ANOTHER INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT – GOODBYE ETHIOPIA

WEATHER: Addis 15C at 2am – London 16C at 5pm

HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: Back to a western city after 4 months

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Back to a western city after 4 months

BUYS OF THE DAY: Thai dinner with Cheryl

WORD OF THE DAY: Act as if……………….

Today starts at 1.30am when I got my ride to the airport for a 4am flight.  This is going to be a long day.  This is one of those days, even though I am leaving super early, I still don’t get into London till 2pm, and then I still need to get from Heathrow to the hotel.  So it will literally take me 12 hours to get back.

Addis Ababa is a massive airport and modern, it was lit up like a Christmas tree at 2am.  They do have free trolleys, so after saying goodbye to Zeme (he wasn’t allowed into the airport) I went through a security screening to enter, where they scan your entire luggage to even be able to get in.  This was the only screening I had to do right through to the gate; there were no other screening stations. 

I was checking in just before the 2 hour prior and there was not one person in line, so I went straight up to the counter and the whole process was done in 5 minutes flat.  My wag was a healthy 20.3kg which also included the bag of batteries that Minaloo / Gap Adventures asked us all to take to dispose of properly in our own countries as they don’t have the facilities in Addis and they are just trying to do the right thing by getting rid of the batteries responsibly.  I said I would take a bag and I rekon there would have been over 50 batteries in there, so it surprised me my bag was only 20.3kg, but I wasn’t about to argue.  A form is required to fill in leaving the country, and once again there were only 2 people in the customs hall, so I was processed just as quickly as check-in.  After 2 weeks in Ethiopia I was unable to get a stamp for my Globetrotters Book, and as there was no-one in line behind me I asked the customs guy if he would stamp it for me, he had a quick look and was more than happy to pop in a stamp, so with a massive thanks and an even bigger smile I now had my book up to date.

As with all airports at 2am, all the shops were closed except a café and an internet café.  After walking around the airport for 10 minutes I went back to the internet café and paid 3USD for 30 minutes access which is highway robbery as I was paying that for an hour at the hotel, but it is an airport after all and what else was I going to do?  Just as my 30 minutes was up my flight was being called to enter the gate area and we were on our way.

The flight wasn’t that busy and 3 minutes before our scheduled departure we were taxing down the runway with Addis Ababa lights twinkling.  To think I thought the city was scary when I first arrived still fresh in my mind, the amazing villages and their people, the amazing people I met and awesome memories I am taking with me I will not forget Ethiopia and her people and I know that one day I will return to this amazing country. 

Once again my travel god is smiling down on me and I had the whole row to myself for the 3.5 hour flight to Cairo.  We also had to wind our watches back an hour to accommodate the time difference.  I have been so impressed with Egypt Air and this flight was no exception.  I was on a new looking A320-200 with a 3x3 seating configuration.  I have to say, now that I think about it; I have not used a single toilet on any flight I have been on since leaving home.  Is that weird?  24 flights, the longest flight being my very first flight of 8 hours from Brisbane to Hong Kong.  I just don’t need to go.  I LOVE my bladder.  So I can’t comment on the bathroom facilities on any of the aircraft I have been on.  I did watch a movie on this leg, for some reason I wasn’t that tired, so I picked PS I Love You.  I had seen it before but I haven’t seen it since my trip to Ireland and our day song originated from the movie, so it was pretty cool when that part of the movie came on. 

So I find myself back at Cairo International Airport again for the second time and I have to say it is a pretty cool airport.  There are gazillion duty free shops, a massive eatery and the best thing of all is FREE internet.  I LOVE this airport.  So after buying a Burger King meal for 10USD!  I found a table that had floor to ceiling window over one of the departure terminals.  Blog Blog Blog.  I am so far behind in my blog it is definitely not funny and I need to really sit down and crank out a few days.  It is not because I don’t want to, there is just so much information to process that I just keep putting it off.  Git it DONE!!!  So I knuckled down and got 5 days finished in the 2 hours I had there, before I thought I better start making my way to my gate.  Cairo International is also a massive airport and I’m glad I started when I did as I was gate G which was the back of beyond.  It is all well signed and there are guys in white uniforms everywhere to help with any questions people may have, which is a nice touch. 

So right on time we take off from Cairo and once again my travel god has shone and I have spare seat next to me.  There was a German guy on the aisle, but a middle seat spare to me is just as good as a business upgrade, well not quite, but without paying and asking for an upgrade it is just as good.  Once again Egypt Air had a new aircraft, plenty of room, seatbelts had plenty of room, the seat arm rests are high, so no fatty thigh pushing them up all the time and the overhead lockers are massive.  With a seating configuration of 3x3x3 in a B777-300 and the flight only ¾ full the 5 hours to London was an enjoyable flight.  I did some diary entries into my hard copy book, read and I finally got about 2 hours sleep before landing into London and terminal 3 at 2pm. 

I have lost count how many times I have gone through Heathrow and her terminals, but I have discovered that the best time of day to get through customs is in the afternoon.  In the morning when they have a gazillion flights all landing at the same time, there can be up to 500-800 people in that hall, which I did on my first visit in April and it took me 2 hours to get processed and out the other side.  Madness.  Well being an afternoon arrival there was only our flight and an Emirates flight in, so after 30 minutes I was processed and out the other side.  I was thinking of catching the train after my last transfer debarcle that took 3.5 hours to get from Heathrow to Westminster, but I just couldn’t be bothered, so I went to my trusty Hotellink transfer counter, paid my 21GBP and waited the 30 minutes before getting loaded into the van with 4 other couples.  Welcome back to western civilization.  I sent Paps and Em a text message that I was in town, and Em phoned while I was still on the transfer, so it was great to hear her voice and I have a dinner and drinks date tee’d up with them tomorrow night.  I can’t wait!!!

I was on a bit of a time line, as I had arranged to meet Cheryl (my United Hostee) at the Hilton Edgeware at 5.30pm and with Murphy’s Law in play, I was the last one dropped off getting me to the hotel at 4.40pm.  So after a quick check in and shower I found myself on the tube at 5.15pm and getting to Cheryl’s hotel directly on time.  Her runs are only on Thursdays, so I had to make the most of my time with her and it was just a damn shame that my great friends David wasn’t able to make the crew this time due to vacation time.  We missed you buddy.  So after a great Thai meal and a girl’s gossip session, I said goodbye to Cheryl for the last time in London.  Our next get together will be me visiting them both in Chicago next year.  I was awesome to see you buddy; I needed to see a friendly face and have a chat xx.

While I was out I got the hotel staff to get my bags out of storage that I have had there for the last 4 months.  To be honest I have forgotten half of the stuff that is in the bags and I am going to have to do a serious cull, as there is no way in hell it is all going to fit into my backpack.  I will see what clothes I am able to buy tomorrow and then go through it all.  I’m too tired now to even think straight after being on the move for 20 hours it was time to get some shut eye.  

RIGHT BACK TO WHERE WE STARTED – ADDIS ABABA

WEATHER: Hot, Dusty and 25C

HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: Seeing the birds Lake Ziway. The Ducks and Lemma have rubbed off on me

BUMMER OF THE DAY: The last day of your – very very unhappy about that

BUYS OF THE DAY: lunch – no other purchases

WORD OF THE DAY: indaminachoo – hello to a group of people

Today is our last day of tour.  I officially fly out tomorrow morning at 4am, but like all flights at that time, it is really sort of tonight that I need to have everything all packed up and ready to go.  It is a BIG day today with 360km to get us back to the capital of Addis Ababa and some form of civilization.  Breakfast was awesome with strawberry jam, real deal made fresh, banana jam and some other random jam on fresh bread with an omelet thrown in for good measure we were on the road for the last time at 8am.

Our first stop was only an hour away at Hawassa and Lake Awasa which is the smallest Rift Valley Lake.  The lake is 16 km long and 9 km wide, with a surface area of 129 square kilometers. It has a maximum depth of 10 meters and is located at an elevation of 1,708 meters.  Because it is relatively accessible to scientists, Lake Awasa is the most studied of the Rift Valley lakes in Ethiopia.  We only got 20 minutes here to snap some photos but it looked like a nice place with lots of boats available to take you out on the lake.  It was quite breezy though, so that would put me off; you know me and small boats and all.

Then only a 15 minute drive down the road to a town called Shashmene the group went and visited a Rastafarian community that was set up in 1948.  I had all intentions of going in but when they said the entry fee was 50 birr, I know that is only 3AUD, but when the National Museum of Ethiopia only charges 10 birr to get in, it seemed a rip off to me to help them grown and smoke more of the happy weed, so Massimo, Josephine and I declined the visit and sat and talked with the drivers for the 30 minutes the crew were in the compound.  But the history behind Rasta’s in Ethiopia started in 1948 when Emperor Haile Selassie I donated 500 acres (2.0 km²) of his private land to allow members of the Rastafari movement, Ethiopian World Federation (EWF) officers and members and other settlers from Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean to go to Africa. When Haile Selassie I was deposed in 1974 the new government of Mengistu Haile Mariam confiscated all but 11 hectares.  In January 2005 there were reports in the media that Bob Marley's remains were to be exhumed and then reburied at Shashamane. His wife Rita Marley described Ethiopia as his spiritual home, provoking controversy in Jamaica, where his remains lie.  The Rastafarian settlement in Shashamane was recently reported to exceed two hundred individuals. 

Back on the road again at 10.15am we drove for a further 90 minutes with a stop at Lake Ziway.  This place was a surprise and I hate to say that I actually enjoyed the 40 minutes we were given here.  The Ducks were very excited as the park was a bird watches paradise and with their camera’s and binoculars in hand, after just stepping out of the cars, there were at least 10 different species of birds we could see without even using the binoculars!  There were also a lot of pelicans and the massive Marabou storks about and we were within a few meters of these magnificent birds.  They are just massive, ugly, but massive.  I also saw some Kingfishers diving into the water and swooping out lunch with a fish in their mouths.  It was a pretty cool place and with access to the lake and fishermen around filleting and gutting fish it was one of those experiences that I won’t forget and was least expected.

Talk around the lunch table was of tips for the drivers and also Minaloo.  I don’t know how I got roped into collecting and gathering everyone’s money, but I did and I have to say I did a poor job to start with.  I had asked Minaloo what was a good tip for the drivers so we could start to get an idea.  He told me a figure of 3000 birr; I asked is that per driver or total.  I am 99.9% sure he said total for the 4 of them.  So over lunch I told everybody this, they all gave me their money, I hand made an envelope and it was all done.  I must have known that something wasn’t right and I double checked with Minaloo and he said that’s per driver!  Oh crap, so as we were leaving I had to re-group everyone and tell them that I had made a mistake and if they wanted to contribute more they could.  Sorry guys.  Most people add more money, but not all.  I had independently tipped my guys and gave them all a personal thank-you note in some handmade envelopes, so at the end of the day I can’t and won’t police what people tip, but I cannot understand why people don’t when you get exceptional service. 

So out last stop was now going to be back in Addis.  It was a lot drier and dustier than I remembered 11 days ago and 70km out of the capital the traffic was a nightmare.  I wouldn’t want Zeme’s job for the world.  There was a lot of traffic on the roads to start with, but the trucks are circa 1950’s and they are slow, old and they blow so much smoke, the pollution in and around Addis must be off the scale.  No CO2 carbon emission incentives here I wouldn’t think!  It is here that we also noticed other tour companies in the traffic.  It is the done thing to travel in convoy rather than have massive busses or overland trucks and based on the traffic around, I can totally understand.  There is no pushing in or scooting past traffic in a bus that is for sure!

Welcome back to Addis Ababa!  Unlike our departure, where the streets were empty due to it being a Sunday and 7am in the morning, we had to park at the back of the hotel to unload all our things.  This is where we said good-bye to all our drivers Zeme, Abraham, Johnny and Lemma.  The guys don’t have email (except Zeme) so it was a final good-bye and the passing out of my personal thank you notes and a hug and a kiss to all.  I’m going to miss those guys with Zeme and Lemma my 2 favorites.  Minaloo came into the hotel to make sure we were all okay and then with hug and a goodbye kiss we said good-bye to illustrious leader.  He was amazing and it really re-enforces that to have a local person taking the trips is really quite important and you can notice the difference and you really get first hand stories and antidotes.  Minaloo, you were amazing and I am trying to tell as many people as I can about your wonderful country, to get you more tourists to visit to give you and your boys more work.  I know I definitely will be back to do the north with Josephine, Massimo and David in the next 12 months, so we will definitely be seeing you again my friend.

The Ras Hotel staff are not the friendliest and I am just not sure how switched on they are.  There was some issue, that I think was they had more rooms than keys (the swipy kind) so they were handing out ‘normal’ keys to access rooms.  So I had my backpack on my back, my small bag and my Intrepid bag and off I climb 2 floors of stairs to walk the 300m hallway, to get to my door that has only swipe access, no key hole.  So I double double checked that I wasn’t missing something and had to walk back the 300m, 2 floors of stairs to get back to reception to say there was no key hole – this key is useless.  So she then programmes a swipe card and walk back, climb the 2 floors of stairs to walk the 300m hallway, to get to my door and guess what?  The damn swipe card doesn’t work!!!  So remember I am still carrying my entire luggage as well, so back I go down the 300m hallway, 2 floors of stairs back to reception.  I’m a little cranky at this stage, so she gives me a whole new room now on the first floor and a new swipe card.  This bloody thing better work this time.  So back I go AGAIN for the 3^rd time, back up the 2 flights of stairs, to realize when I got to the top I am now on the 1^st floor and had to climb back down a flight (dumbo) to walk the only 100m down the hallway, to get to my door and would you believe….the card WORKED!!!!!  Halaleijuah.  I did have to back downstairs again to collect my bag I left behind 10 days ago and then back to my room to repack my bag for airline travel again.

After getting the packing done, jumping onto the internet and then meeting the guys for a quick dinner, it was time to say our final goodbyes.  I still hate goodbyes and they just don’t get any easier.  Josephine, Massimo and David were god sends for this trip and I thank my travel god for looking after me yet again.  I am going to miss you guys, but we have spoken and we are going to come back and do the north of Ethiopia in the near future together and I KNOW I will see my new Italian friends on this trip at some stage.  So this is farewell for now and I will see you guys again.  You rock and will not be forgotten.

So another trip concludes as I head back to my room.  So BIG thanks goes to my Ethiopian travellers and in no particular order:

Josephine and Massimo – Italy

David – Israel

Bobby – USA

The Ducks, Colleen and Tui – Australia

Richard and Carol – Australia

Ian and Jenny – Australia

Minaloo – Ethiopia

Zeme – Ethiopia

Abraham – Ethiopia

Johnny – Ethiopia

Lemma – Ethiopia

Ethiopia was an AMAZING country.  If you have even had inkling to visit this country I would strongly urge you to do it.  It is safe, it is cheap and I am sure, especially in the south, there are not too many countries left in the world that has tribes so untouched by the western world.  It was a lifetime experience for me and I am SO glad that I had included it on my World Odyssey.  I LOVE Ethiopia and a piece of my heart will always belong here and I hope to return one day.

RIGHT BACK TO WHERE WE STARTED – ADDIS ABABA

WEATHER: Hot, Dusty and 25C

HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: Seeing the birds Lake Ziway. The Ducks and Lemma have rubbed off on me

BUMMER OF THE DAY: The last day of your – very very unhappy about that

BUYS OF THE DAY: lunch – no other purchases

WORD OF THE DAY: indaminachoo – hello to a group of people

Today is our last day of tour.  I officially fly out tomorrow morning at 4am, but like all flights at that time, it is really sort of tonight that I need to have everything all packed up and ready to go.  It is a BIG day today with 360km to get us back to the capital of Addis Ababa and some form of civilization.  Breakfast was awesome with strawberry jam, real deal made fresh, banana jam and some other random jam on fresh bread with an omelet thrown in for good measure we were on the road for the last time at 8am.

Our first stop was only an hour away at Hawassa and Lake Awasa which is the smallest Rift Valley Lake.  The lake is 16 km long and 9 km wide, with a surface area of 129 square kilometers. It has a maximum depth of 10 meters and is located at an elevation of 1,708 meters.  Because it is relatively accessible to scientists, Lake Awasa is the most studied of the Rift Valley lakes in Ethiopia.  We only got 20 minutes here to snap some photos but it looked like a nice place with lots of boats available to take you out on the lake.  It was quite breezy though, so that would put me off; you know me and small boats and all.

Then only a 15 minute drive down the road to a town called Shashmene the group went and visited a Rastafarian community that was set up in 1948.  I had all intentions of going in but when they said the entry fee was 50 birr, I know that is only 3AUD, but when the National Museum of Ethiopia only charges 10 birr to get in, it seemed a rip off to me to help them grown and smoke more of the happy weed, so Massimo, Josephine and I declined the visit and sat and talked with the drivers for the 30 minutes the crew were in the compound.  But the history behind Rasta’s in Ethiopia started in 1948 when Emperor Haile Selassie I donated 500 acres (2.0 km²) of his private land to allow members of the Rastafari movement, Ethiopian World Federation (EWF) officers and members and other settlers from Jamaica and other parts of the Caribbean to go to Africa. When Haile Selassie I was deposed in 1974 the new government of Mengistu Haile Mariam confiscated all but 11 hectares.  In January 2005 there were reports in the media that Bob Marley's remains were to be exhumed and then reburied at Shashamane. His wife Rita Marley described Ethiopia as his spiritual home, provoking controversy in Jamaica, where his remains lie.  The Rastafarian settlement in Shashamane was recently reported to exceed two hundred individuals. 

Back on the road again at 10.15am we drove for a further 90 minutes with a stop at Lake Ziway.  This place was a surprise and I hate to say that I actually enjoyed the 40 minutes we were given here.  The Ducks were very excited as the park was a bird watches paradise and with their camera’s and binoculars in hand, after just stepping out of the cars, there were at least 10 different species of birds we could see without even using the binoculars!  There were also a lot of pelicans and the massive Marabou storks about and we were within a few meters of these magnificent birds.  They are just massive, ugly, but massive.  I also saw some Kingfishers diving into the water and swooping out lunch with a fish in their mouths.  It was a pretty cool place and with access to the lake and fishermen around filleting and gutting fish it was one of those experiences that I won’t forget and was least expected.

Talk around the lunch table was of tips for the drivers and also Minaloo.  I don’t know how I got roped into collecting and gathering everyone’s money, but I did and I have to say I did a poor job to start with.  I had asked Minaloo what was a good tip for the drivers so we could start to get an idea.  He told me a figure of 3000 birr; I asked is that per driver or total.  I am 99.9% sure he said total for the 4 of them.  So over lunch I told everybody this, they all gave me their money, I hand made an envelope and it was all done.  I must have known that something wasn’t right and I double checked with Minaloo and he said that’s per driver!  Oh crap, so as we were leaving I had to re-group everyone and tell them that I had made a mistake and if they wanted to contribute more they could.  Sorry guys.  Most people add more money, but not all.  I had independently tipped my guys and gave them all a personal thank-you note in some handmade envelopes, so at the end of the day I can’t and won’t police what people tip, but I cannot understand why people don’t when you get exceptional service. 

So out last stop was now going to be back in Addis.  It was a lot drier and dustier than I remembered 11 days ago and 70km out of the capital the traffic was a nightmare.  I wouldn’t want Zeme’s job for the world.  There was a lot of traffic on the roads to start with, but the trucks are circa 1950’s and they are slow, old and they blow so much smoke, the pollution in and around Addis must be off the scale.  No CO2 carbon emission incentives here I wouldn’t think!  It is here that we also noticed other tour companies in the traffic.  It is the done thing to travel in convoy rather than have massive busses or overland trucks and based on the traffic around, I can totally understand.  There is no pushing in or scooting past traffic in a bus that is for sure!

Welcome back to Addis Ababa!  Unlike our departure, where the streets were empty due to it being a Sunday and 7am in the morning, we had to park at the back of the hotel to unload all our things.  This is where we said good-bye to all our drivers Zeme, Abraham, Johnny and Lemma.  The guys don’t have email (except Zeme) so it was a final good-bye and the passing out of my personal thank you notes and a hug and a kiss to all.  I’m going to miss those guys with Zeme and Lemma my 2 favorites.  Minaloo came into the hotel to make sure we were all okay and then with hug and a goodbye kiss we said good-bye to illustrious leader.  He was amazing and it really re-enforces that to have a local person taking the trips is really quite important and you can notice the difference and you really get first hand stories and antidotes.  Minaloo, you were amazing and I am trying to tell as many people as I can about your wonderful country, to get you more tourists to visit to give you and your boys more work.  I know I definitely will be back to do the north with Josephine, Massimo and David in the next 12 months, so we will definitely be seeing you again my friend.

The Ras Hotel staff are not the friendliest and I am just not sure how switched on they are.  There was some issue, that I think was they had more rooms than keys (the swipy kind) so they were handing out ‘normal’ keys to access rooms.  So I had my backpack on my back, my small bag and my Intrepid bag and off I climb 2 floors of stairs to walk the 300m hallway, to get to my door that has only swipe access, no key hole.  So I double double checked that I wasn’t missing something and had to walk back the 300m, 2 floors of stairs to get back to reception to say there was no key hole – this key is useless.  So she then programmes a swipe card and walk back, climb the 2 floors of stairs to walk the 300m hallway, to get to my door and guess what?  The damn swipe card doesn’t work!!!  So remember I am still carrying my entire luggage as well, so back I go down the 300m hallway, 2 floors of stairs back to reception.  I’m a little cranky at this stage, so she gives me a whole new room now on the first floor and a new swipe card.  This bloody thing better work this time.  So back I go AGAIN for the 3^rd time, back up the 2 flights of stairs, to realize when I got to the top I am now on the 1^st floor and had to climb back down a flight (dumbo) to walk the only 100m down the hallway, to get to my door and would you believe….the card WORKED!!!!!  Halaleijuah.  I did have to back downstairs again to collect my bag I left behind 10 days ago and then back to my room to repack my bag for airline travel again.

After getting the packing done, jumping onto the internet and then meeting the guys for a quick dinner, it was time to say our final goodbyes.  I still hate goodbyes and they just don’t get any easier.  Josephine, Massimo and David were god sends for this trip and I thank my travel god for looking after me yet again.  I am going to miss you guys, but we have spoken and we are going to come back and do the north of Ethiopia in the near future together and I KNOW I will see my new Italian friends on this trip at some stage.  So this is farewell for now and I will see you guys again.  You rock and will not be forgotten.

So another trip concludes as I head back to my room.  So BIG thanks goes to my Ethiopian travellers and in no particular order:

Josephine and Massimo – Italy

David – Israel

Bobby – USA

The Ducks, Colleen and Tui – Australia

Richard and Carol – Australia

Ian and Jenny – Australia

Minaloo – Ethiopia

Zeme – Ethiopia

Abraham – Ethiopia

Johnny – Ethiopia

Lemma – Ethiopia

Ethiopia was an AMAZING country.  If you have even had inkling to visit this country I would strongly urge you to do it.  It is safe, it is cheap and I am sure, especially in the south, there are not too many countries left in the world that has tribes so untouched by the western world.  It was a lifetime experience for me and I am SO glad that I had included it on my World Odyssey.  I LOVE Ethiopia and a piece of my heart will always belong here and I hope to return one day.

DRIVING DAY WITH A FEW STOPS IN BETWEEN

WEATHER: Raining and overcast 17C

HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: Waking up in a double bed

BUMMER OF THE DAY: It’s raining – but it’s a travel day

BUYS OF THE DAY: Finding a corner market for the first time and buying a lollipop for 5c

WORD OF THE DAY: Yaneneh – You are mine (for a boy) Yanenesh (for a girl)

Travel day today with a few stops.  We have 265km to travel, which doesn’t sound much and even though we are back on tarmac roads again, we are back to tackling more than just locals walking the roads, we were back to trucks, donkeys, cars and the usual cattle but not as much as the ‘countryside’. 

On the road at 8am and we had stopped at 8.20am, car no.2 having given up the ghost again for the second time.  She just wasn’t going to start again this time.  So Minaloo, quick on his feet again, made an executive decision within 5 minutes flat that car 2 people were shuffled into the other 3 cars and we left Johnny and Minaloo with the broken beast to sort out what their game plan was going to be and hopefully join us again sometime soon.  We had to travel out of number order today as well.  Car no. 3 was still blowing smoke, so they went first, Car no.1 didn’t have a spare tire (this was used yesterday) so they had to go second and then us in the still 100% awesome car went last to pick up any pieces should they happen. 

We are back to pastoral countryside.  A lot of the false banana plantations and corn fields.  I mentioned to Lemma that I liked corn, so when we saw some guys cooking the cobs on the side of the road, we pulled up and Lemma bought a cooked cob for me and it was delicious.  It cost us .11c and we went halves literally he snapped it in half, the cob was massive and it tasted just like pooped corn.  All that was missing was a movie and a drink.  I asked if anyone else wanted to try some to which there was a resounding no, maybe they were worried on the hygienic preparation of the cobs.  The kids hands were actually filthy, but hey when in Ethiopia you gotta give it a go right!  Foot note – I didn’t get sick.  Lemma did another corn stop later in the morning for home.  Corn in Addis is expensive, so he was under instructions from home to bring back some corn.  He bought 15 cobs from a seller beside the road.

After a drinks stop at 11am and a check on where Minaloo and Johnny were at, we were back on the road again to a gravesite that was 3000 years old.  The graves were marked with waka’s that have stood the test of time.  It was also traditional back then if you were coming to visit a grave that you bring a stone with you to lay on the ground.  So after so much time, the grave site is now covered in all sizes of stones that we had to walk over to have a look at.  It was pretty amazing that they had been preserved for so long.  There was a school right next to where we parked, so we got a chance to look at their school books that they had and they seemed pretty proud that we liked the work that they had done.  As we drove off we had about 25 children running after the car yelling out goodbye and you you you you you.  Lemma was concerned that one of the stones from the tires would kick up and hot one of the kids, but it didn’t, which he was happy about.

Lunch was in a small town called Delatal.  Typical larger town, lots of traffic, restaurants and shops.  After lunch as we awaited the progress of where Minaloo and Johnny were, we went for a small walk and found a corner store that sold biscuits, drinks etc.  This was the first supermarket (termed loosely) that I have seen all trip.  So I bought a bottle of coke and these nut schnack things that we had eaten in Turmi along with a lollipop all for the grand price of 2.30AUD.  I’m telling you Ethiopia is so so so cheap!!!  So with Minaloo and car no.2 still a fair way behind us, we packed into the 3 cars and headed for our final destination for the night in Wonshow.  Minaloo said the property we are staying at tonight is possible the nicest in all of Ethiopia and the President himself has stayed here.  That’s like the Bill Gates claim to fame in Eldoret in Kenya!  It must be good if HE stayed here.

The accommodation was self-standing chalets, where 4 people would go into each one.  I got paired up with the ducks, which was a little bit if a bummer, as we were hoping I could share with Josephine and Massimo, but as Lemma was only the messenger, we decided to not make a big deal of it.  The chalets were massive!  They had a large living room as you entered the double sized doors and with a large bathroom to the left a bedroom next to that and to the right a second bedroom.  This would do quite nicely for the night thank-you very much.  They were traditional huts, just made bigger than the real deal and they were pretty amazing. 

After getting to our rooms, I was getting ready for the walk when I heard something smack up against the Duck’s window and I heard one of them scream.  So I went to check it out and this stupid bird kept looking at itself in the reflection of the window and then fly into it.  It certainly wasn’t scared of us and we got to get some great photos of it as it sat out on the ledge of the window and continued to fly into the window.  We ended up shutting the shutters, so that he couldn’t see himself.  Dumb bird.  So after a short turn around, we met with our guide who was going to take us for a walk around his village and at the end back at the hotel watch the local hyena’s get feed.  Yes I also thought that hyenas would be the last animals that you would find here, but there you have it, and they get fed every evening.  Not sure on the responsible aspect of feeding the wild animals……  The village is located on some hills, so we had some up and down walking to get us around.  It is spread out over a large area, so it isn’t the villages like the ones that we saw in the south.  We went in to one of the huts to see how a family lives and like the Dorze, their cattle sleep inside the huts with them to keep the animals out of the cold and to also help with their body heat to keep the hut warm on colder nights.  Pretty smart idea if you can handle the small of the cows….  So walking, talking to children and just soaking up the late afternoon activities of village life got us back to the hotel at 5.30pm with chairs all lined up for us to sit and watch the hyena’s come in for the feed.  We saw 3 of them in total, and I have to say they didn’t look as manky as the ones that I saw in the Serengeti.  They were and are still the ugliest animal on this planet (besides the Wildebeest) and the main guy had to fight with the vultures that swooped in to try and get some food as well.  There would have been around 15 vultures and we got to see these massive birds in flight as they would drop from the trees above the hyena to try and get their share.  A lot of them were patiently waiting till the hyena finished for them to then feed on what he left behind. 

I was on Struggle Street at this point of the afternoon, so I skipped the coffee ceremony that was getting set up and headed back to my chalet / hut to get a late afternoon sleep before dinner.  I was SO tired.  Dinner was amazing.  It was also the most expensive thing that I paid for all trip at a grand price of 10AUD for a buffet that had a little bit of Ethiopian food and also some Italian food (the owners are Italian) it made a nice difference to get some lasagna and potato bake with a fresh green salad.  It was delicious.  We also heard at dinner that Minaloo and Johnny would be at the hotel at 8.30pm.  The buggers, what a day they have had and to be driving in the dark would not be ideal either.  The huts that were in no.2 had their bags in there, so they couldn’t change till they arrived, but in the scheme of things I think that was a pretty moot concern anyway.

Early to bed.  We have a massive driving day tomorrow to get us back to where it all started – Addis Ababa.

I AM A VIP IN SURRUPO

WEATHER: Wet in Konso – grey skies and then sun in Yabelo

HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: The children and colour of the Surrupo Markets 

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Should have got a Bernstar jump with the camels

BUYS OF THE DAY: Besides food nothing was bought today

WORD OF THE DAY: You you you you you you

Well it appeared the cars were in a lot worse condition than first thought.  They worked on them as much as they could last night with the rain and then early this morning they were back at it to get them back on the road.  So our departure time was a little hazy till we got word at 8.30am that they were all fixed and we could get going.  The mud situation hadn’t improved with all the rain form last night, so it was quite slippery in places and even the grass cuttings couldn’t keep up with all the mud and we were all climbing into the cars with the mud clinging to our feet.  Everyone was trying as hard as they could to scrape it all off, from using the car tires, rocks, branches and at one point old duck fell over trying to get mud off her boots.  And get this we are travelling out of the rainy season!  Can you imagine what all the towns and roads look like when it is the rainy season?  That would be one very important word of advice – don’t come to Ethiopia in the wet season.  I think it would just be terrible!

This was probably the shortest travel day we have had with only 2 hours on the road we arrived into town for the night – Yabelo.  We actually arrived into somewhere before lunch time!  And just to have a cherry on top, the accommodation is actually okay.  As I was on a single room that I hadn’t paid for, I was in a different section of the motel, the other guys had newer rooms, but all in all I had a bed and a toilet that flushed, this people is heaven for me and I was quite happy.  I did have to put a call in for a towel and toilet paper, I had no TV, no safe and my outside light turned my inside lights on and off, but like I said as long as I had a bed and toilet I was happy and the shower had hot water – heaven!!!  The weather had cleared in this part of the world, so we were able to sit out under this massive shady tree that had table and chairs and waiters running around getting food and drinks and there was a small TV on the CNN channel that we were able to grasp bits and pieces of what has been happening in the world while were un-contactable. I tried to blog another day, but with the weather so good, it was a busy place and I was people watching and then Massimo and Josephine came over I was just not getting a word written. 

When we went to move for lunch I had a mad minute that I thought my bag had been stolen.  Josephine had already gone and it was just Bobby and I.  I told Bobby my bag was gone, and being the voice of reason said maybe I had left it in my room.  But I didn’t have my room key, which I was sure was in my missing bag, but you know when you just cling to the small fact that you could be wrong and maybe the bag is in my room, but you know that it’s not.  So I peered through my window and low and behold NO bag.  So my brain is now working overtime on what I had in the bag.  Passport, camera, 200USD, credit cards the usual deal.  Bobs was waiting for me and with a shake of my head I was just about in full panic alert when Josephine came back for her drink and saw my panicked expression and when I told her, she had picked up my bag for me as I had my hands full with my laptop and hard drive. OMG – thank you travel god!!!!  I haven’t had a feeling like that all trip and I touch wood that it doesn’t happen again but isn’t that feeling the pits – the pits.

After lunch we drove 15 minutes to Yabelo National Park.  Yabelo Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area and wildlife sanctuary in southern Ethiopia.  Having an area of 2,500 square kilometers and elevations ranging from 1430 to 2000 meters above sea level.  Endemic species of birds found in this protected area include Stresemann's Bush Crow and White-tailed Swallow.  Yabelo reportedly suffers from a great deal of deforestation, and illegal hunting of the spotted cats and ostrich is common. We were going into the park to try out luck at finding zebra’s and the 2 endemic birds, but after only driving around the park for 30 minutes, we got word that there had been no animal sightings, so we ditched the effort all together and went straight to our next stop the Surrupo Camel and People Market. 

On our way we passed a camel farm and there were trucks driving out with camels loaded in the back of the lorries.  They looked hilarious as we drove past them with them sitting down and their heads all looking the same way, like they were watching a tennis match.  They are pretty funny looking animals and just to see their head over the top of the bars was super funny.  It was only a 15 minute drive to the markets where we got dropped off and we then proceeded to enter the camel market that was located on a large open space oval that would have had at least 300+ camels.  We were able to just walk around and take photos as we wished and no one was hassling us for money.  It was strange here, the second we arrived into the market, I was, let’s say an attraction.  This is just not me trumpeting my own horn or anything, you ask Minaloo and Josephine, I was a man magnet the second I stepped onto the field.  Josephine was the first one to notice and we started making a joke that I was a VIP for the day.  We even had a motor bike stop right in front of us with 2 guys on it to check us out.  Josephine called to Massimo as my protector / husband and as Massimo does he asked them how much they would pay for me in camels for my hand in marriage!  They offered 10 camels and when you look at the cost for a single camel is approx. 1000AUD a pop; they just offered a dowry of 10,000AUD for me.  I’m telling ya I was the bee’s knees.  As we walked around the camel herds (do camels come in herds) we were picking up more and more admiring men.  Josephine couldn’t stop laughing and I was upgraded from Lady Bernie to Queen Bernie. 

From the camels we walked across the rest of the oval and then entered the Peoples market.  By this time the men had stayed with their camels and we had now picked up about a dozen children.  I was back to getting touched and poked and this time round my bottom was the object of their touching.  I also have little bruises on my arms from where I have been poked for the last week.  These kids were pretty great and they weren’t asking for money for photos and were happy just to walk around with us.  The market was a wash of colour, noise and people.  The People’s Market is literally all things that people need, like clothes, toiletries, shoes, more clothes, clothes and more clothes.  So after walking around for 30 minutes and getting same more snaps we headed back to the cars that were parked on the other side of a gully.  The kids were so receptive to photos, they just wanted them taken so they could see them played back on the screen and too look at themselves.  It made a really nice change.  It was a pretty cool afternoon, even if I was the object of people’s attention, who would ever have thought I would be so popular in Africa.  Once again it comes down to the ‘larger’ size of moi and how they just aren’t used to seeing people of my ‘size’.  The kids loved saying you you you you you when asking for a photo or asking for pens or money you you you you you you – it got a little tiring – you you you you you you you….

Driving back to the motel look8ing at the local people, the Oromo are an ethnic group with 30 million members; they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census.   They wore longer dresses with head scarves which fall in line with 90% of the Oromo being of Muslim faith.    No.2 car is still blowing smoke, which I am not sure if that is a good thing or not, but thank goodness I was in car no.3 today is all I can say!

So after only travelling 165km today, getting offered 10 camels for my hand in marriage, getting treated like some freaky VIP in a camel market, it was time to hit the hay in my 2 star grandiose motel  room for the night.  

WE BROKE DOWN-TRAVEL TO KONSO

WEATHER:   Cool 21C in the morning – Hot 34C at lunch – Cool 19C in the evening

HIGHTLIGHT OF THE DAY: Breaking down in dodgy no.2 car

BUMMER OF THE DAY: Breaking down in dodgy no.2 car

BUYS OF THE DAY: Didn’t spend a dime today

WORD OF THE DAY: Ishy – its okay

We leave Turmi today to start our journey back north so we had to have all our bags packed and out of the tents this morning.  We didn’t have to pack down the tents; this was going to be done while we were out and would all be finished when we came back from our trip to the Dasanech Tribe.  So the Dasanech Tribe is located on the Omo River only 40km from the Kenyan border, so we had to get an early start.  Breakfast was at 7am and then a departure as soon as we had finished had us on the road at 7.30am.  Today we had Abe as our awesome driver and we were back in car number 2!

The scenery is a lot flatter as we head the furthest south we go on the whole trip.  There are security check points along the way as we pass through different tribal areas and our final destination today at Omorate was the strictest by far, as we had to park at the office and hand in our passports, which they held onto until we left again to go back to camp.  Minaloo re-assured us that they were in safe hands for the 2 hours we were going to spend in their region.

Omorate was a mud pool.  The sun was out this morning, but it had rained overnight here and he whole ground was mud.  Not just a little bit, a massive mud bath.  The cars parked at the Tourist Hotel ( told you there was one in each village ) and we walked to the Omo River where there was going to be traditional dug out canoes to cross the river waiting for us to see the Dasanech people.  As you may be aware I am not a small boat person, I hate them and the thought of falling in and not being able to get back into the small boat is embarrassing enough for me to scare the wits out of me.  BUT then I did do the mokoros in the Delta and I survived that, so how bad could these canoes be?  Well the size of the canoe was a secondary issue once I saw how we had to get done to the damn canoes.  They were parked at the base of a massive, no exaggeration MASSIVE, muddy incline, on a normal day would have been a challenge to get down let alone adding mud and slipping and sliding to that equation.  I only had to take a glance at what was required before I even saw anyone attempt the decent to know there was no way I was going to see the Dasanech people today.  As the group went down in groups of 4, and watched them slip and slide it furthered my resolve to not go.  I had David, Massimo and also Minaloo re-assuring me that they would be there to help me every step of the way down, but with a large crowd of local people gathering to watch us get down this mudslide, there was no way in hell.  Thanks for the offers guys but there is just no way I’m going down there.  So I watched the last of the group getting into the dugout canoes and they are basically made out of a local tree (can’t remember the name) and depending on the size of the tree differentiated the size of the canoe.  They were all similar size in length but the width of them varied and I know some of the crew had an issue initially trying to get their tushy into the canoe. Yeah if they had a problem what chance would I have had.  All round I am glad I didn’t go and I still don’t regret my decision.

The Daasanach are traditionally a pastoral people by tradition, but in recent years have become primarily agropastoral. Having lost the majority of their lands over the past fifty years or so, primarily as a result from being excluded from their traditional Kenyan lands they have suffered a massive decrease in the numbers of cattle, goats and sheep. As a result, large numbers of them have moved to areas closer to the Omo River, where they attempt to grow enough crops to survive.   Women are circumcised by removing the clitoris so the form of circumcision is less extreme than some as it leaves room for babies to be born. Women who are not circumcised are called animals or boys and cannot get married or wear clothes. Women wear a pleated cow skin skirt and necklaces and bracelets, they are usually are married off at 17 while men are at 20. Boys are circumcised. Men wear only a checkered cloth around their waist.

So I was walked back to the Tourist Hotel where the drivers were resting up and I sat there with my book till the group returned at 11.20am.  They all looked hot and bothered, but had a good time over there, even though a few comments to me was that I didn’t miss much.  Not sure if they were telling the truth or they were just trying to make me feel better, but either way it was sweet.  So after they had a few drinks we were back into the cars to head back to camp for lunch and then the rest of the afternoon was going to be getting us back to Konso for the night, which makes for a big afternoon of driving.  This tribe was pretty much the last one for the trip.  I believe we have one more market to visit tomorrow of the Oromo people, but otherwise the next few days has the objective of getting us back to Addis Ababa.  I checked the temperature outside as we left Omorate and it was 34C!!!!!  No wonder why the group had red faces and looked hot and bothered.  I felt bad I had been resting, reading and sipping my Sprite while they were out and about on 34C temperatures in the mud.  I am still happy I didn’t go and I look like a BIG woose but I don’t care!

Lunch was ready when we got back at 12.30.  Cook has done so well to date and has made some marvelous food.  I know David remembers his name, all I can remember is that it means ‘rain’ translated but he was a little cutie and he came for a ‘bakery’ run in Turmi on the 2^nd night – sweet guy.  The last of our bags and the camping gear was getting packed on the cars and we were back on the road at 1.30pm.  We have had an awesome group in regards to time keeping, this I LOVE.  I hate tardiness, the upside of travelling with blue rinses (or equivalent) they are always on time.

As the afternoon passes we noticed that the car was starting to splutter a little bit.  It didn’t stop, so we kept driving till 4pm where we had a pit stop and a drink before setting off again.  The weather had changed again to rain and grey skies.  The temperature now 19C, 15C cooler than this morning – now that is what I call a temperature change!!!! Number 2 got the look over and got the thumbs up.  Car 1 had to have a tire change, but other than that we all looked good and set off again.  Well an hour in and car number 2 aka US coming into Konso stopped, died, kaput.  She just didn’t want to go another mile.  So the upside is that the car is brand spanking new, she had 165km on the clock when we started the trip, so how serious could the problem be?  As we were no.2, 3 and 4 were behind us so they all stopped as well to see what the problem was, car 1 was in its own world and powered on without noticing us missing!  But we had the other 2, so with the manual and the drivers all clicking and discussing they came to the conclusion that the fuel was contaminated with water, more than likely from Jinka and was now in the system.  Don’t ask me to explain any of it as I can’t even change a flat tire (I know but that is what RACQ is for) but whatever it was involved water, dodgy fuel and it was bad.  We were probably about 25 minutes from our final destination, so Johnny got on the phone to Minaloo and they attempted to try and fix the problem, if not temporarily to get us to the accommodation for the night.  As it happened a truck full of local people passed us heading in the other direction and they gave a toot and drove past.  Well 3 minutes later they were backing up the road and 3 guys jumped out for the back, had a look and all of a sudden the middle guy had put a pipe to his mouth, sucked out fuel or water or air, and then they put it all back together and what did you know the car started.  It was blowing a hell a lot of smoke, but it started and it was at this point Zeme / no.1 turned up, but he was empty in the case that no.2 was going to be left there if required.  So with us all working, number 3 was now also puffing some smoke we headed for camp.  I rode with Zeme to keep him company and we were literally only 20 minutes from base.  It could have been a lot worse and been in Mayo National Park or the middle of nowhere, but anyway after 1.5 hours broken down we made it safely.  Nothing like the wheels falling off towards the end of the trip!

We were staying back at Strawberry Fields, the eco-lodge that we stayed at on the way down, so we knew what to expect when we arrived.  The only difference last time it was dry as a bone, this time with all the rain the place had turned into a muddy quagmire!!!  They are pretty smart though and all the main pathways were laid with grass clippings on top of the mud, so if you were careful you could walk the path and not collet too much mud on the bottom of your shoes.  Like the Mursi mud, this stuff just sticks to the soles of your shoes and your size 9 foot turns into a size 29!!!!  Due to the high cost of the food, we were going to go into town to eat tonight, but after we had arrived and unloaded our bags, Minaloo said there are problems with 2 of the cars and they had to be worked on, so we were going to stay in and eat at the lodge.  No big deal, the food was actually quite good, it was just the time it takes to get it and the over pricing.  I am back in the same room I had previously and I was hoping that the spider that I killed last time didn’t have any angry relatives or friends that were going to come tonight and wreak some revenge for his death.  So I am back in a room with no electricity which was okay.  After dinner we were all pretty wrecked, so we set off for bed, AFTER 8.01pm, and as I was walking up to my room with my head torch on, I was accosted by these flying little bugs around my light.  They just descended on me out of nowhere and before I knew it I had swallowed like 5 of them and they were stuck in my throat, which I started to cough and cough and cough and cough to try and dislodge the suckers to which more were, I am sure, trying to also get in my mouth.  I couldn’t turn my light off as there was no light at all up in my section of the grounds and I would have fallen over (with my track record) and broken something.  So as soon as I got to my door and unlocked the padlock, I switched off my light for the bugs to disappear and then I went inside, closed the door and then switched on my headlamp again to have the pesky blighters right there again.  So with lightning speed, I changed into my jim jams, got my book, switched off the headlamp, climbed into bed under the mosquito net thinking that will stop them, switched on my headlamp to be swarmed by them again.  How did they get under that net so quick?  I could only read for about 15 minutes and then they just got too much for me and I had to switch off the headlamp.  I did manage to play a couple games of Brickbreaker on my phone before I decided to just cut my losses and get some sleep. 

So in my mud hut, with rain falling on the thatched roof, I was onto my 4^th last night in Ethiopia and we were heading back towards civilization.  I’m going to miss this place and David, Josephine, Massimo and I have made a pact to come back together next year and we are going to do the north tour together.  That is an amazing idea!!!