When I traveled to Ethiopia in February of 2004 to get my first Ethiopian daughter, my daughter and I stayed at a hotel called the Ghion. It is a mid-range hotel in the center of Addis not far from Churchill Road, not too fancy, but not bad either. Our suite was in a long building detached from the main hotel. The bungalows were two stories high, with walls that looked like they should be part of a castle-- small square windows set very high, and beautiful thick decorative block walls.

Our room was on the main level and there was one room above ours. In... more