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Journal of African trips

African trip [I]

Agelasto
2004-05-20 20:57:33

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from Haile Selassie. I suggested that the young
man, who was a high school senior and spoke extremely good English, come back and show me
around town, in exchange for which I would buy him dinner. He, along with a friend, took me to
the Museum of Ethnography and then we went out for dinner.

Afterwards, they suggested we go to see some traditional Ethiopian dancing. As nightfall was
approaching I wanted to go back to the hostel, but we ended up going into the suburbs to a
walled compound with a lot of music and shaking and clucking that I assume was traditional Ethiopian dancing. One of the dancers asked me to buy her a drink. I asked how much that
would cost and never got an answer. When the next one asked, I refused. I told the students I
was ready to leave, and as we were leaving I was presented with a bill for the equivalent of US $
45 for 4 drinks. I realized I was quite outnumbered and a number of people were insisting that I
pay.

Foreign exchange (in other words US D) was acceptable, they said. I opened my wallet and
showed them how much money I had with me, the equivalent of about US $10. (I had taken out
all my US D before I left with the students, as Cairo was still fresh in my mind). I said that if they
wanted me to pay the rest of the bill I would have to go back to the hostel. The bar manager
wanted one of the student to remain at the bar, as a sort of hostage I guess, but I insisted that
both students return with me since they had both come with me. So we left the compound, which
probably was a brothel, and all got into a cab. After we arrived at the hostel, the students
disappeared (we had exchanged names and addresses earlier). Once the bar manager and I got
into the hostel, I told the owner to call the police so they could settle a dispute on my being
overcharged. The bar manager miraculously disappeared. The lesson: find out, before
experiencing, what traditional Ethiopian dancing entails, and if something's not listed in LP, forget
it.