AA (Addis Ababa / Anger Anonymous)

Ethiopian Airlines are somewhat chaotic, putting a cabin crew call button and the screen controls directly in the armrest at the perfect elbow spot, and rushing to serve breakfast after descent has begun and the safety announcement about tray tables has already been issued. One passenger was so incensed at his coffee being confiscated for safety reasons that he spent the prolonged wait while we disembarked bawling out the stewardesses. Although he wasn't Ethiopian, apparently removing someone's coffee is a sign of disrespect. Publicly chastising people as being terrible at their job was more disrespectful in Africa last time I checked. He annoyed me much more than the service.

I watched Lion, which is one of the most moving films I've seen in a while, and I don't even want to blame the effect of flying at altitude, which usually makes the tear ducts flow. If you haven't seen Lion, you must. It portrays very well how a chance separation as a child can lead to a lifelong search for identity.

Juba flights depart from the domestic terminal in Addis Ababa, which doesn't make much sense. The crowd of people waiting to board to Juba and other 'unsavoury' locations often includes a high number of beefy mean-looking ex-military types working in security.