We have now arrived in Addis Ababa. The whole team is here, and we have all checked in to our accommodations at the Wabe Shabelle Hotel. Although we have not been 'out and about' yet, we did have a chance to view our surrounding from the hotel rooftop restaurant. Here are a couple of first impressions:
- English seems to be very widely spoken - thank heavens because the local amharic language is pretty-much unintelligible.
- Everyone is very friendly and helpful, although we do get some stares from people in the street.
- The weather is slightly hotter than I expected, "but it is a dry heat" so that's OK.
- I do notice the altitude. We are at around 7,500 feet in Addis and after three flights of stairs you can notice the exertion. Apparently this should dissipate after a day or two, and it certainly not a problem.
- The traffic is crazy. There is a bit of transportation hub across the street from our hotel, and it is certainly amusing to watch the ebb and flow of cars, mini-busses, and regular busses in that area.
- It is weird to see the slum areas so interspersed with the built-up areas. There are bits of slums, then a high-rise, then a large slum area, etc... In the slum area around our hotel, though, I see satellite dishes - interesting...
- There is a fair bit of construction activity around our hotel, and they use bamboo for scaffolding. Seriously, the bamboo is strapped together to cover a ten-story building.
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| Slum area by our hotel... can you spot the satellite dishes? |
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| An Addis Traffic Circle |
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| Bamboo Scaffolding (not something we will use) |
