Last-minute sightseeing, Part One

Friendship Square 

If you read my previous post, you would know that I got myself into a Facebook fracas (certainly not the first time that's happened) with "M". M apparently read that blog entry and was none too pleased with it. Being an aspiring author and screenwriter, with several self-published books to his credit, M took me down several deserved pegs with a brilliant, urbane and witty essay. 

No, I'm kidding. His response was another unhinged diatribe that veered from his political obsessions (Roman Protasevich, the Belarusian dissident who was arrested after the plane he was on was forced down by the Lukashenko regime on the pretense of a "bomb threat", is a "fascist") to the usual personal attacks (I'm just a tool for the U.S. government because I work for the State Department) to the just plain bizarre (still obsessing over trivial matters that took place 20 some years ago). His apparent response was to remove himself completely from FB which is a pity, as the non-political posts he shared were often hilarious. I'm sure M will be back (though I doubt I will be sent a Friend request), railing on about how U.S. imperialism is the cause of all the world's evils, and looking for ways to absolve authoritarian governments of any responsibilities for their actions (the Russians never tried to influence elections, genocide isn't being committed against the Uyghurs etc.). 

At the other end of the spectrum from M is "T.H.", a Canadian acquaintance from my days in Taiwan. TH is still there; according to LinkedIn, he should be congratulated for reaching his sixth year at the Kid Castle buxiban 補習班 in Miaoli 苗栗, though I'm not sure "congratulations" is the right response. TH unfriended but didn't block me on FB a few years ago, so occasionally I check in on his timeline to see how he's doing, and the news is sad. TH has fallen far down the right-wing rabbit hole, with delusional and ill-informed "observations" that make Tucker Carlson seem reasonable and sane. Lately he's become an anti-vaxxer, with Facebook flagging several of his posts (at least that I've seen) as having contained false or misleading information. 

What is surprising isn't the direction that TH has taken, but that he's far from alone within the Taiwan expat English teacher community. I would've assumed that someone who has moved to a foreign country to live and work, and who in many cases is involved in a romantic relationship with (or even married to) a native of that country, would be open-minded, progressive and tolerant, to name a few adjectives. But from what I've seen on FB as well as on Taiwan-based forums like Forumosa, there's a sizeable number of people from Western countries living and working in Taiwan who are the exact opposite, judging by the misogynistic and racist drivel they post. Why they continue to live and work amongst the "mud races" (as a friend once sarcastically described it) is a mystery. And it isn't only Taiwan - I knew an American teaching English (of course) at a university in a rural part of Niigata Prefecture 新潟県, Japan who was a devoted follower of Glenn Beck. At the same time he was married to a Japanese woman and had a couple of bicultural kids. I can't even imagine the mental contortions he went through trying to reconcile Beck's hysterical calls to "defend white culture" with the fact that he himself was helping to dilute the purity of the master race.

I prefer to remain in a world that isn't black or white, or good and evil, where complex situations can't be explained away with talk of government conspiracies, or by attaching an "-ist" to an idea and having that define everything around you despite all evidence to the contrary. So here are some recent photos from the real world that I inhabit here in Addis Ababa አዲስ አበባ (though not for much longer):

My daughter has been learning to play a piece on her mother's guzheng 古箏, a Chinese zither, for her end-of-term project. My wife was inspired one evening to dig out her cheongsam 旗袍, which she had worn when we got married, and have Amber try it on. The results were stunning, though at the same time a sad reminder that my little girl is growing up. As she gets older and physically more mature, I'm sure she will attract attention from certain types of (mostly white) men (either aspiring or former English teachers in China and Taiwan) once they learn of Amber's background. They will try to impress her with their poor efforts at speaking Mandarin, while attempting to persuade her to go with them to an "amazing" Chinese restaurant they know of where the food is "authentic". Over dinner they will try to explain "China and the Chinese", or "Taiwan and the Taiwanese", to my daughter, as if she were completely unaware of her heritage. It's something she'll have to learn to deal with:

Taking the car in for its overdue annual inspection, a requirement for clearing the paperwork that will allow our vehicle to shipped back to the U.S. I hope someday it can be passed down to our daughter, who will be old enough to get a learner's permit this summer in Virginia:

I've often posted photos of the two giant tortoises that live on the embassy grounds. One afternoon, however, I came across this unauthorized visitor:

And here's another trespasser on U.S. government property:

The view from behind Embwa Creamery. What can't be reproduced here are the smells emanating from the nearby abattoir and cattle market (the gelato is worth putting up with the odors):

 

Having lunch at Coffee.com, one our favorite area restaurants:

Note the Hangul characters above the wall of this residence:

Unlike in other major African cities, there's a dearth of familiar Western names in Addis Ababa - no McDonald's, no Starbucks, no 7-Eleven and so on (only Pizza Hut and Cold Stone Creamery, with rumors of Burger King eventually moving in). In their place are local businesses that try to use trademarked names - Addis has a Home Depot, for example, that has no connection to the U.S. DIY retailer. There used to be an "In-N-Out Burger" on South Africa Street, but it's since changed its name to In-Joy. Amber and I went there for lunch to celebrate her getting the second Pfizer vaccine shot:

My daughter thought this gate looked "trippy":

We arrived in Ethiopia two years ago during the rainy season, and it looks like we'll be departing during it as well:

I've been trying unsuccessfully to get a decent photo of this bronze replica of the Sebastopol, an artillery mortar commissioned by Emperor Tewodros II. It sits in the middle of a traffic circle on Churchill Street:

Amber did much better at taking pictures of the Miyazya 27 Victory Statue, denoting the days when Ethiopia fell to Italy in 1936 and then was liberated in 1941...:

…and the Yekatit 12 Monument, commemorating the victims of an Italian massacre in February 1937:

 

Old VW Beetles are a not uncommon sight on the streets of the capital:

A sight that is very uncommon is that of skateboarders. My daughter took this picture of one going downhill on Churchill Street at high speed, weaving in and out among the moving cars. As a parent I strongly disapproved of this dangerous and idiotic behavior. As a former skateboarder, I was hella impressed:

On a Saturday morning I set out in search of shops selling Ethiopian national soccer team jerseys (or kits of some of the local clubs). The trek ended up taking 131 minutes and 12,008 steps, one of the longest walks I've undertaken since returning to Ethiopia last October. My heart started to beat rapidly as I began the climb up Roosevelt Street, but it soon settled down. The good news is that I wasn't bothered by pickpockets, though I did have to fend off some aggressive black market moneychangers. The bad news is that I couldn't find any stores selling football-related gear. The worse news was that I sometimes found myself amidst crowds of people, many of whom weren't wearing masks. I hope I don't leave the country with an unwanted souvenir.

Buses lined up on Roosevelt Street:

The Legahar Lion of Judah Statue, unveiled by Empress Zewditu and the then-Crown Prince Haile Selassie in 1930:

The statue stands in front of the La Gare Legahar railway station, designed by French architect Paul Barria and opened by Empress Zewditu in 1930:

The station, once the terminal of a line connecting Addis Ababa with Djibouti, is no longer in operation, but there are some old cars in the back, where there's also a café:

Future plans apparently envision turning the Legehar train station into a high-end shopping mall:

The modern Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway now "operates" from a station on the outskirts of the capital. This writer tried to ride the train, but without success:

The National Theater:

Another Lion of Judah Statue stands next to the theater. This one was created by French sculptor Maurice Celka in 1955 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Haile Selassie's coronation:

Books for sale at an outdoor stand on Churchill Street:

A winning combination:

Crossing Mexico Square:

Someone from the South African embassy buys fruit from a street vendor:

Election day is fast approaching (assuming it doesn't get postponed yet again):

A pack of street dogs relaxes in the sun. Quiet during the day, I often hear these curs at night:

This past Sunday Amber and I did some sightseeing (Shu-E as always preferring the comforts of staying inside at home to mingling with the masses and possibly exposing herself to the coronavirus). The recently opened Friendship Square ወዳጅነት አደባባይ is Addis' latest place of interest, and while the opening weekend late last month draw long lines of visitors waiting to get in, we were able to drive in on a Sunday morning and easily find a parking spot. Being foreigners, admission for two was a whopping ETB800 ($18.45) - it appears my daughter was charged as an adult (one of the drawbacks to being tall?):

The park's various platforms offer goods views of the city skyline:

The "friendship" in the square's name refers to that between the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the People's Republic of China:

In the middle of the park is a huge square intended to be used for rallies (hopefully once the threat from COVID-19 has receded):

The Cultural Embossed Wall has images of Ethiopian culture such as implements used in the coffee ceremony:

ኢትዮጵያ - Ethiopia:

The national flag flying proudly in the aforementioned Ceremonial Square:

As nice as the park is, the reality of life for most residents of the capital could be easily seen on the other side of the Bantyketu River:

Looking across Sheger Lake towards Ceremonial Square:

The day had started out sunny, but dark clouds soon began to appear:

The stone painted by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed አብይ አህመድ አሊ during the square's groundbreaking ceremony in October 2019 (see sign above):

The minaret of the Tewfik Mosque rises across the road. Friday afternoons on Taitu Street are best avoided due to traffic jams around the mosque during Friday prayers:

Amber looks out over the artificial Sheger Lake:

It's difficult to see, but there's an egret on top of the tree in the center. Such birds are rare sights in Addis Ababa (at least for me):

In case there were any doubts over who assisted the Ethiopians in constructing Friendship Square. The verdict: it's a nice spot, a quiet oasis in a city sorely lacking in parks and other green spaces. However, the park isn't finished - there's another section on the other side of Colson Street that's still under construction, and none of the restaurants in the part that is open to visitors were ready for diners (none of them had any furnishings, for example). It would appear the government timed the opening of Friendship Square so that it could point to this accomplishment in the runup to the elections now scheduled to be held on June 21. 

Also, while Friendship Square may celebrate Ethio-Sino friendship, the relatively high admission charge for locals ensures that the park will only be enjoyed by a small segment of the public:

The only business open in Friendship Square was a small stand run by Tutto Gelato (there's a branch in our neighborhood). The ice creams we purchased there tidied us over until we could drive across the road to the Sheraton Addis, and the outdoor Breezes restaurant. Soon after we had sat down and ordered, it started to rain, and then began to pour. Our small table was moved further inside to escape the short but powerful deluge, but it didn't stop my daughter from enjoying her grilled fish lunch, nor I from finishing my pad thai chicken. And I didn't mind our car getting a free and much-needed wash:

Celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival 端午節, Flag Day and a certain other special occasion with lunch at the Hilton. That's a virgin mojito I'm imbibing, as Shu-E polished off two St. George's with her meal, while Amber hasn't learned to drive yet:

An unexpected guest joined us for lunch:

The Hilton during its heyday, when it was the place to stay in Addis Ababa. I've got to enjoy these five-star hotel experiences while I can - after I retire and am living on a fixed income, it'll be back to staying at chain motels and 民宿:

We drove by the African Union complex on the way home (and with another downpour brewing). I decided to put my offspring in jeopardy by having her take some illicit photos as we passed by:

What the AU buildings look like under better lighting conditions and with permission to photograph:

https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/african-union-headquarters/13950

http://www.addisababa.travel/index.php/whattosee/12-what-to-do/67-au-conference-center

Speaking of the Dragon Boat Festival, for dinner we had zongzi 粽子, sticky rice dumplings, purchased from the China market. My wife described them as "ugly and expensive", which isn't the best way to sell the dinner you've just prepared to your husband and daughter:

To be continued...

Ideology Uber Alles

Moon over Addis Ababa

There are many things I don't and will never understand about human beings, but one of the most perplexing is the rigid adherence to a set of beliefs (political or religious), despite any and all facts pointing to contrary conclusions. I've been reminded of this recently by a Facebook (where else?) friend, a person with whom I used to work at a large English language school chain in Tokyo way back in the 1990's. M identifies as a leftist and a socialist - no problem there, as I share many of the same beliefs, but am reluctant to attach any sort of "-ist" suffix to describe my outlook on things. M has no such hesitations, but the result of that is why I avoid labeling myself and others, and assigning rigid pigeonholes to everyone and everything. 

Like many ideologues, M is reluctant to criticize governments and politicians that he considers exemplify what he believes in. This would be comical if it wasn't for the fact these leaders and regimes do some very nasty things to the peoples under their control. It's one thing to justifiably criticize Israel's suppression of the Palestinians (though M sometimes crosses the line into anti-Semitism while doing so), yet ignore everything that is going on in, say, Russia - the imprisonments, murders and poisonings of dissidents, acts of aggression against Ukraine (a country ruled by "fascists", denying their people their cherished dream to reunite with the Russian Federation, according to M), the bombings of civilians in Syria by Russian jets, the actions of the Wagner paramilitary group in the Middle East and central Africa and so on. M is a serious Russophile*, so it's perhaps understandable why he would want to put on the blinkers when it comes to the actions of the Russian government (he even claims RT is an "independent" source of news!). What is incomprehensible, and particularly offensive to me, is his lauding of a certain Asian government and its "achievements".

Now M may know a lot about Russia (though I'm not so sure - he seemed to be unaware of the Red Terror and War Communism when I brought those up on one of his posts celebrating the successes of the Bolsheviks, the group responsible for the sufferings of millions of Russians), but when the subject turns to the Middle Kingdom, he comes across as very ignorant. It appears he has traveled there at some point in his past, possibly seeing the Great Wall, eating some delicious food and trying to chat up some pretty Chinese girls, but to the best of my knowledge he's never lived or worked there, nor speaks Mandarin. Yet this lack of first-hand experience doesn't stop him from sharing articles, memes and so on blaming the U.S. for China's aggressive military moves in recent years (think the Senkaku Islands, South China Sea, the border with India and so on). His shared posts (never any original content, of course) downplay at best, or deny at worst, the well-documented sufferings of the Uyghurs and other minority groups in the Xinjiang region, and the only reason Tibetans ever rose up against Chinese rule was because they were directed to do so by the Dalai Lama, and he of course is a CIA puppet. Even something as innocuous as a sleek new train being rolled out there (and the country has an impressive high-speed rail system) is introduced by M with language that seems to justify the rule of the authoritarian state, as if countries like Japan, South Korea and France couldn't also build cool-looking trains without targeting members of certain ethnic groups and sending them off to "re-education centers". 

The irony here is that the Party is hardly "leftist" or "socialist" these days, and in fact the current economic system seems to embody the worst aspects of capitalism - huge wealth gaps, rampant corruption, the lack of any kind of rule of law etc. But M insists on identifying the modern PRC state as incorporating his political beliefs, and so he continues to share and post on FB.

Which is, of course, his right, as is my right to question those things, much to his annoyance. And when he gets annoyed, M gets personal. I work for the State Department, so naturally "half" of what I share on FB is just promoting US government propaganda, and that I'm "toeing the line". But it goes even deeper than this, according to a recent bizarre rant**. Apparently it all dates back to 1997, when I supposedly promised to help him move a safe, only to back out by claiming I was going drinking instead. I have absolutely no memory of this, but I won't deny it could be true. But to hold this grudge for so long over such a trivial matter? There must have been a lot worse things I said and did in years past to still be angry about (and I should know, there's a lot I'm angry at myself for having said and done in the past). 

People change over time, as has M. 24 years ago he used to boast of how many Japanese girls he was bedding, which would give me the creeps, but something which to my shame I never called him out on at the time. As he has since married and had a child (like yours truly), I hope the misogynism (and what now, in retrospect, had a rapey vibe to it) has long been put behind him. No need to dredge up the past, am I right?

And why is all this such a big deal? Why don't I just ignore that which I disagree with? I would, except glorifying an authoritarian state which is constantly threatening my family in Taiwan with death if they don't adhere to "one party two systems" is something I find particularly repulsive. Especially when the response to my pointing out my wife and daughter were in Taiwan at a time when the regime on the opposite side of the strait was especially ramping up tensions was met with yet another tired rant about "U.S. imperialism", with no compassion or empathy at all shown toward my family. None whatsoever.

What a dick. I apologize for backing out of a promise to move that safe (if indeed that was the case), but if you place ideology over people near and dear to me, well I hope that safe was heavy and that you had to lug it up a long flight of stairs by yourself on a hot and humid afternoon. 

Back in reality, the clock continues its countdown to departure day. And it's beginning to look as if we'll be leaving at the right time. Yesterday (Sunday) was a beautiful (albeit windy) day, but we didn't venture out of our neighborhood due to a large crowd in Meskel Square demonstrating against recent remarks by the Biden administration. Our interactions with people here in Ethiopia have largely been positive, so I hope any anti-Americanism is confined to well-organized demonstrations and not targeted at ordinary people (like ourselves). I plan on going out into town later this week so we'll see what (if anything) happens.

In the meantime here are a few photos taken since the last blog post. Much has been made recently of the "blood moon". While the lunar eclipse wasn't visible here in Addis Ababa, our satellite was a bright shining orb for the past several nights. It's too bad my camera and cell phone couldn't really capture the scene:

After I stopped filming this video, I heard a commotion in the street below. The gentleman visible in the clip was yelling at someone who turned out to be a Western guy walking his dog. Being out on the streets at 2230 hours isn't something that I would recommend, even in an area like ours that is considered to be generally safe:

Looking for things to do in Ethiopia's capital? Going to the recently-opened Friendship Square ወዳጅነት አደባባይ (across the road from the Sheraton) won't be one of them for us, not as long as there are long lines like this one to get in:

Having lunch one weekend at the Hilton's Gazebo restaurant. The sign pretty much sums up everything about me - the only thing missing is "humble", for it's my sense of humility that makes me such an awesome human being:

Passing by a truck carrying coffins while on my way home from work. I presume they were empty:

A while back one of my colleagues recommended we eat at Loving Hut, claiming it was a "Taiwanese restaurant". So we recently did, and as for it being "Taiwanese", well...For those like us who had no idea about this place, Loving Hut is a "vegan and vegetarian fast food restaurant".  The person behind Loving Hut is one Ching Hai, a Vietnamese spiritual healer. There was a photo of her on the wall, and her "Supreme Master TV" channel was being broadcast on a TV set at one end of the dining room. The whole atmosphere gave off an uncomfortable, cultish vibe:

As for the food, while the Loving Hut company might be based in Taiwan, the menu lacked any Taiwanese favorites such as turkey rice 火雞肉飯, oyster omelets 蚵煎, fish balls 魚丸, danbing 蛋餅 and so on. The drink menu was bereft of milk tea 奶茶, but that disappointment was eased with a banana soy milkshake:

Yes, I'm aware Loving Hut is a vegan/vegetarian restaurant, but I've been to such kinds of places in Taiwan (and in Shanghai) where the food was much tastier and better presented. My "chicken" cutlet was a disappointment, though the mapo tofu 麻婆豆腐 my wife was had was pretty good (I ended up finishing it for her):

I tried to be discreet when taking this photo while leaving Loving Hut, but the results speak otherwise:

On Ghana Street. It isn't often we (meaning the girls) walk the streets of the capital:

Today being Memorial Day (meaning a federal holiday for me), we had lunch at The Kitchen, at the Hyatt Regency. No ersatz meat this time as I went full carnivore with the Prime Burger:

There isn't much to see from the restaurant, other than the Estifanos/Meskel Square light rail station. I haven't ridden the light rail, primarily because a.) we're warned not to due to theft concerns; and b.) it doesn't go anywhere of interest that can't be better reached by car:

Passing through the Hyatt after lunch on our way to the parking garage. As I told Shu-E we should enjoy these five-star hotel experiences while we can, because after I retire and we're on a fixed-income, we'll be back to cheap diners, and two- and three-star hotels and mínsù 民宿:

Another afternoon haggling and shopping at the China market. My wife insists on going here (now even more of a hassle to visit due to a road construction project) because she claims it's the only place in town where she can buy decent vegetables. I have my doubts about that:

This billboard is a reminder that I need to find a shop that sells Ethiopian national soccer team jerseys, or at least kits of one of the local teams such as Ethiopian Coffee or Saint George, before we leave:

And on this Memorial Day my sister sent me this photo of our father's grave:

Rest in peace, Dad. And you, too, Mom. 

*Skip to the 17:49 mark to hear things that would never be said by M:

**Counseling services in Japan recommended for English speakers