Back to Walnut Creek -the usual ways

Ok back to regular lifestyle of Wk, although I came back without my travel bags and only my carry on...Early Gym seeing my buddies, (Jet lag is also best for this), happy I did not gain any weight in this trip, coffee at Pitts & Scala, post office, wholefoods, Prima 4 drinks, shopping the stores for what is new, movies , calling friends , I sure feel back. Although I travel well, (business class seats & lounges for Internet, 5 star hotels with Gym & concierge services, carry my wholefoods with protein and other V-stuff), there is nothing like coming home again around my books, music (although I carry my MP3 on my trips), art, NPR radio and especially my regular hangouts of WAC, the IIE, parties at A-list, and being able to read my regular magazines and browse the Internet in my bed!

Addis 4 Easter Friday!

Here I am ..my mother land..I smell the Ingera for Easter..too excited, I know the country will be in a frozen status for 2 weeks before they go back to their regular living. Easter is a big holiday. So my VIP recipient did not come this time at the airport, cause the had to get his wife to deliver in Germany. They had a baby boy!

Checked-in at the Hilton Addis. http://www.africaguide.com/accomm/index.php?LocationID=88&ItemID=23?LocationID=88&ItemID=23 Room over the pool..lovely. Sure culture is wondering why not with Mom @ home. Spoiled and a rebel in my old age, I opted for my regular travel lifestyle at a cost of 100 US a day. Not bad for a 5star considering my intl standards stay-ins. There is more than money issue in Addis.. stress comes from family, being a socialites, business issues anything! So in order to stay balanced, I worked by the pool most of the time instead of at the office, dipping-in and out depending on the shade/sun weather, which seem to adapt 4 seasons in 1 hr. Aside from the Hilton pool you are seeing me at (did I mention there is wi-fi by the pool)!, the pic below you see is a vacation resort called Debre Zeit, a local hangout turned, "members only" yes, capitalism is back! just for the exclusive elite locals and the international crowd and the privileges Diasporas like us.. amazing place; first class facilities, with health club, manicure, hair styling, massage Asian style, with all the flower on the bed and each room comes with a bike and a motorboat (see details pic in my travels section). Rooms booked 6 months ahead, with some privileged rooms available for the VIPs of course...now I believe why they say Addis was growing at 10%. Also from the buildings in town that you see ( which includes on eof my family towers BTW), many resorts and intl restaurants have flooded the country and yes, if you are staying in a 5star hotel, and go the places I go daily, the 10% growth goes quickly to a 20% right in front of your eyes.
So what else did I do..oh.. yes, my advocacy work...the Rotary Club and my fund raising pet project "Solar Cooking" for Ethiopian villages. Photo Op below! and some of the meetings I used to go to the government offices trying to get projects mobilized for the Country's Eduction. Yes, I got to look chick at times..not bad for a gIRL diaspora trying to get her feet wet in her "mens" country!

u go girl!