Ethiopia for Travelers

Ethiopia is wonderful, but heavily impacted by foreign influence, NGOs, and tourism. We spent nearly one month in Ethiopia (March - April 2010) and traveled as far north as Gonder and Lalibela, and as far south as Arba Minch and Kemba. We also spent one week in Addis. Please note that this is not intended to be a comprehensive travel guide, but is limited to our experiences and some tips that we think might be helpful for travelers.

Overall, I would say that the north is great for those who love tourism-packages, churches, guided tours, etc. The south was much more up our alley. The effects of tourism were less, the people seemed more genuine, and the presence of other foreigners was greatly reduced. But that’s just us. The north was beautiful and incredible and the stone-hewn churches of Lalibela were spectacular. But Lake Tana was a drag (rather expensive and not especially incredible), and most of the other tourist-towns were overwhelmingly tourism-focused: nearly everyone you interacted with had an agenda or something to offer: a guide, a translator, a coffee ceremony, a hotel, it was hard to just “make a friend.”

In a culture that has been so impacted by foreign-influence, aid, and tourism, I think that it’s important to be educated and responsible about giving. Although each person is entitled to their own opinions and ideas on this, we have written a few blogs about aid and giving. Check them out here and here and here if you’d like.

We traveled exclusively over-land while in Ethiopia. The buses take a loooong time. When you are given an estimate of how long the bus will take, double it and hope for the best. The roads are bad, the buses are ancient, and the livestock just can’t resist wandering in the middle of the highways. Plus, the buses make frequent stops to pick up travelers and items for transport. But, aside from the discomfort of eight and nine hour bus rides, it’s a great way to see Ethiopia. Also, we never found that the minibuses arrive at the destination much faster than the large buses, so keep that in mind when you are comparing prices.

Addis Abeba
Tsegereda hotel - Assefashi kinfu Kidane (Piazza behind Cinema Ethiopia)***
Tel - 011-157-4755
Very good service. Really a beautiful Garden Patio. Chilled-out vibe during the daytime transforms into loud music and “ladies and gents of the night” in the evenings. Shared bath is absolutely awful, best to use the chamber pot. Shower situation was questionable: staff told us that we could use the showers at the National Hotel next door, but it was much easier (and nicer) to use the Taitu hot showers next door. Honest. Helpful. Smiling. 40 birr night is a great price for Piazza, even with the negatives.

National Hotel (next door to Tsegereda and several doors up from TaiTu). Best coffee in Addis - rich, dark, divine. The mokiato and sweetened steamed milk are also good bets. Best to go early in the morning and get a fresh biscuit: lightly fried twist of buttery bread with a few rye seeds cooked within.

Baro Pension 125 birr, clean w/ Private bath, tours. **
tel. 25111155, 011-1574157
Email abenet@baro.com.et

Wutma email wutmahotel@yahoo.com **
tel. 251-111573163 Mgr Chernet Agonafer
105birr Priv Bath, Restaurant, book exchange

D.S. Guesthouse, across from Axum Hotel. (tel 001-6-18-92-00, mobil 09-11-64-08-54)
Following some notes from our friend Benson’s Lonely Planet Ethiopia, we took a minibus from the airport to a hotel called Debre Damo in Addis Ababa. We were thoroughly disappointed with the place: 240birr for a crappy hotel where all rooms led onto a concrete parking lot. Even through our plane-related and airport-sleeping delirium, we hit the street trying to find a better option. We were delighted to find the DS guesthouse, just a few blocks away. It was a world different, and SO worth the 60 birr upgrade. A shared minibus from airport should be less than 10birr per person to DS. Peaceful, serene, very kind and gracious family, private bath, hot shower, cable television. Kitchen available for guests upon request. Breakfast is included. 300-400 birr/night. One minute walk to minibuses that go all over Addis.

A.A. (Addis Abeba) Women’s Association Café, Piazza. On the second floor of a large restaurant and shopping mall right in the midst of Piazza. Excellent food, very fair prices, very friendly and sweet staff. We went there more often than was appropriate, and usually ordered the Tibes with Spagetti with spicy tomato sauce. And plenty of Ambo.

Lalibela
Blulal Hotel: Lalibela. We got our hotel room for 50 birr per night for two with shared bath and shared hot shower. Shared bath was for three rooms upstairs. Hotel also has rooms with private baths and hot shower for 150 birrh/night. Beautiful views of the mountains from two large windows (that even opened!!). Sophie (the owner) is especially gracious and friendly, and has a restaurant (Chez Sophie) on the first floor. Perhaps a bit noisy for some, as the nightclub two doors down can get a bit raucous on the weekends.

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Nanjing

Are you reading this? Then we have rejoined the ranks on the democratic side of the Great Firewall of China. Many thanks to a sweet girl from the couchsurfer network that clued us in to a proxy site. How I managed to decipher the instructions in Chinese....I'll never know. But here we are.

We are finally starting to groove into a Chinese rhythm; it has taken a few days. The differences between China and Japan are incredible: Japan is more focused on etiquette and manners and the formalities of life. China is bustle and fewer pleasantries and less reserved. Mind you, these judgments come from a girl that neither speaks nor reads either Chinese or Japanese.

On Sunday we managed to tear ourselves away from the sweet situation in Shanghai with our new friends Nan and Benson, and took a train to Nanjing amid a snow flurry. The train ride was fascinating: mile after mile after mile of construction. Everywhere you look, China is tearing something down and building a newer, taller, bigger version in its place. I know we keep mentioning this, but it is a constant wonder for us.

I love Nanjing. With a population that is about 10 million less than Shanghai, we are finding Nanjing much easier to navigate and explore. The city involves a bit more walking, as it only has ONE subway line, as compared to eleven in Shanghai. Yesterday we wandered all around the city, reaching lofty heights atop the 600 year old remnants of the Nanjing city wall. We explored the medical university area, gearing up for a similar experience in Changsha, and snacked on plenty of street food.

The last several nights we have spent at a basic hotel called the "Home Inn." It has a feature that we have experienced several times already in east asia: the electronic door card also activates the electricity in the room. When you enter the room, there is a small slot immediately located on the wall, where the card must be inserted before the lights, television, heat, etc can be turned on. Smart? I think so. Are you as careful to turn out the hotel lights when you leave as you are in your own house? I doubt it. The idea of energy conservation kinda falls down the tubes when someone else is cleaning your sleeping space and the hot water never runs out.

And speaking of energy awareness and conservation, we were delighted to look out over nanjing yesterday onto a sea of solar panels. Atop each 7 story apartment building were ginormous solar panels. And mind you, we weren't in a hoity-toity neighborhood, but rather, a lower-middle class neighborhood. Yeah China!! Show us how it's done!

lots of love to our readers, leave us a comment and let us know you are reading! Check out shutterfly account for photos, as this proxy site doesn't allow for uploads.

xoxoxo
brittany

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