Fasika Hotel Addis Ababa

Nottata senza sonno, senza ululati e rumori vari&#8230; dopo un po' che guardavamo il soffitto ci siamo alzati alle 06.00 abbiamo preparato i bagagli fiduciosi di partire e siamo andati a messa alle 07.00.<br><br>Questa volta non era più in nuer, ma in amarico e il coro era accompagnato non da tamburi di legno e pelle ma da una tastiera elettronica che faceva più casino che altro!<br><br>Nella mattinata siamo andati a ricontrollare con Piter la "situazione volo" e ci ...

... socially. Blogs are illegal apparently, and so is Skype, only somewhat mitigating the slowness of the Internet. It hardly matters if you can't do anything with it. Addis is no paradise either, though it does have some modern conveniences and a bustling night-club scene. Still it's sprawling and chaotic and hard to walk, and there's some sections probably better avoided, notably the notorious Merkato. It's probably 'shambolic ...

... the tab - I'm just kidding.  Anyway I must write my report.  Look after yourselves.    <br>May I say to all Zimbabweans the death of Susan Tsangirai is a tragic occurrence - my condolences to the family. <br>Huge Wadzi hugs <br>P.S.  I got caught by Friday 13th can you believe it.  I was meant to travel at 04:00 a.m. to Rome on Kenya Airways and just as I was getting ready to go to the airport at 12:30 a.m. I received an email saying the flight had been cancelled ...

... himself as Sessey. When we walked out to the taxi park, it looked like we are already in the city. No need to take a taxi; There was a grocery store, a parking lot, a restaurant - and a terminal. In the middle of the city! Actually Bole is a suburb of Addis Ababa, but it was weird to see the road leading to the airport. I know that airports are built in a distance from populated areas in my homeland, but not here. We left the parking lot of ...

... work, over many months. I've lost close to a stone in weight since we set off, mainly due to skipping meals as we were driving hard, working hard and the non stodgy, non European diet. We awoke in a secure compound next to a dentist. Jo and I were in my pop up tent whilst the others were having their last night ever on the bus. Beline collected us and took us out for breakfast nearby, something sweet and sickly, covered in honey and some strong black Ethiopian ...

... fid q, and fid q drove us to the concert in a big blacked out 4 by 4 and he proceded to stand there and look serious! the concert was awsome...only knew 2 of the songs, but konyagi made it fun! we danced like loons and genrally made tits of ourselves...perfect way to end it! so that was our last night in dar, and the next day we got a taxi to the airport, i cried far too much for anyone english, and then we sat and waited, and waited some more and 3 ...

So this is what it feels like to enter civilization after having zero contact with the rest of the world while in one of the world's most remote areas: IMMENSE RELIEF, UTTER EXHAUSTION, and COMPLETE SATISFACTION. This is just a little note for beloved ones back home to know we are safe and healthy in rainy Addis Ababa. Intermittent internet connection (no way to upload photos yet i'm afraid, nobody allows me to use my own ...

... with the Hamer tribe. We drank black coffee and homemade porridgy-thick beer from large gourds or calabashes, observed traditional dances, and sat beside tribesmen with bows and arrows, rifles and Kalishnikov semi-automatics. We observed the lead up to ...

Addis Ababa, the Earth's center. Customs was a breeze. It was as if they were hurrying us into the country. We found Maurice an hour after we cleared immigration. He was sporting French braids, but otherwise hadn't changed a bit. He helped us get a taxi and get to a few hotels. We got in late and most of them had filled up. We refused a tiny $3 single and a $50 deluxe. Around midnight we found the 3B Hotel near the ...

... the toilet in order for it to go down the drain. Esther and I would go to nice restaurants or cafés on purpose just to use their bathroom (I think my cousins suspected after a while). It was a very humbling experience and we were overjoyed to get a hot shower at Feluha (the one and only local bath house where the water is pure mineral water). My skin and hair never felt so FABULOUS! We stayed in the capital city for a week until Aimee my ...