House-hunting has been like playing musical chairs with people who keep pulling the chair from under you at the last minute, so you hit the ground with your behind over and over again. 

As usual, I try to find the humor in the situation, especially with the unique architectural choices we’ve been seeing. How else can one get semi-private tours of dozens of people’s houses for free?

P.S. If you happen to have a four-bedroom house for rent in Addis Ababa, please send me a message.

—w

(Above is a picture of me inside a mysterious nook in one of the houses we were checking out)

House-hunting has been like playing musical chairs with people who keep pulling the chair from under you at the last minute, so you hit the ground with your behind over and over again. 

As usual, I try to find the humor in the situation, especially with the unique architectural choices we’ve been seeing. How else can one get semi-private tours of dozens of people’s houses for free?

P.S. If you happen to have a four-bedroom house for rent in Addis Ababa, please send me a message.

—w

(Above is a picture of me inside a mysterious nook in one of the houses we were checking out)

I made most of these around this time last year and it felt like being gently re-introduced to watercolor painting, which is a famously intimidating medium. The small paper size and the fact that the sketchbook itself was a gift made it much more tempting to just pick up the pad and make something quick..watercolor has since become something I gravitate toward often.

I made most of these around this time last year and it felt like being gently re-introduced to watercolor painting, which is a famously intimidating medium. The small paper size and the fact that the sketchbook itself was a gift made it much more tempting to just pick up the pad and make something quick..watercolor has since become something I gravitate toward often.

You could commission a sketch of your own favorite place or request a short tutorial by sending me a DM: instagram.com/wintaassefa1

I made most of these around this time last year and it felt like being gently re-introduced to watercolor painting, which is a famously intimidating medium. The small paper size and the fact that the sketchbook itself was a gift made it much more tempting to just pick up the pad and make something quick..watercolor has since become something I gravitate toward often.

You could commission a sketch of your own favorite place or request a short tutorial by sending me a DM: instagram.com/wintaassefa1

hi. Do you know anyone who makes notebooks like this in bulk? Big plus if it’s with custom papers

hey. I wanted to check if anyone has the contact of anyone I could speak to about going to South Africa?

The contact provided on their google maps doesn’t work: https://maps.app.goo.gl/h73z1JyKDQMacwA46

I hope to go to a summit there later this year and I wanted to know:
- can the application be done online?
- how much should an Ethiopian National pay for the visa process and what else must they prepare?

A quick live sketch made with a brown colored pencil, brown Pentel sign pen, Neuland markers and watercolor. This is how I found out that my Pentel sign pen isn’t waterproof.

— Leghar, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

hey there
I'm an Ethiopian architect and artist who has been based in Addis Ababa for years (and I hope to stay here for many more ;)

My mom, sisters, and I are looking for a place with:
- Four bedrooms, a kitchen, and a living room
- A villa is better than an apartment (but a good apartment closer to the city center could be a good deal)
- Our budget is under 100k
- We hope to move in the end of this month. (June)

If you know of such a place, I'd like to hear from you.
Have an awesome week ahead.

My best,
--w

Two teenage boys with their skateboards approached me when I was sketching in Leghar and asked what I was doing. One of them is a visual artist too, so I invited him to join the Addis Ababa chapter of Urban Sketchers, and he seemed interested. He said that his friend has only been skating for four months, but he’s already very good at it.

I asked both of them if I could made quick sketches of them.

Flying is such an unnatural thing: you're hurtling through the sky in a metal container and suddenly catch a whiff of cooking fish from the plane kitchen. It's a technological marvel that we could do it at all, of course, but I find it so uncomfortable, I only do it when I must.

This time, I packed my watercolor set with a charcoal pencil and a brush full of water mainly so I can keep my hands busy while I wait.

All of this drama was for a very short flight, and everything else went well. The Hindu vegetarian food I picked on the Kenya Airways website turned out to be a decent plate of lentil stew and rice. I complimented a lady in a nice dress and it turned out that she was a recently crowned beauty queen who was returning home from her Addis Ababa tour.

My suitcase appeared less than five minutes after I arrived at the baggage conveyor belt.

For something I dreaded and lost sleep over, it wasn't too bad an experience this time.

(my Substack and my life as a creative in Ethiopia: http://substack.com/@winta?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=android&r=yw1b2)

The folk at the Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Program just published their latest bulletin and it was a delightful read as always.

If you want to find out about what this group of scientists is doing to protect this indigenous and endangered species, you too could subscribe to their periodic emails here: https://www.ethiopianwolf.org/e-bulletin

Their writing is both lucid and concise, so I feel like the emails would be an enjoyable read whether or not you’re a nature enthusiast.
—w

Looking for a house has felt like playing musical chairs and the floor is lava at the same time: all of the spots get taken in a blink and those without a chair are swallowed up by the hot, molten ground. 

My mom and sister had been looking for a place to move to for a while now. They experienced the horror stories we were warned about: things like brokers who lead you to houses that are locked (the guy with the key is always 'nearby' but seemingly fluttering around like a mythical being) or it had 'just been sold' to the owner's relative right after Mom and my sister showed up at the door. 

So, I thought, why not ask you guys? Do you, dear reader, happen to have a 3-or-4 bedroom house inside Addis Ababa? 

Our current landlord is a cool dude who lives with his family abroad, and while his house here is very well-designed and was great to live in for the past five years, it has a serious waterproofing issue that would eventually kill the structure (and has been a growing health concern for us); we must evacuate by the end of this month for the restoration project to start.

So, do you have what it takes to be the next landlord?

My sister, Abraham from Urban Sketchers Addis Ababa, and I spent the latter part of yesterday afternoon sketching in Legahar.

Abraham came with a new watercolor set (that I got to try) and extra manilla paper. The wind blew away our art materials a few times but it was wonderful weather for sketching, and after watching the trains go back and forth until nightfall, my sister and I decided to take a train home.

.

.

📌 Urban Sketchers Addis Ababa's Instagram page (in case you want to join us next time): https://www.instagram.com/urbansketchersaddisababa?igsh=MWhzc3hxdHhxaXJlZg==

📌 My Substack about my life as a creative in Ethiopia: http://substack.com/@winta?utm\_source=share&utm\_medium=android&r=yw1b2

https://substack.com/@winta/note/c-264870270?r=yw1b2

Location: Legahar, Addis Ababa

This is an open urban sketching event. Bring your paper, pens, watercolor or anything else you want to use, and join a group of strangers in sketching this part of the city. I think I'll get a hat and small stool just in case it's still sunny at 3 pm & I can't find any seats.

You can find inspiration on urbansketchers.org