Fair Ferenge Fare?!!
on Tara's Ethiopian Adventure (Ethiopia), 02/Feb/2010 13:48, 34 days ago
Recently I went to Gondor, with my family, to visit a VSO volunteer friend working as a Physiotherapist at Gondor Hospital. Gondor is a beautiful city that feels more like a small town. It has amazing features that attract tourists such as the 'Royal Enclosure', the Fasilidas Baths and the Debre Behan Selassie Church. It also has a lot of Italian influences as it was one of the main Italian bases during the occupation. The combination of tree lined piazzas and medieval castles is quite surprising in Ethiopia and also very beautiful. As a result many tourists visit the area. Whether it is the left over bitterness towards the Italian occupation or the large influx of tourists, the Ethiopian's in Gondor on the whole seem to behave quite differently to other areas I have visited. They say those from Gondor are quite proud of their heritage and do not welcome outside influences. As a result they can sometimes have quite a negative attitude towards foreigners (Ferenge). In her first few months of living there my friend had rocks thrown at her, her house broken into and told on a number of occasions that she should leave, that she wasn't wanted here. (Thankfully this behaviour was from people on the street who didn't know her and the valuable work she is doing rather than her colleagues!).   Whereas some people from Gondor appear to resent foreign influence, others see huge economic opportunity from the tourists. More than any other place I have been to there seems to be an attitude of 'get what you can' from tourists/ foreigners rather than 'being fair'. Unlike in my town where there is a clear set price for taxis up and down the main street, every journey in Gondor requires negotiation. In many restaurants they have two separate menus... both with identical food on but one with a 'Ferenge Fare' and another with a local price. I think the experience of this for us was particularly heightened by the fact we were there for Timkat (Ethiopia's most important religious festival) but my friend says in the 11 months since she arrived she has always had to fight for a 'fair fare'. Although she is now a familiar face around town there are also lots of other NGOs workers in Gondor (many of whom earn considerably more than the average wage) and so even foreigners who live in Gondor have a reputation for being 'rich'. On a VSO salary my friend has the double wammy financial issue that she earns less than most of her colleagues but is often charged nearly double for many things around town. This low wage is still more than many of the people 'ripping her off', so you can understand why they try... but it does make me feel very fortunate to be in a small town where, although I am looked at differently, I am at least treated the same as the locals in most aspects of life.Although I sometimes get frustrated about being the only Ferenge in Ambo, as I get so much attention on a daily basis...at least the attention is generally positive. Last weekend I met a guy from South Africa who will be staying in Ambo for the next 5 months and next week my new housemate arrives from Australia so we will be 'three'. Hopefully with a two extra Ferenge in town we will become less of a novelty and therefore begin to get a little less attention but at the same time be nothing like places like Gondor where Foreigners are seen as either a threat or an economic opportunity. Sounds to me like we may just be heading for the 'best of both worlds'...here's hoping anyway!