Walking around Addis Ababa

Kayla at the market

Walking around Addis Ababa is such an adventure! We were a bit nervous to do this the first few days, but we couldn't just stay inside all afternoon, and everybody kept assuring us it was totally safe. Our first outing was to the fruit and vegetable stand with Alemsea. That afternoon, Kayla and I took off  with Zemi's map in one hand and our camera in the other. Our goal was to find the Sheraton Hotel. We loved the sights, the sounds and the smells of Ethiopia. There are beautiful fruit stands, basket stores, butcher shops, shoe shiners, and many other little street shops. Kayla had a few 1 birr in her pocket to hand out to the homeless or needy as she saw fit and felt comfortable doing so.

Our first stop was at the Hilton where our Rotary group stayed two years ago. We bought a couple of scarves, and some snacks at the grocery store. We then headed in the direction of the Sheraton, but missed the turn and ended up walking much further than necessary. I finally asked for directions and was turned around the way we came, but eventually we arrived at the beautiful Sheraton Hotel. It's a very nice but expensive hotel. We walked around the grounds and checked out the pool. It costs about $10 to swim here. We only brought 400 birr (about $32) with us and we had spent it on the way here on the scarves and snacks, so we didn't have enough to go swimming! The weather was chilly, so we didn't mind not swimming today. The walk was refreshing and it felt good to stretch our legs. We will walk somewhere everyday now.

Addis Ababa on our walk

On Saturday we drove to the building Zemi is building.  It was beautiful.  We needed petrol, but the stations were either all out of gas or there were very long lines.  The price would be increasing on Sunday, so everyone wanted to fill up.  We had to head home and wait for gas on Sunday. Kayla and I took a short walk to a basket shop, but the skys were about to open up!  The weather has been a chilly 68-72 and rain everyday since Thursday.  Sometimes there is thunder and lightning and sheets of rain.  It's been flannel PJ's every night for sure the last few nights.  Petrol is about 11.23 birr per liter, which a figure to be about $3.40 a gallon with the price increase.  Zemi bought 17.21 liters for 200 birr Sunday morning.

Kayla and JoJo

Sunday morning brought us a visit to the prison.  Zemi has a friend who accidently hit and killed a man with his car, and was sentenced to 8 months in prison.  It seems unfair and is such a shame because people are running randomly into the street constantly and not paying attention to where they are going.  All of the responsibility is put onto the driver no matter what.  Hitting or killing a goat can be very expensive as well. We didn't actually go into the prison.  Kayla, I and JoJo waited for Zemi and ate fresh soybeans we just bought and some candy that Kayla bought on a little walk. Driving in Ethiopia is not on my "adventures to have" list!

A typical street market

We spent the afternoon with Zemi's family at her childhood home.  We experienced the awesome original Ethiopian coffee ceremony.  It is an important ceremony in many ways. They roast the coffee beans right there, grind them, and brew them.  The first round is very strong, and the next two rounds get a bit weaker. The coffee is served with popcorn, candies and cookies.  The whole thing takes about two hours.  By the time we are done, I had enough caffeine in my system that I could jog home! Ha ha.  We must partake in all these ceremonies so as to not be rude! :) You can't get any fresher ground roast than right under your nose!

The Ethiopian coffee ceremony

Last night we took a walk to the Ghion, the hotel where we will be staying next week.  Teddy Afro was in concert at the stadium and we walked right by it.  The people here love him to death.  He is somewhat of a freedom rebel here and very popular and very talented.  The whole ground shook with their stomping and yelling and singing!  Thousands attended his concert. I will try to get a CD of his music here.  It is very good.
Farewell for now.  I will post again in a few days.  We are attending a birthday party tonight for a friend.