Shopping

Shopping in Ethiopia provides some special surprises. There are excellent values historical and religious souveniers as well as local jewelry (sold by the weight of gold or silver), woodcarvings, illuminated manuscripts and prayer scrolls, wood and metal crosses, leather shields, spears, drums and carpets. In marketplaces, bargaining is expected, but prices at shops in towns are fixed. In addition, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's cosmopolitan capital, features the Mercato, the largest open air market in Africa.