AF - Djibouti, Djibouti

I went to the downtown  Saturday  and took some photos but I did not feel very comfortable. I thought I might skip Sunday but decided not to be wimp and charged on. I got yelled at by a group of women for taking their picture but I was actually shooting the colorful stalls.

As I was taking this photo, apunk teenage crashed into me hard enough to jar my camera but I held on. He was horsing around with friends.

This lady was begging for food for herself and her child.  There were many others like her.

Colorful garb on the women and girls around town. 

Not everyone was yelling or pushing or begging. This shop keeper was lost in her work. 

I will never gets used to women covered in black from head to toe with only slits in the veil to look out through.

I took a photo from my cab of an interesting street scene. One huge guy came over to my taxi and glaring at me and in fluent English said " WTF, man (using the words and not the acronym), You can't take photos of people without their permission" For a second, I thought he looked angry enough to punch me but the light changed  just then and the taxi continued on (thank you god )

I still can't figure this one out. I asked the hotel clerk if there were any famous buildings to see and photo.  He wrote down "The Iprahim Building - Photo" The cabbie took me to this non descript building that had  sign "Photo" in the window of the ground floor. I thought the cabbie didn't understand. Back at the hotel, I showed this picture to the clerk . He said "Yes this is the builidng . Very old . Very Beautiful Maybe 1940"

I saw a few pizza places around town and hoped to find one on this popular square. The tout who came up to me  offered to exchnage money, be a guide, sell a watch told me khe knew a good place for pizza  - La Chaumiere.

The lovely waitress told me the nine page menu had everything under the sun: fish & chips, club sandwiuch, burgers , steak , curry  everything, of course ,except pizza,

The "non-pizza" restaurant

The competitor restaurant .





The other competitor. Planet Hollywood is everywhere.





The Menelik Square is the most popular place in town and the Menelik Hotel is famous.

In  the main square  however there is a feeding frenzy on the tourist. I think 5 guys came up to me within ten minutes. They were not very polite, except for one . They kind of bark commands  as opposed to making  requests at you : “Come, I’ll show you good photo spot” “Come I will exchange your money”

Seemed people were everywhere and you never knew who might come up to you. While most were arrogant and pushy, I remember ”Captain Ibrahim from Immigration “ for his polish and non- threatening mnner.

According to "the captain",  he saw me at airport Immigration when I landed and was lucky on his day off to meet me again . He told me he would be back to work the next day  and to ask for him if I had any problems at the airport . He was there to get medicine for his daughter and showed me the prescription paper and told me he needed just $10 to top off his money for the medicine  if I would be so kind. Unfortunately, I told him, my wallet was back in the hotel and the only money I had was taxi money to get back to the hotel.  He was smooth.

Building just off the square.

Funny, I checked Trip Advisor.com before I visit a country and usually find the reviews on the hotels, the restaurants and the "things to do " to be spot on.  This time, before going to Djibouti , I checked Trip Advisor and found this review which I thought at the time meanspirited:

"If you are in Djibouti , leave . If you are planning on going there, don’t”