Tour Operators and Guide Group

08/09/2015

https://youtu.be/srYEQAs3yEM

Excerpts from Tewodros Abebe's essay with veteran actor Ato Mekonnen Abebe reciting the lines from Girmachew Tekle-Hawariat's play "Tewodros" which was stage...

06/05/2015

The Battle of Adwa that shook Africa

The 1st of March, 2015, was the 119th anniversary of the Battle of Adwa in which the Ethiopian Empire defeated the Kingdom of Italy. Not only did this battle secure Ethiopia’s sovereignty but ensured its unique status of being the only African nation not to be colonised following the ‘Scramble for Africa’. The victory at Adwa which resulted in Ethiopia’s victory in the first Ethiopian-Italian war, would also comprise one of the few but notable battles and wars where a non-European army successfully defeated a more technologically advanced European army.

The significance and impact of the victory was not isolated in Ethiopia but resonated globally as it dented notions of African inferiority against the superiority of white Europeans. However, the victory of Adwa would result in unforeseen consequences for Ethiopia and its neighbours. Nevertheless, Adwa remains a great source of pride for Ethiopians and Africans to this day as African scholar Molefe Asante explains:

‘’Ethiopia became emblematic of African valour and resistance, the bastion of prestige and hope to thousands of Africans who were experiencing the full shock of European conquest and were beginning to search for an answer to the myth of African inferiority.’’

The events leading to Adwa were the culmination of increased Italian aggression following the signing of the Treaty of Wuchale by both Italy and Ethiopia in 1889. The treaty granted Italy the Northern Ethiopian regions of Bogos, Hamasen and Akale-Guzai which are now part of modern day Eritrea and Tigre. Article XVII of the Amharic version stated that the Emperor of Ethiopia ‘could’ conduct all foreign affairs through Italy. However, in the Italian version, the word ‘must’ was used, thereby officially rendering Ethiopia a protectorate under Italy. Emperor Menelik rejected the treaty in 1893 which was met with a military response as Italy began annexing small territories past the Mareb River, which was demarcated as the border for Eritrea.

The Italians were successful in defeating the first series of rebellions and battles lead by Ras Mengesha, the Ras (Amharic equivalent of Prince or Governor) of Tigray in 1894 and 1895. Menelik began summoning a large army and armed them with modern weaponry which had been sold by the British and French in the past four years since the rejection of the treaty. The Ethiopians went on to win the next series of battles which caused the Italians to fortify themselves in their garrisons in Tigre. In January 1896, Menelik managed to mobilise his army and marched towards the Italian positions. Outnumbered and low on food rations, the Governor of Eritrea, General Oreste Baterieri, initially chose not to engage Menelik in battle, however the Italian government ordered Baratieri to attack.

The Italian army comprising of 17,700 soldiers and 56 artillery pieces, advanced towards the mountainous terrain north of the town of Adwa. Menelik’s army was approximately 120,000 strong, consisting of 82,000 men with rifles, 20,000 with spears, 8000 cavalry and 50 artillery pieces. The Ethiopian army attacked the Italians in repeated waves in three separate attacks. The Italian army began to fall in disarray after one Italian brigade overshot its rendezvous point and the second brigade – which had marched to cover the retreat of the first – itself became engaged in battle. Clearly overwhelmed, the remaining Italian survivors retreated towards Eritrea.

The victory at Adwa was primarily due to the sheer size of Menelik’s army but also due to Menelik’s calculated preparations and foresight in stockpiling modern weaponry. Mistakes on the part of the Italian Generals whom used inaccurate maps also contributed to the defeat. Furthermore, a team of 50 Russian military advisors played a small part in advising Menelik in his plans. The team had been sent after Menelik sent a diplomatic mission to Russia to request for military support.

News of the embarrassing defeat at Adwa and the subsequent failure in the first Ethiopian war was met with a mixture of anger and jubilation. Protests and riots occurred in several Italian cities against the government of Prime Minister Francesco Crispi. Students from the University of Rome chanted ‘Viva Menelik!’ in their protests. For leftist and anti-colonialist groups, Adwa would support their cause to end Italy’s colonial ambitions and their aims were met with increased public support as a petition signed by 100,000 was drawn up calling for an end to Italy’s colonial project.

Italy’s venture into Ethiopia came at a heavy public cost of over $1 million dollars. A New York Times article published later on July 5th, 1896 wrote of a rumour that Humbert I, the King of Italy, even considered abdicating if the war did not end. On the 9th of March, the government of Crispi collapsed and the right and left formed a coalition government under Antonio di Rudini. In October the same year, the coalition government signed the treaty of Addis Ababa which recognised Ethiopia as an independent and sovereign nation. Ethiopia had safeguarded its freedom and independence.

The victory at Adwa was not only felt in Italy but reverberated globally. The British Newspaper The Spectator, noted the racial dynamic in the defeat stating that ‘The Italians have suffered a great disaster…greater than has ever occurred in modern times to White men in Africa’. Russians demonstrated solidarity with the Ethiopian people by donating to the Russian Red Cross. Adwa became a symbol of pride for Africans both in Africa and in the diaspora. Benito Sylvain of Haiti visited Ethiopia in 1904 to celebrate Haiti’s 100th anniversary of independence. Sylvain felt a connection with Ethiopia as his country was home to the first successful slave revolt in 1804 which lead to the establishment of Haiti. Pan-Africanist writers such as W.E.B. DuBois would even base their own model of an African state on Ethiopia. African-Americans saw the victory as recognition of their self-worth and altered the racist representations of Africans as inherently inferior.

With the benefit of hindsight and as is the case with history, it has been seen that the victory of Adwa brought unforeseen consequences to the region. It has been argued by historians such as Donald Levine, that the victory encouraged some of the isolationist groups within Ethiopia. Levine states that Adwa gave Ethiopians ‘a false sense of confidence about their position in the modern world’, which also ‘led them to think their traditional resources could be adequate’. As a result there was a reduction in imports of military technology from Europe. The victory at Adwa also played a role in the British recolonizing the Sudan, which had freed itself from Anglo-Egyptian rule under the leadership of Muhammed Ahmed ‘’Al-Mahdi’’ at the Battle of Khartoum (1885). Ethiopia’s act of asserting its sovereignty caused concerns amongst the British over their economic interests in Egypt (then a British protectorate) and the Suez Canal. Since Ethiopia was the source of the Blue Nile which supplied 80% of Egypt’s water, any threat to the source of the Blue Nile would have ramifications for the British-puppet Khedive government in Cairo. For the Italians, the battle of Adwa was a national and historical humiliation and would later inspire Benito Mussolini to retake Abyssinia in the 1935 Abyssinia Crisis. The inaction of the League of Nations to assist a fellow member state would encourage Adolph Hi**er, the future leader of N**i Germany, to re-militarize the Rhineland in 1936.

A lingering question that remains on the Battle of Adwa is why did Menelik not capitalise on his victory and liberate Eritrea from the Italians? There are three main reasons which explain this. Firstly, Menelik’s forces were close to depleting their food rations and had already depleted the food supplies of the farming populace in the Tigre region; therefore there was insufficient food for a campaign to retake Eritrea. Secondly, Menelik’s main priority was the preservation of the independence of his newly consolidated Empire. Menelik did not want to risk overextending his gains and was concerned that if he attempted to recapture Eritrea, it would provoke the Italians into sending more forces against Ethiopia. Historian David Lewis puts it succinctly by stating that ‘’a sweep into Eritrea would force the Italian people to turn a bungled colonial war into a national crusade”. Lastly, Menelik held a disregard for the Tigrean people whom he didn’t identify as Abyssinians. In addition he feared a reoccupation of Tigrean-inhabited territories would increase Tigrean political aspirations for independence.

In modern day Ethiopia, Adwa is celebrated as a national holiday and signifies the prestige that Ethiopia holds among its own people and in Africa. The Battle of Adwa must be seen in the light of other historical events such as the Haitian Revolution (1804), the Battles of Little Bighorn (1876), Isandlwana (1879) and Khartoum (1885). These were successful cases of colonised and oppressed people, who defeated superior armies in their goal to liberate themselves and assert their independence.

04/03/2015

15/01/2015

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=921280091217455&fref=nf

12/01/2015

ጣይቱ እጅ የሚያስቆረጥም ወጥ እያሠሩ ገበያ ቢጠብቁ ጠፋ።
እንኩዋን ምግብ መብላት ከግሪኮቹ ሻይ ቤት ገብቶ ሻይ መጠጣት ነውር ነበረና: ጣይቱ ጠዋት የሚያሠሩት ወጥ ለሠራተኞቹ የማታ ራት ይሆን ጀመር። የሚስታቸው ገበያ ማጣት ያሳሰባቸው አጤ ምኒልክ አንድ ቀን ከችሎት ሊነሱ ሲሉ በአካባቢያቸው ላሉ መኩዋንንቶች "ጣይቱ ምግብ የሚሸጥበት ቤት ከፍታለችና ኑ እንሂድና ልጋብዛችሁ" ብለው ወሰዱዋቸው። መኩዋንንት በላ ጠጣና ምኒልክ 30ብር ከፈሉ።
በማግሥቱ እንደተለመደው ገበያ ቢጠበቅ ጠፋ:: ቀጥሎም ጠፋ; ቀጥሎም ጠፋ። እንደገና ምኒልክ ሆቴል ገብቶ መብላት ነውር ያለ መሆኑን ለመኩዋንንቱ ገልፀው እንደገና ምሣ ጋበዙ።
በሌላው ቀን አሁንም ገበያ አልተገኘም። ቢጠበቅ ቢጠበቅ ድርሽ የሚል ሰው ጠፋ። በሌላ ቀን ደግሞ አጤ ምኒልክ ከችሎት ሊነሱ ሲሉ በዙሪያቸው ላሉ መኩዋንንት "ሰማችሁ ወዳጆቼ" አሉ። "በፈረንጅ አገር አንድ ቀን አንድ ሰው የጋበዘ እንደሆነ ያ የተጋበዘ ሰው በሌላ ቀን ደግሞ ብድሩን ይከፍላል ብድሩን ካልከፈለ ግን እንደ ነውር ይቆጠርበታል። "ብለው ንግግራቸውን ሳይጨርሱ መኩዋንንቱ "እርስዎን ፈርተንና አፍረን ነው እንጂ የሚሆንልን ከሆነ የምኒልክን ብድር ለመመለስ እኔ አለሁ" እያለ ተራ በተራ ከሆቴል ቤት ምኒልክንና ጣይቱን ይጋብዝ ጀመረ።
ገበያ እየደራ ሄደ።
“ምሳችንን እቴጌ ሆቴል ሄደን እንብላ” የሚለው ስለበዛም ስሙ እቴጌ ሆቴል ተባለ::
(ጳውሎስ ኞኞ፣ አጤ ምኒልክ)

12/01/2015

http://soderetimes.com/?p=13634

Irish Independent picks Ethiopia among Top 10 destinations for 2015 Daniel January 11, 2015 Business9SHARESFacebookTwitter Nicola Brady The year has barely begun, and already we’ve come down with wanderlust. Here we uncover those and more in Weekend’s Top Ten countdown of the best global destination…

31/01/2014

Holy trinity
Emperor Haile Selassie I built it in 1941 after the restoration of independence from the Fascist Italian occupation. Many beautiful paintings, morals and stained-glass windows decorated the interior. Its exterior is very impressive with elaborate pillars and carved decorations.

There are many statues of angels and disciples on the rooftop, culminating in an impressive way. The tombs of Queen Mennen (wife of Emperor Haile Selassie I) is found inside the church. In the church yare, there are tombs and monuments of very important persons including the patriots who lost their lives during the five years Italian occupations of Ethiopian, members of the royal family, commemorations of Ethiopian soldiers who died in the Korean War (1950 -1953 and monument of Sylvia Pankhrust

24/01/2014

“ Moseb tera Merkato” 1964. The image was taken by a self made Historian El'Visco and it was one of the historical documents he has attached on the letter he has sent to Emperor Haile/Selassie in the year 1968. He even mentioned the name of the lady who was facing the camera as Etye Werkey......Just in case you need a Moseb or Sefede she is the right lady to visit, your Highness...... The historian informed Jan'Hoy in the note he wrote.

In the year 1931,about 82 years ago Emperor Haile/Selassie has officially signed up and permitted the Merkato Market to be established and serve the community right where it resides currently. But long before it was made a market the Merekato area was already a historical place. It used to be known as “Abeto Mergagiya” (አቤቶ መረጋጊያ) that was the field where Etyegey Taytu gathered her Army from Shewa and near by region before heading to the battle of Adwa.

There was once life without Merkato, it is not even the first biggest Market in the area, it is in fact the 3rd one. What about now? Will there be Addis Abeba without the grace of Merkato?

21/01/2014

I still recall the day like last night when my mother took me through the Art killo Hawelt down to Fete'Berr to visit my grandfather who was residing down that way. Art'Killo has always been too crowded and far different than the one Historian El'Visco described in the letter he wrote to Emperor Hail/Selassie in the year 1961.

In the year 1901 the first market named (ሐሙስ ገበያ) was suited in the middle of Art killo and back then the area used to be known as Ferse'Masriya (ፈረስ ማሰሪያ). In the early part of 1900, a historian named Scholar Wylde mentioned “Humuse Gebeya” a number of times in his journal. In fact, he once noted a terrible fight between a group of beggars and drunkard priests in the middle of the market. It was one of the worst street fights ever, the scholar quoted of the conflict he witnessed. The priests accused them taking over the food and drinks that often been brought to them by villagers, then one fine day, they teamed up and kicked the beggars out of the market.

Historian El'visco also noted a well known bar named Ade'naber Buna bete as well as Joro betese tej Bete not far from the Hawelt and a certain famous Kati'kala joint owned by a lady named Etye Asegedech...... She will only smile at you until you pay her some money, your highness ... Historian El'Visco mentioned in the letter he wrote to Emperor Haile/Selassie, informing Jan'Hoy how tricky Etye Asgedech was

15/01/2014

Emperor Menelik, who is seen standing 4th in the hand made image was a tall dark skin gentleman, Scholar Wylde described him in his journal.

He introduced pasta, western baked cake, furrno bread western brewed wine at the same time in the year 1901. Through out the 1900 he introduced telegraph, photocopy machine, telephone, electric power, Wefecho bete, modernized music player (shekela), post office, and you name it.

Nearly all historians mentioned him to be a man who has lived a head of his time.

19/08/2013

Lake Tana

LakeTana, the source of the Blue Nile, is the largest lake in Ethiopia. It probably was formed during the late Pliocene or early Pliestocene times by volcanic blockage of the Blue Nile River. It now covers an area of about 3150 km 2 and has an average depth of 8m, with a maximum of 14m. It is estimated at an altitude of 1830m absl and can be classified as an oligo-mesotrophic lake. Several rivers, for instance GilgelAbay, Rib, Gumara,Gelda and others join the lake, the Blue Nile being the only outflow. After 30km this river plunges down a 40-meter-high waterfall, isolating Lake Tana and its tributaries from other parts of the Nile Basin.

Remains of ancient Ethiopian emperors and treasures of the Ethiopian Church are kept in the isolated island monasteries (including Kebran Gabriel, Ura Kidane Mehret, Narga Selassie, Daga Estifanos, Medhane Alem of Rema, Kota Maryam and Mertola Maryam). On the island of Tana Qirqos is a rock shown to Paul B. Henze, on which he was told the Virgin Mary had rested on her journey back from Egypt; he was also told that Frumentius, who introduced Christianity to Ethiopia, is "allegedly buried on Tana Cherqos." The body of Yekuno Amlak is interred in the monastery of St. Stephen on Daga Island; other Emperors whose tombs are on Daga include Dawit I, Zara Yaqob, Za Dengel and Fasilides. Other important islands in Lake Tana include Dek, Mitraha, Gelila Zakarias,Halimun, and Briguida.

Four fish species dominate the commercial and artisanal fishery: Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), catfish (Clariasgariepinus), the various Barbus species (Nagelkerke, 1997), and to some extent Varicorhinusbeso. The fishery of Lake Tana is expanding through the introduction of modern technology such as the motorised boat fishery with 100m gill net. Traditional fishing activity is also growing as provision of modern gill nets is increasing for small-scale fisheries. Thus fishing is becoming more important both economically and socially especially for the low-income rural population around the lake.

Environmental Impact Assessment Project The research project proposed here uses the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) technique that serves as a tool for assessing, estimating, predicting and communicating the environmental effects of proposed policies, development plans and investment projects in relation to the Lake Tana aquatic ecosystem. In the absence of the EIA the conflicting use of the Lake Tana resources system for various benefits can be detrimental to the fisheries of the lake in particular and for the aquatic resources in general

Project Method 1.Describing the existing environment/physical, biological, social economic and others/ 2.Describing and quantifying the existing threats, risks and impacts 3.Determine opportunities and means for reduction in threats, risks and impacts 4.Identify and assess alternative options for control of threats, risks and impacts.

Background and Justification It appears that most inland capture fisheries are currently being exploited at close to or above, their sustainable levels, although catches will vary from seasons, reflecting the qualitative and quantitative fluctuations of the target population. These natural fluctuations result from changing climatic conditions and the complex population dynamics of interacting groups of organisms. This lack of stability is particularly obvious in tropical inland fisheries, which typically exploit mixed species groups (Dunne et al 1996).

LakeTana, situated at an altitude of about 1800 m. above sea level, is a crater lake formed two million years ago due to the volcanic blocking of the Blue Nile River (Figure 1). It is the source of the Blue Nile. It is 78 km long and 67 km wide, and its area of 3150-3500 km 2 constitutes about 50 per cent of the total inland water area of Ethiopia. The mean annual outflow is about 4.km 3 per year, which is about 7 per cent of the total flow of the Blue Nile. It is a shallow lake, with a maximum depth of 14 m and a mean depth 8.9 m.

The main tributaries to the lake are Little Abay,Gumara,Ribb,Magech,Infranz, and Gedla. There are lagoons and wetlands on all sides of the lake resulting from hydrological and land use changes. The Dembea Plain to the north, the Fogera Plain to the east and the Kunzila Plain to the south-west are low areas bordering the lake which are often flooded during the rainy season

The Lake Tana area has warm temperate climate. The average temperature is 21.7 o C , with a maximum yearly variation of 5 o C. Temperature has two peaks, one around May-June at the start of the rainy season and the other around October-November at the start of the dry winter season. The minimum temperature ranges from 6 C in December-January to 16 C in May. The climate is seasonal and is dominated by dry season from October-November until May-June. The rainy season (kremt)runs from July through August and September, with the maximum monthly rainfall occurring in July. The mean annual rainfall is about 1500 mm, of which 54 percent falls in the months of July and August, when the rainfall can be 250-300 mm/month.

The seasonal rains cause the lake level to fluctuate regularly with an average difference between the minimum, in May-June, and the maximum, in September-October of about 1.5 m. The largest recorded increase in the lake level was about 2.5 m in 1997. Most of the small rivers dry out shortly after the big rains. Significant inflow comes from three major rivers in the South, namely the GilgelAbai, Rib, and Gumara which carry a large amount of silt resulting from severe erosion, thereby increasing the turbidity of the water in the Bahar Dar Gulf. The transparency of the Secci disk depth is reduced during rainy season to 37 cm. Due to the shallow saucer-shape of the lake, and the fairly strong winds starting in the afternoons - becoming stronger after sunset - the transparency for the whole lake ranges from 130 cm during rainy season to 182 cm during dry season (Secchidepth V ). The transparency of water is also different during the early hours of the day and in the afternoon.

LakeTana feeds the Blue Nile, which in turn provides 85 per cent of the water supply to Sudan and Egypt through the Nile (Howell & Allan, 1994). It also provides some of the water supply for Bahar Dar, and is a significant source of water supply for the rural population around the lake

Tropical shallow lakes are, in general, highly productive of fish. The potential fish production of Lake Tana is estimated by the Ministry of Agriculture to be 13,000 tonnes per annum. Until the last couple of years, production was about 1000 tonnes per annum. However, this has dropped by about 50 per cent in recent years to 600 tonnes in1999 and 500 tonnes in 2000

24/07/2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=OO1TcGFvDSQ

Ethiopia and the History Not Seen An almost one-hour documentary recording the history of Ethiopia and the long reign of the Ethiopian monarchy as well as de...

24/07/2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=RebJYHUit6E

16/04/2013

Eiffle Tower
Built for the Universal Exhibition in celebration of the French Revolution centenary, the Eiffle Tower hoisting the flag to the top was inaugurated on March 31st 1889.
In spite of big protests and harsh critics of Parisians and French intellectuals during its construction, the metal structure has become today the symbol of Paris, attracting over 6 million visitors each year.

Contractors : Gustave Eiffel was assisted by, among others, Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier as engineers and Stephen Sauvestre as architect.

Studies of the project began in 1884. In spite of the contraversy raised in the public opinion its construction however began in 1887 and finished 26 months later in 1889. The metal tower was, in the first place, planned to be demolished only after the Universal Exhibition of 1900. Radio transmission experiences carried out by the French military before the deadline of the destruction plan finally saved the tower.
Materials and weight : puddled iron erected with a crossbar system made of 18.038 pieces and fixed with 2.500.000 rivets. The structure of Gustave Eiffel's masterpiece is very airy and resistent to the wind. Notwithstanding its robust and stout structure it only weighs 7,300 tons.

Height : From the ground to the flagpole its height was 312,27 meters in 1889, whereas it is today, 324 meters high with antennae. Different French television companies install their antennae right on top of the tower.

Owned by Paris local government and managed by a French private company "Société Nouvelle d'Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel", this structure is maintained and renovated every 7 years with 50 tons of paint executed by workers who master acrobatic and climbing sports.

Lighting : The "metal lady" is illuminated by 352 projectors of 1000 watts and twinkles every 30 minutes in the evening with 20.000 bulbs and 800 fairy lights.

The Eiffel Tower twinklings were at first made to celebrate the new 2000 year arrival. But Parisians, inspite of electricity excess costs, could not be deprived of this marvel. The company in charge of the Eiffel Tower had to rethink of a new way to keep the tower twinkling. After more than a year of not functionning, the Eiffel Tower got its twinklings back with an inaugural celebration on June 21th, 2003 at 11.20 pm. The new twicklings are even more impressive than the previous ones. The current lighting system by immersely reducing the electric power consumption, offered the Eiffel Tower the chance of twinkling another extra ten years. The evening celebration welcoming this brand-newly decorated Iron Lady was full of emotion. The event was greated by well-known national and international artists. This special happening was also greated with splendid and huge fireworks. There were more than 200,000 people to welcome this very special show. All were amazed by such a splendor.

To make the tower look alive and more elegant, 4 floodlights equipped with 6.000 watt xenon bulbs keep rotating on the top.

Number of steps : 1665 steps for sportive visitors. Transparent lifts go up to the 2nd floor where you can find all sorts of souvenir shops.

16/04/2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=zI4N0KrDjLg

This is a documentary from CNN Millenium about the history of Lalibela churches, and their rich cultural significance for Ethiopians. Check out http://africa...

08/04/2013

BET GIYORGIS
The monolithic Bet Giorgis - dedicated to the national saint of Ethiopia is isolated from the other two groups of churches. It is located in the southwest of the village on a sloping rock terrace. In its deep pit with perpendicular walls it can only be reached through a tunnel which is entered from some distance away through a trench. Small round caves and chambers have been found in the walls of the courtyard graves for pious pilgrims and monks.
The church is described as Lalibela's "most elegant" and "refined" in its architecture and stonemasonry. Although its floor plan is of a cross with nearly equal arms the church is properly orientated, the main entrance being in the west, the holy of holies in the east.ExteriorLike a tower the cruciform church cut out of the pink tuff rises from its triple-stepped platform, the regularity of which is broken only by the landings in front of the three doorways in the west, north and south. The roof decoration, often represented as the symbol of the Lalibela monuments on photographs and postcards, is a relief of three equilateral Greek crosses inside each other. On the north, south and west sides, gutters and spouts drain the water from the roof.

02/04/2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LQGFUash0WE

EOTC Television Program

18/03/2013

Ari Tribe
The Ari inhabit the northern border of Mago National Park in southwestern Ethiopia. The tribe made up of 120 000 people, live around Jinka, in an elevated area north of the in the Debub Omo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region (SNNPR) also identified as Omo Valley. They have the largest territory of all the tribes in the area. Ari Villages have fertile lands allowing them to have several types of plantations.

08/03/2013

The Mursi men practice light scarification on their shoulders after killing an enemy, and shave geometric patterns on their heads.