After Lalibela, my plan was to visit Harar. This wasn’t in my plan before I arrived in Ethiopia, but it was highly recommended by several travelers I’ve met at the hostel in Addis Ababa. Since I’d be flying back to Addis, I was planning on spending a night in Addis and take one of those early morning buses to Harar. Yeah, you could easily take a bus from Addis to Harar. The roads leading to Harar are considered safe. As I’ve mentioned on my blog entry about Addis, you can buy bus tickets near Meskel Square, right in front of the St. Estifanos Church. A one way bus ticket would cost about 900 – 1,200 Birr (about USD 16-20), depending on the company running the bus. Take note that there are different bus stations in Addis— you have to ask where the bus will leave specifically. You should also take note of Ethiopian Time. I got confused the first time I bought a bus ticket because the time they wrote on the ticket is different from the time we’ve agreed upon. You see, Ethiopians use a modified 12 hour system wherein a new day begins at sunrise instead of midnight. This was how Africans used to tell time. There’s a difference of 6 hours. So when you’re in Ethiopia, 6 AM (sunrise) is 12 AM on Ethiopian time. 7AM is considered the first hour of daytime, so that’s hour number 1 (1 AM). When purchasing bus tickets, make sure that the bus would depart at the time you are familiar with. They’d usually ask for a local number because based on my experience, they will call you one to two hours before departure. Usually, these people calling do not understand English, but it gives me comfort whenever they call. At least I know I still have about an hour before the bus leaves.
So that was all set… until I realized I could take an afternoon flight from Addis to Dire Dawa, the closest airport to Harar. Dire Dara is a popular destination from Addis due to local demand so there are multiple flights daily (8 flights a day!). I checked the price, and since I flew to the country via Ethiopian Airlines it wasn’t that expensive… I only had to pay about 50 bucks. I really didn’t want to spend another night in Addis, so I decided to do this instead. It would sure beat spending more than 12 hours in a bus. I did some research. Heading to Harar from the airport in Dire Dawa seemed simple enough. From the airport, I’d just take a bajaj (tuk-tuk) and tell the driver to take me to where the mini buses to Harar would be leaving from. There are loads of mini buses heading to Harar. It would only cost about 100 Birr (less than 2 bucks), and I just had to make sure I get there before nightfall because the last mini bus leaves at 7 PM. It wouldn’t be a problem since I planned on taking the 3:20 PM flight. It’s just a one hour flight, I’d have plenty of time.
Just my luck, the flight got delayed by a whopping four hours– which frequently happens on this route, I’ve been told. So if you’re going to take domestic flights in the country, keep your schedule flexible. i tried to get on one of the later flights because those seemed to be on time, but I’ve been informed that all of the later flights were fully booked. When we were still at the airport at 6 PM, I knew there was no way I could take a mini bus from Dire Dawa to Harar, so i contacted the guest house where I’d be staying and inquired about options. He said he could ask someone to pick me up at the airport but it’s gonna be more expensive during the night time. He’s asking for 4000 Birr. Yeah, I should have just spent the night in Addis and took a bus, it would have been waaaaaay cheaper even if I got scammed by a taxi driver lol. But what’s done is done. I couldn’t cancel the flight and get a refund. I agreed to pay 4,000 Birr to be picked up at the airport.
The airport in Dire Dawa is small, so I easily found the driver. It took a little more than an hour to reach Harar. Along the way there were lots of hitchhikers. Apparently a lot of people still needed to go to Harar. I thought to myself mini buses should be running til late, they could just charge extra… but I’ve been told that drivers don’t find it safe driving to Harar at night. Apparently there are some bandits in the area. I chose to stay inside the Jugol (the historic center) so all the attractions would be within walking distance. There’s one drawback though: everything closes early inside the Jugol. All shops and restaurants are gonna be closed by 9 PM. This was gonna be a problem for me because I’d be arriving at around 9:30 PM. The manager of the guest house was kind enough to buy me food just as the nearby restaurant was about to close. That was a nice surprise and i was very grateful because I was so tired and hungry when i arrived.
At first i was afraid i wasn’t going to find any place to stay. The weird thing is, very few hotels and guesthouses in Harar (or Harer) are listed on popular booking website. I asked the manager of the guesthouse about this, and he said it’s because most hotel and guesthouse operators in the region find it expensive to have their establishments listed on those websites. Thus, those few that are listed are usually fully booked. Since most hotels and guesthouses accept bookings directly, just do search on the internet, and a couple of establishments would pop up. Still, many don’t even have their own websites at all. I’ve been told that reservations were made the old fashioned way: by calling. If you want to save money, just book for one night if you’re planning on spending a couple of days in Harar (I’d recommend spending 2-3 nights). Then just look for a cheaper place the next day. There are lots of cheap guest houses inside the Jugol, and these aren’t listed on any website.
Harar is often referred to as the City of Peace. It’s been said that when the prophet Muhammad was exiled, he was able to seek refuge in Harar and he was welcomed by the people even though majority of them at that time were Christians. Even now, Christians and Muslims live in harmony in this town. You hear that, people in the back? It’s entirely possible for people of different religions to co-exist in peace. People who use religion to justify wars and violent acts have a distorted view of religion. People of different faiths do not have to be enemies.
Nowadays, Harar is a predominantly Muslim city, and it’s clear when you start exploring. There are 82 mosques inside the Jugol, and Harar is often referred to as the fourth holiest city in Islam. The locals are friendly, a number would strike up a conversation with no agenda. However, it’s still a popular tourist destination. A lot of people would offer to be your guide, even those who aren’t even actual tour guides. Ignore them, you don’t need a guide in Harar, unless you want someone to explain everything you’re seeing, or bring you to places that aren’t well known. If this is what you want though, it’s better to ask the staff at your accommodation for recommendations, instead of taking a risk with some random person saying he’s a tour guide. The going rate seems to be 2,000 Birr for a full day private tour, which doesn’t include the entrance to museums if you want to check some out. I did end up going with a guide even though I wasn’t looking for one. How I met him is quite a story.
So I was minding my own business walking around the Harar Jugol. The alleyways are fascinating, it’s like a colorful maze. If you’re into photography, you are going to have a field day. I checked out all the gates— there were 5 in total. Several locals would strike up a conversation every now and then, some would invite me to check out their shops or whatever, and I’d politely say no. There are a number of museums too, if that’s your thing. There’s a street lined with tailors and handymen making and repairing clothes, shoes and other stuff— pretty convenient because I needed to have my shoe repaired. After walking around the Jugol for about 3 hours or so, I decided to head to the meat market known as Gidir Magala. It’s a famous attraction in Harar because at this place, you can feed kites.
On the way to the meat market, some local who didn’t speak English at all started to walk with me. He kept saying stuff I didn’t understand, but I was pretty sure he was trying to be a guide. I was also pretty sure he wasn’t a licensed guide… real guides in Ethiopia know basic English at least. I was being polite so I didn’t turn him away. I figured he’d eventually get the message because we couldn’t understand each other lol. The weird thing is, he kept walking with me, pointing to different stuff, speaking a language i couldn’t understand. Eventually we reached the market. I stopped and took pictures— I sure took my time, trying to subtly get away from him, yet he still kept following me. Then one dude suddenly showed up, asking me if I knew the guy beside me. I said no. He then asked if the guy was bothering me. I said no too, I told him I didn’t mind him tagging along. They then spoke to each other, then this new dude told me that the guy following me wanted to show me around the Jugol for a fee— so I was right. This dude following me was trying to be a guide, and he was doing it very badly haha. The new dude introduced himself, let’s just call him Brother A. He was very transparent right off the bat. He told me that unlike this other dude, he is a legitimate tour guide and he can offer me his services if I was looking for a guide. I told him I’ve already walked around the Jugol that morning so i didn’t need one. I just came to the market to try feeding some kites, grab some lunch afterward, take a nap, then wake up in the evening to check out the hyenas— arguably the main attraction in Harar.
He directed me to where I could buy some meat. for 50 Birr, they’d give you 7 scraps of meat, enough to feed 7 kites. The butcher also serves as some sort of a guide I guess, because he told me where to stand and how to feed kites. That was quite awesome, I’d recommend this activity to anyone visiting Harar. It costs less than a buck, you can’t lose. After this, Brother A invited me to the restaurant nearby because he wanted to introduce me to his friend. This friend was eating camel meat with Injira, something i’ve never tried before. His friend asked me to try some. I do love trying exotic dishes, and to be honest it looked delicious…. and it was. He asked me where I was from, what I was doing in Ethiopia— usual questions locals asked travelers. He asked me if i’ve tried Spriss. I said no, and he immediately ordered one for me. Basically it’s a smoothie made of three to four fruits, commonly made of avocado, papaya, and mango. It’s purely made of fruits. They don’t add water, they don’t add ice, they don’t add milk. Thus, it’s very thick. It tasted real good, but you might want to order some water on the side to help wash it down. After lunch, I asked him how much I owed him. He told me I owed him nothing. I was his guest, so lunch was his treat.
That felt pretty odd— to be treated by a local you just met. It was kind of a red flag to be honest. I wasn’t born yesterday, and I’ve been scammed several times while traveling so I can’t help but feel a little paranoid. There’s even two of them now— Brother A and Brother B. I could easily be cornered if i let my guard down. I told them I’d be heading back to Addis the next day, and I’d be taking the bus instead of flying. I told them about the flight delay and i wouldn’t want to risk it. I’ve also heard that the views on the road back to Addis were great. They then offered to accompany me to the ticketing office. They were a huge help because the people manning the ticketing office didn’t speak English at all. They even showed where the bus station is, because in Harar there were several. It depends on which company runs the bus, and my bus would be leaving from the station just across the Asmadin Gate. After this, we headed back to the Jugol for some coffee. Ethiopia is said to be the birthplace of coffee, and some say that Harar coffee is the best one so i had to try it. I’m not a coffee person but if it’s supposed to be the best then I guess i should try it lol. Over coffee, he told me more about his life. Apparently he owns a resort in town, which explains why he seemed pretty well off. Not just because he treated me lunch. I could tell by the way he dressed— he stands out in the crowd. Everyone also seemed to know him, I thought he was the city mayor at first lol. I mentioned the hyenas again and brother A said he could take me there for only 700 Birr, which includes payment for the hyena man. They’ve been pretty good company so far, and it’s been more than two hours and they haven’t tried to scam me yet. So even though i thought I didn’t need a guide, I agreed. Once we’ve finished our coffee, brother B didn’t make me pay again, insisting i was his guest. he then invited us to hang out at his place.
In my head, i thought if i was gonna get mugged by these two, it was gonna be at his place. Good thing i didn’t have much money on me. He asked me if i’ve ever tried Khat. I said I have heard of it but i’ve never tried it. He said I needed to try it because everyone in Harar chews Khat. Khat is a plant that contains cathinone— a substance that’s illegal in many countries. It’s a stimulant, and its effects have been likened to amphetamine. In the back of my head, i was thinking a drugged up faranji would make an easy prey, but i dunno… after spending a couple of hours with these guys, i felt that I could trust them? It’s pretty foolish to completely trust locals you’ve just met, especially in a developing country like Ethiopia, but I decided to go along with it.
So back at his place, which was real cozy by the way, they taught me how to chew Khat. You only chew the softest parts, basically the leafy tips of each stem, and throw out the rest. You chew em for a couple of minutes before swallowing. They drink Sprite while chewing to dull the slightly bitter taste. Eventually we talked about serious stuff, maybe because they were getting high. lol. We talked about current events, both within Ethiopia and internationally. Then it turned to religion and politics— which usually turns ugly, but it didn’t. I said they were getting high because i surely wasn’t. I dunno why. Maybe it’s because i ate too much for lunch, i still felt real full that time. Or maybe it’s because i’ve had too much weed in the past, i’ve become desensitized somehow, idk. Even many hours later, when all the food i’ve eaten was surely digested, I still felt perfectly normal. For some reason, i’m immune to the effects of Khat.
All this time, I was still waiting for them to surprise me, i was waiting for the charades to end. I already felt really comfortable with them that I’ve let my guard down. Still, I told myself, these guys could be playing the long game. I was waiting for them to corner me and ask for money or whatever. That moment never came. There are still many genuinely good people in the world, and i felt a little guilty when we said goodbye because I let some doubt remain.
I headed back to the guesthouse and met up with brother A at around 7 PM to head to the hyenas. There are actually two feeding sites in Harar, both just outside the walls of the Jugol. One is at the north, while the other one is at the east. Usually there are more hyenas on the eastern feeding site, but since we were closer to the northern one, brother A suggested we check that out first. If there aren’t many hyenas, we could head to the one on the east. They hyena men would charge 500 Birr for tourists, and 200 for locals. If you’re with a guide who’s good friends with the hyena men, maybe you can haggle. So you get three opportunities to feed the hyenas, feeding them camel meat on skewers. How did this practice start? it’s been said that the people of Harar have been feeding hyenas for centuries through holes in the walls so they won’t attack people and livestock. Nowadays, the hyenas freely feed on scraps on the land fills just outside the walls. This seemed to work, because there have been no recorded hyena attacks in Harar, while there have been in neighboring towns. Feeding hyenas also became part of Muslim tradition. During the Islamic festival of Ashura, locals feed bowls of porridge to hyenas. This takes place on the tenth day of the first month of the Islamic calendar. If the hyenas eat the porridge, it is considered a good omen. Feeding hyenas is pretty thrilling— mainly because of the fact that these are wild animals. These aren’t tamed or domesticated. Thus, safety isn’t assured. Thankfully, there has been no instance wherein these hyenas have attacked anyone who has been feeding them. The hyena men would instruct you on how to behave and how to feed the hyenas, and it’s in everyone’s best interest to follow instructions!
If you’re looking for some nightlife, there’s none inside the Jugol, but there are a couple of bars open just outside the walls, and even more in the modern parts of the city. I grabbed some beers with brother A before we said our goodbyes. And he’s been such good company, I gave him more than double the amount we agreed upon. I’d highly recommend visiting Harar to anyone who’s heading to Ethiopia. There’s a lot to see and do, and most are within the vicinity of the Jugol, so one whole day would suffice. It’s definitely worth checking out even if you don’t have much time in the country. Harar is unique, and this city offers experiences you won’t soon forget.
no roads to follow 