Off the Beaten Path in London
<
http://www.capitaleritrea.com/author/kebreab-gebre/> Kebreab Gebre on
October 27, 2012 in <
http://www.capitaleritrea.com/category/lifestyle/>
LIFESTYLE |
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Described as a pretty much multicultural city, even maybe the most
multicultural place in the world, London's inhabitants speak 300 different
languages living in England's most vibrant urban town.
Upon my arrival to London, four years had past since my last visit to the
city of history, cultures, restaurants and tons of things to do and see.
Thousands of guidebooks and travel sites about London tourism promote the
standard tourist stops such as Buckinhgam Palace, Big Ben, The Tower of
London, the Thames River, Royal Museums Greenwich and football clubs such as
Chelsea or Arsenal. But when you're done seeing usual tourists sites,
definitely don't miss out on visiting one London's "Eritrean Avenues".
Looking for trails of Eritrean culture was at the top of my "to do" list for
my weekend trip to a city of more than 8 million that never sleeps. I was
confident to find a "biotope" of Habesha culture, given the exponential
rise of citizens with Eritrean background in the UK during recent years.
Reports claim that London's Eritrean community is thriving with many small
businesses, cafes and restaurants popping up across the city catering for
the needs of a large Diaspora community.
According to estimates the British Eritrean community has grown over the
past 60 years to a population of around 20,000 with more than 17,000 of that
number being residents of London.
The dense concentration of people from Eritrea can only stimulate the
formation of schools, community centers, theaters, and all manner of
businesses, related to the same culture.
After spending hours strolling down the streets of North London's Finsbury
Park, equipped with my camera, I soon came across cafes, bars and shops
owned and run by Eritreans.
In the first couple of shops and bars which I entered, I discovered men were
sipping cappuccinos, chatting and getting ready for the weekend discussing
the afternoon's upcoming premier league matches. Not really to compare with
the wonderful scenes of a Saturday morning in the streets of Asmara, but at
least I found what I was looking for.
One of the coffee places with a good modern design selling traditional
Habesha Food and coffee to locals and a wider audience from the Horn of
Africa was a place called Jebena House.
Selam Hair Studio:242 Hornsey Road, Finsbury Park, North London
A coffee house located at Hornsey Road N7 London which is 10 Minutes' Walk
from Finsbury Park Underground station.
The place is worth trying a traditional cup of tasty "bun" before starting
your day.
Just next door to Jebena House on the same street I stumbled across a hair
dress salon run called Selam Hair Salon.
If you're looking for a friendly Eritrean barber shop similar to the ones
you find in Asmara then you should go for this one.
The place was full of women getting the latest hair style, while kids played
in the background waiting for their parents and a man got his proper
Saturday morning shave sitting on a barber chair. The owner was young women
from Eritrea allowing me to capture the scene with my amateur photography
skills.
As if things couldn't get better, just directly across the street from
Selam's Hair Salon I found a restaurant called Zara, which serves
traditional Injera and all the culinary delights that come with it.
Musie, a guest at the Zara restaurant explained to me that Eritreans
sometimes gather here to celebrate events such as the Eritrean Independence
day or other cultural festivities.
He also explained to me that restaurants like Zara are becoming increasingly
important for young Diaspora Eritreans, because our young generation's
cooking skills are at risk when it comes to Injera.
Unfortunately, my Injera cooking skills are not even at risk, they simply do
not exist. With no time left I headed back towards the station to visit a
nearby Eritrean beauty products shop.
Located on the main street of Seven Sisters Road, the story of a young
Eritrean female entrepreneur and her beauty shop caught my attention.
Together with her brother Senait opened the store just recently branding it
Star Beauty Shop.
Her store caters for Londn's African and Afro Caribbean community with hair
and skin products like shampoos, lotions, creams, wax, wigs and hair
extensions.
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As a successful business woman Senait made sure to offer a wide range of
products diversifying her target group beyond Eritreans by serving also the
needs of other African nationalities.
With time running out for me Senait's shop was the last stop of my 48 hours
tourist trip to London.
Having found "Little Asmara", in Finsbury Park, I am sure there are other
parts of London with a similar thriving Eritrean community embodying the
melting-pot spirit of London.
At least for a slight moment it gave me the feeling of escaping everyday
life and being back home in Eritrea.
Received on Sat Oct 27 2012 - 09:31:41 EDT
