Ethiopia - Day 3 - Addis Ababa - Best Western Plus Hotel

Bole International airport reminded me of Mexico and Saipan.  A bit more laid back and slow moving lines. By the amount of luggage some of the Ethiopians were carrying I think they must all shop at Costco.
I was glad to have got my eVisa on line saving me standing in the line to get a visa there.  Having printed off the wrong visa, however,  all I could do was show them the eVisa on my cell phone.  The young tech savvy Ethiopian custom agents were alright with this.   I passed through without hassle though being hearing impaired I have the greatest difficulty hearing people talking through glass windows in noisy crowded rooms. She was very patient with me.
I used the money exchange in the custom area.  This was a bit unsettling.  I gave them $300.  A pretty young lady walked away with that and my passport. Now it must have been shift change as suddenly a whole new set of people were coming into the glassed currency exchange area.  They were carrying large wads of 100 Brrr bills with an elastic band around each wad.  All the money appeared  old and  well used. Not easily traceable.   The whole operation looked a bit like a meth lab operation. Without sleep,  I have an overactive imagination, so figured the girl had just left with my money and my passport.    But no, she returned and gave me the largest wad of cash I’ve every held. I could hardly stuff it in my pant pocket it was so large. Now I looked like a lustful Satyr.  The exchange is $100 US to 2800 ETB (Theiopian Brr). I had nearly $10,000 in my pant pocket.
I hadn’t arranged for a hotel shuttle which I could easily have done since the airport was quite close to the uptown hotel.  I avoided the people who came up to me asking if I wanted a taxi or ride suggestinng I follow them.  That was a Lonely Planet recommendation. Outside I approached a lovely young well dressed woman who spoke English where the busses and taxi’s were congregated  Looking out from the airport this was  at the far left of the international parking lot.  I showed her where I was going and she called a taxi driver. I asked the price (always ask the price before getting into a taxi anywhere) and was told 300 ETB.
I was glad that I only had carry on luggage, back pack and wheeled bag. The baggage terminal I passed had fairly chaotic.There were a number of airport security dressed in blue and sand camp.   Everyone was really nice but it was dark.  There’s that Jimmy Buffet, Changes in Lattitude Changes in Attitude thing.  I was definitely in the tropics and felt like I felt stepping off the plane in Malaysia. Just like Saipan, one of the safest places I’ve been in the world,I am suddenly anxious in the dark.  They  just don’t  waste of lot of energy on public lighting.
Once in the taxi the driver who didn’t speak English headed out away from the airport. We were following a larger group of cars and buses when he veered left into darkness down a dirt road. There were pockets of light around a corner store but poor sitting  along the road just like the bad part of DTES or LA or San Francisco.  This road wasn’t paved.  I felt like the last time I was in Mexico and got off the beaten track.
He pulled up beside  large group of men standing by the road.   More  came out of the darkness. I thought, this is it. Here’s where the mugging and hostage taking happen.  He changed his mind as if he could read the hyperactive paranoid mind of the addled gringo.  It was obvious in a second that all he’d been about to ask was  directions  to the hotel.  We just  had to follow  a turn around and there was the Best Western on the other side of the street.   Brightly lit in the darkness. We were suddenly in an uptown district with other hotels more lights and restaurants lit up.  Uniformed hotel help came out to assist me getting out of the car. My bag had to go through a metal detector machine like I was going into court.  I emptied my pockets and cell phone into a tray.
It was only 9 pm.  I’d survived a hostage taking, mugging and had my bodily parts sold to the highest bidder in the 15 minute drive from the airport to the hotel. For this reason I try to arrive in a new country in the daylight. It’s no different when I have to sail my yacht into a new harbour.  I was glad to tip the fellow another 50 Brrr if only because I’d accused him in my mind of being a serial murderer and body parts salesman.  I really was exhausted from the long flight and happy to be greeted so pleasantly by the hotel staff.
It was just like New York.  I kept hold of my bags and checked in without a glitch.  I spoke to the Concierge and arranged for a guide to take me to some museums and art galleries for 3 or 4 hours the next day.  He’s a ‘friend’ who has his ‘government tourist license’ and changes $70 Canadian for one on one day guiding. I’d paid something similar in other places in the world.  $50 to $100 seems a reasonable price for a one on one tour guide with his own car and credential. I consider my kidneys and other body parts are thankful for my consideration of hiring a guide.
When I got to my room he Neilsen had called me and suggested we meet in the morning at 9 am as the museum opened then and morning was the best time to go to the museums. No different from what our day group guide had told us in Rome. The early bird gets less line ups and less congestion.
“I will take you to the National Museum first.  After that I’d like to take you to the top of a local mountain where you can have the best view of Addis Abeba.  Do you like churches.?” Neilsen said over the very good landline phone connection. He may as well have  have been in the same room.
“Yes,” I said.
“Well, I’ll take you to the Palace Museum then. It’s very good for church history. There are other choices we can talk about but that should take at least 3 or 4 hours.
‘Excellent.  I’m a Christian and interested in churches.”
“Good, I’ll meet you in the lobby at 9 am”.
My room is classic Best Western. Motorcycling across the US on my Harley I use them whenever possible.   Like the Holiday Inn.  Clean modern, soaps and shampoos in the washroom, bidet and new toilet, clean sheets, clean towels.  Lots of tech plug ins.  Modern tv I’ve not even turned on yet.  Pleasant decor.  Balcony with city view. I loved my Best Western in Athens looking over the harbour with breakfast on the roof.  The Internet in the room was down but all rooms have internet and the instructions said call staff if any problem. I called in the morning and I just needed the new password.
I unpacked and  had a wonderful shower with hot water. I felt wonderful.  The bed was heavenly too.   I slept so deeply tigers and hyenas could have come into the city, taken the elevator to the 9th floor and torn me limb from limb.   I’d not have woken.
I'd used up $50 of cell roaming data because  I forgot to shut off all the iPhone connection under the iPhone cellular heading. All these apps are still working in the background running up long distance charges. The worst is facebook.  The next worst is the weather channel.   Also there’s a queue so I’m not getting any important messages till all the advertising and trash mail clears the system.  I’m paying for that too.
I woke at 3 am feeling great.  No bed bugs and no swarms of malaria carrying mosquitoes had swarmed under the doorway while I slept.  Now I had text messages with the pharmacists numbers so phoned Vancouver to cover for patients.  All doctors hate the long intro messages that the pharmacists have before a doctor can actually speak to a staff person and then to a pharmacist.  This irritation in Canada is royally annoyin.  It’s worse when you’re phoning long distance around the world and put on hold.  One woman pharmacist was obviously experienced and expedited the process professionally with brief pertinent sharing of critical information in a short to the point call. The other younger woman pharmacist I called was not so attuned.
Having waited  and called through the Electronic Telephone Wall that makes anything Trump is proposing at a border child’s play compared to the digital security that surrounds the pharmacist today particularly protectimg him from the physician, I actually got a human voice.
“Hello.”
“Hello, this is Dr. William Hay, My college number is X.  I’m phoning long distance  from Ethiopia Africa and my cell connection is not very good.” I said.
“”I’ll have to put you on hold and get the pharmacist.”she said.
“Please don’t put me on hold.” I said to the sounds of elevator music.
“Yes, this is the pharmacist. How may I help you.?
“This is Dr. William Hay. I’m phoning from Ethiopia Africa on a poor cellular connection. My college number is X.  I’m phoning about my patient, Mr. Y, who missed seeing me on Friday. He didn’t get the message I was going to be on vacation. Would you extend his prescription till Tuesday. His name is Mr Y and his birthdate is Z.  "
“I can’t find this patient.”  I spelt the patient’s name and repeated his birthdate information.
“Can you give me his PHN#."
“No I’m phoning from Ethiopia. I’m not at the office.  He’s a regular patient of your pharmacy for the last 5 years. He’s a very reliable patient. He has diabetes and a variety of other illnesses.  He  is on a half dozen medication and comes to the pharmacy every week."
“Who am I speaking to? What is your name, doctor?.”
“i’m Dr. Willaim Hay. I”m the psychiatrist and addiction expert . My college number is X and my pharmanent number is Y.'
“Yes, I see the patient’s name here.  But you need to fax me a prescription for me to extend his medication.'
“I’m in Africa. I can’t fax you a prescription. You can extend the prescription for this purpose. The patient is a very good patient who is very responsible but he needs his medications over the weekend.  HE simply didn’t know I would be on vacation last Friday.  Would you pease extend my prescription for a couple of days till he can see my colleague who will be in the office next week."
“I understand you want to give me a verbal order but what date do you want the prescription to run to."
“Tuesday.  From Friday to Tuesday.” I said calmly.
“What date is that?"
“I don’t have a calendar. It’s 3 am here and I’m phoning from my hotel room."
“I’ll need a faxed copy for the prescription."
“I told you I can’t fax a prescription but I’ll have the clinic contact you next week. I’m back in town in a couple of weeks and will be able to sort out all the paper work then."
“What is your name again, Dr. Y."
“That’s the patients name. I’m Dr. William Hay.”  I had to repeat and correct the name of the medication ,spelling it out for her, and then correct her mistakes twice on the dosage of medication.   Then finally.
“Yes, Dr. Hay. Alright I can do that.”  She has that peculiar female tone of voice that says “You are wrong. You should not be asking me to do anything out of the ordinary.  You have ruined my day and you shouldn’t be a doctor.”  I’ve spent years practicing tone of voice not to elicit this response. Servile, begging works best in Canada.
I hung up.
I need another vacation. I was exhausted. I have calls like that daily.  I breathe, let  the stress release.  I wonder if any of my $150 roaming package is left.    I must stay calm. I pray. It’s all good for my spiritual growth.
I texted our clinic manager back. She’ll contact the patient.  She is very good.   The patient was very anxious.   He won’t need to go to the hospital.
I’m going back to bed.  My clock says 630 am. My phone says 430 am. There’s a sliver of pink dawn and it’s lightning up outside. My clock is wrong. A new day.  I’m on vacation. I feel jet lagged.   I’d better shower, dress and have breakfast before my guide arrives.  I’m really looking forward to the famed Ethiopian coffee.