Saturday afternoon 18 Jan 2014 (9 Tir 2006) Timket

Saturday afternoon 18 Jan 2014 (9 Tir 2006) Timket

From lunch we walked a few meters into Piassa, found an internet cafe, where we spent a short time.  It was now about 2:45 PM.  We wanted to be at Jan Meda park by 4 PM to see the start of the Timket celebration.

Timket is Epiphany.  It is one of the most prominent events in the Ethiopian calendar.  Timket celebrates Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River.  The holiday comprises three days of celebration, the highlight of which is the procession of the tabot -- a representation of the Ark of the Covenant housed in every Ethiopian Orthodox church.  For an elaborate daytime celebration in the capital, thousands of faithful churchgoers accompany clergy carrying the tabots to Jan Meda, a large, open park within the city.

We were 2-3 km from Jan Meda, and were told that there was no bus there from Piassa, which was probably wrong.  We were also told that it was too far to walk in only one hour, also wrong.  However, it took a while to get our bearings and figure out where we actually were on the map.  Then (3:15) we were on our way.

Down to cross a small creek running through Addis (which is now rather like a public sewer), then up some long steps through an old neighborhood to Sidist Kolo (one of the major squares of Addis).  While there are major asphalt roads most of the walkways are cobblestone, and rather rough cobblestone at that.  Along the way people selling all sorts of food stuff: a kind of chocolate donut, small plums, sugar cane.

At Sidist Kolo, the square was emptied of traffic, and there were lineups of gowned church groups in preparation for a parade.  At 4 folks were just starting to arrive, and the processions did not start until closer to 5.  In the meantime there was some priestly chanting on the microphone, the police preserving a large space in front for the processions, and thousands sitting and standing on the grassy fields.  Everyone was in a really good mood, except for Mike who couldn't hunker down like Carol.  At a few important times, the crowd ululated.

After a while we wanted to see what else was happening.  There were tents with chairs, presumably for some sort of presentation (music? religious service?).  The British Consulate had put together an exhibit of historic pictures of Timkets past.  People were selling food and drink at other places.  There were some impromptu football games.  We saw a boy riding a horse with fancy trappings - didn't find the equestrian exhibit, but saw signs of other horses.

Eventually, close to 6, we started to leave.  The crowds were still coming in, and we estimate that there were at one time 50,000 people there.  On the way out, the crowds coming and leaving were squeezed in a narrow roadway, and it started to feel dangerous.  Luckily no one fell or stampeded.

For such a huge gathering there seemed to be zero restroom facilities (we're such Americans).  Eventually we were back to Sidist Kolo, where thankfully there was a gas station.  Enough said.

We saw signs that there would be buses.  We walked back down the road  (thankfully downhill this time) to the creek, where we found a bus to Piassa.  Dinner in the Taitu Restuarant in our hotel, where we shared the meal with other guests.  A man from Ireland had become a mentor figure years before for two orphaned high schoolers who spoke reasonable English.  Later we invited a solitary female diner to join us.  She was from the Netherlands. Interesting conversation: immigration, education, etc.

By this point dinner was over, and we were near total collapse.  Carol had not slept well for 2 days.  In bed by 9:15 PM.  We slept solidly until 7:30 the next morning.