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Published: January 27th 2009
Addis Ababa, Africa!
Back to blue skies and SUN :)Through an idiosyncracy of the Emirates airline scheduling we were given the happy honour of spending 8 hours in transit - from midnight to 8am - at Dubai airport.
An extra minute of stopover time and we would have qualified for a free night in a hotel, but I guess you don't get as rich as the Emirates without paying attention to such minor details!
Our consultant friend Judith had recommended we try one of the business lounges where you can pay a 'small amount' to upgrade from peasant class and enjoy some comfortable seating. This we tried; but not only couldn't we see any available lounger seats (for sleeping on), we were quoted $45 US!
Each!
Chargable every 4 hours!
Hmm. For $180 you could get a decent hotel for the night...or a complementary cup of tea and a few minutes kip in a posh airport lounge. I don't think so.
Dubai is clearly not designed for your budget traveller (or volunteer).
We were later told by a VSO friend that 80%!o(MISSING)f the population of Dubai are expats. Wealthy expats.
OK. Fixed metal chairs
The Addis Gin Palace
aka The St George Beer Lodge (Licenced Victuallers: Allan, Jonathan & Jeremy) in a row by the departure gate for 8 hours it is then.
Fair play to Emirates. They do excellent eye shields and earplugs. I used them and actually snatched an hour or so of half-sleep! Normally unheard of.
The eye and ear guards also blanked out the chicken, dog, mosque, church and rising sun at the Addis Gin Palace AND have been doing a stirling job keeping out the wailing priests an mullahs of Assosa.
Can't actually hear Sara talking or the alarm clock, but I guess you can't have everything 😉
Gin & St George Jonathan, Jeremy and the other Allan had kindly offered us the use of their spare room until we could beg a lift back the Assosa - the airport was still closed for asphalting - but we were so knackered when we arrived in Addis we just booked into the Yonas and crashed out immediately for 18 hours.
Checking out of the Yonas we checked into the VSO uber pad, known affectionately as the Gin Palace of Addis (by Jonathan) or the St George Lodge (by Allan).
We had stayed there before and were wowed by the
oops! bedroom trauma
There goes Jonathan's Thomas Chippendale...or was it a Tarekegn Cherent??? size of the place, the 3 (working) bathrooms (including en suite), the hot shower and large, well-stocked kitchen, the size of the compound, the balconies, the marble staircase, bronze statuettes, gold taps...you get the picture.
Jonathan and Allan (joined in Spetember by Jeremy) are some of the most hospitable VSOs in Addis. They really don't seem to mind an endless stream of visiting VSOs from other parts of Ethiopia turning up and crashing at their house.
They even keep a calendar just for booking in visitors. All very civilized.
Room for a (ahem) "small" one? Or more specifically "room for a pair of post-Christmas porkers and their 80kg of football equipment?"
The answer seemed to be no.
Lesley had blagged a seat in a Red Cross car heading to Assosa the day before we arrived.
Our Bureau driver Argenyo, headed back the day we landed to be back in Assosa for Ethiopian Christmas (on the 7th Jan).
Our Red Cross contact was being vague and slid his return date back a week and ruled himself out of the equation...
And the Finnish Water project guys (back from a Christmas break in
Kenya and Zanzibar) had a car which was now full.
So best we stay in Addis - it was going to be a holiday on the 7th anyway - kick back and examine our options in a couple of days.
We will get a car...inshallah (God willing).
What was it like to be back in Ethiopia? It felt good.
We had scratched all those itches around tastes and little luxuries. We had seen our friends and families and all the vibes were good. The only thing I didn't want to think about was 56Kb internet. Best not to dwell on it.
The first time I had heard the burbling and tweeting of a modem the previous Feburary it took me back about 10 years to the days before broadband. A year later it is kind of associated with a little thrill. Will the Internet connect or not?
What will it be?
Invalid user name or password on the domain (or)
PPP Link Control error? (maybe?)
No dial tone (doh!)
Port is in use by another application? (are you sure?)
Remote computer did not respond in a timely manner (well, this is Africa!)
Haile Gebreselassie Street, Addis
...though he probably has a higher average speed! Come on, come on give me a
Registering the computer on the network.
Yee-Ha!
You don't get that with broadband 😉
First Impression? Well the first thing is the colour.
And the brightness.
Blue, cloudless skies, yellow sun, shafts of light, contrasts, bright clothes, shops loaded with multi-coloured objects, green plants, red dust, daylight to 7pm.
Heat. Warmth.
If the UK winter was like a worn-out black and white movie, the Ethiopian summer was a high definition, super slo-mo, blu-ray, full-monty eye candy experience.
Christmas comes but...er...twice a year! Thanks to the Ethiopian calendar we got to enjoy a second Christmas in Ethiopia. On the 7th January. The Ethiopian's call it
gena. It is a national holiday, though not as well celebrated as fasika (Easter) or meskel (finding of the true cross). Or the Ethiopian new year. Or, um, timkat (Epiphany).
That said, judging by the piles of fresh sheep skins piled up at every street corner along hiya hulet road (on a walk to Bole Road) there were a fair few fluffy quadrapeds that would not be having such a merry time this year.
People still
Gerry, Sara & Al
Taken by self-timer...not some passing midget travel home to see the family at Christmas, which usually means the offices are deserted a day or two before the holiday and for a day or two afterwards.
People kill an animal and drink T'ella (the local beer-type home brew) and T'ej (the honey mead type local brew). Without a fridge you best eat all that meat quick, so the day after a festival you are either hungover, too stuffed to move or still stuffing your self silly so not much work gets done.
Christmas here isn't the commercial spend-fest of the western world, though we did see a few pictures of a laughing Santa and a couple of cool plastic Christmas trees in the red, green and yellow colours of the Ethiopian flag. I guess Americanization gets everywhere.
What did we do for Ethiopian Christmas?
Had a curry!
With Antereo - our Finnish water project buddy.
So long. Farewell... As February approaches the VSOs who signed up for only 12 months begin departing. These are the guys who (in some cases) trained with us in the UK at Harborne Hall, flew from Heathrow with us and went through In Country Training
White Wedding @ The Axum
Enemy of the father's savings accounts... together. Many of them we see again when back in Addis and some have become good friends who we will keep in touch with in the future.
Quite a few of the VSOs that came out with us in Feburary have actually already left. Some of the placements didn't work out, some were recalled from Assosa with us and then sent home, some were injured or worse in the car accident and some had ducked out before the year from late November onwards. A few months ago I did do a count of people who we knew and interacted with during ICT or in Assosa and were still here and those who were not. There were about 8 people still in Ethiopia and 18 people no longer here for one reason or another! That figure has probably changed again by now.
We knew Gordon would be leaving soon, and Gerry. And Julia. But we met Wendy at the coffee shop next to VSO and she said her visa would not be renewed so she was having to leave. In about 5 days! Darcy had left in December to get back to Oz for Christmas. Amy had already had
Construction time again
Cement alleh...and eucalyptus scaffolding :O visa problems and taken a job with the World Bank.
In the VSO office we met Walter (September 08 intake - an IT guy) and his wife was not well so he was thinking of going back. Then we met Kev (earlier intake than us) and he was going back as his injured foot had not healed.
A new law was just passed that seriously affects the viability of NGOs (Non Governmental Organisations) in Ethiopia. International NGOs are not so affected, like Oxfam, Red Cross, Save the Children etc, but smaller national NGOs certainly will be. As VSO places volunteers in smaller national NGOs (like HIV & AIDS organisations) these placements will be affected.
It's a long story and you can probably Google it for better analysis than I can provide. The bottom line for us is that as Government employees working in Government Bureaus we are OK. For some NGOs however it is catastrophic. Particulary those that work in the fields of HIV & AIDS, disability, human rights and gender equality.
Anyway, at this rate we'll be the old lags of VSO Ethiopia come September when some of the vols extending for a few months
Now That's What I call the 80s
Sara digs deep into Jonathan's eclectic collection finally finish!
There was good news however. Allan was extending and so were both Jonathans!
Gerry We arranged a farewell meal with Gerry at Marsilla's Pizza in the Comet building and it was really nice just to catch up with him about how his time in Addis went and what his plans would be back in the Phillipines.
After our grub we spent half and hour on the roof of the Comet building surveying Addis from above (where the air is easier to breathe, that's for sure). One thing we noted was the increase in building activity. All the half-built shells that had seemed abandoned were suddenly a hive of activity once more.
Gerry explained that the cement had run out and new supplies needed foreign currency to buy, which there was a shortage off. But something had been arranged and the cement boat had docked in Djibouti once more and work was continuing once more.
I have to say Gerry was one of those nice VSOs who never moans or whinges - always greets you with a smile and a laugh and just got on with it when he was recalled from Assosa.
Jonathan P
Treated us to tofu and plum crumble... Good luck to you buddy!
Julia Julia had arranged a party at Helen's house, though we knew it (and stayed there) as "Kev's" place. We had a nice evening at Gourmet Corner with Julia the night before and had an appointment with my boss at a Tej Bet so couldn't stay long at the party but we enjoyed it nevertheless.
I broke my 12 day stint without any booze. It seemed the right thing to do when your boss invites you out to a Tej Bet. Best get in the mood with a beer at the party beforehand 😊
Julia is heading back to freezing, grey Lan-dan after 4 months working in Addis. Since she left, Spurs fortunes have taken a turn for the better, so with Our 'Arry in charge and a few shrewd transfer-window signings you never know - they might even beat the drop!
But apparently her new man wants to visit the Emirates first! Good work fella! It can be arranged...maybe with a trip to the Ethiopian resturant just round the corner from Finsbury Park chucked in?
Gordon Comrade Gordon. Chairman Payne. What can you say?
Neil
Julia's Farewell Bash
The collective noun for VSOs? A jambo of volunteers?? Back cheated and the Tiggers spent the entire decade from 1995-2005 offside 😊
Don't deny it now!
It's been great fun and hope to see you on the terraces at Welford Road. Though it will have to be with Munster (again) as I fear Bristol will be playing the likes of Otley and Penzance come the autumn.
Keep taking the pills...
...when they arrive of course.
The Topia Ah, the boss, Ato Tilahun, wants to take me an Sara to a proper Ethiopian Tej Bet (Tej House) where we can drink our favourite local brew and enjoy the cultural experience.
Why thank-you very much!
Not only was it hard to find, but it was packed with Ethiopians in various states of alcoholic fuzz! Happy drunk, silent and thoughtful, grinning at everything, laughing, playing, joking, arguing, snoozing, swaying, watching, joking again.
The atmosphere was great - just like an sunny afternoon in a busy beer garden in the UK, chilling out the day after the night before.
It took a while to be seated but when we did Ato Tilahun ordered us the Tej - which comes in old litre whiskey
Time for Gordon's medication
...two bottles of St George coming right up bottles and is poured into small (what looked like) specimen bottles. You can dilute with Ambo water if feeling a bit conservative, or just take it neat.
Apparently Tej comes in three different strengths. As Ato Tilahun said - kindergarten, high school and university. There were clearly a few PhDs in attendance, however we sensibly took the kindergarten option.
Even so, Tej slips down like an alco-pop and after half a specimen bottle you are busy grinning like a regular.
The theory is that you eat well before hand (we hadn't) and then when on a Tej session, you stick to Tej. As Ato Tilahun said, "Tej creates a territory in your stomach and if you take beer or whisky? It will not be comfortable for you".
Fortunately for our stomachs we had an appointment with Gordon, Jackie and Amy for dinner at the African Queen (our farewell to Gordon) so we ducked out after the third bottle. Great stuff though!
The wall of fame The St George Lodge is famous for more than just it's alcoholic namesakes - it is a den of iniquitious yahtzee!
And on the walls (and ceilings) are
Julia & Al
Think Al's had his medication as well!!! stuck the scores and records of past achievements. Just like the 100 or 5-wicket haul at Lord's, every player wants to get their name on the wall of fame.
And Sara did it in style. In the first game she posted a new high score of 328 and in the next a new low score of under 100. What a result!
Tofu & Plum Crumble One of my missions in the UK was to buy some plant food for Jonathan's house plants and tickle his tastebuds with some high quality chocolate (70%!c(MISSING)ocoa solids and upwards only, please...) and my best laid plans for some rare Mayan delight were sunk when we discovered Fresh & Wild on Clifton triangle had closed down!
What a gutter!
Though it means if Sara goes back to JISC she might not spend 50%!o(MISSING)f her disposable income in the place, it was still the home of good chocolate and non-irritating under-arm deodorant. Two of the essentials for happy living, for sure.
Our offering of two Ecuadorian substitutes (85%!p(MISSING)lain and 75%!d(MISSING)ark with ginger pieces) were accepted and we were invited to Jonathan's pad in Arat Kilo, near
The Topia Tej Bet
Honey wine in specimen bottles? Er. OK the Ministry of Education where he works.
Without a mobile phone (he refuses to use one because of the chemicals used in the manufacture of mobiles has been the cause of countless deaths where it is mined in one of the central African countries - is it Congo? We really are development issue cretins) catching up with him can be an adventure.
We arranged to meet in the 'Cafe with no name' next to the Post Office on the monument roundabout in Arat Kilo. Unfortunately there seem to be two cafes with no name near to the Post Office and you guessed it, we were in the wrong one! Fortunately he spotted us as we prepared to try and find his house and all was well.
His flat is very nice, part of a clinic or hospital compound, and even has a TV and Arab Satellite dish. Which he doesn't watch.
More importantly it has a fridge and a cooker and today's menu was fried tofu with rice and salad, followed by our first crumble and custard for well over a year. Wow! It was great. Washed down with a cheap Italian red it gave us
Cheers from the Boss
Cheers to you Ato Tilahun! the energy we needed for a walk back along the Embassy Road from Arat Kilo to the Gin Palace - made even more thrilling (it was very dark by now) by the roadworks and Ethiopian drivers who hopped from one side of the road to another without warning.
I sure wouldn't want to be a dog on the Embassy Road with them roadworks going on...
January is the Enemy of Girls We had seen a number of weddings during the week in Addis and while we were enjoying kindergarten Tej with Ato Tilahun some guests from a neighbouring wedding celebration turned up.
When we asked why we had seen so many weddings Ato Tilahun explained that January is the most popular month for getting married in Ethiopia. The rains have finished but it is not so dry that food or water are a problem yet. In fact it is so popular for marriages that people call January the 'enemy of girls'.
I guess that not all marriages are so happy for everyone. It is still possible to kidnap girls - particularly if there are differences in the social standing of the girl's family and the
Who needs medication?
Tej will do the trick! groom's family.
Plus - more so in the rural areas than cities - girls are still forceably married off by their parents. We know a family who are looking after a niece who has been sent to them by her mother as the father wants to marry her off. She is in her mid-teens.
But then the brides we saw enjoying their posh Addis weddings seemed pretty pleased about the whole arrangement!
OK then. Call the man who can We finally admitted defeat on the lift front and I resolved to call our Jim'll'Fix It - my Bureau Head - Ato Seyoum.
As he had stepped in to provide a car and driver at the last minute when our flight from Assosa to Addis was messed up before Christmas I was reluctant to burn up so many favours in such a short space of time...
But no bother. Was Argenyo's long-wheelbase Toyota comfortable for us? It is? OK, the driver will leave Assosa on Friday and take you back on Monday. How does that sound?
It sounded great!
Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you. Batam amisagenalo!
At last. After 8 days waiting in Addis.
Yep, that meat is raw!
No veggie options on the menu. Odd that. We were on our way home to Assosa...
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gordon Payne
non-member comment
Tigers cheats - surely not!
Can't believe the slanderous comment on the gentlemen Tigers - and what was the score in 2002? At least we have the chance this year to stick one up Barf. Miss you both - and the snow is amazing!