"Is that where Arabian Nights happened?" My little brother asked me. "No, G, that's Ali Ababa." It's not Arabian nights, but there is a different feel about this city. The first thing I thought when I walked out of the airport was, "where's all the noise?" Quiet. Calm. Posh. Measured. European. Plentiful.
*Must note that none of these pictures are mine - I forgot to take any!
I've never been to any country where the women were so beautiful - it's completely overwhelming, and I've caught myself staring at these deep-eyed Ethiopian women several times. Hopefully they haven't noticed. Their features are so delicate, and their hair is not quite like most African hair - it's a bit softer, so many more women wear it naturally and curly, which I love. The men are also beautiful, but it's not quite so shocking as the women.
The streets are paved, the buildings are built several stories, the cafes serve multiple kinds of tea and coffee. The merchandise is beautiful and good quality, the taxis are plentiful, the spas are high tech, and the power stays on. I feel a little bit like I've been introduced to food for the first time. Everything is so delicious - the cakes, the pastries, the lasagna, the coffee. I would definitely not lose my Africa weight if I lived here!
The clubs are posh, and it's safe to stay out all night. There are strobe lights and real cocktails and real bouncers. You can stay out all night without fear that some drunk police officer is going to stop and harass your driver. booya.
I arrived Friday afternoon, and Lisa and I went immediately for coffee and snacks (what I know as samosas are called 'sambusas' here)... then a quick happy hour with Lisa's fun friends at Black Rose, and we were off to a fancy Italian dinner. After that, there was an 'old school' party, which I initially thought meant we were going to hang out with boring old people... not so! It meant a throwback to 90s music, which was pretty awesome (yes, we danced to several Will Smith songs). After the music got lame, we went to another club called Flirt which is more like a lounge, and then Lisa and I felt the need for some serious dancing, so she got us into the VIP lounge at H20. These club names are so funny.
Well, by the time we woke up and ate breakfast (brought directly to Lisa's room, oh yeah!) on Saturday, it was time for lunch at a little French bistro called La Mandoline. I got soup n salad, Lisa got fish - but the best part was the dessert. Incroyable! Then it was an afternoon of shopping - we went to Mercato, the biggest open air market in Africa. I didn't find too much loot there, but had a lot more success at the oldest coffee shop in the country, Tabaca, and the silver market (oh yes).
One of the great things about working for Chemonics is that we do these incredible projects all over the world, and someone who doesn't even work on that project gets to enjoy learning about it and meeting the people who work on it. So - one of our projects is a regional trade hub project, and part of what it does is encourage entrepreneurs in the fashion industry. So I got to meet one of the designers and visit his shop - he has recently been featured in really cool magazines, and is getting quite a following in the U.S.!
Saturday night held more partying for us, and then Sunday was a spa day for me. I went to Boston Day Spa, where an hour long massage costs approximately $14. Again, incroyable. Monday was mostly spent in the airport and on planes (yes, who knew a 2 hour flight could take 8 hours? thanks, Ethiopian airlines), but I'm really happy to be back in Juba once again. I had this strange feeling of being ready to come home, home to Juba. I think that's a good sign :)
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