Asmara Eritrea - November 18th 2006

 

When I visit the house of Freweini and Haile, I receive the good news that I became a grandfather for the third time. Mebrat's daughter gave birth to a boy yesterday evening. We celebrate this happy occasion. I temporarily have to give up my diet. There is ga'aat (a traditional poridge), coffee, araki and bread with fresh honey, which is regarded as a general medicine here in Eritrea.

I deliver the last letters in various places in Asmara, accompanied by Yodith as a guide. When we visit the family, two boys further accompany me to the market to find the last person. At one of the stalls I get a handfull of Ko'olo, a roasted grain. It is too much for me, and I store it in one of the empty envelopes.

When I pass the chicken and egg market, I do not want to frighten the ladies with my camera. I am afraid the panic will damage any basket with raw eggs. Instead of picturing them, I share the Ko'olo with them. The gesture is appreciated. And the result is that one of the women agrees to make her picture. But I have to promise the lady I will bring her her picture, when I will visit Eritrea in May 2007.

On the Medeber markets I visit the workshops to give the girls their pictures, as promised a few months ago. And making many new ones is no problem. When I enter one of the workshops, I notice that even Fred Siwak's butterfly is still hanging inside one of the workshops.

Sitting a a terrace of the Impero Bar in Harnet Avenue, a train of cars, following a just married couple, are passing, sounding their horns. They will return to the house of the bride, where the wedding ceremony will resume with family, friends and neighbors. The ride through Asmara is recorded on video be a cameraman standing on a Toyota Hilux. 

Finally I visit the Nda Mariam Orthodox Church. I have heart there will be some kind of festival at the end of the month. In the shade of the trees I try to get a confirmation of the exact date of the celebrations. I will make sure it fits into my agenda. A handicapped man sells agenda's, crosses and devotional pictures of the Holly Mary and other Saints. I buy some of the 2007 agenda's as a souvenir.

  

Yodith and her girlfriend - Asmara Eritrea.

John and Dawit - Asmara Eritrea.

Old woman selling grain - Eritrea Square Asmara Eritrea.

Woman selling eggs and chicken - Barentu Street Asmara Eritrea.

Woman selling vegetables - Eritrea Square Asmara Eritrea.

Workers - Medeber markets Asmara Eritrea.

Worker - Medeber markets Asmara Eritrea.

Anatomy of the human body - Medeber
Elementary School - Asmara Eritrea.

Original Nda Mariam Church - Asmara Eritrea.

Nda Mariam Orthodox Cathedral - Asmara Eritrea.