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Published: January 24th 2010
Main road to Bole International
Image of main road to Bole International taken from overpass. I managed to come up with a surprising number of classic pop culture reference titles for this entry on the way ‘home’ from work on friday evening including: “Talk Dirty to Me”, “I Should Wear My Sunglasses… Even at Night”, and “Dust in the Wind”. I have no doubt that there are many more brilliant alternatives out there so if you’ve got one, please share it in the comments box - I am counting on you all for a good laugh!
This entry is going to be all about taking on Addis Ababa on foot, inspired by my poor mangled feet that have already been blackened, poked, cut, and blistered by my walks throughout the different regions of Ethiopia’s capital city. I would like to point out that on one occasion, I was so enamored with my surroundings that I did not even notice when one of my toenails was bent back and bruised black by… well, whatever the culprit was. I say this just so that you know, when I talk about certain challenges or ‘negative’ experiences in this blog, that they are only worth mentioning; they do not determine my overall opinion of the place with ‘thirteen months
Shard in my Birk
This is the piece of scrap that made it all the way through my Birk into my toe of sunshine’.
First-off, I really feel the need to get this one gross thought off my chest (oh, mum you are about to be so proud!): for those of you who have traveled to Rome, notorious for its life-threatening traffic and dusty air - and, I suppose, for encapsulating Vatican City and being home to the Coliseum too (haha) - or even if you have been so unfortunate to have been caught next to a pile of trash as truck blows passed you on a Toronto street - I challenge you to take on Addis. Here, J-walking is an art form and drivers will not hesitate to give you a little honk or even a bump if you get in their way. Here, there is no such thing as a public garbage disposal bin. Here, shop owners routinely pour buckets of water out of their store-fronts onto the dirt ‘side-walks’. (the purpose of this, I think, is to make mud, thereby reducing the amount of dust in the air that would otherwise blow into the shop dirtying/contaminating their products)
Anyways, remember how full of muck your nostrils got after walking around Rome for a day? Now just imagine the possibilities under these circumstances… haha!
I’m sorry to say, that comment does not mark the end of the gross content of this blog entry.
I am currently living at the Emmad Guesthouse, a home away from home, where the staff celebrates the small daily accomplishments of newcomers and embraces returning guests like long-lost family members. Located in the Wuhalimat/Imperial area, it stands about 2km away from the CPAR office compound nestled in the middle of a bustling Gerji market. It is a straight-shot walk between the two points along one partially unpaved, heavily trafficked road, which takes me about 15minutes - longer if I forget my sunglasses (though I must admit, the most blinding thing is not the sun, but my own skin). Every morning I pass dozens of fruit stands, boutiques and shoe-shiners which, until today, I have been too timid to enter. I literally JUST bought a bunch of bananas for sost (three) birr. And then I gave myself a big pat on the back.
There is one unpaved section of the street that I would liken to No Man’s Land. Large sections have been gauged out by the elements and reinforced by traffic especially the heavier trucks en route to or from one of the many construction sites that line the road. Vehicles traveling in opposite directions attempt to traverse the terrain via whichever path appears the smoothest with little regard for “sides”, only offering two short beeps to announce their claim to the chosen path. The other day, a motorcyclist ignored this warning and was gently but assertively put in his place off the road.
As you can tell, there is much to amuse a people-watcher, but you must be careful not to let these sights distract you from the comparable perils of being a pedestrian. I am reminded of an Ellen DeGeneres stand-up skit where she discussed the different ways in which people deal with the embarrassment of tripping in public. I think I have utilized all of her options already including: the fake brief jog following the trip; the laugh accompanied by a little wave to chuckling onlookers; the courteous warning to fellow pedestrians; even the recommendation that the obstacle be marked with some sort of pylon. Having exhausted all of these options, I realize how pointless my embarrassment was. Only the surefooted goats roaming about seem to be able to navigate the walkways with flawless grace - even with their front legs tied. (this I believe is done to prevent escape)
Unfortunately, pedestrian obstacles are not limited to rubble, waste, and puddles of mud. The other day I came across the head of a bull, minus the skull, but horns and fur otherwise still intact. Told’ya the gross content did not end with dirty boogies!
On a more serious note, the reliance on begging, primarily of little kids, orphaned or from families too poor to afford to send them to school, as well as disabled persons unable to find work, is a very real problem. The little ones are as adorable and clever as ever. They will walk alongside you for quite some distance keeping their wide eyes on you all the while. In every experience with this that I have had so far, they start by asking “Hi, how are you?” before holding out their tiny palms. I chose, before arrival in Addis, to adhere to my belief that giving money on the street will only foster a begging culture. Instead, I will likely contribute by way of a grassroots organization I have heard of where you can donate meals, clothes, money and other essential goods and the organization then distributes the donations through more legitimate channels to children and other people in genuine need of the assistance/support.
Another ‘problem’ I was made aware of before departing, was the tendency of people to call at foreigners: “Forenj! Forenj!” This does happen, but not in any confrontational way. I am fairly convinced at this point, however, that my name is actually “you” or “hey sister!” So far I have only had one man make any remotely aggressive move towards me. Yesterday, I went walking in Bole, a fairly developed area where you can find shopping centers, bookstores, travel agencies, a number of cafes and lounges, a movie theatre. After picking up a few groceries, I was walking along one of the major veins through Addis which connects the opposite side of the city to Bole International Airport, when a man - as a joke - lunged at my bag. Ha… ha… good one.
Other than a few difficult and awkward moments and a few minor injuries, including one from a shard of metal that lodged itself in the bottom of my Birkenstock and made it all the way through to my toe (thank goodness for tetanus shots), walking around Addis has been a fairly relaxing experience. Known in the world of tourism world as the country with ‘thirteen months of sunshine’, a result of their consistently beautiful weather and slightly different approach to the annual calendar, pedestrians generally move no faster than at a “strolling” pace and it is normal to see friends greeting each other with a warm embrace (men clasp hand and bump shoulders, women kiss on the cheek 3x) every few steps you take.
The moral of the story is to take your time, keep your head up, your ears open and to enjoy the array of activities going on around you! As I discovered yesterday on my return journey from Bole, at any given time, you may be overtaken by two cows, one sheep, a donkey and two dogs grazing along the sidewalk. That’s not something that happens every day in Toronto!
Interesting tidbits:
- The Ethiopian Calendar: each month has 30days except the thirteenth month, in which there are only 6 days - 5 in a leap year.
- I sat and read an English paper, The Reporter, yesterday at Kaldi’s Coffee and want to highlight a few stories that I found interesting:
o The African Union (AU) is coming together this week for a conference concerning information technology development and access across Africa. It is likely that this will bring the somewhat controversial issue of privatized telecommunications in Ethiopia to the forefront of politicized topics. This discussion precedes the visit of World Bank (WB) President, Robert Zoellick, who is embarking on a 3-country tour to Sierra Leone, Cote d’Ivoire and finally to Ethiopia to take part in the AU summit, drawing the focus of the group to issues which African nations are coping with as a result of the ongoing economic crisis. Zoellick will also lead discussions on potential opportunities for economic growth looking to a number of agricultural and fishery projects what have already benefited from WB support as examples. “He will… discuss ways of boosting WB support to governmental and civil society organizations promoting peace, transparency, accountability, and good governance.” ( 23 Jan 2010, p8, ‘World Bank President to Visit Ethiopia’) As this is an election year, responses of the government to summit issues are very important.
o The author of an editorial comment entitled ‘The Folly and Futility of Forcing Regime Change and Exporting Democracy” discussed the view that the hardest things to change in the development process are values and attitudes. The author states that habits are not something that can easily be transported from one democracy into another deeply rooted system with its own unique political structures and cultural characteristics. He states: “… I categorically reject any wholesale importation of foreign values by Ethiopians because it is neither practical nor beneficial to our country; I strongly believe in selectively importing and adapting only those values which are feasible and beneficial to the socio-economic and political objectives of our nation.” (23 January 2010, p10). In other words: “…democracy must evolve from within and cannot be enforced by illegitimate and immoral tactics.”
Amharic Vocab!
0- zéro
1- and (also used as a substitute for ‘a’ as in, a (singular) thing)
2- hulet
3- sost
4- arat
5- amist
Indemn adderk - Goodmorning (to a male)
Indemn addersh - (to a female)
I hope you enjoyed this feature post -- Ill try to get my entries down to a much shorter length in the future, but no promises as this is proving to be a nice english outlet for me. haha Stay tuned over the next few weeks as I move out of my cozy little nest here at the Emmad, brave the minibus network, and travel beyond the borders of Addis Ababa! I hope all is well at home or wherever you may be in the world at this moment =)
Loves n Misses
Troy
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Alex
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I can relate!!
Amanda, your eloquence in writing is enchanting - I'm loving the great detail of your daily strolls and explorations in Addis. I can relate to: - having my lungs fill with dust. at one point in Tanzania I went to the doctor because i thought i had swallowed a fish bone but he told me it was a build-up of dirt. (being stubborn I took some pills anyway!) - tripping... A LOT! are you getting used to being laughed at yet? - being greatly confronted by children who, in Uganda and Tanzania, and Kenya refer to white people as "mzungu" - i often felt as though I know what it feels like to be a celebrity given the abundance of children who followed us around as often as possible. Love and miss yaa! xoxo (keep the stories coming!)