Saturday morning in Addis 18 Jan 2014 (9 Tir 2006*)

Saturday morning in Addis 18 Jan 2014 (9 Tir 2006*)

We arrive at the airport, get off the plane, wait in a long line for our Ethiopian visa ($20).  We then wait in another long line to get our visa stamped to be admitted to the country.  On to claim the luggage and wait in another long line to get our luggage X-rayed. 

In one line, we start talking with a Kenyan human rights professional who is in Addis Abebe for a week.  Question: which city is the major transport hub for Africa, Addis or Nairobi.  Well, Addis has the headquarters for the Organization for African Union, which means lots of travel to and through Addis.  Nairobi has the headquarters for a very large UN African contingent, which means lots of travel to and through Nairobi.  Ethiopian Airlines has a very large route network throughout central and southern Africa, as well as flights from Washington, Toronto, 5 or 6 European cities, Saudi, Beruit, Tel Aviv, Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Beijing, Hangzhou, and Seoul.  It will take many years to determine the winner in this fight.  Much rides on it.

One reason the airport is so busy is that large contingents of recently expelled Ethiopians from Saudi have arrived.  Most come back with nothing.

Finally, 2 1/2 hours later, we are in the country, and walking out of the airport. As we walk out, we are accosted by all sorts of taxi drivers, and lots of folks driving what look like minibuses but who want to charge us taxi prices.  We keep walking away from the airport.  Perhaps a kilometer away, we cross the Ring Road, and are in the true minibus area.  Here the price is 2-5 birr, not 10-25 DOLLARS.  (19 birr to the dollar).  We finally find a minibus going downtown to the Piassa, and we are on.  It is now about 10 AM. 

The Piassa is an old neighborhood and the Itege Taitu is a famous old hotel, perhaps the oldest in all of Addis.  Addis was founded in 1887 and the Taitu dates from 1907.  It has held up reasonably well, partly through the addition of a back annex, which some have warned about in the blogs.  We have reserved a room at the Taitu Hotel (in the $20 to $30 range for one night).  The staff will determine which room you get and which price when the vacated rooms are serviced and open up.  The first room we are shown is spacious and lots of windows, but it is under the Jazz Cafe.  So we pass.  Mike goes out to change money, and then to buy a SIM card for the phone.  By the time he gets back over an hour later, Carol has chosen a nice available room in the back of the annex - quiet, and with two windows overlooking a section of the Piassa.  It turns out that the beds are quite comfortable.  The television?  Only an inoperative piece of decor.  Our en suite bathroom includes a shower with no curtain and hand held nozzle, and we don't get breakfast for the price of $22 US, but still a great buy, and visitors from all over the world concur.

By this time it is close to noon, and we are really frazzled, sleep deprived, dehydrated.  (the atmosphere is very dry.)  We get a 2 L bottle of water (while the locals can drink tap water, tourists don't want to drink anything or brush your teeth with anything but bottled water).  Finally, about 1:30 or so, we are out. 

Next door is the KG Corner, with no other tourists.  We order a bowl of minestrone soup and an Ethio-Italian classic, a plate of spaghetti with meatballs, slightly spicy and very satisfying.  Two macchiatos are spectacular, real whipped cream, with a dash of chocolate syrup (9 birr, or 48 cents apiece).  Total bill, 113 birr or apx $6 US.

*9 Tir 2006 is the Ethiopian date.  Tir is the 5th month, with the new year beginning on 8 or 9 September.