Addis Ababa

About Addis Ababa

At about 2,355 meters above sea level, Addis Ababa is the highest capital in Africa, and its cool highland air surprises many first-time visitors. Emperor Menelik II and Empress Taytu founded it in 1886 near hot springs below the Entoto hills, and Taytu named it New Flower. Today it is a sprawling city of several million people and the seat of the African Union, often called the political capital of Africa.

The city's museums tell a story that reaches back millions of years: the National Museum holds the famous Lucy fossil, known in Ethiopia as Dinkinesh. Orthodox cathedrals such as Holy Trinity and St. George's recall the emperors, Unity Park has opened the old imperial palace grounds, and the Red Terror memorial confronts the darker years of the Derg.

Daily life spills into the vast Merkato market, the cafes of Piassa and Meskel Square, which fills with bonfires and crowds each September for the Meskel festival. Ethiopia is the homeland of coffee, so a slow coffee ceremony is a must, and the forested Entoto hills offer fresh air above the city.