First Day in Addis Ababa, at Ethiopian Hotel - 8th November 2002 - Ethiopian Journey - Part 12.

Ethiopian Christians going to the Church for Prayers 

I got up early in the morning. I peeped out of the window. There was a lot of fog and it had enveloped the city in a tight unforgiving hug. There was a nip in the air. I was shivering in the cold. I went up to the terrace of the hotel. The view was breath taking. There were rolling hills all around. It was picture post card perfect! I shot the scenes on my video camera.

Gingerly I stepped out of the hotel but stayed under the watchful eye of the hotel security. I could see hordes of Ethiopians silently moving in their long white flowing dresses. They had the most solemn and serious faces I had ever seen. I was puzzled. They were shuffling along slowly. It looks as if a holy procession was moving along. It was so surreal. The effect was accentuated by the nip in the air and the cold weather. I had to pinch myself to get out of the feeling of awe. 

I enquired “where are they going?”. The guard replied in halting English “They go, Church”. Then it struck me, Ethiopia is a Christian country surrounded by Muslim nations in the horn of Africa.  Readers might be wondering as why this area is called as the horn? If you were to look at the African map the eastern part of Africa has a part jutting out. This part looks like a horn of Rhinoceros and that is why it is called the horn of Africa.  Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia, are the countries that constitute the horn of Africa.

Ethiopians are devout Christians. Three  out of four Ethiopians are Christians and follow the orthodox form of Christianity. Ethiopia still uses the old Julian calendar. They celebrate Christmas on January 7th, and not on December 25th! The Christmas celebration in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is called Ganna. “Malkam, Malkam Addis Ganna” they  would greet each other. It means welcome welcome new Christmas!

Western and European depiction of Jesus Christ 

Ethiopian Depiction of Jesus Christ 

The depiction of Jesus Christ is what we had been taught by the Europeans and the westerners. As Ethiopians have never been colonized their depiction of the same biblical epic and Jesus Christ is refreshingly different. I was coming to terms with one of the most ancient civilization in the world. Ethiopia is one of the few countries mentioned in the Bible, the Koran, Homer’s Odyssey, and many other ancient books.

Smiling Ethiopian Boy 

The name “Ethiopia” comes from the Greek words aitho and ops, which together mean “Sun burnt face.” This was how the ancient Greeks referred to the dark-skinned people of Eastern Africa. Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in the world, having been founded in 980 B.C. Axum, in Ethiopia, is famous as a claimant to the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant, the chest containing the ten commandments God gave to Moses. It is of tremendous pride to the Ethiopians that the final resting place of the Ark of Covenant is amongst them!

Breakfast done, all the men and the contract holders assembled in the reception area. It was almost ten in the morning and there was no action. The clock struck twelve and still no one came from the Ministry of Education. We were getting bored. We dispersed for lunch. After the experience with the last night dinner, we had bread and jam for lunch. But Indians being Indians we were not liking the bland and sweet taste. We wanted our tongues to get tickled and the palate to be satiated with the hot and spicy Indian curies and dals. But alas we were thousands of kilometres from India!

The representative from the ministry arrived at 3.00 p.m. We accosted him anxiously. He was unflustered. He appeared as cool as a cucumber. We were slowly getting used to the ways of the Ethiopians. He had this almost Zen like calmness. He drawled “How are you all, how is Ethiopia treating you?” One of us responded with a little irritation and lot of anxiety “We are here for the entire day. We would like to go our respective stations. We would be losing our salary too!” The practicality of people whose main reason to come to Ethiopia – to save money and send it back to India was kicking in. We were rearing to work and earn our pay! Itching for action. May be the result of living life in a fast lane.

The Ethiopian was genuinely surprised. Then his face brightened up “oh aha” he exclaimed “that is your major worry. Don’t you worry about your salary. Salary would be given from Today.” We came to know that our tickets to Bahirdar would take some more time. He promised to come back in a day or two.         

I birr Note (front Side)

We felt lost. Now the excuse of going early to our universities was snatched from our hands. We were resigned to our fate. There were many rumours floating about. We heard stories of how tourists being robbed and assaulted. But staying in the hotel was not an option. I took a 100 dollars note and went out to an authorized exchange centre and got around 855 birr. A back of envelope calculation showed that one birr was worth approximately six Indian rupees. That was the mantra that we chanted for the next four years. We would buy in birr and immediately multiply it with 5 (a 5 factor being more convenient than a 6 factor).

I birr Note (back Side)

I would buy 5 kgs of rice and Padma would ask “how much”. I would reply “10 Birr”. She would immediately say 50 rupees and that meant price of rice is Rs 10 per kg. Talk of the NRI ways of living and surviving in faraway places! 

The New Flower beckons (763) – Ethiopian Journey – Part 11

Our air travel took us five hours and we covered 3837 kilometers. The time difference between India and Ethiopia is 2.5 hours and this time difference was to create lot of confusion but more of that later.  

There were tin roofs everywhere. Somehow the movie Fiddler on the roof came to my mind. Addis Ababa at the first look looked very much like the landscape that we see when we take off from Mumbai International airport.

Map showing the size of Africa 

Most of us have very limited and sketchy information about Africa. Africa is the cradle of the world civilizations. It has the most diverse bio diversity in the world. Diverse in races, people, languages, flora and fauna. Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent. Africa’s land mass is 30.3 million kilometers² (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands.

Africa covers 6% of earth’s total surface area and 20.4% of its total land area. From the most northerly point, Ras Ben Sakka in Tunisia, to the most southern point, Cape Agulhas in South Africa, the distance is approximately 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles). And from Cap Vert, Senegal, the western most point, to Ras Hafun in Somalia, the eastern most point, the distance is approximately 7,400 kilometres (4,600 miles).

We need to travel 10 hours continuous from the northern tip to the southern tip and nine hours from western tip to eastern tip by an aeroplane before we leave the continent and see the sea. That is how big Africa is! When it is 3.45 a.m in Cape Verde, the western most point in Africa it is already 8.45 a.m in Seychelles the eastern most point.

Africa consists 57 countries and Algeria at 23,81,741 square Kilometres is the biggest country and at 55 square Kilometres French Southern and Antarctic Lands is the smallest.

Street View of Addis Ababa, 2002 

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, my home for the next four years is more than three (3) million years old. Ethiopia shares borders with Eritrea to the north and to the northeast is Djibouti which is the nearest sea link for Ethiopia, Somalia to the east, Sudan and South Sudan to the west, and Kenya to the south. After Eritrea got independence, Ethiopia got completely landlocked. Ethiopia is the most populous land locked country in the world.

Ethiopia has a land size of 11,04,300 square Kilometres which is almost one third of India's land size. India’s land size is 32,87,263 square Kilometres. But whereas India’s population stood at 107.1 crores in 2001, Ethiopia’s population is tiny at only 6.85 crores. That is mind boggling, I/3 of India's  size but having only 1/16 of India’s population.

Ethiopia is not small by any standards.  It is the 26^th biggest country in the world by size and 10^th biggest in Africa. It is the 2^nd most populous country in Africa. Only Nigeria had more people than Ethiopia.

Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia has a land size of 527 square kilometers. It is 3rd highest capital in the world at an altitude of 2355 metres. The average highest temperature in Addis Ababa is 23 degrees centigrade and the lowest is 6 degrees centigrade. According to the October 1994 census the population was 21 lakh people.

Old Airport, Bole, Addis Ababa, 2002, within one year of our arrival a swanky new airport was opened 

It was almost 10.00 p.m. by the time we finished our inward formalities and stepped into the lobby of the airport which was old was very quaint in its looks. There were traditional Ethiopian Motifs everywhere – Huge murals depicting the coffee ceremony and of smiling Ethiopian faces. 

Ministry of Education, Addis Ababa, at Arat Kilo. 

But we were all tense and tired. Waiting to receive us was a representative from the Ministry of Education, Ethiopia. He was very polite and dropped us at the Ethiopia hotel which was at the intersection of Sudan Street and Yohanis Street and parallel to the Churchill Avenue.

Ethiopian Hotel, Near Churchill Avenue, Addis Ababa

We went to the restaurant and ordered the food. The first shock was on us. There was very little choice for vegetarians and no Indian food at all on offer. We ordered some chicken and some bread. The bread tasted different and the even the chicken was prepared differently. It had deep roasted in oil and there was no spice chilly or salt at all! Coming from a country that drowns all its dishes in ample salt, chilly, liberal doses of masala and spice that was the last straw. 

We had to leave the food almost untouched. Okay, we learnt the first lesson; eating food outside our own home is going to be a culinary adventure in itself! Addis Ababa was cold but the hotel room was cosy and comfortable. We got into our woolens and settled down. 

The Take off - Ethiopian Journey Blog Item - 10.

The day of the journey dawned finally. We went to Begumpet airport. The luggage was quite heavy and after all we were four people. We were given vegetable biryani by Dr. M. Uma. Being practicality personalised, she packed it in reusable containers!

We landed in Mumbai and immediately moved from the Domestic to the International terminus.  My children were unusually subdued. Pranav being a seven-year-old could understand but Sahithi was too small. We waited in the airport and it was interesting to see the tapestry of foreign visitors leaving India. There was a panorama of facial expressions on display. Some happy, some sad and some pensive.

I could make out many Indians also waiting like me. Then the check-in announcement was made and we finished all the formalities. Then the actual boarding started. There were many Indians and an equal number of Ethiopians. The Ethiopians appeared to be bemused at the number of Indians. But there were knowing nods and smiles. The Indian diaspora is well famed in the world for their ability to travel, adapt and make themselves comfortable in any country of the world. 

Edmund Hillary was the first man to climb Everest. He was bubbling with excitement and was overcome with the adrenaline rush. First man, First man he kept muttering to himself. “Enna sir, ninnalkk teyila venam?” Translated it means “sir, do you want tea?”. Flummoxed and flabbergasted he jerked around. It was a humble Malayalee, he not only reached mount Everest much before him, he started and was running a flourishing tea business! Even though said in jest, it is typical of the Indians’ urge to travel and make themselves name and fame in even the remotest parts of the world.

India has the world’s largest diaspora. Diaspora is the number of Citizens of a country living in other countries. Over 1.55 crore Indians live and work outside India, a number greater than the combined population of Zimbabwe and Kuwait. Mexico has a Diaspora of 1.23 crores and Russia has a diaspora of 1.06 crores. Truly amazing!

We were flying Ethiopian airlines. We were warmly greeted by the Ethiopian air hostess. Standing next to her and wearing a beautiful Ethiopian dress was another girl. Both of them were strikingly beautiful. They did not look like the typical Africans that we see in the popular media.

We were seated and one of the air hostess came and said “fasting or non-fasting”. I was taken back ‘what does she mean?’. Understanding my confusion, she corrected herself “Vegetarian or non-vegetarian meals?”. I told her three non-vegetarian meals and one Vegetarian meal. An Ethiopian sitting next to me explained “Ethiopians love meat and meat products. So not eating meat products and having only vegetables and Injira (Ethiopian staple food) is allowed during fasting time. So all vegetarian food in Ethiopia is called fasting food”. I don’t know how the vegetarians would react! If veg food is fasting food, what is Vegan food? starving food! Your guess is as good as mine.

The Airplane was a wide bodied 787. Very spacious and very wide. I could make out a smattering of kids, most of them Ethiopians. It was a five-hour journey and we started making friends. A young man, Mr. Bala Krishna came up and introduced himself. Bala said “Sir, this is a very big contingent of Indian teachers. We are as many as 78 (including spouses and children). With you there are ten from Andhra Pradesh. Four from your family, me and my wife, Dr. Srinivas Inguva, Dr. T. N. Murthy, Mrs. Tasleem and her daughter”. I was thunder struck at his networking ability and ability to get data. “This man would be a great researcher” I told myself. 

He also told me that he belongs to POLY (the engineering division of BDU) and that the rest of us will be reporting to PEDA (Pedagogy Academy, the division for all other departments excluding engineering). I thought PEDA was a quite an interesting name, It means a sweet in Northern India!

Mr. Bala Krishna was a teacher from the Electrical department, Me and Dr. T. N. Murthy from the Management department, Dr. Srinivas Inguva was from the accounting department and Mrs. Tasneem was from the Law department. The five-hour journey was over in a jiffy and before we knew we were taxing down on the run way of Addis Ababa. We have arrived!!! 

You can take an Indian out of India but you can’t take India out of an Indian. - Ethiopian journey Blog Post no -9

Chiseled features of a Ethiopian Girl! 

We started the process of packing up. You can take an Indian out of India but you can’t take India out of an Indian. One of the first things I bought and packed were a pair of Indian flags. I did not want our family to miss The Independence day and Republic day celebrations in a foreign country.   

Finances were quite tight and I did not want to take loans to go abroad. I was grappling with the issue. The telephone rang. It was Dr. Y. Kiranmayee, the HOD of Management Department, Dr.B.R.Ambedkar Open University. She wanted me to write three chapters for the B. Com, final year text book of “Principles of Marketing”.  She said that the University would pay Rs 15,000/- for the three chapters. It was like manna from the heaven.

Ethiopian girl wearing Traditional Dress

I thanked her profusely and told that it will be done in two to three weeks. As an afterthought I told her “madam, your offer comes at the right time. I was desperately wanting some extra cash for buying things for my Ethiopian trip”. She was very glad that she could be of help. As promised I took a hard copy and a soft copy of the three chapters with in the stipulated time. Dr. Kiranmayee was delighted and saw to that I was given a cheque immediately. In a government university immediate payment was almost impossible. I thanked her from the bottom of my heart.

Next we picked up clothes including woollens and sweaters. We had to be careful as we would not be coming back for the next two years. We also packed Red gram, Tamarind and even Sona Masuri rice. We packed so many things that I was quite worried that we would be overweight. The weight limit at that time was 40 kgs per person and I was sure that we were packed to the gills.

Oromo Couple 

We also packed sports equipment like badminton racquets, shuttle cocks, badminton nets, chess board, children text books and like suggested, many good movie CDs. Yes, the movie collection had many hits of Rajendra Prasad, the comedy doctor of telugu movies.

Things were progressing well at the institute too. CBIT accepted my resignation. We were scheduled to fly on the 9^th November 2002. Our tickets given by the Ethiopian government were only from Mumbai and I wanted to fly from Hyderabad. Same issue again. No cash! This time I knocked at the door of Dr. Jaypal Reddy, HOD, Mechanical Department and the President of CBIT cooperative society.

Oromo Girl Ethiopia 

Jaypal Reddy was an institution at CBIT. He was a dynamic person and was instrumental in sourcing and buying of land at a very reasonable price at Attapur and then offering the same to CBIT employees. It is due to him that many CBIT employees could build nice homes and settle down in life.

Dr. Jaypal Reddy gave me a patient hearing “no problem at all. I will see to that your Cooperative Society account is closed and that you get the amount due to you”. The amount saved in the Cooperative Society came up to Rs 16,000/-. It was enough for our family’s air tickets from Hyderabad to Mumbai. The tickets were bought and the countdown started. 

To go or Not to Go - That is the question - Ethiopian Journey - Post no - VIII

Then it happened! I received a call from Global placements in the month of September 2002.They informed me that I was selected and that I should send the passports of my family so that the Visa process can start.

As long as an important event is not forthcoming we are all relaxed. It is something that we anticipate but the event has not yet started. Once the event is eminent and close, there are butterflies in the stomach. There are worrying questions “what about my steady and regular job at CBIT. I am getting regular pay scales. I am well liked and adjusted to CBIT and its rules and regulations. Should I go to a place that gives a contract that too only for two years? What will happen if either the university or I don’t like each other? What will I do when I come back? Can I get a suitable job immediately? What about my children’s education”. My head was in a spin and my emotions and thoughts were wrung, knotted and tossed around just like clothes in a high speed washing machine.

My son Pranav Pratheek was seven years old and he was studying in Geetanjali Public school, a famous school located at Begumpet, Hyderabad. My daughter, Sai Sahithi was only two years old and she had not even gone to a preschool till that point of time.

My first port of call was Dr.Surendranath, my Brother-in-law and Pediatrician in our family. He laughed at our predicament and waved a green flag. He told us that all necessary vaccinations are done for Pranav and Sahithi. He said “why are you so worried? Haven’t I and Uma (Dr. M. Uma his wife and my elder sister) went to Yemen and spent four nice years. You should travel and learn”.

My father Sri M.C. Anjaneyulu and my mother Smt M. Hemalatha were pillars of strength. They encouraged and advised that we should go as a family. My Dad told me “Go and experience Ethiopia. You would get benefited immensely. There is so much to gain and you might not get another opportunity”.

My eldest sister Dr.M.Ramani and Eldest brother-in-law Dr.G.Venkatramana too were very supportive. They suggested that we carry a medical kit that will contain medicine for all common ailments. I remember my Sister Dr.M.Ramani telling me “you might not use many of the medicines that you carry and they are like insurance policies. It will give you peace of mind and you and Padma (my wife) will be relaxed mentally and will sleep well”.

My sister Dr.M.Ramani a well-known pathologist by profession, cautioned me and said that our entire family needs to take yellow fever vaccination. As yellow fever is prevalent in African countries, it is imperative that all visitors to African countries get themselves vaccinated for yellow fever.

My rock of Gibraltar was my wife M. Padmavathi, never complaining and always a cheerful lady. I tried telling her all the negative factors. Ethiopia is very far away, no telugu movies, no entertainment, primitive facilities, no friends, no Indian festivals, no Television, new place, we need to adjust, might not get good food, children education might suffer. But she was steadfast. All or nothing. All of us go or no one goes. I added dramatically “It is like taking a time machine and going back to the 50s. Like Hanumakonda or Ananthapur during the time of our parents”. But the rock would not Budge!

My final port of calling was Dr.P.Narayana Reddy, HOD of SMS, CBIT and my research guide. He laughed and said “why worry?  Go ahead. As far as your PhD is concerned I will help you in any way that you need. Just see to it that your quarterly progress reports of research being conducted are sent to Osmania University in time”.

I was more or less convinced but there were some lingering doubts. My father sensing my confusion asked me to meet his friend Mr.S.N.Kanchhal. Mr.Kanchhal was the Director, Indo African Industrial Consultants based at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He stayed in road no 10, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad and I visited him. He had come down to India from Ethiopia on his annual vacation. He told me that he and his wife have stayed in Ethiopia for years. They have a business that was doing extremely well.

He and his wife received me and were astonished to know that I was in quandary. He told me “What young man, why are you so worried?  Ethiopia is safe. Infact safer than India. Ethiopians love Indians. Addis Ababa where I stay has many Indians. Addis Ababa has an Indian school at Piazza. They follow the Indian CBSE school syllabus. Most Indian teachers register their children in the Indian school”.

He continued “You can coach your children at home and come to Addis Ababa and let them write their final examinations. Bahirdar is considered to be a very nice and lucky place. It is a dream destination for many Ethiopians themselves. The temperature is moderate; the university gives you all facilities. So I think that you should definitely go”. He thumped me on my shoulder and added jovially “Your Dad and me, we went to school barefoot. Your generation must have gone to school in a city bus. Later generations have gone to school in school buses, autos and cars. Voila, your two year old daughter will fly in an Aeroplane to write her kindergarten examinations”. I was awe struck at his wit and humour.

He cautioned me that Malaria is prevalent in Ethiopia and that I should take anti-malarial tablets. He also told me that the rice available in Ethiopia is of a varying quality and that it is not as fine as Indian rice. He asked me to take small quantities of Red Gram (Kandi Pappu), Tamarind and other Indian spices as they are not available in Ethiopia. He also advised me also to take a small pressure cooker. Jokingly he added “Better take some good Telugu and Hindi movie CDs. There is a paucity of Indian entertainment in Ethiopia”.

The die was cast. I have decided to travel to Ethiopia. There is no going back now.