Why Ethiopia LOVES Bob Marley

Haile Selassie is the most adored Ethiopian of all time.  He led the country from 1930 to 1974, overcoming Italian invasions during the 1930s.  In fact, Ethiopia is the only African country to maintain independence during the colonial era.

But it is not for this reason that he was deemed the god, or "jah,"of Rastafari.  Legend has it that upon arrival for a visit in Jamaica, he ended a long drought.  The people of Jamaica believed he was the performer of this miracle; thus claiming him to be Jesus.  This was obviously an idea that Ethiopians could agree with, to say the least.

As we all know, Bob Marley was the head advocate of the Rastafari lifestyle, gaining the love and support of Ethiopians throughout his career as a musician.  So you see, there really is a strong...

                             

(Photo by: www.ethiopianrestaurant.com)

First Impressions (pt. 1)

Boston to Ethiopia was a much more grueling itinerary than you'd expect.  My dad and I had to stopover in New York and then Istanbul en route to Addis Ababa.  JFK is basically hell on earth in my opinion, but Turkish Airlines is a flight fit for royalty.  After more than a day of flying, we finally touched down in Ethiopia.

It was interesting to see what a graveyard of an airport Bole International really is.  I mean wow, the people looked like zombies in a place that just had the color sucked right out of it.  My first impression of the place was that it resembled a building in America from the 60s or 70s (even though I was never alive in those decades, it still felt like a time machine).  That's kind of what Ethiopia's like...they're behind on things, like architecture.

Stepping out of the airport is always my favorite part of the trip.  That's how you know you're all done with the traveling; the sitting, the waiting, the standing, the wailing babies seated two rows away from you.  It was great to just breathe some air and look over the lights that illuminated the sleepy city of Addis.

Introduction

So far there's two trips planned for 2013:

a.)  the late June visit (which, indeed, has already happened) to get a grasp on the lay of the land; and b.)  the month long voyage in Aug/Sept in which I will be filming instructional videos with Ethiopian citizens.

 I'll be posting everything from pictures, videos, conversations, thoughts...you name it!  This is a journal of my own experiences in Ethiopia.