Long Live The Sar

I tried to fly to Ethiopia today, tried being the key word. My plots were foiled by a piece of bureaucratic red tape I like to call the "Nigerian Transit Visa." Apparently one must procure a transit visa from the Nigerian Embassy, a week(s) long process, prior to having a 3-hr layover in the lovely Lagos Airport. I am thrilled that Nigeria is so peaceful and without strife that their government has the time and energy to prevent me from resting in their airport, however, this little bit of African bureaucracy at its best is infuriating. Lesson Learned: NEVER CONNECT THROUGH NIGERIA But as Nanny Rita told me when she dropped me back off at home, things always happen for a reason and so I like to think that some divine being wanted me to stay home tonight so that I could write this pre-departure blog post. It's funny how something as exotic and different as Ethiopia can quickly be reduced from the frightening to the familiar. Preparing for my return to the motherland th...

I have been relaxing for the last 3 weeks or so, taking it very, very, very easy (including blogging). I hope to pick it back up once I get back to GSO, but I am currently vacationing in Southampton, NY (not too shabby). But driving by the Hampton Coffee shop I was overwhelmed by the smell of coffee being roasted and a flood of memories came back - coffee ceremony, macchiatos while rain pounded the tin roof, Abebe, and a million other images. Funny how a smell triggers these intense memories. On another note, saw this editorial on Foreign Policy's website discussing how African countries that don't have oil or other major natural resources may be better off in the long run "Sudden cash flows in unprepared countries, he says, lead to unsustainable public consumption, rising inflation, soaring inequality, trade protectionism, and a real danger of civil war." Ethiopia doesn't have to worry about any major sudden cashflows but they most certainly fit into the ...