October 2017 archive

Getting to Somaliland (A Bombed Embassy, a President’s Welcome, and Drug Trafficking)

Getting to Somaliland is no easy task.  We had an adventure from the obtaining of the visa to getting to the border and onto Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland where we would spend a few nights. Before getting to far into this story, I should mention the importance of khat (pronounced “kat”) in this region …

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Harar Ethiopia (Where I Fed a Wild Hyena and Got a Man Arrested)

Harar Ethiopia is one of the most interesting places to visit in Ethiopia, but it gets much fewer visits than the major sites in the north and south. I had a pretty crazy time here from feeding hyenas, to attempting to visit a brewery, and inadvertently getting someone arrested!  Read more to find out why. …

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Addis Ababa Safety (How My Travel Companion was Pickpocketed Twice in Less than Two Hours)

I had read warnings about pickpockets and Addis Ababa safety but didn’t realize how bad it really was until I saw multiple pickpocket attempts on myself and my travel partner for this part of the trip…in just the first two hours.  Yes, my travel companion managed to have his camera and cell phone stolen, in …

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thehotflashpacker Blog Gets a New Logo!

Before I announce my new logo, a few announcements: If you haven’t already, follow me on Instagram.  Soon you will see interesting shots from the horn of Africa. If you haven’t been to the website recently, you might want to check out the FREE STUFF page.  Not only can you get discounts, if you use …

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