Rich vs. Poor

It’s tough to sleep in late without being disturbed. At 5 AM, the mosque starts its prayers, and it goes on for hours. We always wake up when they begin. We’re taking advantage of the affordable massage option for as long as we can. We booked a session at Boston Day Spa, where the service is truly top-notch. At 2 PM, we need to take our malaria pills. We’re super precise about it since Africa has the most dangerous strain of malaria in the world. The more accurately you take the pills, the better they work. There are four different types of malaria, and the one in Africa is resistant to several types of medication. So we were incredibly lucky to buy Malarone from other tourists after ours got stolen. After the massage, we rushed to a supermarket to grab some food. Malarone is best taken with a bit of fatty food, so we picked up yogurt, bread, and cheese, which we enjoyed in the shade on the street. We quickly attracted the attention of some poor begging children. They can be incredibly annoying and intrusive when they’re asking for help. But the reality is, they are poor. It’s best not to give money to kids, as it only encourages them to keep begging. We had some leftover food that we gave to them. They found a piece of trash to use as a spoon for the yogurt. Traveling around such a poor country is tough. Everywhere we go, we’re met with waving hands, all turned palm-up towards us, asking for help! It can be exhausting over time. Every time we stop at a red light, people come up to the windows, often showing us their amputated limbs or infected wounds right inside the car. We’re lucky that we can head back to Denmark in a couple of days. We had dinner at Hamlet Steak House. They thought it was funny that we were from the same country as Hamlet. We enjoyed a nice steak for about 40 birr, paired with a bottle of South African red wine for 150 birr. Just before our food was served, the power went out in the whole area. So it became even more romantic with the candles on the tables. Luckily, the kitchen didn’t use an oven but an open grill to prepare the food, so the lack of electricity didn’t bother us. Addis is also known for its jazz clubs, so we headed there afterward. We’re not huge jazz fans, but it was a lot of fun to hear the band play.