An Energetic Old Friend

Returning to Addis has been like becoming reacquainted with an old friend, but something has changed and you can't quite put your finger on it. The city still looks the same (minus the rampant construction) and there are still dirt roads, beggars, and muddy sidewalks galore, but the city has an indescribable energy. I have no idea what the countryside is like and think it's an interesting policy move to export energy to Djibouti before providing energy to the country's rural populations, but I'm blindly trusting that Meles and crew thought this one through...)

The changes were readily apparent the moment I stepped through immigration, looked at my phone, and found I had high-speed wifi. Whoa. I kind of looked around to make sure I was actually in Addis; in 2008, there was maybe 1 quasi-high speed internet cafe. Turns out there are a smattering of high-speed places that are a significant improvement over the dial-up days of yore. I spent most of my day in the Bole Road area (the Beverly Hills of Addis) but also ventured towards the main market and introduced myself at the main teaching hospital. Throughout the city, there was a buzz, an energy, an underlying wave of modernization that is sweeping up anyone and everything in its path.

Like I said above, construction is rampant. Not only that but I saw a skyscraper going up with actual metal scaffolding as opposed to gnarled branches that were held together with a nail and prayer. Sure, it's not much, but this is only the second time I've seen metal scaffolding in the country in my three visits. The number of street vendors and overall economic activity (at least in the Bole area) has grown exponentially and something about the city just seems different - Rick's kids who haven't been here in a year or two agree. I'm not sure if private investors are the driving force, or perhaps the Chinese, but it is occurring simultaneously with a weakening birrh and rising consumer prices. When I was here in 2008, it was 8 birrh/$1 USD and today it is 17 birrh/$1 USD; food prices are high and increasing; but there seems to be a rising middle class with money to spend in the Bole area, cars to drive, and investment opportunities (yes, this is all based on 7 hours of walking around two neighborhoods)

I wish I could explain it better. But it's like when you walk into Central Park on that first day of Spring and you can automatically sense a new, raw energy in the air.

I spent most of my day taking care of logistical arrangements - sleeping, phone, food, etc - and will be starting tomorrow morning with Rick in his clinic. I met with some people at Black Lion and will be attending some seminars there later next week, and I have a few other hospitals/clinics to check out tomorrow. Hopefully the new energy in this city will translate into some awesome clinical experiences.

Until then, I'm going to hang out with Rick's boys, catch up on my sleep, and reconnect with old friends.

(Since this is a shorter post, here is a link to a World Bank working paper looking at the issues surrounding Brain Drain around the world)