Feasting and Trip Planning in Addis Ababa
Trip Start
Sep 25, 2010
1
36
40
Trip End
Apr 01, 2011
Where I stayed
Tina Pension & Guesthouse
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Saturday, January 29, 2011
As the ladies prepared our rooms, we set out in search of a functioning ATM machine accepting anything other than Visa-electron. It was no easy task, and we almost had to orchestrate a wire transfer to Western Union from our bank account, but finally we found one that worked next to the Friendship Building (after being sent in circles by a series of falsely confident locals). Loaded up with cash we had a quick but delicious breakfast of Ethiopian omelets (finally, a country with a true food culture!!) at Saay Café then settled into our room for a cat-nap and some trip planning. We decided to take it easy that evening and simply treat ourselves to a full spread Ethiopian meal at Habesha Restaurant. We ate our non-veg combo, which included 7 local specialties eaten with injera (thin, spongy, and sour pancakes) to the festive tunes of (live) traditional Ethiopian music and dance. From waitresses to performers to patrons, the evening fully confirmed for us that Ethiopian women – long, lean, elegant and sensual – are truly among the most beautiful in the world.
Day two was fully committed to making onward trip arrangements, as our plans for Ethiopia (beyond food!) centered on a tour of the country’s historical circuit through the northern cities of Bahir Dar, Gonder, Axum, and Lalibela. With only 7 days to commit, we knew it would require some flying time, but we also wanted to do a few legs by car to get a feel of the country-side and the life of natives. With T-Tam tours near our hotel we were able to purchase the domestic flights at a deep discount offered by Ethiopian Airlines for any travelers arriving from abroad on one of their carriers (lucky for us they happened to have the cheapest flight from Cairo!). As for the other trip arrangements (car, hotels), we lost confidence in T-Tam after a bit of post-agreement price changes and decided to head elsewhere. We considered simply taking the much-cheaper bus option for the overland portions of the trip, but after finding tickets sold out at the first operator we tried, we swung by Abeba Tours (high praise by the Lonely Planet) to see if we couldn’t make the private car option work. It was pretty pricey, but the manager was a fairly straight shooter and we were ready to end the pain of trip planning so we booked a 4-day 4WD car hire and hotels for the full 7-day tour. In making our hotel selections, at one point we asked, "the hotel is the newer option, but does it have character?" Without delay the agent chuckled through his response, “oh, no, no, I can assure you, absolutely no character whatsoever. But, perhaps having water is important to you?”
With arrangements complete, we spent the balance of the afternoon visiting the one obligatory item on our docket for Addis Ababa – visiting our Aunt Lucy at the National Museum. Named after the Beatles song, “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,” which played in the archeologists’ camp upon discovery, she is the remains of the oldest and most complete pre-human skeleton on earth, dating 3.2 million years. East Africa, and Ethiopia most specifically, has long been considered the cradle of humanity, but recent discoveries of 6-7 million years old remains of other pre-humans in Kenya and Chad are now casting doubt. Lucy, categorized as A. Afarensis, is Ethiopia’s poster child, but the skeleton of a 4.4 million years old A. Ramidus (which possibly walked on two feet) also displayed in the Museum was equally impressive. Satisfied with our one accomplishment, we agreed to head back to the hotel to relax before heading to Habesha Restaurant, again, for dinner. After our disappointing food experience in Egypt, we decided to stick with the sure thing.
Next Stop: Bahir Dar
