Addis Ababa By Night

Addis Ababa (the name means ‘new flower’) is of quite recent origin – Menelik II founded the city in 1886. Addis Ababa:

• has over 4 million people
• is located in the geographic center of the country
• is situated at 9.03° N 38.74° E
• is situated in the foothills of the Entoto Mountains and standing 2,400 metres above sea level it is the third highest capital in the world
• has more than 120 international missions and embassies, making the city a fore front for international diplomacy concerning Africa
• has headquarters of the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

*The United States has decided to open a second embassy responsible to African Union. That would make Addis Ababa the only city in Africa to host two US embassies.

• has as many as 80 nationalities speaking 80 languages, and Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities

Addis Ababa is as cosmopolitan as any of the world’s great cities, and the architecture is as different as the city itself. High office buildings, stylish villas, functional bungalows, fashionable conference halls, hotels and theaters – glinting in their marble and aluminum – vie for notice alongside traditional homes of wattle and daub.

There is no selected ‘city centre’ because, until in recent times, there was no urban planning. Addis Ababa simply grew in a natural way, and its present look reflects this unforced and unstructured evolution.

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