Ethiopia, where true beauty has no measure

By Lynet Otieno

The sweet, strong and aromatic smell of coffee ushers you to the Kuriftu Resort and Spa, Debrezeit where the waiter’s warm and inviting smiles waits.

Inside is a complete contrast to the hot sun and acres of dust that characterised our trip here. They say Ethiopia has the sun 13 months a year and I can attest to this just after a day. But here it’s all very calm and scenic with magnificent view.

We are thirsty and thankfully, as soon as we settle round a table shaped like the continent of Africa, a waiter rushes to us smiling. Without second thoughts we ask for cold fresh juice.

There was a wide choice of Ethiopian culinary delights.

Women in long traditional Ethiopian dresses, mostly white, noticeably dot the roadsides as they go about their daily chores. And as we come close to the Resort, there are myriad green houses, most of them growing flowers for export.

We visit one and even though the experience is not different from those in Naivasha, it is nice to know flowers do well in such a dry place. Since I arriveds in Addis Ababa, I felt secure walking with my laptop in a bag and using my telephone in crowded streets. And even when they know you are a foreigner, they would rather beg for money than snatch a loosely placed item.

The same applies to this area 45km out of town. A child stares at us as we feed on groundnuts at one stop on our way to Kuriftu. When I share mine, there is a clear huge sigh of relief on her face. She mutters something like "amasaginalo," which we later learn means ‘thanks’. But before she can eat the nuts, she shares it with another smartly dressed woman, maybe her mother, who tells us the same thing.

Friendly folks

Perhaps it is because of the military nature of the country that people are well behaved. Even beggars do it in style. Were it not for the child, you would not take the woman for a beggar. Despite knowing we are foreigners judging from our language and skin colour, there is no sense of exploitation.

Instead, they try to greet us in their language and welcome us. Our tour guide tells us they are culturally taught to welcome visitors and treat them well. By the time we get to the hotel, we have learnt how to say ‘thank you’, call a male or a female person and maybe shout at a man walking carelessly on a busy road.

And when it is time to eat, the attractive buffet is welcoming, with beautiful designs and a variety of food that will make you feel like you belong. There is a wide choice of culinary delights and it is here that I sample real Kenyan food after two weeks of trying different Ethiopian ones.

Reluctant farewell

After the sumptuous meal, we head to a conference room from where we can view the garden-like cottages below us.

Even from outside, there is a huge sense of dÈcor, fireplaces put in front of every cottage and nice resting places on the porch.

By the time we are done with the Government officials who brought us here and everyone has to leave, I am tempted to remain behind and book myself in for another week to experience the spa and engage in outdoor sports like horse riding.