Ethiopia - Lalibella

On Tuesday morning we left Bahir Dar at 3:30am and headed east towards Lalibella.  We arrived shortly after lunchtime and I immediately booked Shell and I on a three day trek through a local company called TESFA (Tourism in Ethiopia for Sustainable Future Alternatives).  The walk was due to begin the following day at noon.

The trek did not start too well as Shell was ill and struggled to climb the 13 km’s from Lalibella to our overnight campsite.  We finally made it to the top and settled into a cold evening around the indoor fire.

Day two was supposed to involve a 50 km trek to the summit of a local mountain.  With Shell sick in bed, I decided to give the long walk a miss and instead visited the local villages with our guide, Fantow.  I had a wonderful morning visiting the local children, farmers and working wives.  I spent most of my time inside a local village hut drinking coffee, eating homemade barley injera (bread) with a spicy sauce and watching two ladies work their grinding stones while balancing small children on their backs and boobs.  It was a great way to see how the locals live.

On day three we made our way back down the hill to Lalibella.

In the lead up to Easter, Lalibella was getting ready for the celebrations.  The Saturday market was one of the biggest for the year so my new friend Fantow took me along for a look.  I was told that the two Saturday markets before Easter are the most expensive of the year.  This ensures that anyone with something to sell comes along.  The price for sheep, goats and cows basically doubles, which is great for the sellers; not so good for the buyers.

I was dragged along to a bar in the market which sold local beer in used tinned tomato cans.  Fantow asked me if I thought the beer tasted like Guiness.  I was polite and said that it did.  What I really thought it tasted like was apple, mixed with mud and soapy water.  Regardless of the taste of the beer, it was great to be with the locals who were taking some rest from their market stalls to enjoy a drink in the shade. 

On Sunday morning, Shell was feeling a little better so we got out of bed early to visit the Churches and see the locals praying.  Many of the people praying told us they had been at the Churches since 2am.  We spent the afternoon relaxing before going to a coffee ceremony at the house of Johoness, a friend of Fantow’s that I had met at the market.

 
On Monday morning we hired a guide and spent four hours going through the different Church clusters.  I was amazed by the size and shapes of the different buildings.  It is hard to believe that everything was hand carved into the granite rock surrounds 1000 years ago.  The stone is so smooth and the intricate details (inside and out) look so perfect.  It was an enjoyable morning and allowed us to see the locals praying and the  Monks chanting in the lead up to Easter.

Ethiopia - Bahir Dar

We caught the ‘Skybus’ (a comfy first class bus) from Addis Ababa to Bahir Dar, stopping only for lunch and to chase after some young village boys who smashed a large side window with a rock.  One of the boys was caught, pleaded his innocence and then directed a local policeman and the bus driver to the house of the boy who had thrown the rock.  After a few minutes, the father of the rock throwing boy was loaded onto the bus and taken to the police station.  That was the end of that episode…

Bahir Dar looked to be a very nice town.  We settled into our hotel and then took a walk along the paths of Lake Tanna.  Being a Sunday, the town was packed and there seemed to be a small theme park in operation.  We made our way to a lovely local garden setting and joined the many locals who were enjoying a quiet beer.

 
On Monday morning we took a boat trip (with five other tourists) to four Monasteries on Lake Tanna.  It was great to see these eight hundred year old buildings in such remote parts of the lake.  Some of the Monasteries were in better condition than others so we were able to enter two of them and take some pictures of the amazing paintings that cover the walls.

Ethiopia - Addis Ababa

We made it to Addis Ababa, headed to the Piazza section of town and finally found the Taitu hotel.  It felt nice to be in a big city again, surrounded by noise, people and lots of food!  Shell and I took a stroll around to try and find our bearings (not easy) and filled our boots with some western food.

We took a trip to the Immigration Department as we had to renew our Visas.  The process was quick and easy although we did have to return the following day to collect our passports.

With a few spare days up our sleeves we took it fairly easy in Addis, eating well, drinking some beers, using the internet etc.

 
On Saturday morning we visited the National Museum, which was small and interesting and allowed us to see the 3.5 million year old skeleton of a female, called ‘Lucy’.

Ethiopia - Bale Mountains

From Awasa we headed to Dodola and then up into the Bale Mountains for four days of trekking.  The trekking was not too hard (about 3 hours each day) but it allowed us to see some magnificent scenery and walk up and down the hills on our way to the next campsite.   

Accommodation was basic yet comfortable.  Most camps consisted of mud brick huts with a dining table and a homemade pot belly stove.  Food/water was prepared on a small kerosene burner.  We slept on bunk beds with many layers of blankets, which provided excellent bedding for the night and ensured we didn’t freeze to death when the temperature dropped during the evening.

Our final day involved a 23 km trek back to Dodola so we all used horses to get us home.  It was a weird feeling to be riding a horse again after so many years, especially when the saddle is not strapped onto the horse (it is roughly connected around the neck and tail) and constantly moves about while you struggle to keep your balance!  We had the option of riding on our own or being led by a guide.  After struggling with the saddle I chickened out on riding solo and decided to have a guide lead me down the mountain tracks. 

We made it back safely to Dodola, paid our guides and then limped off towards the bus station with a sore legs and bum.

Ethiopia - Awasa

We caught an early morning bus from Aber Minch to the lake town of Awasa.  We spent four lazy days in Awasa, where we checked out the lake, tried unsuccessfully to visit the local fish market, ate like kings and basically took it easy.  We found accommodation just out of town and were perfectly situated near the Haile Hotel on the lake.  We spent our final afternoon relaxing by the Haile Hotel pool (which overlooks the lake) reading books and swimming.