by Virginia Barder
- The Hilton and the Sheraton both have good selections – you’ll pay more, but in calm surroundings. In the Hilton car park next to Novis are a couple of galleries with interesting glassware and other crafts.
- The airport has good shops once you’ve been through security. But a. the shops are only open when there are international flights and b. Ethiopian airlines in particular takes the weight of your hand luggage
seriously. You’ll pay more here as well – but not absurdly. - The Haile Selassie Shop on Churchill – on the right hand side as you go up Churchill, past Nigeria and before Wingate. It’s a low white building with parking in the front and has a very good selection of all the souvenirs you would want. It’s laid out well, with everything priced. More expensive than the general tourist shops, but a full selection, and calm atmosphere.
- The tourist shops on Churchill on Nigeria (turning to the right as you go up Churchill, just past the Black Lion Hospital) – here, and on the next right turn up as well, there’s a number of small shops, each with a different selection of souvenirs – you’ll need to browse around in each shop as they all have a variety.
- The Merkato, obviously.
- Coffee – you can buy in the various supermarkets, in some of the tourist shops, at the Airport/Hilton etc, and at Tomoco’s Coffee Bar (on the corner of Churchill and Wavel Street)
- Jewellery – the Piazza has a large number of silver and gold jewellery shops with a mix of more traditional Ethiopian designs, and modern designs.
- The Ethiopian Women Fuel Wood Carriers Project has souvenirs for a good cause. Bradt describes this as being next to the terminus on the road heading south to the city centre from Arat Kilo, clustered with a few other shops selling traditional Ethiopian clothes.
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see my links about the good fair trade places to do souvenir shopping in Addis
http://bradtethiopiaupdate.wordpress.com/2009/08/03/craft-shopping-in-addis-ababa/
i think the duty prices at the airport are rather high, compared with the prices at these shops (at least for the scarfs/shawls and gabis from Negist, Muya, Sabahar, and Kdesign also) i’ve been told by the owners of these shops that they have to sell to the duty free at prices lower than those at their own shops, but the prices at the DF are often more than double what you would pay in the shops in town
The Haile Selassie shop seems to be under construction. Do you have any idea if he sells his products somewhere else? I really liked the variety and the order there.
Airport gift shops are roughly 10 times what you would pay in a local store. Hilton and Sheriton prices are similarly crazy. But if you do not have time to shop around… it is still cheep by US standards. No one who lives here would buy things there.
In any shop (particularly nicer ones) the asking price is roughly 3 times what you should be able to get it for.
Nothing is “old” so don’t belive it.
A nice wood carving should be from 150 – 300 ETB ($10-20). A REALLY nice unique piece might be 1200 ETB. But ferenj (foreigner) asking prices are way more than anything reasonable. I got a really nice framed nickle cross (about 2 feet tall) for 1200 ETB. The starting price was 4000 ETB.
He doesn’t usually have any super-great pieces but he does not have crazy prices at a place called “Ato Basket” down in old airport not far from Sarbett circle past the Family Restaurant. Probably the best place to get “stuff” if you are not a collector.
Last Saturday of each month there is a good craft fair in the Evangelical church right next to Sarbett circle. No bargening here and mostly OK prices from many of the vendors.
Figure out what you want to pay, say the price, they will say no, and then you say thankyou and walk out. After a while you will get a sense of what is fair by when they call you back.
WATCH OUT FOR PICKPOCKETS!!!! Thease guys are amazing. Not only keep your wallet in a pouch under your shirt, but have a decoy wallet with lots of blank paper with rude things written on it in your pants so they can steal something.