July 22nd, 2005
"Abyssinian Days"
OK, so I arrived in
First stop: Harar, in the east, near the Somali border. A walled city,
apparently the fourth holiest Muslim town in the world. Kind of a dump however,
and filled with people who do nothing but chew 'chat' all day. This is a mildly
stimulating, very bitter leaf, that you must literally chew hands-ful of for
several hours to get the effect of, say, a good double expresso. Waste of time,
but when 90% of population unemployed, I suppose, why not?
Next, back to Addis, then up north, for all the following...
...
...and Axum, long ago one of Africa's three most important cities (with
...and the ancient churches/monasteries of Tigray, up near the Eritrea border,
set amid jagged dry peaks--truly biblical landscapes--and tended by
equally-ancient robed priests wielding iron crosses.
...and Lalibela, probably one of the wonders of the world, the site of more than
a dozen churches carved out of solid rock, inside and out! Complete with jagged
steps, narrow passageways, and caves. And white-robed villagers, many of whom
seem out of another century.
Now, to throw a twist in, I travel to the south.
...just to see them took me the luckiest hitch of my life, a ride in a Land
Rover with 4 Danes (who I ended up spending four days with) that involved
getting stuck in the middle of a river, twice, and a little safari on a road
that surpasses anything you've seen in an SUV commercial, amid a backdrop of
lush valleys and beautiful hills. Even picked up some bare-assed hitch-hiking
locals.
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It's the ancient
To this, add the food, surely
But there's more. Kitfo: raw ground lamb eaten with cheese, injera, and kocho (a
dense, flat bread with the taste and texture of a damp bathmat). And some of the
worlds finest coffee. And fresh yogurt with red pepper. And thick rich fruit
juices. And you eat cacti here, surprisingly juicy and sweet!
And have I mentioned it's the lowest-priced country I've been in since leaving
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This is probably the most pain-in-the-ass country I've ever been in.
'You! You!'
'Give me one birr!' (local currency)
'Where you go?!'
'Faranji, faranji' (white man)
'Give me money!'
And this not just from little children. It's adults as well.
Unending day after day on rickety buses, all of which board at 5am, with locals
insist on closing every window (for 'health' reasons!) no matter what the
temperature. Two separate incidents left me camera-less, and out of a few
smaller items as well: a bit of cash, some pens. Violation.
More than one occasion of kids chasing and throwing stones, one nailing me in
the head. I've never felt so much like I was in a zoo, where the people look at
you, with little or no respect. I hate to generalize, because I did meet some
wonderful people, but I've now travelled quite wide and far, and truly
I've never been so ready to leave a country. Truly, I may have killed someone
had I stayed much longer.
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But if I've left on a sour note, go re-read the top part again. I did have an
amazing time.
A trend starts to form? I arrive in northern
'I have never, except by an effort of will, wished that the passing moment might
linger so that I could get more enjoyment from it, for even when it has brought
me something I had immensely looked forward to, my imagination in the very
moment of fulfillment has been busy with the problematic delight of whatever was
to come.' (-
'What, at this moment, is lacking?' (-Eckhart Tolle)
Away Awhile is hosted by Josh Trutwin.