Eritrea's Heat Haze & the Whispers of Asmara

okay, so eritrea. it wasn't on the 'plan', you know? i was supposed to be chasing light in *morocco, but a last-minute gig fell through (thanks, unreliable client #7) and suddenly i had a cheap flight and a whole lot of time. asmara, specifically.

let me tell you, it's…different. i just checked and it's like being wrapped in a warm, dry towel all day, every day. the air is thick, and the sun feels like it's personally judging your life choices. the weather report said twenty-seven point eight celsius, feels like twenty-six point four six, pressure’s a bit wonky, humidity’s practically nonexistent. basically, it’s a furnace with a slight breeze.


i’m a freelance photographer, and honestly, the light here is insane. it’s harsh, unforgiving, but it makes everything look… cinematic. the art deco architecture is the real draw, though. asmara is like a time capsule, a weird, beautiful blend of italian colonial influence and eritrean culture. seriously, check out the cinema impero - it’s straight out of a wes anderson film. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g319068-d188499-Reviews-Cinema_Impero-Asmara.html

but it’s not all pretty buildings. it’s… complicated. the vibe is quiet, reserved. people are friendly enough, but there’s a definite sense of watching, of being an outsider. if you get bored, karen and massawa are just a short bus ride away, but honestly, asmara keeps pulling you back in.

someone told me at a tiny cafe (seriously, the coffee is strong here) that the best place to get injera is from a woman named aster, but you have to find her. she doesn’t have a shop, she just… appears.

i’ve been trying to navigate the markets, which are a total sensory overload. spices, fabrics, metalwork… and a lot of people trying to sell you things. i’m terrible at haggling, so i’ve mostly just been paying whatever they ask. it’s fine. my bank account is weeping, but it’s fine.

i overheard a couple of expats complaining about the internet. apparently, it’s… unreliable. which, as a digital nomad, is my biggest fear. thankfully, i’ve found a few cafes with decent wifi, but it’s a constant struggle. https://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=Cafes+with+Wifi&find_loc=Asmara%2C+Eritrea

i also heard that the national museum is worth a visit, but be prepared for a lot of… well, a lot of history. and not always the cheerful kind. someone warned me to be respectful of the political situation, which, fair enough. it’s a sensitive topic. https://www.lonelyplanet.com/eritrea/asmara/attractions/national-museum-of-eritrea/a/poi-sig/456941/360349

the pressure is at one thousand and eight, and the ground level is nine hundred and fifty-nine, which… honestly, i don’t even know what that means. i’m just writing down the numbers because the weather app told me to.

honestly, asmara is exhausting and exhilarating all at once. it’s not a place you go to ‘relax’. it’s a place you go to feel* something. and i’m definitely feeling something. mostly heatstroke and confusion, but still. it’s good. it’s really, really good. i think i need another coffee.

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