The Land of Origins

At first I wasn’t planning on heading to Ethiopia on this trip. But since I flew with Ethiopian Airlines to Madagascar, I thought I might as well spend some time in the country since I’ll be having a layover there anyway. And surprisingly, it’s actually a couple of hundred bucks cheaper if I made a stop in Ethiopia.

One of their tourism slogans refer to the country as the “Land of Origins”. This could mean a couple of things… like the various archeological and paleontological finds, including the remains of the oldest known human ancestors… or it could be due to the fact that the Blue Nile is here, which contributes about two-thirds of the water flowing through the Nile River… or it could be due to the fact that Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee!

If you’re not a citizen of Kenya or Djibouti, you’re going to need a visa to enter Ethiopia. Luckily, it’s easy to get one online. Citizens of some countries can get one upon arrival (mostly African countries). Even if you can get one upon arrival, I suggest getting one online a couple of weeks before your trip to save yourself from lining up with other visitors who need a visa upon arrival. Just visit the official website, upload the requirements, pay for the processing fee, and wait for the visa to be sent via email. I got mine within 2 days. These are all single entry visas. A 30 day single entry visa costs USD 82, while a 90 day visa costs USD 202. Yeah these visas aren’t cheap, so I would suggest maximizing your stay because there’s no cheaper option if you’re only staying for a couple of days. If you need to stay longer, you could also have these visas extended online.

Before you exit the airport in Addis Ababa (which means “new flower” in Amharic), there are a number of ATMs and currency exchange counters so you could easily get local money (Birrs). Don’t withdraw too much cash or have lots of money exchanged at the airport. Just get enough to last you a day or two. Why? Here’s something I wished I knew before I arrived in the country. There’s a black market rate in Ethiopia, and it’s almost twice (sometimes even more) than the official market rate! Let’s say you have 100 US dollars. If you have it exchanged at official currency exchange counters, you’d get about 5,600 Birrs. But if you find someone who buys US dollars in the black market? You’d get about 9,000-11,000 Birrs. You’re effectively almost doubling the value of your money! I asked many locals why there’s such a thing as a black market rate. I didn’t understand all the details, but to put it simply: there’s not much foreign currency reserves in the country, so people are willing to pay double for it. it’s also not hard to find people who’d buy US dollars (or Euros) in the black market. I’ve met about 7 people who offered to buy US dollars during my 3 weeks in Ethiopia. Heck I met a fellow traveler who referred me to one on the very day I checked into the hostel in Addis. Too bad I didn’t bring lots of Dollars. I often just withdraw money from ATMs to get local currency whenever I travel. The only reason why I brought some dollars is because the tour guide I was in contact with preferred to be paid in US Dollars.

Keep in mind that this is illegal… heck I feel kinda dirty mentioning this on my blog lol. But this is a travel hack that would benefit budget travelers. Since this isn’t legal, you can’t just go around asking people about the black market. Wait for people to approach you. If you’re obviously a tourist, a number of people will. Then try to determine if the person you’re talking to is legit— Ethiopia is not a rich country, so there are many scammers out there. It would be best if you get a referral from someone who has availed of this service. Hey, someone from the hostel staff might know someone 😉 So yeah, if you’re planning on going to Ethiopia, bring lots of US Dollars or Euros with you. Traveling within Ethiopia will turn out to be so much cheaper if you do.

Since I would be working remotely I would need data. Luckily, it’s easy to buy a SIM card at the airport. You might think it’s gonna be expensive since those E-Sims for Ethiopia being sold are ridiculously expensive. It’s not. This is one more thing against those who keep advocating for E-Sims. Until you can get those prices down, nothing beats buying a local SIM for budget and long term travelers. Even if you buy one at the airport, it’s still going to be a lot cheaper. There are 2 cellular networks: Ethio Telecom and Safari. Go with Ethio— they have the widest cellular network coverage in Ethiopia. They offer several plans, and the one with unlimited data was pretty cheap, but take note that you can’t turn on the personal hotspot function on your phone if you avail of this plan. This would cause a problem if you have no access to reliable WiFi and you have to work using your laptop. I chose one with limited data because of this. It still turned out to be quite cheap. These stalls do not accept credit cards, only cash. The prices quoted are in US dollars and Euros, but you can pay with Ethiopian Birr. Don’t worry, even if you pay with local money they’re gonna use the actual market rate and not the black market rate. heh.

If you arrive during the daytime, it’s easy to get to the city center via public transport. Just outside the airport right by Skylight Hotel, there would be buses passing by every hour or so that would take you to the Piazza in Addis Ababa, which is pretty much the city center. It only costs about 10 Birr (less than a quarter dollar!). Now if you arrive during the nighttime like I did, you’ll have no such luck. Only taxis will be waiting outside the arrivals area. Locals would say you only have to pay about 300 Birr to reach the city center. If you’re a tourist though? I asked all the taxi drivers waiting outside, and they were all asking for 1,200 to 1,500 Birr! One said if I had US dollars, he’d accept 15 bucks. Damn, even when paying for taxis there’s a black market rate. There’s a cheaper way that I wish I knew sooner: there are taxi hailing apps in Addis. They won’t pick you up at the airport though, you have to walk outside and book a ride there.

There are two apps you can use: Ride and Feres. These apps are basically Uber in Ethiopia, so in case taxi drivers ask for more, you can show the rate charged by the apps. You can link your credit card on both apps, but drivers prefer to be paid in cash. I’ve used both apps, and rates are cheaper when you use Feres. The downside? Most Feres drivers do not speak English at all.. but it’s not like Ride is much different. A lot of their drivers do not speak English too. Using these apps aren’t totally stress free… If they don’t know your location, they will call you. And this is a problem because as I’ve mentioned, most of them do not speak English fluently. You better be with a local who can speak to these drivers whenever you book— not a problem if you’re getting picked up in a hotel/ hostel or in a restaurant. This would be problem if you’re in a random street and not in a popular location. For some reason taxi drivers in Addis do not use GPS at all! Even when you’re already on the ride, if you’re heading to a location they don’t know, they will ask you for directions lol. Instead of using the GPS on the app on their phones, they’d rely on you instead. Good thing I bought a prepaid SIM with data so I was able to use a navigation app. Some of these drivers also have the habit of just stopping somewhere if they don’t know where you are or if they don’t feel like driving to your destination, and just waiting for you to cancel out of frustration. Yeah this also happens when using Uber in other countries, but it seemed to be more common in Addis.

If you keep up with international news, you may be aware of what’s been happening in Ethiopia for the past couple of years. Basically there’s a civil war going on in the north, and there’s a constant threat of this conflict spilling out to other regions. In the recent Tigray War, it is estimated that there had been as much as 600,000 casualties— and you have to wonder why this barely made the news in many countries. Where was the outpouring of sympathy and outrage from the international community? SMH. As a result of all this conflict, tourism has been greatly affected. Those who rely on tourism for their main sources of livelihood could get a little more persistent or even aggressive. I decided to walk around the city the next day, and I was constantly approached by random locals, offering to be my guide in the city. I just like walking around cities I’ve never been to before, I do not need any guide. When I kept saying no, most of them eventually left me alone, except for one who kept following me wherever I went, pointing to several stuff, explaining what those were— basically being a guide. I told him to stop trying to be a guide because I didn’t need one, and I surely won’t be paying for services I never asked for. He said it’s okay, he just wanted to show me around. Total BS lol. After tagging along with me for more than 3 hours I took pity on him and gave him 600 Birr before I said goodbye. He got angry. He said that he usually charges at least 2000 birrs for that kind of tour— a tour I never asked for. I told him to take the 600 Birr or just f*ck off. I never even promised to give him any amount of money. That wasn’t to pay for the “tour”, I gave him money to help him out because times were hard. Then he had the audacity to complain that I only gave him 600? Jesus.

Addis Ababa is a well developed city. It’s actually comparable to some western cities. The public transport system is still kind of a mess… the train network isn’t extensive, and it’s hard to take those public mini buses/vans if you’re not familiar with the city because these have no signs… the truth is I wasn’t able to take one unless I was with a local because most of the people out on the streets do not speak English. Still, there’s a lot of modern infrastructure here. There are modern, well kept areas. And like other huge cities, some areas are less developed and aren’t well taken cared off. The class divide was evident when I was walking around. In one area there were skyscrapers, then just a mile or two away I was walking around the slums. There are a couple of notable attractions. Meskel Square (first picture in the gallery above) is worth visiting. It’s often the site of mass gatherings, protests, and religious celebrations. In the morning you’ll see a lot of locals exercising. If you plan on traveling by bus within the country, you’ll end up here anyway because the ticketing offices of a lot of bus stations are located nearby (in front of St. Estifanos Church). There are a couple of parks, and to me Friendship Park is the most notable. The Addis Mercato is worth checking out— it’s massive and chaotic, the perfect place to see how locals go about their daily lives. There are lots of cheap stuff here too, you can buy your souvenirs here. The museums are also worth checking our if you’re interested in the country’s history. Back in school you’ve probably heard about Lucy— one of the most complete skeletons of early hominids found to date. Well if you’re interested in seeing her, you could see her in the National Museum of Ethiopia and it only costs 50 Birr (about 90 US cents) to enter!

Is it safe in Addis Ababa? Well nothing happened to me when I was walking around, but that was during the daytime. I encountered a couple of beggars, some trying to strike up a conversation before asking for money, but that’s pretty much it. Times are hard in Ethiopia, so I’m sure there’s a lot of petty crime. Back at the hostel, I was told that some guests were robbed at knifepoint just outside. Personally, I felt safe in the area where my hostel was. But just because nothing bad happened to me does not mean that the area is entirely safe.

How expensive is it in the city? I’d say it’s a mixed bag. Lodgings are pretty cheap. One time I stayed at a 4 star, almost brand new hotel, and I only paid USD 40 a night. But the food can be surprisingly expensive for a developing country. Even when I ate where the locals ate. You could get a meal for less than 250 Birr (about USD 4) but that’s usually just veggies and eggs. If you want something with meat, expect to pay more than 400 Birr (about 7 bucks). One time I bought a burrito in a restaurant and I paid 700 Birr— that’s about 12 dollars, which is more expensive than a burrito at Taco Bell! It’s weird how hotels seem to follow the market rate, while food seem to follow the black market rate. I’ve noticed the same in other cities and towns that I’ve visited. I often wondered why the government doesn’t just follow the black market rate since that seems to be the actual rate anyway. If they made the black market rate the actual rate, then it wouldn’t seem so expensive in Ethiopia.

How’s the food? Ask for Ethiopian food, and you’ll most probably be served Injera— it’s fermented flatbread and it’s a staple food all over the country. Since it’s fermented, it tastes sour— I actually thought I was served spoiled bread at first lol. It comes with a variety of toppings— beans, meat, veggies etc. The cheapest option is Injera with just Shiro Wot, which is basically a thick chickpea stew. Injera is so ubiquitous, it’s impossible not to eat Injera at least once while you’re in the country.

Addis Ababa is a pretty modern city. If you plan on basing yourself someplace in the country, it’s not too bad if you pick a good area with everything you need in close proximity. Public transportation isn’t efficient, and dealing with taxi drivers can get on your nerves. Traveling between places within the city could be a pain, so pick a location that’s close to malls, restaurants, drugstores, banks, etc. For digital nomads, Addis could be a good option since internet connection is stable in the capital, and it doesn’t seem to be affected by conflicts occurring elsewhere in the country… honestly, to many people in the capital, what’s going on elsewhere seems to be an afterthought. If you’re gonna explore the rest of the country (and you should!), there are good locations in Addis that are relatively close to the airport and bus stations. You’d keep coming back to the capital because a lot of other cities and towns in the country have no direct connections to each other, so you have to get used to this city. The rest of the country has so much to offer— but before heading elsewhere you need to plan your itinerary properly. Because the present situation in Ethiopia is tense. Many places aren’t totally safe, even for locals.