Birr...it's cold in here!

If you don't know Ethiopian currency, then you probably don't get the reference. But, I will tell you that it is not easy to get Birr in Ethiopia. I arrived on my Emirates flight and was the first one off the plane, the first through immigration (as always), and the first to get my bag. And so I immediately went to the Bureau de Change to get Birr. But, of course, no one was there. Just a window, a light on, and Birr all over the place inside, protected by what may have been bullet proof glass.

So, I walked outside and was greeted by Emanuel. Emanuel is Salem's permanent driver. Salem is Saamra's mom. Saamra is my good friend and old roommate of many years. I came to Ethiopia because Saamra was visiting at the same time, and I never pass up an opportunity to stay with a family in a foreign country. But, of course, I got there, and Saamra's flight was cancelled. So, I got to hang out with her family all by myself. But, more on that later.

I flew into Addis Ababa. The first thing I noticed was how cold it was. What a shock to come to Africa from Southeast Asia, and be shivering. Ok, shivering might be an excessive word. But, it was damn cold. Addis Ababa sits at 7000 feet above see level, roughly the same altitude as Park City, Utah. (Lesson 1: Even if you are staying with friends in other countries, at least research the weather.)

Emanuel took me to a bank straight away. But, there are no ATMs. Zero. None. So, I asked them if they could exchange travellers checks. They told me to come back at 4pm. I don't know why. So, I left. We went to Salem's house in Addis (people abbreviate Addis Ababa to just Addis.) Unfortunately, Salem was not in Ethiopia the entire time I was there. But, Zeritu was there to welcome me. Zeritu is the house caretaker and amazing cook.

No sooner than I had laid down my bags did she ask me if I was ready for lunch. I approached the table and saw 5 full bowls of food, plus a platter of injera (Ethiopian flat bread). I wondered what army was joining me for lunch, but of course, it was all just for me. I felt like I had 5 helpings of everything, and still it looked as if I had made no dent.

After lunch I ventured out of the house to get cash at another bank recommended by some family members there. It worked! Birr, at last...

That night I was picked up by Saamra's Aunt and Uncle. They took me to a dinner party with them. Once again, other cultures are just so accepting of visitors and take care of their guests so well, it is just astounding. (Especially in my case, because according to my friends, I am an embarrassment to all. These guys had no idea what they were getting themselves into.)

I sat down at a table with 6-7 other guys in the front yard. Each one warmly greeted my and introduced themselves. Every once in a while, a single guy would chat with me briefly about where I was from, what I was doing, etc... But, for the most part, the group of guys were talking as a group in Amharic. Now, you are probably assuming that I don't speak Amharic. And, that is where you are correct. Nonetheless, I can't express how much I enjoyed the dinner party. These guys were clearly old friends, and I could share in their laughter because of their tone, and it was clear when they were giving one another a hard time. In addition, the group broke out into song numerous times throughout the night. The dinner party was one of the highlights of my month long stint in Africa.

Two days later I ventured with Saamra to Lake Tana, the source of the Nile river. We went to the Blue Nile Falls and saw the largest waterfall I'd ever seen. It was also interesting just getting there considering we took a tiny prop plane from Addis. In addition, the airport was so small that their departure and arrival schedule was written on a chalk board.

The highlights of Ethiopia was most certainly the people I met, most of whom were in Saamra's family. They made me feel extraordinarily welcome in their homes. Everyone was extremely nice, intelligent, and, most of all, fun. The food was also exquisite. I looked forward to every meal in that country, and was legitimately disappointed when I ate a meal or two that were not Ethiopian cuisine. The other great sight we visited was Washa Mikael church. This church was carved out of rock (instead of being built), much like the huge Kailash temple in Ellora, India.

On the day we visited the church, we ended up running out of the forest because it started to rain, and we knew the lightning was coming. We were lucky we got out of there, because few minutes later, it started hailing. Are you joking me! It doesn't hail in Africa, does it?