The modern city of Dire Dawa is the second largest in Ethiopia, with a population estimated at around 307,000. It was founded in 1902 under the name of Addis Harar (New Harar) to service the Franco- Ethiopian railway that connects Djibouti to Addis Ababa. Because of its strategic location, the upstart town soon came to outrank Harar in commercial and industrial significance, though even as recently as 1970 it supported a significantly smaller population. In recent years, Dire Dawa has experienced something of an economic boom as a result of the secession of Eritrea, which left Ethiopia without a seaport of its own. The recent border war with Eritrea has served to strengthen the importance of Dire Dawa, since it effectively made Djibouti Ethiopia’s only reliable link with the Indian Ocean. Set at an altitude of 1,150m, Dire Dawa is divided into two distinct parts by the wide arc created by the wadi (normally dry watercourse) carved by the Dachata River. Kezira, the French-designed city centre, lies to the west of the watercourse and consists of a neat grid of avenues which emanate from the central square in front of the railway station, and which are flanked by shady trees and staid colonial- style buildings. The old Muslim quarter of Megala, by contrast, is more organic in shape and mood, with all alleys apparently leading to the colourful bustle of its vast and excellent central market. The two parts of town are connected by a bridge in the north and by a seasonal auseway in the south.