This is 12&12, a audible day in the life in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa. 12 hours of day, and 12 hours of night, which coincide quite exact with the sunrise and sunset, the main reason why the Ethiopian time count starts at 6 in the morning, meaning at 7 there is 1 hour of sunshine, etc. Which procedure repeats in the evening, when sun sets at 6, so at 7 there is 1 hour of darkness, etc.
12&12 tells the story in audio-only of a day in the life by having one subject for one hour, be it sport, nightlife, work, recreation and a lot of other activities happening in a multi million inhabitants metropole in East-Africa. There are no voice-overs, hardly any edits, and all material was recorded using two microphones only, at the time of the day it is transmitted, adjusted for daylight saving time.
The non-radio version of 12&12 was one of the first, if not *the* first sound exhibition in Addis Ababa. The daily hours were exposed at the Goethe Institute, and the nightly hours at the Alliance Française, both in Addis Ababa in 2011, for whose kind support the artists wished to express his thanks. Special thanks also goes to Melaku Belay of Club Fendika and Kidus ‘Vemund’
Berhanu, for invaluable assistance.
Jeroen Visser, Zürich, Wednesday February 8th, 2017
Night Hour 1 – Kifle is the best
06-07pm
Taxi-drive Merkato
Mon May 26, 2008
The first hour where it is dark in Addis Ababa is great to drive around with the best taxi driver I know, a guragee man called Kifle, who has his taxi service available in the daytime. He drives around town in an old Lada exported from Holland, and the cars are known to be very very strong. One of the few weak points is the idler pulley in the steering mechanism, so the steering wheel has a lot of play, a reason to have a good working horn!
Night Hour 2 – Beer and fundaments
07-08pm
Meta Brewery
Sat, March 12, 2011
Early evening it’s great to have a small bite with a beer in the canteen of the meta Brewery, near the Mercato. There are no tourists and the food is great! So is the beer, by the way.
Night Hour 3 – Bath and Food
08-09pm
Finfine Adarash
Sat, March 26, 2011
Finfine can be described as the heart of Addis Ababa, as the thermal sources -still present and to be used- convinced the Empress Taitu that the new capital had to be built right where it is now.
Night Hour 4 – Rock & Roll
09-10pm
Desperado Bar
Fri, March 25, 2011
The vivid music scene of Addis Ababa is starting to get alive again in all parts of town. This little bar is near Bole Road, and after food music is served.
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