Also known as Menelik’s Mausoleum, the Beta Maryam Mausoleum is located just south of Menelik’s palace in Addis Ababa and offers a pleasantly eerie experience for visitors. Beta Maryam from the outside: The entrance to Beta Maryam: The church interior: After the priest has rolled up the carpet and pried open the large metal door … Continue reading
Located just off Meskal Square, the Red Terror Martyr’s Memorial is a good way to get up to speed on the activities of the Derg. The Derg (or Dergue) was a communist military junta that came to power in Ethiopia following the ousting of Emperor Haile Selassie. Derg, which means “committee” was the short name … Continue reading
Set within Halie Selassie’s former palace (known to Ethiopians as Gannata Le’ul Palace) and surrounded by the beautiful gardens and fountains of Addis Ababa University’s main campus is the Ethnological Museum. Even if you’re not normally a museum fan, this one is worth a bit of your time. Aside from being a decent museum, on … Continue reading
I met Solomon while I was wandering around on my own near Meskal Square. His English was pretty good and before long he revealed that he had a special talent that he hoped to use to get into the Guinness Book of World Records… Solomon claimed that he could draw a self-portrait of himself with … Continue reading
Placed in one of the more modern sections of Addis Ababa, Meskal Square has a number of streets pouring into it – Bole Road, Ras Desta Damtew Street, Jomo Kenyetta Avenue, Menelik II Avenue, Ras Mekonen Avenue, Ras Biru Wolde Gebriel Street, etc. And those are just the main streets! Views of Meskal Square: One … Continue reading
The Taitu is the hotel my Italian and I stayed in while we were in Addis Ababa. We both really liked it and I would recommend it to others of you that might visit Addis Ababa someday. Built at the whim of Empress Taitu in 1907, it is the oldest hotel in Addis, and the … Continue reading
Addis Ababa, as Africa’s fourth-largest city, is massive and incoherent. It’s probably easiest when broken down into districts and neighborhoods and I have divided some posts up by district – such as the Merkato or Meskal Square – to reflect this reality. However, this post is about the areas of Addis Ababa that can’t be … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 