By Brian Gillis FEBRUARY 2012 – ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA: “Ok, now you are in Africa.” After a longer than anticipated stay in Egypt waiting unsuccessfully for Sudanese visas, we had at last arrived by plane in Ethiopia and were, we were told, finally in Africa—at least according to two of my friends, one of whose […]
Read MoreLife in stride: Triza’s saga & the Ethiopian Higher Ed experience 0
By Dave Silvestri [Names changed to conceal identity] [DATE] – ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA: Triza was not just a hotel receptionist, though I first met her in that role. As I would learn, she was also a primary school teacher of Amharic language, and a student attending a distance learning program at Addis Ababa University. Her […]
Read MoreSolomon’s story (Part 2) 1
By Dave Silvestri [A continuation from Solomon’s story (Part 1); Names changed to conceal identity.] FEBRUARY – ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA – When Solomon’s mother finally left home for the last time to return to her after-hours vocation at Gondar’s bars in Northwestern Ethiopia, she left her son to the care of her step-mother—the boy’s step-grandmother, his grandfather’s […]
Read MoreSolomon’s story (Part 1) 0
By Dave Silvestri [Names changed to conceal identity] FEBRUARY – ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA: As night falls in Addis Ababa, they take their places in the shadows at the sidewalk’s edge. Not dozens—hundreds. Most in their teens or early twenties. Like statues, they wait. Hands buried in their pockets, hooded sweatshirts and jackets hinting at the […]
Read MoreMorning Rounds at Addis Ababa’s Black Lion Hospital 1
By Dave Silvestri JANUARY 24, 2012 – ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA: My research was nearing completion at Addis Ababa University Faculty of Medicine, and having just spent nearly three weeks planning, administering, and collecting questionnaires in the classrooms and administrative offices of the school’s affiliated Black Lion Hospital (the largest public hospital and major referral center […]
Read MoreHers is a longer road than ours 0
By Dave Silvestri [Identities have been altered to preserve the anonymity of individuals represented.] DECEMBER / JANUARY – CAIRO, EGYPT: It was Day 1 in Cairo, and after waiting in line for what seemed like several hours, Brian finally made his way to the passport window at the crowded Embassy of Sudan. The Embassy itself […]
Read MoreAlexandria’s New Lighthouse 0
By Brian Gillis JANUARY 4 – ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT: Alexandria is often described as the world’s most historical city with nothing left to show for it. People who travel long and far to see the palaces of Cleopatra or the mighty Pharos lighthouse—one of the original seven ancient wonders of the world—will sadly be disappointed to […]
Read More2012: Can Egypt learn from Nepal? 0
By Dave Silvestri DECEMBER 24 – CAIRO, EGYPT: It was Christmas Eve, and we were in Cairo. Having been delayed in Amman, Jordan until our oversized bags arrived from Delhi, we now quickly found ourselves stationary once again—this time awaiting the processing of our Sudan entry visas, a procedure that just months earlier had consistently […]
Read MoreReflections on a Revolution 1
By Brian Gillis DECEMBER 22 – CAIRO, EGYPT: He was my best friend in Egypt. Of course, this isn’t saying much given that I had only been in the country for two days, and that he knew that I was about to hand over four Egyptian pounds for a hefty and delicious breakfast of whole […]
Read MoreConsumption in Dubai: but at whose expense? 1
By Dave Silvestri NOVEMBER 27 – DUBAI, UAE: Although merely an extended layover for me en route from South Asia, for many Dubai is a place of escape. Step into the international airport, and you are bombarded by luxury boutiques, leather sofa high-class cafes, indoor palm trees, and elaborate holiday decorations. Jumbo LCD displays inviting […]
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