Ethiopia Day 4

Saturday April 30, 2011

I couldn’t sleep so I was up at 4am.  I just got some work done on my computer and played a million games of solitaire on my iPhone.  My parents woke up around 7am so I went downstairs to check my email and upload some photos on their ancient machine. It was pouring outside and we are near some tin roofs so it was very noisy! After we walked to the local pastry shop to get breakfast.  I got hot chocolate and a chocolate croissant.  After, we went to the internet café where the international phone was and I got to chat with Jason for 30 minutes.  Still no news on my car. 

Back to the hotel to rest up before lunch with Shibabaw at his home.  While we were resting, dad’s former student Abdul-Rashid called and said he would be downstairs in 10 mins. Okay!  This is how Ethiopia works I guess.  He wanted to take us up to the mountains even though we told him we had lunch plans at 2:00.  He said no problem.  We drove through busy Addis and then up a mountain to the country side where we pulled over so they could make a phone call. And then back down the mountain again. Pretty views.  We saw a lot of old women carrying items on their backs...charcol, straw, wood, eucalyptus branches and water.  We stopped so I could photograph one woman and we paid her 3 birr to do so.  Its customary to pay to take a photograph of someone.  I just did it with my iPhone, but still.  

  

My dad with Abdul-Rashid

The old woman we paid to take her photo

Rashid was driving us to Shibabaw’s home and he took us through the Mercato area.  At one point a beggar reached for my door and tried to open it and it freaked me out a bit.  Rashid had to stop for a supply of Chat, which is a type of stimulant (drug) that they chew here.  You chew the leaves directly.  Dad says its an illegal narcotic in the states but is widely used here as a relaxation method mostly by the men.  

We got to Shibabaw’s house late and he was waiting for us at the bottom of his apartment. He took us up in the oldest elevator ever! I was so scared to go up plus it smelled like urine. Yuck.  Upstairs, his maid had cooked a glorious homecooked Ethiopian meal of tibs, doro wat, injera and more!  Some of the best tasting food I’ve had.  We washed it all down with a Pepsi!  She even traditionally washed our right hand for us right there in the living room. In the background was the Ethiopian version of American Idol.  They had even copied their logo and format.  It was singing or dancing acts of all ages, very interesting to watch.  We hung out there and talked awhile before getting in a taxi to Dunbell center to try and find Ethiopian Airlines office.

Getting my hands washed

Ethiopian Idol

making traditional ethiopian coffee

the scary lift!

Dad and Shibabaw

No luck with the office but we found a travel agent who represented them.  We booked our flight to Lalibela and then Gondor for the week we get back from Tanzania.  Lalibela was on my “must do before I die” list so I’m very excited.  I always knew what it was, but the first time I saw it was in an Amazing Race episode and that is when I knew I wanted to visit.  We taxied back to our hotel and tried to steal wireless internet (its almost non existent here) from the hotel next door with no luck. 

Back up to the hotel to pack and get ready for our early flight to Tanzania tomorrow! We fly in to Kilimanjaro airport!