Tag: Africa

Hyena Feeding, Harar, Ethiopia, 2009

Hyena Feeding #1, Harar, Ethiopia, 2009
Hyena Feeding #2, Harar, Ethiopia, 2009
Hyena Feeding #3, Harar, Ethiopia, 2009

The people of Harar have traditionally had a special relationship with hyenas, which, in addition to their role as scavengers, are believed to be able to carry off evil spirits by passing near a person so affected. The feeding of hyenas is carried out at two sites currently; one, the more popular with tourists, is at a muslim shrine (the locals are Sufis) outside the walls, and the feeder is the man who keeps the shrine. In addition to putting on a show of how close he gets to the animals while handing them their strips of camel meat, he will also let visitors feed the hyenas, handing them a stick pre-laden with meat, which the guest can then hold out for the hyenas. I fed them a few times, but did not take any photos while doing so.

Goat #3 (Chewing Chat), Harar, Ethiopia, 2009

Goat #3 (Chewing Chat), Harar, Ethiopia, 2009

This goat is partaking of the leaves of chat (qat), the favorite past-time and narcotic of choice of the Harari people. Only the young soft leaves are chewed to gain the narcotic effects (followed by a period of stimulation), so the rest are thrown into the street for the goats, with predictable results in terms of alternatively sedated and stimulated goats.

Cat #5, Harar, Ethiopia, July 2009

Cat #5a, Harar, Ethiopia, July 2009

Cat #5b, Harar, Ethiopia, July 2009

I was really interested in the second version of this image, with the cat looking into the laundry, when I was shooting it. On reflection, I think the a version is stronger, but I couldn’t resist sharing both.

That’s all the cat photos for this week–next week, dogs (more cat photos in the future!).

Update (17 April 2011): Apparently this photo has been turned into a mixed-media painting elsewhere on the internet:

[deviantART]

Link: BBC: Ethiopia’s passion for bureaucracy

This story at the BBC, on Ethiopia’s “passion for bureaucracy,” really hits the mark, and can perhaps give a little glimmer into what it is like to work or try to get anything done here.

Keep in mind that, though the writer doesn’t mention it, Ethiopians in general seem to have very little compunction about forgery, and the U. S. Embassy rates Ethiopian visa applicants extremely high in the fraud category. They always come in with all the right stamps, but who knows who actually stamped the damn thing. Bureaucrats will also take their stamps with them as they leave the office, as controlling information and supplies that are necessary to get the mission done is the Ethiopian equivalent of tenure: i. e. “you can’t fire me, because I am the only person who knows all the mission-critical information.”

But hey, you don’t become a bureaucrat in Ethiopia because you are fond of working!