Tessie was home sick on Monday, which there is nothing worse than a sick kid but the upside was that we got to spend all day together playing Snap and Go Fish and watching the Olympics on TV. I was okay in getting the flu like symptoms from Tessie but I was hoping that I would escape the conjunctivitis which was the main thing that was keeping Tess at home as it is highly contagious. Foot note: I escaped the conjunctivitis but the whole family was hit by the sniffles, runny noses and a dreadful cough. Hopefully that is my ‘flu’ done with this year……
Tuesday was Movie Day and our date with Big Mike, um I mean Magic Mike. We had a high expectation of the movie and with our popcorn and frozen coke in hand we pretty much watched a soft porn movie, with not much of a story line, but plenty of butts and boobs on show through the whole movie. I have to say Matthew McConaghy was hilarious and it was worth seeing for the ‘acts’ of the show but that was pretty much all. Lucky it was ‘tight arse Tuesday’ and I will miss these days spent with my best friend. Our last movie date is next week and we did want to see The Sapphires, but it starts the day after I leave so we are going to watch the dance movie Step Up. The shorts to this looks pretty good and I think a good movie to finish on. I spent the rest of the afternoon getting my final bits and pieces. I got another Australian Sim card to add to my stash in case I lose the one I have or my phone gets stolen. I had to get a new pair of bathers a few tops and I also received some information that it is hard to get a good blanket in Addis, so I bought a new doona, a few towels to get us through initially, a docking station for my IPad as I am going to take that with me this time, a lantern as the power can be temperamental at times, a thermometer and the big purchase of the day was a new camera. I know it always seems like I am buying camera’s, but they get a lot of use and unfortunately the camera I bought in Frankfurt in March broke on my last night in Melbourne and it won’t focus on anything. It is a shame as that was a really good camera. So I got another point and shoot to replace that one, as you do need a big camera as well as a small one-this is a definite on any packing list. I am still waiting on more details on what to bring, if anything, but I think I have 98% of everything I need.
Zeme and I have been speaking the last few weeks about how my arrival coincides with peak season in Ethiopia, which was never an issue. But now there are tours booked and Zeme can only get a week off for my arrival due to this fact. So to start with I could be in Addis on my own for a few weeks each month for a few months depending on the tours booked till early next year. I do know a few other people who live in Addis now (Zeme’s friends) that could help me out while Zeme was away, but he really wasn’t happy that I would be there on my own. It would be a little daunting that I could be starting out without Zeme by my side but I am going to have to stand on my own two feet anyway right? The main questions that I have are how will I get around when the drivers and tuk tuks don’t speak English? Where will we be living? Will I be near other Expats? If so, do they speak English? Will we be somewhere I could at least walk safely to get some exercise? Will there be a supermarket nearby? Can we get internet connected quickly? I have a lot of questions that I will only get the answers to once I get there and I find that all a little scary. I think part of it is because I am a planner and I just can’t do anything till after my first stint there. All part of the experience but I can be a little scared at the same time. I could handle all this, but it came to light on Wednesday that there is some political unrest in the capital and if I stayed in Addis on my own it was strongly against the advice of Zeme. My world seemed to crumble right before me. I have been looking forward to this day for 132 days which was when I left Ethiopia last time in March. It really was devastating news. I spoke to Zeme on the phone that night and I could hear it in his voice, so I had to trust his judgment and as much of a blow as it was, I have to respect that. But what the hell am I to do now?
I was an emotional mess already coping with my good-bye’s here at home, the unknown into Addis and now the final straw of the delay-ment. When I spoke to Zeme he could still get the 10 days off for my original arrival date, so I was jumping at that, I already had flights, so I still get to see my guy for 10 nights and then after that I have no idea. I was going to get brochures from an agent tomorrow and start to work out what I can do with my time for the 3 months I now have spare. Shelly and Shane kindly told me I was more than welcome to stay with them, but I hate to over stay my welcome anywhere and adding on another 3 months to their lives was out of the question for me as they have opened their home to me and I hate to take advantage of that. I felt 150% better after speaking to Zeme, I can’t change the fact that the city is unsafe without him, so I need to look to the good points which is I get another 3 months to see this beautiful world we live in, I still get to see Zeme for 2 weeks and hopefully in November and with the destinations I have in mind crank my tan back up again. Oh yes, things could be a lot worse and I am a big believer that all things happen for a reason so I need to offer it all up and just see what transpires over the coming months. But I am SUPER excited to see Zeme in September.
My week got 2 surprise highlights which was just what I needed. I received a small gift and card from my tentie in New Zealand wishing me luck for my journey and also some presents for the girls as well. Always so thoughtful. This is why I miss you so much Morphie and I will wear the necklace as a good talisman for my next legs of travel, whatever that maybe and another card arrived from Canberra and another 2 fellow African travelers wishing me a bon voyage and enclosed was a 50AUD I-tunes voucher. The card was amazing and I nearly lost it reading it and my favorite quote from the card was that ‘fortune favors the brave’. This hit a chord with me for some reason and I just had to let some tears slide down my face. I hope what I was doing was the right thing. What else would I be doing if I didn’t extend my travel? I am homeless, jobless and carless. I can’t sit around for another 4 months in Brisbane, as tempting as it sounds, I just can’t. So thank-you to Lisa, Em and Lou. You guys rock, thank-you for your thoughtfulness, your caring ways, your friendship and your gifts. These are the type of people I have met on my trips and this is what I am always eternally grateful for every day. You can’t put a price on that.
So Thursday was a hustle to get brochures, mostly of Asia, as I need somewhere cheap to spend my time and I picked up the Intrepid Africa brochure as I would love to do the West Africa trip they have in there, but the dates don’t work out for me this time, which I think maybe a sign and I will pour over the brochures methodically in the next few days. I need to have some kind of plan in place before I leave. I told you I am a planner from way back and this gives me something to sink my teeth into so I don’t have too much time to think about things too much. My packing has to change a little and a few things will need to come out of the pack now as I think my destinations won’t require a hair straightener, as many dresses and a few more ‘workable’ shirts than ‘nice’ daily tops. Slight adjustments, but I will need to re-think it all again early next week. I also wasn’t going to take any sneakers, but I think I am going to have to find room for those buggers now as well.
Friday I was in a better frame of mind. I had accepted all the information, I can’t change the facts a few positive messages on Facebook from friends and I was back on track. If this is the worst thing to happen to me then I think I am still in a pretty good place. There were tours and flights that didn’t seem too expensive and that were going to work in date wise and I decided to just enjoy my final few days with friends with a smile on my dial and everything would work out-it may just be hard for me to see it immediately, which is the way I normally like to roll. We had a date with James Reyne to see him in concert tonight and a night spent with 8 of my friends and it turned out to be a great night. We even managed to get our photo taken with him which he didn’t seem to be too tickled about. We had our funky glasses to boot and even though we drank like fish we were home by 12.30am to relive the babysitters, which was a blessing in disguise otherwise it could have been quite messy waking up on Saturday morning. Maybe the key is to party hard early and make it home by a decent hour and there maybe, just maybe, some hope that you won’t wake up feeling like you have been run over by a truck or that your teeth have little furry shoes on them. Maybe I said…….
Saturday was a morning of recovery for me and then the afternoon was a surprise for me from Sandy and Shelly to spend my last Saturday with 2 of my best friends. They didn’t tell me where we were going, they only told me to dress warm and smart casual and that was it. We were going to go from our secret location to the football that night, so we had to make sure we had warm stuff as it has been so cold this week with lows of 2C at night all week. So we got dropped at this non-descript street in the Valley, with no shops or people walking around and we entered a building where a girl asked if we were after the rooftop and told us to hit floor 5 in the elevator. We arrived at the Lime Bar which was a patio bar overlooking Fortitude Valley. We were the only people there, but since when do we need other people to have a good time? The gals had booked a girly package that came with a few drinks and a plate of nibbles where we sat and drank cocktails the afternoon away with the warm sun on our faces and a slight breeze as we sat in the sun; I have to say it was an amazing afternoon. We were joined by 2 gentlemen from Melbourne who were staying at the hotel for a few hours till they had to leave, but boy what a nice way to spent my last Saturday in Brisvegas. That is why I didn’t let the 18AUD cocktails upset me, but I did mention a few times that the cost of 2 cocktails would give an African child a hot meal for lunch for a year. Maybe I am a little hypocritical….. Maybe not……
Saturday was also Zeme’s birthday. It is a little frustrating that Ethiopia is 7 hours behind us, so I had to wait till after 6pm to call to wish him a happy birthday. I am getting great value out of my Optus sim card that I bought during the week. It was 30AUD for the sim card but it came with 30 bucks of calls. I have spoken to Zeme like 4 times this week and each call (maybe 8-10 minutes) is only costing me around 5 bucks. Can’t argue with that cost. I had also sent him a birthday card 4 weeks ago and he received it yesterday. It also contained a handmade card from the girls and also some of the business cards that I had made up, so he was pleasantly surprised!!! It is always great to hear his voice. The footy was a little bit of a blur for the three of us after consuming like 6 cocktails each but we somehow happened to be thirsty consuming another 3 vodka and cokes while attempting to watch the game as we chatted and laughed our way through the 2.5 hours.
I know I have said it before but it really was a great way to top off what was a roller coaster of a week for me. I am so lucky I have such a great backup of friends here and this is what I will miss when I finally make it to Ethiopia. But there is also proof that new friends can be made in travels or where you work, or where you live and Em, Lisa and Lou are examples of these people that you met and at times can be life changing.
I have a new chapter about to start next Wednesday, it may not have been what I had originally planned, but it is a new chapter all the same and I still need to be grateful for the position that I find myself in. Things that don’t kill us make us stronger and you still need to make the most every moment even though it may not be in your original planning.
My Ethiopian Odyssey may have been postponed but my World Odyssey gets a renewed life for a few more months.
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