Cities

Awassa

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De gezellige en verrassend ruim opgezette, snel ontwikkelende stad Awassa ligt 275 km. ten zuiden van de hoofdstad van Ethiopie, Addis Abeba langs de asphaltweg naar Moyale. Op 1685 m. hoogte gelegen heeft Awassa een aangenaam klimaat en daarbij ook een mooie ligging aan het Awassa meer. Voorheen was het de hoofdstad van het Sidama gebied en tegenwoordig de hoofdstad van de SNNPR federale staat. Er wonen 150.000 mensen van 50 verschillende ethnische bevolkingsgroepen zoals Sidama, Wolayta, Hadya, Kambate, Gurage, Amhara en Tigray die elkaar allemaal op hun eigen wijze groeten met: "Kero", "Saro", "Tumma", "Yimtebel", Tenestilign", Akam", of "Kemyalahum". Awassa is als een kleurrijke regenboog met een kaleidoscoop aan volkeren en talen.

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Addis Abeba

History

In 1886 the King of Shoa –who became later Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia- decided to move with his court from Ankober to Entoto Mountains. Probably he remembered that his grandfather Sahle Selassie had prophesized that his grandson should build a big house at the foot of Entoto mountains which should develop into a big city. Menelik’s wife Taitu enjoyed it very much to bath in the hot springs at Filwoha and asked her husband to built their new palace there. However, the problem was to get enough fuel wood, which was only available more than 20 km. away. So in 1900 Menelik decided to move his court to Addis Alem, which was situated in the forested mountains. But soon a better solution occured: a foreigner took some eucalyptus seeds and when Menelik saw how quickly these trees were growing, he imported a huge amount of seeds and after some years the Entoto Mountains began to be covered with eucalyptus trees. So the fuel wood problem was solved and Menelik and his household turned back to the Filwoha springs. Queen Taitu gave their new home the name “Addis Abeba” (= new flower) and this was the birth of the new capital. For 20 years the new capital of Ethiopia was only the palace, a few scattered huts and some stone office buildings and the “roads” where muddy tracks. It was during the reign of emperor Haile Selassie that the city began to expand. Special during the Italian occupation there was much building activity and also the quality of the roads was improved.

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