IST had been scheduled during the Ethiopian Orthodox holiday of Timkat. This is called the Ethiopian Epiphany, but only if by Epiphany you mean the baptism of Jesus. Or does it have to do with the 3 wise kings. All I can be sure of is that it comes 2 weeks after the Ethiopian Christmas (doro wat and sheep at the neighbors’, check) and is celebrated partly like a 4th of July parade, if the 4th of July lasts for 3 days and the parades end only with the sun.
Of course, Peace Corps scheduled our drive back into Addis on the 3rd day of these parades. The paved road was flooded by seas of natela-clad Christians in every town we drove through, and so our big bus would sway down the small rocky detours, nearly taking out souks and fences at every turn.
Worst, my ipod was dead so I couldn’t listen to my auto-accident theme song, There is a Light That Never Goes Out. The only way I could accept dying in an Ethiopian road is if The Smiths’ words are the last I hear.
