We're taking a break from the posts about our turn-of-the-year trip to Egypt to bring you...Timkat ጥምቀት! And what is Timkat, you may be asking yourself? Well, you can visit the highlighted link I've provided and read about it yourself, but in short Timkat is the Feast of the Epiphany, celebrating Christ's baptism, and features three days of dancing and singing. This year's holiday fell on Monday the 21st, coinciding with the American Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday, and giving us a three-day weekend. I knew it was going to be a big event as the street in front of our house was festooned with colorful strips of paper beginning earlier in the week, but just how important a holiday it is only became apparent starting yesterday (Sunday).
I rode my bike yesterday afternoon to get some long-overdue exercise and noticed that traffic was much lighter than usual. Decorations could be seen here and there...:
...while the Karl Square traffic circle was festooned with green, red and yellow banners (the Ethiopian national colors):
It was when I was riding back to the Pushkin Square roundabout only to find it closed to vehicular traffic that I realized the celebrations had begun:
Arriving home, I convinced the wife and child to go out with me and have a look. Shu-E needed to buy eggs anyway from a nearby shop, so we decided to combine shopping with sightseeing:
As it turned out, we ran into a full-scale procession on the shopping street where the egg vendor is located and found it difficult to move. So we decided to stand back and enjoy the view. Everyone was in great spirits:
Our neighbor tried her best to blend in with the locals:
Amber carefully guards the eggs. In the end, not a single እንቁላል was broken:
Turning the corner onto our street:
Finally at home, we watched the procession from our third-floor balcony:
Even after darkness fell, we could still hear the celebrations, though we could no longer see them:
This afternoon (Monday), I went out for a walk after lunch in search of more festivities:
St. Michael Church, near the African Union Commission:
I soon found the crowds, gathered on Roosevelt Street:
The celebrations continued as I made my way over to Seychelles Street:
Things finally quieted down as I moved onto South Africa Street. A priest was giving a sermon as I walked by St. Gabriel ቅዱስ ገብርኤል ቤተክርስትያን, but by the time I finally made it home, the neighborhood had returned to something almost resembling normal:
Almost. As I write this at 2030 hours on a Sunday evening, this is what's going on outside:
Celebrations will finish up tomorrow (Tuesday) - many roads are expected to blocked throughout the city and crowded with pedestrians. Sounds like my morning commute will be affected, but at least I'll have a good excuse should I be late for work. And that for me is the true meaning of Timkat...
