Places and People.

Timket Sunday Mass, Gondar.

What make this trip so special for me were both the places that I traveled to and the people I traveled with. This posting is dedicated to the places and people that I will forever have fond memories of.

Homeward Bound.

Pink Flamingos at Abijatta-Shalla National Park

This will be a bittersweet day for me. More sad than sweet because it's the day my trip to Ethiopia comes to an end and I'm going home. Don't get me wrong, I love my home but I love to be on the road just as much and when a trip is as fun as this one has been, you just don't want it to end!

To the Shores of Lake Awassa.

A cluster of Sidama buildings.

Road trip! It was a leisurely start today. We have to make it from Yabelo to Awassa before day's end but it's not a long drive so no need to rush. Even with the bad roads here, it's just around a 5 hour drive, with stops included.

Around Yabelo. A Salt Lake, a Singing Well, and a Village.

I asked these Borana two women if I could pose for a photo with them because I loved their colorful dress and jewelry
 which is typical Borana.  They agreed, for a tip of course.  Netsanet had the honor of snapping the photo. I gave a smile
 but they're not looking happy....at all and the young girl actually looks a bit pissed.  I should've done something
to make them feel more comfortable before taking the photo.  Awkward or not, I still love the picture!

I just looked at the calendar and realized that today is January 31 which means that I only have three days left in Ethiopia. I cannot believe how quickly time has flown by - I'm enjoying this trip so much, I don't want it to end!

Road Trip to Yabelo. A Hamar Village and a Benna Market.

We left Turmi bright and early this morning - we had a long day's drive ahead of us. By day's end, we would be in Yabelo.  Pat and I were in Car 3 today with Negatu though we should have been in Car 2 and we lost Jean; Marianne was with us instead.  Somehow it didn't feel right.

Spending Time With The Mursi and The Ari.

Mursi Family.

I awoke to another beautiful morning in Turmi. It's a nice time of day to take a short walk because once the sun rises, it gets incredibly hot here! Our rooms are located about a 5 minute or so walk from the hotel's restaurant. I took a leisurely stroll to the breakfast table - taking in the views around me. It's amazing what crosses your path here - a person or two or perhaps, a donkey or two.

Visiting the Dassanech and the Karo.

My portrait of a Dassanech girl.  A small ray of loveliness amidst the dusty rubble.

Good morning from Turmi! Heat or no heat, mosquitoes or no mosquitoes, I had a great night's sleep last night.  I think it was because I had such a great afternoon yesterday.  I'm still reliving the images of the Hamar whipping and bull jumping rituals in my head.

A Hamar Celebration. Whipping and Jumping Bulls.

Young Hamar men relaxing before the Bull Jumping Begins

This afternoon's plan, which was not on the original itinerary was to attend a bull jumping ceremony that the Hamar are known for but that only happen on occasion. As I found out from Netsanet later on, he found out through word of mouth that the ceremony would be taking place today and adjusted our itinerary accordingly. We were lucky that Netsanet found out and basically, lucky to be at the right place at the right time to catch this ceremony.

Introducing the Hamar.

Hamar girl - a small bag of eggs in one hand and her wooden stool in the other.
She wears a beaded neck collar which means she is not married.  She shyly posed for me. 

Barely 5 minutes down the road from stopping and taking a photo of an Arbore girl, I had Danny stop once again.  We're in Car 2 today; I'm sure the folks in Car 3 were wondering what the heck was going on.

Meeting the Arbore.

Arbore family.  That cute little boy....stole my heart.

Our drive today took us further into the heart of the Omo Valley. Netsanet has repeatedly been telling us that our days will be filled with a lot of long drives. I don't mind.  Our first stop today would be at a Arbore village.  The Arbore or Ebore are a small tribe living in the Omo Valley who survive as pastoralists - the land they inhabit is not sufficiently arable for growing crops.  The Arbore share cultural and ancestral associations with the Konso which makes sense given their geographic proximity to each other. The women are known to cover their heads with thin, black cotton cloth and adorn themselves with colorful, beaded necklaces.

Two Villages, New York & a Flat.

Young Konso child.

We had another nice, leisurely lunch today. It was one of those times when it was just too comfortable to leave the table. My cup of tea was perfect for sipping, the weather divine and the company, just awesome. But, Netsanet was hovering near by - we had to leave as there was still a full afternoon of activities ahead of us, including a visit to New York, not that New York but another place by the same name.

You, you, you!

Those two innocent looking faces followed me around from the time I got out of the car to the time I got back in!

T
he Ethiopian Swarm. Everywhere we went, in the Omo Valley, we were absolutely mobbed by people - mostly kids.  To get your attention, they would often shout, "You, you, you" or sometimes, in my case, it was *You, you, you, China* or sometimes *You, faranji*.  Faranji means *foreigner*.

The Road to Konso.

Daily ritual for Konso women - bathing and doing laundry in a nearby river.

We were short one car and one driver today. Car 2 and Danny, the driver, were involved in an accident last night. By all accounts, it was the other driver's fault. Fortunately, no one was injured and our car is okay but apparently, it has been impounded until the owner can provide all the requisite insurance and title information. Danny stayed behind in Arba Minch to take care of whatever needed to be done.

Where the Dorze Live, Play, & Work.

A small group of Dorze men and children entertaining us and they were entertaining indeed!

After our leisurely lunch at the Arba Minch Tourist Hotel, we were back on the road, heading towards a nearby Dorze village. We were accompanied by yet another local guide but this one was a member of the village. Unfortunately, I don't remember his name.

At the Market With the Dorze.

The Dorze market in Chencha.

Ahhhhh.....fooood.  After spending our morning motor boating on Lake Chamo, we were treated to a nice lunch at the appropriately named Arba Minch Tourist Hotel.

Wild Boars, Hippos, Crocs & Pelicans!

The Great White Pelican quintet on Lake Chamo.

Pretty plumeria blooming - this tree's got some age on it!

S-t-r-e-t-c-h and y-a-w-n and stretch some more and then rollover a few times and repeat. It was a lazy wake up for me this morning. Last night, Netsanet had told us that breakfast at the restaurant would end at 8a. I pushed it and only made it to the dining table at 7:45a. The Mongol horde must have arrived before me because there was barely any food, and I mean barely, left on the table. Not even a scoop of scrambled egg, just some really hard croissant like things. It was bad. So, I had restaurant cut up the pineapple we bought in Addis. That and one of the croissant things and a cup of coffee was all I had for breakfast.

As we were at the breakfast table, Gale brought up a great idea to get 125 birr from each of us for local guide tip money. She had done some reading the night before and based on our itinerary, calculated how many villages we would be visiting and therefore, how much we need to have in the tip kitty which was 1000 birr which divided by 8 comes to the 125 birr per person.  If we end up short, then we'll have to each pony up more money and she would let us know if that happens.  Such a practical idea and saves each of us from having to figure out the tip on a daily basis!  Thanks Gale!

On the Way to Arba Minch. Meeting The Halaba.

Halaba children and women waving us goodbye as we leave their small compound.

Today was another long day's drive. Our guide had set our expectations that our trip through the south would indeed involve a lot of road trips. I love road trips so I don't mind at all.

To Lake Langano.

Herds of animals heading back to pasture from a lake in Bishoftu, formerly known as Debre Zeyit.

There's an Ethiopian restaurant, near where I live, called Langano. I never knew what the name meant but this afternoon, I stood before the lake that it's named after.

Back to Addis.

Interior of St. George's Cathedral.

It was an early rise this morning. I had a good night's sleep thanks to air conditioning - the first we've had on this trip. This morning though, the electricity cut off intermittently. We had to be in the lobby by 7:30a - we have to catch the 9:30a flight back to Addis. I grabbed a quick bite of breakfast and then spent a few minutes in the lobby checking email.

Bahir Dar. Dinner and Dance.

Pat getting ready to down some tibs and injera.

Tonight was suppose to be a night filled with a bit of adventure but it didn't quite turn out that one.  Nonetheless, I had fun.