Ethiopian Women

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Liya Kebede is a truly beautiful Ethiopian girl who was born in 1978 in Addis Ababa. While at school she was spotted by a French film-maker, and from there it all got started. Her big breakthrough was in 2000 when she was asked to pose for Gucci's show. She has also worked with Yves Saint Laurent, Dolce Gabbana and Ralph Lauren. In 2003 she becomes the first black model to sign a deal with Estee Lauder, not a small feat.

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Wanting to help mothers and children has led to her founding The Liya Kebede Foundation, working for awareness, education and training of women. In Ethiopia a woman dies in childbirth every minute, and a lot of these deaths can be prevented with a little help. Her work in Ethiopia has led to her recognition by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader. In addition, Liya Kebede was also appointed by WHO as the Goodwill Ambassador for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health in 2005.

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Liya Kebede has also designed and started producing her own collection of clothes. Her collection, which is called LEMLEM (meaning fertile, to bloom, in Amharic), is made up of hand-made cotton clothes produced in Ethiopia. In this way, she helps her people by creating opportunities for work on different levels of society.

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Beautiful Ethiopia by Mujjen
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Derartu Tulu is an amazing woman and a great athlete. She was only 20 years old when she became the first African woman to win an Olympic gold medal (Barcelona, 1992). In second place was a white South African athlete (Elana Mayer), and together they ran the victory lap as a tribute to post-apartheid peace.

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Derartu Tulu was born in the province of Arsi, the same as other famous Ethiopian runners. (In fact, Kennenisa Bekele is from the same village as her, and three other female long-distance runners are her cousins! She started competing already while in school, and in 1988 represented her region in a national competition.

Throughout the years she has won a number of medals, many of them gold, on high level competition.This despite the fact that she has taken a couple of breaks to give birth. In 2009 she became the first Ethiopian woman to win the New York marathon. This at the age of 37.

Get picture of Ethiopian runners Abebe Bikila and Mamo Wolde here

The little shepherdess from Ethiopia has come a long way. For many girls, both African and others, she has become a symbol of what women can accomplish, a model to follow. She has said in an interview that she hopes to continue running at least until 2012, when she wants to run in the London Marathon again. In other words, Derartu Tulu is still going strong!
(Read more about the accomplishments of Derartu Tulu.)

Ethiopian Girl

Did you know that the pastry chef of the White House during president Clinton was a woman? An Ethiopian woman! Almaz Dama now runs her own restaurant and bakery in Arlington, VA - Dama Restaurant
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Her speciality is vegetarian cakes! This is good for Ethiopians, who don't eat any animal products during their many periods of fasting. She has also developed many sugarfree cakes.

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According to an interview she gave to the Tadias magazine, Almaz Dama grew up in an environment where food preparation and service was a family tradition. Of course, later on she went to school in the United States, getting a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nutritional Science, as well as a Diploma in French Cooking and Pastry from L'Academie de Cuisine. With her early upbringing, formal training and professional experience all put together, she became a very skilled chef.
(Read the whole interview here)

Pastry Chef

These women are not internationally famous, but deserve a place here anyway. They are somebody's mother, wife or sister. In their own way they are important and commendable.

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For travelers to Ethiopia, there are a few vaccinations and precautions that are recommended:

-Hepatitis A and B/ Typhoid/ Yellow Fever/ Meningococcus/ Polio / MMR / Tetanus-Diptheria

- Malaria prophylaxis. Only if you are going outside of Addis, in the lower parts of the country. The northern parts of Ethiopia (including Addis Ababa) are at such a high altitude that malaria is not a problem.

- Traveler's diarrhea is quite common. All travelers should bring along an antibiotic and an anti-diarrhea drug to be started promptly if significant diarrhea occurs.

In general it is good to keep a good hygiene and avoid raw food in any form. When eating out, especially in the country side, stick to food that has been properly heated prior to eating. The local food, injera, is often handled by hand and stored for several days after preparation.