I arrived just 2 hours ago, so my contact with the city has been somewhat limited, but I do feel the desire to record my initial thoughts, and here seems as good a place as any. I stepped off the plane into darkness at around 9 p.m. local time and the first thing that struck me was the spicy smell. Windhoek smells like the dry dusty desert that surrounds it while Johannesburg, much like the cities of Europe, smells of pollution and not much else. Addis is different though, it smells like the Arabian East, a pungent aroma of spices overlaying even the jet fuel of the surrounding aircraft. The airport is largely modern, although the customs area and arrivals hall reminds me more of Nairobi than the cities of the south. My Visa on Arrival
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