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Harar - Ethiopia.
The city of Harar situated in the eastern highlands of Ethiopia is within the predominately Muslim area of the country. Harar is a beautiful medieval place with colourfully painted buildings and has that relaxed air of a place at ease with itself; busy but not frenetic, there are a thousand alleyways to explore and the coffee, as you would expect, is second to none - as is the local Harar beer. The city is walled and as night falls an unfamiliar cry goes up from near the Sanga Gate, it is the call of a Hyena Man.
Although seen by many as a tourist attraction the tradition goes back over 700 years to a time when the city was suffering from famine and the people and animals were starving. Eventually the hyenas outside the city began to prey on the herds and the people. Legend has it that one man, in a dream, was instructed by God to form a pact with the hyenas and feed them a special porridge made from grain and butter, from that day to this the people of Harar and the hyenas have lived in harmony. Today offal from the local butchers forms the incentive for the hyenas to remain relatively friendly.
Hyenas, seen by many as purely scavengers, are in fact skilled hunters. Being opportunists will also finish off anything injured and are quite capable of chasing lions from their kill. They possess the strongest jaws in Africa capable of cracking and consuming the thigh bone of a Cape Buffalo. There are actually three hyena men in Harar, but this man is undoubtedly the coolest, hopefully he never makes a mistake or becomes too over familiar with the hyenas as one mistake could prove very costly.
Copyright Paul Strawson - Blog ref: 56
