This week we’re hearing from Dimetros Baynesagn in Anchorage. Baynesagn is a UAA student originally from Ethiopia.
BAYNESAGN: You might listen to a little bit of my accent, it comes back. I was born there, I came in when I finished middle school, so pretty much I went to high school here, and now that I’m a UAA student, I go to college here.
I was born and raised in the capital of Ethiopia which is Addis Ababa. It’s a pretty big city with towers and stuff. Anchorage compared to that is — because it’s third world — it’s different but it’s a city. I like it. It’s low-key.
To be honest, I’ve been visiting big cities; I’ve been to Minnesota for a week, I’ve been to Colorado, but it’s different in Anchorage. It’s very diverse. You don’t see a lot of diverse communities [elsewhere]. We have a lot of communities. It’s just fun to hang out with. Sometimes it gets rough, but you’ll get used to it. It’s just a different vibe here.
I’m trying to do a little bit of business, like trading and stuff, so I would call myself a very open entrepreneur. I just started it and it’s cool. I’m still learning. You’d think it’s just like a freelance, but you gotta put work in it, and you gotta have a work ethic and time and devotion. All that stuff. You can make money. It’s very risky. But as long as you know how to trade. If you have a good mentorship and all that stuff, you’ll be good at certain points.
I’m trying to get this Bachelor’s [degree] in Natural Sciences, so hopefully if I get that, I’m trying to get into a medical college. I might come back, but as of right now, if I finish my degree, I want to go… I have plans to go to, like, Oregon for a while. I’ve only been in my birthplace, Ethiopia, and Anchorage my whole entire life. So it’s good to experience and explore some other places, too.
Wesley Early covers Anchorage life and city politics for Alaska Public Media. Reach him at wearly@alaskapublic.org and follow him on X at @wesley_early. Read more about Wesley here.
