Goodbye Harar

Monday 6th Oct...(cont)

After saying goodbye to Hiwot, I ran into our friend Tedi, a 20 year old orphan who makes his money as an unofficial guide in the city. I took him and his friend for a Fanta and a cake before he took me to buy some Amharic pop music in the market. His friends played me about 50 songs that I was not allowed to go home without! I managed to escape with three CDs which I'll be playing as soon as I'm home. Tedi then took me to buy some incense. We negotiated a fair price then went to a local woman's house where Tedi put some incense on the charcoal burner to show me what good quality it was!

Tedi was keen for me to stay for the evening as there was a big festival in the town, which is organised to help local young men meet potential wives! I asked him if he was hoping to find someone there. He told me he was afraid that local girls may have HIV so he and his friends go for fun but that's all. He gets an HIV test every three months and is worried for the future of himself and his friends. He is a bright guy; his five languages are a testament to this. I'm hoping to get him involved in Hope Enterprises' programme in Addis Ababa so he can continue his education as he so desperately wants.

I left Harar at sunset, narrowly avoiding a fight that had broken out at the bus station. One guy was beating the other with a stick whilst the other hurled rocks at the first before running away. The hour and a half's drive back to Dire Dawa was peaceful enough. As the darkness descended I realised how few places had any electricity outside the two towns. Herds of cows, goats and groups of farmers were making their ways home - just the end of another typical day for hundreds of Ethiopians.