Ethiopia, March 17, 2003
Getting ADD in Addis Ababa
Amped on caffine!
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I've been in Addis Ababa, the capitol of Ethiopia for less than 24 hours now and I've already had five (5!) cappuccinos, and for one who usually hates coffee in the USA, I love it here! Maybe its the fresh locally-grown beans, or it could be the three spoonfuls of sugar, or just the 2,500 meters of altitude hitting my head, but the cappuccinos taste like chocolate milk and I'm too exhausted to do much but sit in Addis' cafes, checking out the scene. Though, as you would expect would happen to someone who might usually have three teas in a week max, the caffeine is amping me up to the point where I have attention deficit disorder and can barely focus on the day. I can concentrate enough to notice that its like an old Soviet movie set here, with Russian Ladas on the street in front of classic Soviet architecture. Add to it the cold weather, which due to the altitude is almost freezing at night, and it could be Moscow if I squint hard enough. And that would be a hard squint, for the Ethiopians are nothing like the Russians. They are nothing like the people I've seen in the rest of Africa either. Very beautiful & proud of never being a colony, they inspire awe in me like no other people on this continent. Add to it their long history (second to be Christian after Armenia), and great food (injera, the sour sponge bread is one of my fav's) and I am looking forward to this week's adventure: visiting the ancient capital of Askum and the stone churches of Lalibela. -- Midweek Update -- Thanks to a wonderfully executed scam, I didn't get to see Askum, for those thieves at the Wutma Hotel sold me a ride to Askum that really only went half-way, to Gondar, yet cost twice as much as needed and took twice as long as promised. Ahh.. thanks Reg! |
