LOST IN THE TUMULT : Decorum, Propriety and Ceremonies

The Swinging Era of Ethiopian Music

The Swinging Era of Ethiopian Music

July 6 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

Sometime in the early 1990s, a lavish wedding is thrown at a posh Northern California hotel by a Middle Eastern tycoon who spares no expense to wed a young Ethiopian diaspora couple. There is the usual chaos, disorder and mad rush that attend Ethiopian events, but...

But Wait! Africa, India Do It, Too

But Wait! Africa, India Do It, Too

June 22 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

Ethiopia is exotic, mysterious, elusive, wondrous and shrouded with so many inexplicable marvels that it never tires the senses to witness the comings and goings of life that one encounters daily. It is not just the ancient rituals, melodic songs, colourful food, m...

Aba Zafu

Aba Zafu

Aba Zafu, the court jester of Emperor Haile Selassie, entertains the nobility and high court officials at the Genete Leul Palace, which the Emperor later donates to establish the Haile Selassie University, subsequently renamed Addis Abeba University. Aba Zafu, d...

Inaccessible Justice

Inaccessible Justice

June 1 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

The judge sits behind his desk in a cluttered room and spreads open a file that is tethered by a worn and frayed file cover, gingerly beginning to examine the documents inside. Two litigants file in a...

The judge sits behind his desk in a cluttered room and spreads open a...

Rudeness, A Rare Addition to Poor Service

Rudeness, A Rare Addition to Poor Service

May 18 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

Near Tele Bar, near National Theatre, in Addis Abeba, a customer in a suite enters condescendingly into a barbershop and is directed to a chair by a thin-lipped and moustached barber who flicks, twitc...

Near Tele Bar, near National Theatre, in Addis Abeba, a customer in a...

Military Pageantry Needs Drills, Practice

Military Pageantry Needs Drills, Practice

May 11 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

A slew of official public processions, albeit almost all of them for former Ethiopian leaders, passed through our city streets in the last few months. Ethiopians are not accustomed to witnessing mili...

A slew of official public processions, albeit almost all of them for...

Beware, Abiy, of Frequent Foreign Escapades

Beware, Abiy, of Frequent Foreign Escapades

May 4 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

Belete, first cousin to Emperor Haile Selassie and matriarch of a powerful family, sat listening to her grandson read from Addis Zemen. “His Imperial Majesty arrived in Port-au-Prince today for a...

Belete, first cousin to Emperor Haile Selassie and matriarch of a powe...

The Dangers of Stormwater in Addis Abeba

The Dangers of Stormwater in Addis Abeba

April 26 , 2019 . By Ambessaw Assegued (assegued@anfilo.com).

A few raindrops signaled that the monsoon storm that has been hovering overhead since late in the afternoon last Tuesday was about to unleash its moisture-laden load, and everyone on the street scram...

A few raindrops signaled that the monsoon storm that has been hoverin...