There is a wonderful new invention that I discovered while in Tanzania: the mosquito racket. It looks like a tennis racket, but it has an electrified net that allows you to swat at mosquitoes and fry them with a very satisfying popping noise. Sometimes you even get a little flash of light confirming its death. This may sound morbid, but in the mosquito-infested areas of the world, let me tell you, it's us or them. They sell these rackets on the street here in India and in Tanzania, but you can also get them in the US on Amazon! (http://www.amazon.com/iTouchless-Rechargebale-Portable-Handheld-Electric/dp/B000N5VLW8/ref=pd_sim_ol_5/102-5837167-6408929)

Here's a picture, so you can get the idea:

After a lovely time in Tanzania, I bid my mom goodbye at the airport, and headed to India. However, I had a random world encounter in the immigration line leaving Dar Es Salaam, where I ran into Dave Lisson (Yale '02) and his girlfriend Emily, who happens to be going to the GSB this fall as well. Talk about a small world. I also saw the same family of 25 that I had shared a van with while on a spice tour in Zanzibar. If it's true that the world only gets smaller as you get older, it's scary to think who I'll run into next.

Now I'm in Hyderabad, hanging out with my old crew from when I was here a year and a half ago. This is the winding down portion of my vacation, and I'm looking forward to relaxing, catching up with friends, and sleeping a lot. It's nice not to feel any pressure to sight-see or run around, especially since there's been so much of that this summer.

The Selous Game Reserve is one of the last places in Tanzania that seems truly wild. At least that's what Lonely Planet says. It did seem pretty wild, although there was a distinct lack of big predators like lions, leopards and cheetahs. However, there was a family of giraffes that seemed to like the landing strip near our camp, and hung out there for a good half hour as we started our walking safari on the second day. If you ever go on safari, I highly recommend the walking type. It's all well and good to be able to zoom around in a car, but you really don't get the full experience unless you can be on the ground and level with the animals. And it's really true, they are more afraid of you than you are of them. Lots of wildlife pictures below:


A baboon, just chilling in his tree-chair.



Same baboon, stretching and posing for the camera



Hippos, which are apparently the most deadly animals in the park. They kill more people each year than the lions, leopards or cheetahs do. Very territorial, but kind of comical. They do this long snorting call that sounds vaguely like a sick donkey's bray.



Momma and baby elephant, so cute!



Impalas, the food of choice on all National Geographic specials...



Giraffes, we saw tons of them!



My mom and our guide Ole, on our walking safari



If you look really closely, you can see retreating zebras. They were really hard to get close to, very skittish.



As we were walking, we started to see vultures all congregating around a particular place. Our guide and armed guard immediately went on alert, and we cautiously approached to find a freshly killed and eaten rabbit. Although we never saw the hunter, our guard thought that it looked like a leopard kill. Scary!



Our riverfront cabana, complete with a resident family of hippos that woke us up each morning with their version of a rooster's call at dawn.



Many of the people in the area still gather water from the river each day, and do their laundry and personal washing in the river water. One of the reasons why hippos are so feared is that they consider the water their territory, so when people are using the river bank, they have to constantly be on guard.



another reason why using river water is dangerous



Our last few moments before heading back to camp from our boat safari. Boat safaris contain lots of hippos and birds, but we were most awed by the sunset.

My mom and I both arrived back in Dar Es Salaam two days ago, and today we headed to the Selous Game Reserve on safari. We were both not quite sold on the whole idea of safari, but since we've only ever tried it for a half day before, we thought it would be a shame to waste our proximity to such amazing parks while we're in Tanzania. So off we flew. In a 6 person plane. Through clouds. And of course, I neglected to take Dramamine. Not a good choice. I had to ask the driver who shuttled us to our camp to drive at 15 miles per hour the whole way, so that I wouldn't destroy the interior of his car.

However, we got some nice plane pictures where I don't look sick at all, so that's good.

Dinner with Ismail's family was lovely, and I really liked his wife. It's interesting talking to men here, as Zanzibar is 95% Muslim, and I think it's not that common for women to travel alone. I've been a bit of a curiosity to everyone from tour guides to waiters to receptionists. Talking to Kawthar (Ismail's wife) was like a breath of fresh air. She is smart, funny and articulate, and liberal. We chatted all night at dinner, and I loved every minute of it.

The next night we all met up for dinner again, but this time Kawthar went home early and Ismail and his brother Hassan took me to their other brother Saleh's bar for late night drinks. Definitely a more male-dominated evening, as the conversation turned to whether I felt I "needed" a husband, etc, etc. I had to remind myself and Ismail that we came from very different perspectives on the whole question of marriage and women's roles, since the topic could have gotten into volatile territory pretty quickly. In the end, we agreed to disagree, and had another drink.


From left to right, Hassan, Kawthar, Ismail and me

It's been interesting traveling alone on this leg of the trip. I'm usually a very independent solo traveller, but I've never traveled by myself in Africa, and it seems neither do many other people. I've only met couples and families on this trip so far, other than one big group of folks from the States who are all traveling together. Very different than when I was in Argentina or previously in Europe, where it almost seems like there are more people solo than in groups. Anyways, I've felt totally at ease in most situations, and have been adopted by people along the way, which has been really nice. Traveling by myself is the best way to meet new friends :)

Case in point, on the plane to Zanzibar from Dar Es Salaam a few days ago, I met a guy named Ismail, who owns a popular restaurant in Stonetown, Mercury's. (Named after Freddie Mercury of Queen, who was born on Zanzibar). He invited me to have dinner with him and his wife when I got back from my beach vacation, which is today. My phone didn't work on the eastern side of the island where I was diving, but when I got back to Stonetown, I called Walter (mom's friend, publishing house), who told me that the Ismail I had met was actually a good friend of his as well! Small world... Anyways, I'm heading out to dinner at Mercury's tonight, after settling into my lovely hotel room (pictures below).

In other news, I wasn't able to meet up with my friend Michaela, after much emailing back and forth. She is climbing Kilimanjaro, but wanted to try to make it to Zanzibar first. Unfortunately, the incredible incompetence of US airlines foiled her plans as they did mine. Her flight from SFO to JFK was cancelled, meaning she missed her flights to Dubai, Nairobi, and ultimately Zanzibar. Such a bummer. Michaela, we'll have to make it back there at some point together :)


Picture of traditional Zanzibar hotel room decor:

Still having fun in paradise. Yesterday I did my scuba refresher, and became acquainted with the resident prankster, Xavier. He's Spanish, but has been living in Tanzania for 10 years, and prior to that was working as an architect for Doctors Without Borders in Sierra Leone. Fascinating guy. He's a dive instructor now, and re-taught me how to not kill myself or anyone else when diving 100 feet below sea level. He also likes to throw his students in the pool, as I found out at the end of the lesson.

Today I went out on the dive boat and after a rousing bout of seasickness (managed to hold it together, much to the amusement of my divemaster, Saidi), I finally got off the cursed boat and into the water, where I felt much better. The conditions were a bit rough, but our second dive was absolutely lovely. I still haven't gotten around to getting my underwater camera case, so again, no pictures, but this is basically what I saw: http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&q=scuba+diving&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2

Tomorrow and the next day more diving, and then back to Stonetown, the "capital" of Zanzibar.

Zanzibar!

It is gorgeous here. Probably the most beautiful place I've ever seen. Literally. White sand beaches, clear blue water, swaying palm trees, and almost no one around to disturb the serenity of the place. And to top it off, they have scuba diving. What could be better?!

Some pictures to give you the idea:










I'll be diving here for the next couple days, but I could just sit and stare off into space and be pretty happy here.

Today I arrived in Dar Es Salaam, the non-capital of Tanzania. Apparently it used to be the capital, but since it's on the coast, the government thought it wasn't defensible enough, so they moved the official capital to Dodoma, a dusty town more inland. For all intents and purposes though, Dar Es Salaam is the capital, with all the diplomats, restaurants and crazy traffic that comes along with it.

I'm only here for a day before I head to Zanzibar, and some beach-scuba diving time. I'm staying with my mother's friend Walter and his wife Freda, a lovely couple who own a publishing house. So far I've: marveled at the view of the ocean from their flat, eaten tons of delicious Swahili food (kebabs, curries, chapati, rice), and met Walter's new business partner, Siven. We went apartment hunting for Siven this evening, as he's just moved here from South Africa to work with Walter. Apologies, but I slacked on the picture taking, so you'll have to use your imaginations to conjure up my new friends...

The traditional food in Ethiopia is spicy and delicious, lots of stews and curry-like sauces, all wrapped up in the spongy deliciousness of injera. If you haven't tried it before, get thee to an Ethiopian restaurant (I have recommendations if you need them). On my last day in Addis, I stopped by my grandmother's house to say good-bye, and was enlisted to make one piece of injera. People who are experienced with this can make the injera come out completely round on the griddle, but as you can see below, the edges of my piece were a little less smooth. Clearly not my forte.



My grandma made me promise that I'll have kids before she leaves this life. I agreed to that (she's got a good 20 years left by my estimate, so no harm there). However, we disagree on the number of kids. She had ten, so she thinks five is a reasonable request for me. I wasn't even sure how to respond to that one. I told her that I'm the second-oldest cousin, so she should be hounding my older cousin to get started instead of me. I don't think that tactic worked too well...

As I wrote before, Addis is a city that is becoming more developed every day. A lot of this effort is driven forward by Ethiopians returning from other parts of the world, and bringing with them businesses or ideas that they have observed being successful elsewhere. When I was in India, I saw a lot of businesses that bore a striking resemblance to businesses I had grown up with in the States, and I'm starting to see the same in Addis. For example, the current local rendition of Starbucks is Kaldi's coffee.



Apparently copyright laws are not in quite as full force here as they would be in the US…. Kaldi's is extremely popular, and was totally packed on the Saturday afternoon when we visited. It could actually be considered payback for Starbucks' lack of profit sharing for so long with the Ethiopian farmers that produced their coffee (they're doing better now, but the yearly revenue of Starbucks, one company, is $6.4 billion compared to the GDP of Ethiopia, an entire country, which is $74.9 billion, so clearly there is more to be done).

For those of you who have traveled to Hyderabad, remember the Olive Garden there? Well, there is an "Olives garden" here in Addis.



I haven't tried it yet, but if the imitation in India is any indication, I probably won't. I mean, why would I travel several thousand miles to eat in an Olive Garden?

I've only got a few more days left in Addis, and as with the other parts of my trip, I'm wondering why I didn't budget more time here. There is so much to see and do in this world and so little time. I'm going to have to figure out how to be reincarnated as a travel writer…

One thing that surprises a lot of people about Ethiopia is the fact that the country is predominantly Christian, and has been for over a thousand years (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethiopia#Religion). It is surrounded on three sides by Muslim majority countries (Somalia, Sudan, Djibouti), but Ethiopia has a long and rich tradition of Christianity. The Ethiopian Orthodox church forms a large part of many people's lives, so much so that Wednesday and Friday are observed as fasting days every week. As you drive around the city, whenever you pass a church you're guaranteed to see a crowd of people by the gate, and more inside, praying to the patron saint of the church.

"Fasting" in Ethiopia is a little different than in other places. It doesn't mean necessarily eating less (although some do), but instead eschewing all meat and dairy products for the day. I benefit from this purely from a dietary standpoint, as I have had the hardest time explaining that I don't eat much meat to people I meet here. As with most cultures, Ethiopians eat as much meat as they can afford. The best way that I've found to ensure that I don't get any unexpected meat sneaking into my meals is to tell my host/waiter that I'm fasting. That will ensure a totally vegan meal (and delicious too!). I think when I was younger my family thought I was a really devout child, but now they've realized that I just prefer "fasting food" :).

Addis is a very interesting intersection between the traditional and the new, a rapidly modernizing city that retains a lot of the culture of Ethiopia. I've noticed this with the jockeying of SUVs and sheep, the races between motorized and horse-drawn carriages. I think I notice it most, though, in the clothes that I see people wearing. You'll see everything from a suit and tie to full traditional dress within one block, and neither will raise an eyebrow.



These women are all wearing the traditional white scarf/shawl that used to be paired with a full-length white dress, made of linen. The shawl is the only remaining piece of the outfit, as most people now reserve the linen dresses for special occasions.

Another thing I've noticed more on this trip is the number of cars and trucks that spew out suffocating, black smoke. The air in Addis is not extremely polluted, but if you're stuck behind a truck like this one, it can seem like it is.


It's really sad to see such a beautiful landscape being obscured by thick clouds of exhaust, and I hope that people begin to work for the type of changes that have taken place in India (using CNG for taxis and some trucks). It's definitely hard to agitate for change when lots of initiatives need resources here, but then again, those who are driving trucks around can probably afford the cost of repairs more than the pedestrians can afford to pay the doctor's bills for lung problems.



On a happier note, I love the fruit stands here. They are heaped with fruit, and seem to have been lovingly arranged more as artwork than as a store, with an eye to demonstrating how sweet and succulent each piece is. Makes my mouth water just thinking about it! This stand happens to sell soccer balls as well...

Transportation here comes in a variety of flavors, but by far the most common is the minibus. They go all over the city, and have set routes. Each minibus has a driver and a conductor, whose role is to lean his entire body out the window or door and shout the destination of the bus. There are no signs, but somehow people know where to wait, which bus is the right one, and where to get off.



Continuing with the city tour, there is construction going on everywhere you look, and roadwork around every corner. The city is gearing up for the Ethiopian millenium, which takes place this September. The reason that the millenium is this year is that Ethiopia follows the Julian calendar, while the US and elsewhere use the Gregorian calendar. I won't do the entire history of this justice, but suffice it to say that this year is 1999, and the turn of the millenium happens on September 11th (a strange coincidence, but the date of the New Year changes every year because of the difference between the Julian and Gregorian calendars...).




One final anecdote, I went with my aunt and uncle to Debre Zeyit yesterday, which is a town about 45 km outside of Addis Ababa. They had some business to conduct, and I spend a leisurely hour sitting at a cafe reading a book for the first time in months. Afterwards, we headed to the Kuriftu resort, which is located on a beautiful lake and surrounded by farmland, for lunch. The food was great, and the buildings were beautiful, with thatched roofs and mosaic walls. The place definitely caters to a wealthier crowd, with the price of a room at $120 a night (a huge amount for most people here), but for lunch and some ambiance, it was quite nice.

Coming to Ethiopia was about family and relaxation this time around. On previous trips, I've spent almost as much time outside of Addis as I have in the city, traveling to historical sites and spending time at the lakes near the city. However, this time, I resolved to try to stay around, see family, and recuperate from the last couple of crazy months. I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my aunts and uncles and have seen my grandmother twice already, so mission partially accomplished. Now, if I could just do that resting thing I've been trying to do...

I actually envy my grandmother for her boundless energy. She's in her mid-eighties, and is still running around, being the general of the little army that lives at her house. She directs the cooking, cleaning, schooling, nurturing and activities of several family and adopted family members, takes care of various grandchildren in the summer, and can still throw down on the dance floor! About the only flaw I've found so far is that she LOVES George W. You'll have to forgive her: she speaks no English at all, and is firmly convinced that Dubya is the only reason that the US has a democracy. No matter how many times we've tried to explain that he's not the reason for, but instead is trying to erode, democracy, she's a staunch supporter. I guess the silver lining is that as an Ethiopian citizen she can't vote for him :)



My general-grandmother, amazingly sitting still for a picture



Brian, me, and grandma



Isn't my cousin cute! We had never met before this trip, but she greeted me by launching herself up into my arms, and wrapping herself around me. I guess she's seen a picture or two :)

I finally arrived in Addis, a little tired, but no worse the wear for my 72 hour stint of traveling. Brian, my aunt Akale, my uncle Fisseha and my aunt Eleni were all at the airport to greet me, and take lots of pictures. Since the last time I was in Addis, they've built a huge new international terminal at the airport, which made arriving much smoother than I remember.


Brian assured me I looked great after 72 hours of traveling...

The day after I arrived, Brian and I hopped on another plane to Bahir Dar, the home of Lake Tana and the source of the Nile River. Because Brian only has 4 days in Ethiopia before he heads to South Africa, we decided to only go on one excursion outside of Addis Ababa. Bahir Dar won, because it has both historical sites and the naturalist appeal of the Nile falls.

The scenery there was amazing, we saw some incredibly old books at monasteries that were in the middle of Lake Tana, and the hike up to the Nile falls was breathtaking. Our tour guide wasn't the greatest, but then again, we both would have been up a creek without someone there to help us communicate, so we appreciated him being around. This was my second trip to Bahir Dar, and I enjoyed it even more than the first, which is a good trajectory :)


The path towards the falls



This is the falls at 15% strength. Just imagine 50% or 100%... The falls are diverted to a hydroelectric power plant, which generates 100 mW of energy for the northern areas of Ethiopia. The unfortunate side effect of this is that the flow of the falls is reduced when the plant is running. Our guide told us that the plan is to build additional power plants on less touristed rivers, so that this one can eventually run only at night, and people can enjoy the beauty of the falls by day. We also learned that Ethiopia is becoming a net exporter of power to other countries like the Sudan and Djibouti, because it is so rich in river resources. It's pretty ironic, isn't it, that so many people around the world imagine Ethiopia to be a dry, desert-covered country, when in reality it is so green and fertile?



Brian told me I should stand on a rock so I could look taller... Unfortunately, it's still pretty clear that I'm height-challenged when compared to him.

Oh, the travails of travel. I guess I shouldn't complain, because I have traveled for years with very few incidents, and am lucky enough to be headed to somewhere far enough away to require several flights. I'm on my way to Ethiopia, finally, after a cancelled flight from New York to D.C. left me stranded and unable to catch my flight from D.C. to Addis. Looking on the bright side, though, I got to spend a night in New York with one of my best friends (thanks for lending me your spare bed Abby!). And, after a day of delay, I'm on my way to meet Brian in Ethiopia. He was so excited about this trip, I'm almost more disappointed that I'll be losing a day of tour-guiding him. I can't wait to experience the country through the fresh eyes of a friend who enjoys life as much as Brian does. Hold on, Bri, I'm on my way!

The weekend of the Fair was incredible. I didn't take a single picture (sorry guys), but the moments were unforgettable, even with my terrible memory. I can't believe that I have to leave this corner of paradise and head back into the world of planes, trains and automobiles. Even though I'm excited about the rest of my summer, right now my emotions are leaning more towards melancholy, as the reality of a year before I can come back sets in.

I've never felt such a sense of family at the Fair as I did this year. It was my first time working during the month before the Fair, but I know that this has to be a part of my life from now on. To my Fair family: I miss you all already, and I can't wait to see you again. Have a great year, and I'll see you in June.

Also while at the Fair, I had a chance to go up in a little 4-person plane with our resident pilot, Cliff, along with Dru and Windy (fabulous campmates extraordinaire). We were the "take it easy on us" flight crew, since Dru gets airsick, I sometimes do, and Windy wasn't really into the idea of zero gravity. Cliff was very accommodating, and we all trundled off to the grass airstrip, about 10 minutes away from the fairgrounds.


Our pilot, Cliff


The fabulous flight crew.

We were pretty gung-ho at the beginning. I got to sit in front, which meant that I would also get to fly the plane for 5 seconds-a couple minutes, depending on how well I flew.



Dru and Windy were doing well in the back, until about halfway through the flight, when Dru started to get sick. Panic ensued as Windy and I tried to get her an airsick bag in time. They happened to be disguised as little blue envelopes, so we almost didn't make it before Dru yakked. I wasn't feeling so hot myself, so we asked Cliff to land the plane (with a slight tone of desperation).

All in all, a very cool experience, I got to fly for about 3 or 4 minutes, which was awesome. I did ask Cliff to take control of the plane back several times during those minutes, as I was totally terrified the whole time, but the important thing is that I didn't crash the plane :)


I'm flying!

As you can imagine, internet access while camping is rather scarce. That is, unless you're camping at the Fair, where there is wireless access in the campgrounds! I didn't know this ahead of time, and so left my computer at home, but it's actually been really nice to be away from email, websites, and computers in general. I had forgotten that I actually know how to live without a computer within 20 feet of where I am at all times. It's pretty refreshing...

The Fair is coming up next weekend, but this weekend the Pre-Fair crew had a Disco-Drag party. It's exactly what it sounds like, but I've never seen a group of people with such enthusiasm for dressing up and getting wild before. I love it. The pictures really say it all I think...


Having chest hair was actually pretty interesting, especially since I didn't realize I still had a bunch that didn't come off in the initial washing, and stayed around till the next afternoon



Dru was the biggest player there, all the "ladies" loved her!



Dru and Brian, gettin' down



The lovely ladies of construction and site crew.



Didn't I say that Dru was popular with the ladies?



Chris is overjoyed to be getting Matt's attention... incidentally, I think Matt looks better in my skirt than I do.



Gaby, the casanova



Show us your elephant, Eric!