Monday 28 April 2008
Now, THAT's a facial
On Saturday, I had what I consider to be the mother of all facials, however given that I have only ever one had one other facial before Saturday's, my frame of reference is pretty narrow. I love my gadgets so I was very impressed to see my facial practitioner using a "an agitator". For those of you who remember your physics labs, it's similar to a CRO. It works by vibrating at various frequencies and has probes which are held against the face for short periods at a time. The effect is similar to what one feels when they are having their teeth polished. The agitation serves as an extremely effective deep clean and it may sound funny, but my face feels lighter (I had a lot of embedded dirt) and it's as smooth as the proverbial baby's bottom. She also launched a shock and awe campaign on my blackheads - I was shocked and awed to discover I had SOOOOOOOOOOOO many.
Friday 25 April 2008
Kenya vs Zimbabwe
Mwai Kibaki showed the world how to mount a civilian coup when he refused to concede defeat, despite exit polls showing that Raila Odinga was heading for a landslide victory. How Mwai Kibaki can expect the world to believe he won the presidential vote when his party only garnered 1 in 5 parliamentary seats beggars belief!! But as his belligerent counterpart in Zimbabwe has shown, world opinion counts for very little, especially if it's the opinion of the US and Britain. Funnily enough, the US showed indecent haste in congratulating Kibaki on his re-election but had to do an embarrassing U-turn when evidence of massive vote tallying irregularities came to light. Meanwhile, in Zimbabwe, Robert Mugabe is stalling the announcement of the electoral results while he ponders his next move.
Kibaki effectively stole the election, but is rewarded by remaining president while his party gets all the plum positions in the engorged cabinet. Why Kenya with a population of between 30-35 million needs a president, a vice president, a prime minister, 2 deputy prime ministers and 40 ministers, while Ethiopia, with a population of 70 million has a 13 ministerial cabinet is a clear sign of the lack of statesmanship that so bedevils Kenyan politics today.
I'm sure all the current internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kenya, would gladly give up the right to exercise their democratic vote if it meant that they would not be forced to flee their homes, with just the clothes on their backs.
****UPDATE****
Well this shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone, but there doesn't seem to enough swill for the piggies to get their fill. They intend to use money which was supposed to help resettle the IDPs to pay for their cars, office furnishings etc. - what was that about serving the people?!!
Kibaki effectively stole the election, but is rewarded by remaining president while his party gets all the plum positions in the engorged cabinet. Why Kenya with a population of between 30-35 million needs a president, a vice president, a prime minister, 2 deputy prime ministers and 40 ministers, while Ethiopia, with a population of 70 million has a 13 ministerial cabinet is a clear sign of the lack of statesmanship that so bedevils Kenyan politics today.
I'm sure all the current internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Kenya, would gladly give up the right to exercise their democratic vote if it meant that they would not be forced to flee their homes, with just the clothes on their backs.
****UPDATE****
Well this shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone, but there doesn't seem to enough swill for the piggies to get their fill. They intend to use money which was supposed to help resettle the IDPs to pay for their cars, office furnishings etc. - what was that about serving the people?!!
The Art of Deception*
This is the story of how I came to hand over the equivalent of about US $10 to a man I didn't know so that he could buy a sheep (it's Easter in the Orthodox Christian church) before the market closed, last Friday. Even as I'm writing this post, I'm thinking how could I have been taken in, but I was double teamed and this is how it went down.
I wanted to go on a bus tour of Addis Ababa so I headed down to Meskel Square which is one of the designated stops on the route. Now my Amharic is non-existent so I had just said Meskel Square to the conductor of the mini-bus and one of my fellow passengers told me where to get off, which coincidentally happened to be his stop too. He fell into step with me while producing an official looking tour guide pass that had his name, AAM, and photo on it. My default mode is RED ALERT, but I think a combination of sunshine and the friendliness of the people I've encountered since I arrived in Addis 2 weeks ago had lowered my alert threshold to a green shade of amber.
Having dined on injerra in the preceding days, I had a distinct craving for rice so I decided to dine at a Chinese restaurant just across from Meskel Square. My smooth talking companion had name checked Diani Beach Hotel and Mombasa during the course of our conversation as I had brought up my Kenyan connection and when I told him of the trouble I had had finding a telecenter the previous week, he offered to show me one after my lunch - he said he had a meeting nearby. After sating my rice craving, I walked out of the restaurant and proceeded to look for A. Failing to spot him, I proceeded to walk up the street as I had decided I wanted to see the Lion of Judah.
Within 10m of the restaurant, a guy called out to me and I turned to look at him with a "do-I-know-you" expression on my face. He then proceeded to tell me that he had seen me here and cleverly name dropped the place I was staying. Now, I thought I knew all the staff at the lodge, but I reasoned that he could be one of their maintenance guys and having been bowled over by the customer service of the staff I had encountered, I was prepared to give this guy the time of day. What's more he's English was impeccable and he was well dressed.
The Chinese restaurant is across the road from the stadium and as I plan on attending the 16th edition of CAA championships which run from 30 April to 4 May, I wanted to find out about getting tickets so I told "the closer" that I wanted to make enquiries at the box office. We crossed the road, but "the closer" told me the box office was probably closed as Friday was a holiday.
He then proceeded to ask me for a "favour". He said that he had been trying to get in touch with his wife who was in church (it was their Good Friday), but her mobile phone was switched off. He told me that he had found a sheep for Easter, but he had a shortfall of 100 ETB and wanted to buy the sheep before the market closed so he asked me if I could cover the shortfall. It all sounded plausible to me and with the memory of how solicitous the staff at the lodge were, I agreed. My sixth sense wasn't too happy because I only had 200 odd ETB on me and Addis Ababa isn't Mastercard friendly, but it was overruled and I handed over 100 ETB. He had enquired as to what time I would be back at the lodge and I told him that I didn't know as I had planned to spend the afternoon exploring so I suggested he leave the money at reception.
Needless to say, when I got back to the lodge later on that day, no money had been left and when I enquired as to whether there was a staff member with the "name" "the closer" had given me, you can guess the rest.
*The Art of Deception by Kevin Mitnick
I wanted to go on a bus tour of Addis Ababa so I headed down to Meskel Square which is one of the designated stops on the route. Now my Amharic is non-existent so I had just said Meskel Square to the conductor of the mini-bus and one of my fellow passengers told me where to get off, which coincidentally happened to be his stop too. He fell into step with me while producing an official looking tour guide pass that had his name, AAM, and photo on it. My default mode is RED ALERT, but I think a combination of sunshine and the friendliness of the people I've encountered since I arrived in Addis 2 weeks ago had lowered my alert threshold to a green shade of amber.
Having dined on injerra in the preceding days, I had a distinct craving for rice so I decided to dine at a Chinese restaurant just across from Meskel Square. My smooth talking companion had name checked Diani Beach Hotel and Mombasa during the course of our conversation as I had brought up my Kenyan connection and when I told him of the trouble I had had finding a telecenter the previous week, he offered to show me one after my lunch - he said he had a meeting nearby. After sating my rice craving, I walked out of the restaurant and proceeded to look for A. Failing to spot him, I proceeded to walk up the street as I had decided I wanted to see the Lion of Judah.
Within 10m of the restaurant, a guy called out to me and I turned to look at him with a "do-I-know-you" expression on my face. He then proceeded to tell me that he had seen me here and cleverly name dropped the place I was staying. Now, I thought I knew all the staff at the lodge, but I reasoned that he could be one of their maintenance guys and having been bowled over by the customer service of the staff I had encountered, I was prepared to give this guy the time of day. What's more he's English was impeccable and he was well dressed.
The Chinese restaurant is across the road from the stadium and as I plan on attending the 16th edition of CAA championships which run from 30 April to 4 May, I wanted to find out about getting tickets so I told "the closer" that I wanted to make enquiries at the box office. We crossed the road, but "the closer" told me the box office was probably closed as Friday was a holiday.
He then proceeded to ask me for a "favour". He said that he had been trying to get in touch with his wife who was in church (it was their Good Friday), but her mobile phone was switched off. He told me that he had found a sheep for Easter, but he had a shortfall of 100 ETB and wanted to buy the sheep before the market closed so he asked me if I could cover the shortfall. It all sounded plausible to me and with the memory of how solicitous the staff at the lodge were, I agreed. My sixth sense wasn't too happy because I only had 200 odd ETB on me and Addis Ababa isn't Mastercard friendly, but it was overruled and I handed over 100 ETB. He had enquired as to what time I would be back at the lodge and I told him that I didn't know as I had planned to spend the afternoon exploring so I suggested he leave the money at reception.
Needless to say, when I got back to the lodge later on that day, no money had been left and when I enquired as to whether there was a staff member with the "name" "the closer" had given me, you can guess the rest.
*The Art of Deception by Kevin Mitnick
Sidama Lodge and Art Gallery
If you're looking for a place to stay in Addis Ababa, minutes walk from Bole Road, less than 10 minutes from Addis Ababa's international airport and where the customer service is second to none, then Sidama Lodge is the place for you. Since it's opening 6 months ago, they have not had to do any advertising because of the excellent word-of-mouth reviews that have ensured they continually run at 100% occupancy. Make your reservation early to avoid disappointment.
Wednesday 23 April 2008
Now, where have I seen that before
Last Friday, I was taken to a restaurant serving traditional Ethiopian food and we were entertained by traditional Ethiopian singers and a trio of Ethiopian dancers. To my amazement, during one of their dance routines, they busted some moves very reminiscent of the running man in this video. Excitedly, I turned to my companion to ask if what I was witnessing was traditional Ethiopian dancing and I was assured that it was.
Sunday 13 April 2008
Le carrefour de 3 continents
Underneath Djibouti's national symbol are the words, le carrefour de 3 continents. From my French studies, I remembered that carrefour means roundabout, but that didn't seem to fit so I looked up the meaning here and found that it translates to crossroads or intersection. I'm more inclined to opt for the translation, the crossroad of 3 continents; Africa, Asia and Europe.After the unseasonably cold weather in London, it felt good to embrace the warmth of the sun's rays and I marked the onset of another year by the poolside of this swanky hotel, gazing out across the expanse of the Indian Ocean.
Saturday 12 April 2008
"Eye-witness"
Last Sunday, I went down to the River Thames to view the Olympic torch relay. I had a good vantage point as I was able to get up, close and personal with a metal barrier. As the torch passed by me, a man seemed to morph (he didn't jump over the barrier as this unfolded right in front of me and I would have remembered) through the barrier and he proceeded to get up, close and personal with the torch's escorts whilst shouting pro-Tibet slogans. He was quickly man-handled to the ground by a combination of the men in the blue tracksuits and the real men in blue aka the police while the torch bearer made a handover to the next bearer.
Two things occurred to me while I was thawing out (it was bitterly cold) later on; 1) I would make an unreliable witness as I could not positively say what had transpired and 2) who knew that Chinese people were that tall or maybe the torch bearers were extremely short.
With regard to the protests that have dogged the torch relay processions around the world, I think you'll find that the vociferousness of the protest was directly proportional to the amount of trade a country does with China. All those calling for a boycott of the Olympics should ask their respective governments to consider a trade boycott too, after all why should an athlete who has shed copious amounts of blood, sweat and tears over the last 4 years, in order to qualify for the Olympics, be asked to sacrifice their dream yet at government level, trading with China continues apace.
Two things occurred to me while I was thawing out (it was bitterly cold) later on; 1) I would make an unreliable witness as I could not positively say what had transpired and 2) who knew that Chinese people were that tall or maybe the torch bearers were extremely short.
With regard to the protests that have dogged the torch relay processions around the world, I think you'll find that the vociferousness of the protest was directly proportional to the amount of trade a country does with China. All those calling for a boycott of the Olympics should ask their respective governments to consider a trade boycott too, after all why should an athlete who has shed copious amounts of blood, sweat and tears over the last 4 years, in order to qualify for the Olympics, be asked to sacrifice their dream yet at government level, trading with China continues apace.
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