""The New Flower" Addis Ababa" Addis Ababa by niamey00

With wide tree-lined streets, friendly people, interesting architecture, and a surprisingly mild climate, Addis comes as bit of a surprise to old Africa hands. Walking through many sections of the capital city of 2million plus can be a pleasant way to spend the day. You are never far away from an espresso bar where, if you are feeling a little tired, you can have some of the best coffee in the world for mere pennies.

It can take some people a couple of days to acclimatise to the lofty heights of Addis, which sets at an altitude of over 8000 feet on the slopes of 10,000-foot-heigh Mt. Entoto. Addis is in fact the third highest capital city in the world.
Despite being near the equator, Addis has a very mild climate thanks to this altitude. We visited during June and July, the rainy season. It rained every day, and the temperatures were chilly, in the 60s at the most.

Addis Ababa or the new flower is a very young city be Ethiopian standards. In 1886 King Menelik moved the capital to the site of Addis. Queen Tatyu gave Addis its name.
As the city grew, a problem that almost led to relocated the capital again faced the king --- a lack of firewood. But thanks to the introduction of the Australian eucalytpus, which thrived in the climate, it became clear that there would be no need to relocate: the eucalytpus had saved the day! In Amharic, the name for the eucalyptus translates as "tree from beyond the water."
Today, Addis and the surrounding countryside is filled with eucalyptus. What wasn't know 100 years ago is causing severe environmental damage today: eucalyptus need an enormous amount of water, which is in short supply in Ethiopia. The ground water supply is being depleted by thirsty trees. Some NGOs are even working with the government, looking for ways to get rid of the euclyptus.