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I thought it might be fun to share the journals I’ve come across, written by people who have spent time in Ethiopia for various reasons. For each journal, I’ll share the link, tell a little about the person, and then quote a few sentences from their journal so you can get a feel for their writing.
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Coco in the Field: Day Three — On the Road to Jimma. Coco McCabe is an American woman working with Oxfam , gathering stories about the work Oxfam is doing in Ethiopia.
Poverty clings in narrow pockets to the side of the road as it winds high through the hills. It’s almost too easy to look beyond the tiny huts, the dirt-packed yards, the ragged clothing of people resting along the roadside. Below them, the sun splashes across the plains where herds of livestock graze at the edge of tilled fields and the green of the pastures balances so perfectly against the red Ethiopian dirt.
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Kevandsian’s Travel Blogs -This is a 2003 journal entry from a couple who went globetrotting for two and a half years.
We camped in the nice gardens of a once grand hotel overlooking the royal enclosure, which proved to be a mistake as their easter holiday celebrations started at 5.30 am the next morning by loud speaker. Honestly, Kev was ready to find that speaker and shoot at it on sight he was so unimpressed!
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This is the (Ethiopi-) End – Chris and Lara are another globtrotting couple. This journal entry is from early 2005.
History isn’t from a book in Ethiopia, you live it walking through the streets. People wear robes and carry staffs, mules cart goods, and homes are made of rock, mud and cow dung. Luckily our hotels were not, but they weren’t that great either. Running water is viewed as a luxury item in many places, including some of our hotels.
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Becs and Chris’s Travel Blog – Up the aisle then round the world. These newlyweds loaded up with Imodium and headed off. First stop Ethiopia. March, 2006.
…[Bec] obligingly donated a packet of biscuits to a local boy and tipped him 5 birr (about 30p) for showing us the sites. Problema? Well the boy happened to be a novice monk who was not only in the middle of his 55 day fast but must also NEVER accept money. Am hoping he didn’t have to say too many Hail Mary’s that night.
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Adam Katz, World Traveler – He’s traveling the world with a laptop, trying to start up a new career as a travel writer and photographer.
One thing that I did struggle with was the use of gasps by the Ethiopians. In the Western world, a gasp is a sign of utter shock and terror. In Ethiopia, it means “yes”. The two meanings for the same sound, are completely contrary. For months, any time that anyone gasped – and it happened a lot – I’d jump a bit. But slowly, I got used to it, and by the time I left Addis I started using it myself.
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Know of other journals? Share your links in comments.
