I stepped out on the balcony and was greeted by the acrid scent of a fire. The air was thick with smoke, and my first thought was a brush fire. Later I found out it is common to have a day like this...where everyone burns their trash piles, polluting the sky with thick brown smoke.
We are staying at the Hilton. Its a relatively nice hotel, although extremely expensive and out dated...its clean and safe. Two relatively important things when so far from home.
The grounds are nicely maintained, and there are all the amenities...a large pool, mini golf, and a well equipped gym.
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| Changing Cabin (in case you couldn't tell) |
This will be our home until Saturday when we all head out to Adama (Nazaret).
After sorting out a bit of a room misunderstanding (the hotel cancelled all three of ours reservation for the first night...still haven't figured out why?), a driver picked us up for a tour of the city. We scrambled through a sea of insane drivers. There are two lanes on the roads, and for the most part all the drivers keep to their own sides, but that's about it when it comes to etiquette on the roads. There are few stop signs (although nobody really stops at them) and even fewer traffic lights (and those that are up dont seem to work at all).
Our driver, Sampson, was a seasoned professional though. Weaving in and out of the madness without instilling too much panic in his passengers.
We travelled past the Palace, the Piazza, the University of Addis Ababa, Yekatit 12 Monument.
We travelled past the Palace, the Piazza, the University of Addis Ababa, Yekatit 12 Monument.
We also saw the American Embassy as well as the Canadian Embassy. Both massive structures that were well guarded and beautifully constructed.
We finally moved out of the city and up to Entoto Mountain where we were greeted with a beautiful view.
Along the way, we encountered numerous women carrying heavy loads of cut Eucalyptus branches on their backs. These women hike roughly 18 miles a day (based off a little bit of googling) and can carry up to 70 lbs on their backs. There were women of all ages participating in this daily ritual.
Some of the women had donkeys to help carry the load. This woman in particular came up to Joy after she took a picture of her donkey's demanding to be paid for allowing her photo to be taken. When Joy offered her 6 Birr, she refused...demanding 10 instead (a whopping 58 cents). It makes you think twice about bartering at all when you think of how little that really is)
As I was searching around the internet for more information on this way of life, I found this website...where you can 'give a donkey' to help these women. I can't verify the validity of the website, but it may be worth looking into.
At the top of the mountain we stopped at the Entoto Mariam Church. For a 50 birr entrance fee each, we were welcomed to explore the church and surrounding buildings. Our self appointed tour guide (despite the fact that we told him we weren't interested) proceeded to show us around the property and explain the purpose of the buildings.
On our way back to the hotel, we passed by the African Union bulding, an incredibly huge, beautiful building...a very generous gift from the Chinese government, who apparently sees a lot of growth potential in Ethiopia.
After a long day, it was nice to get back to the hotel..relax near the pool with a drink and then head up to the room for a nap. Thursday, Deman arrives from South Africa and we begin to do a little work in preparaion for our journey to Adama
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