along a ridge, with a seemingly random patchwork of farm fields graced with a hint of green, and very few trees.  I was told that Ethiopia was denuded of trees during the Communist period after 1974 to only 5% wooded cover, and now through a reforestation effort, up to 15%..

Final Approach

Landed quite tired, but surprised by an email advising that my meeting with the Embassy Cultural Affairs Officer was today at 10:00 AM (rather than Tuesday).  While I landed in what appeared to be plenty of time, the process to obtain my visa and go through customs was quite disorganized, causing one fellow American to comment "welcome to Africa".  After hassling me a bit as to why I did not know where I was staying, I told the immigration officer I had a meeting at the Embassy at 10 - I was through!  I was met by Ermias Mekonnen, my former student and the liaison of this adventure, who whisked me to the Embassy about 15 minutes late.  Good discussion - have never been in an embassy before, and this one is a larger unit with 1,300 employees, about 300 of which are American.

Managed to get our around noon to wind our way through the city streets to my "inn" - the Wutma Hotel, located in an older, bustling part of the city, above a very popular restaurant.  And as this is Friday night, a noisy din rises as I write this, but I suspect sleep will come easily this night.  We walked the neighborhood, visited the ECUSTA school, had a typical Ethiopian lunch, including "inguar" - a teff grain "bread" that is like a very thin, sour tasting pancake made of a fermented batter.
Had the texture of cheap foam rubber sheeting, but an interesting taste.  Stepped in a Western Union Bank to exchange some dollars for birra, taking note of  the significantly different role banks play in this neighborhood.

View from my room

Addis is a noisy, somewhat bleak, foul smelling and poorly maintained hive of activity everywhere - people walking, talking, stopping, begging - and praying.  A main mosque is across the street from the Catholic school, and prayers were ongoing on the sidewalk while people still hustled about, giving me a good indication of the ease with which Coptic Christians, Catholics and Muslims merge in this society, especially in the very old local coffee shop (nothing like Starbucks) with no seats, everyone stands at high tables taking their espresso shots. It seems to be a colorblind society, except when this tall, white guy stands out in the crowd.  The poverty is evident everywhere, and despairing faces abound with hands out.  But so too are the less despairing hustlers asking for handouts, trying to shake my hand, and shake me down.  Almost had my passport stolen - grabbed it back from a surprised thief.  But the sense I have here is a very friendly and welcoming people, and I had it confirmed by the Embassy that it is a safe area.  Petty theft, as in many poor countries, is just a tax travelers like me pay.  I have stashed my valuables after settling into my room, and carry as little as possible henceforward.


The noisy, vibrant drumbeat of Friday night will hopefully not disturb me.