Ethiopia was full of challenges and a bit of Danger
3 days and I am back in Addis
Tuesday February 8, 2011, 60 miles (97 km) - Total so far: 5,208 miles (8,381 km)
I stayed with Toni and Gina two Amazing Warm Showers hosts here in Addis Ababa for about a week , partly to recover from my Experience in Cairo and partly to take in the city.I left on Wednesday the 9th and by the 13th i was back in Addis and a little bit perturbed with my experience in Ethiopia so far.
The ride out of the city will take a good 2 years off your life as you suck in the exhaust from every passing vehicle emission standard's are not a concern in a city of 3 million every car and I mean every car smokes like crazy even the newer model ones i have seen spew there toxic fumes. It took me 23km to make it out of Addis proper and into the surrounding hills. my route is not the usual route i want to go east a bit then head south avoiding the heavy traffic of the main road to Moyale and the town of Shashememe that is reportedly not friendly in the least bit, probably due to it's supposed status as the home to the whole Rasta movement and lifestyle, I would imagine a bunch of stupid Americans and others have descended on this place thinking they could sit back get stoned and live a cheap Rasta hood, problem being Drugs are extremely illegal here and smoking of pot, dope or whatever you want to call it is seriously frowned upon, so can you blame them for being a bit put off by westerners???
I ride east to Welkite which is the crossroads with the road to Hosaina then further south to Arba Minch. The road is nice, smooth pavement with an occasional bad spot and full of people and traffic. As I travel further into the country the traffic lessons and I am cycling in rolling hills with savanna spread out on all sides as far as the mountains beyond, it is a special site for me and I am enjoying my time on the bike this my first day Cycling in Ethiopia.
As predicted the kids come running at the first site of a Ferenji on a bike. You can see them from a far booking across the fields at full run leaving all manner of work stopped for a chance to say Hello and more than likely ask for money but not always. I think that the kids in Ethiopia are born with better than 20/20 vision because they would see me long before i would see them , sometimes i would hear them calling to me from far away full run yelling as load as they can, most of the kids would come out of the yards and stand at the side of the road some just smile others yell money and still some of the boys and a few of the girls will put up a hand in hopes you will slap them in the hand as you pass, I make it a point to say hello to everyone who i can see or i know can see me.I had heard of kids throwing rocks at cyclist but not one kid did this maybe because I took the time to say hello or maybe because i am dressed in riding kit that they think i am a weirdo and leave me alone with the rocks, i have had a few kids in the towns pull on my bike and bags but a stern look makes them stop, only one time did i have a kid hold onto my bag then when i made him let go he said "fuck you" so i turned around and chased him down and gave him a proper yelling at , all the while the other people laughed at him or me well i hope it worked.
There are no steep hills to conquer and the ridding is easy except when you pass through a town then it is one person after another asking you questions, asking for money asking you to stop, I made is a point not to stop in any town unless I needed food and or water, so my stops were few. The temps were rising as I descended in elevations my temp gauge reading 90 in the sun and 86 in the shade with no cool breeze to cool me off I took to taking the afternoons off from 12pm to 3pm rising the last 2 hours before making a town or finding a place to camp, on my first day I made it to Tulu Bolo about 4:30 looked for some food finally finding a plate of local food called Injera at a Motel/restaurant. Injera is the traditional food eaten in Ethiopia, Imagine a piece of rubbery looking bread about the size of a large pizza with the color or grey paint the flavor of very sour dough and nothing else and a texture of a soft rubber but edible, topped with lentil stew and veg, they also serve it with a food called WAT but no one I asked had it, WAT is a stew made of either fish, mutton, beef or chicken sounded good but I have yet to try it. After my extremely cheap yet unsatisfying dinner I left in search of a camp spot, not easy to do withal the huts along the road so I figured I would ask the next nice family I saw waive, not much time or miles passed before that happened.
About 5k outside of Tubu a group of kids ran to the road and waived as I looked over I could see the whole family was waiving including the men in the field sorting grain had stopped to waive so I turned my bike around and headed back to say hello and ask about camping in the field behind the house. I entered the property the lady of the house came out and grabbed my hand speaking in Amharic I could not understand but from her smile and the smiles of the kids I knew I had found my camp spot. I pantomimed the camping idea and she yelled to her husband who yelled back OK. Shortly a pretty young girl approached and she said hello how are you in English, I said fine and asked if she spoke English she said she did , so I used her to communicate with the family. I asked about were and was shown a nice spot next to where the men were working. I set about putting up camp and as I did more and more people showed up from around to look at what I was doing. After camp was up I took out my camera and played with the kids taking their pictures and then showing them the pics on the screen, I even shot a few videos for them to watch of themselves, they had such amazing happiness at this little thing it was a blessing to be a part of. After pics I asked I could help sift the grain and the farmer let me take hold of the slues box and in a rhythmic motion me and the other guy sifted a bunch of grain, this lasted a few minutes then it was back to the men and the real work no more playing around this is their life and I am only slowing them down. Soon the wife comes out and tells me I need to move my Tent to the house I say why and she rattles off a bunch of stuff I don't understand until she says HYENAS then it perfectly clear and I immediately move my tent next to the houses, the father tells me he has lost 6-8 Mules over the last few years to Hyenas. I take it seriously. As the sun sets the men are still working and the moons starts to rise I make my way back to the field and use my head torch to give them more light they are thankful but as the moon reaches full strength they tell me to turn it off and they continue on I the moon light, filling 50lb bags with grain by hand the boy scooping the last bits into each bag ,then they are tied off heaved onto the shoulders and taken to the shed to be stored, on the return trip the man brings back an empty bag to be filled , this goes on until all the grain in gone. After the work for the day is done the men gather in the storage are/ sleeping quarters and the women prepare Injera and later coffee is made, having just eaten I accept the food but only eat a little explaining that I just ate and am full, the coffee as good as Ethiopian coffee is I turn it down or I will not sleep the night. I stay for a while then say my good nights. Everyone is super friendly and I feel safe, I fall asleep after the damn dog quits barking at about 1am, I might have risked the Hyenas for a better night's sleep.
My camp spot at the kind peoples house, right before i was told to move because of Hyenas!!!
Traditional housing in this part of Ethiopia
Beast of burden for sure, there is no donkey showing at the back just a couple of hooves.
Gina, Toni And Conner , the nicest Warmshowers host in Addis, OK they are the only but still the nicest.
fruit the last i would see until Nairobi, Kenya
The kids i was entertaining with my camera
day 2
Wednesday February 9, 2011, 40 miles (64 km) - Total so far: 5,248 miles (8,446 km)
I awoke at 7am to the sounds of roosters crowing and people milling about, waiting for me to emerge was more like it. I dressed in my riding kit packed up my bags and took down my tent. The kids form the house all gathered around to see what I was up to and stared intently as I removed the poles form the tent body, carefully folded them and placed them in the bag. I folded the tent in 3 and rolled it tight with the fly inside the kids eye grew wider as I placed this once large structure in a small bag and placed it in my pannier. With camp down I set about getting my stove set up, this action brought the ladies of the house out to see what I was doing.Everyone gathered around as I attached the pieces set it up and pumped fuel into the jet to prime it , with a woof the gas lit and the yellow flame lingered as the gas in the line heated up. I slowly turned the knob and the hiss of the stove made the girls step back then step forward as it came to life. I filled my pot with water and set it on the jet engine of a stove the lady of the house looked at me and clapped her hands and said 'good', I can imagine it is the first portable stove she or anyone around me has ever seen, it was an enlightening moment for us all.
I rode away with a happy heart, I had met a nice family had a safe place to sleep and was able to eat without the constant begging for food I would find in the latter half of my day. The road was flat to start and the fields open on both sides as far as one could see. Like yesterday the kids would run across the fields and gather at the side of the road to see me and say hello or beg for Money. I want to address this money begging thing for a moment.
Talking to locals and with my own ideas in my head I have come to understand that the begging for money doesn't come from the peoples knowledge of foreigners having money, instead it comes from the very stupid tourists that come to 3rd world countries and feel that giving of gifts is a good idea, not to make the kids feel better but to selfishly make themselves feel better about seeing such poverty and having so much. So what happens is the kids get the idea that all foreigners are mini ATM's and will give them money if they beg enough. It is a sad state of affairs that the people don't have the dignity to not do this, but it is tourists that take away their dignity by selfishly giving money or gifts.
One African I talked to hit it on the head and re-enforced a belief I already had, If someone asks 'what is the problem in Africa' the answer is usually Corruption, politics, famine .the list is long but the real problem is AIDE organizations. You name the one and it has caused more problems than it has solved, they have taken away their ability to help themselves. Whites came in and meddled with the works made it so bad that AIDE organizations came in to help out but in the process took away the dignity and self reliance these people have had for thousands of years. The worst part is they come in set up camp stay for a bit make everyone a bit better and then when they are totally reliant on the AIDE the funding dries up the group leaves in a hurry in the night and the people are left with nothing, no pride no dignity and are reduced to begging because they no longer desire to return to the old ways and are no longer self reliant but reliant on others to solve their problems for them, it is a sad cycle that repeats it's self over and over and in every corner of this continent. Now you can sit in your chair and say BULL I have seen the good the AIDE does, well until you have been here and spoken to the people you have no clue what is going on here, it is unfortunately broken and probably not repairable.
Because of the policy of Crazy Neil I won't even get into how bad religion has trashed this place, and caused more bloodshed than any conventional war has ever done, not only here but throughout the world and for all of recorded history .OK enough of that.
The road is trafficked by locals on foot, herds of livestock and buses trucks and the occasional person on a bike. I am not alone at any given time as I am constantly passing or being passed by someone. I make my way to Ghion but as the day progresses the heat returns so I find some shade and sit out the hottest part of the day, as do most of the locals while I am sitting 3 people pass me in 3 hours it is 90 in the shade and I have a cool breeze. At 3pm I set off again the temps in the mid 80's. I stop for a bite to eat and a cold drink in Ghion I find the food but the drinks are not cold, so I stick to my water. After Ghion it is a nice cruise downhill for a long stretch and I am making good time. I stop to take a few photos and enjoy the scenery but I am not alone for long soon a few teenage boys show up and surround my bike.
At first they are just kind of standing there looking at me like I am going to speak a holly word then one asks for Money, then another I tell them NO! NO money ever, they continue to ask, and I can feel the situation getting a bit tense. I try to leave but they are holding onto my bike by the bags and handle bar, I tell them to let go in a very stern voice, but the only response I get is Money. I move forward and the boys hold fast, just as I am reaching for my Bear Spray a couple of older men come over and quickly make the boys let go and I am able to pass without losing any money or property, I say thanks and make a quick getaway, unfortunately it won't be the last time this happens.
With one last hill to
summit I make it to Welkite and find a cheap but OK Hotel, well I
thought it was OK until I stayed in the Hotel across the street, it is
much better. I stay one night fuel up on meat products and a beer all of
which costs me a total of 15$US for the room, 3 meals, a beer, and a
soda. It truly is dirt cheap to travel in Ethiopia.
Traditional huts in the Ethiopian grasslands
Sunset in Wellkite
Naked Man on the road to Wellkite, I should be surprised but TIA right!!
oil lamp in the house i stayed at it was the only light for 3 rooms in the house , when they went from room to room they took it with them, leaving the room dark
day 3: Bad map worse road and DANGER!!!! 26mi 2500ft up 978ft down
Thursday February 10, 2011, 26 miles (42 km) - Total so far: 5,274 miles (8,488 km)
I left the hotel with a clear direction of where I was headed to bad my map was wrong.I stopped for water bought 3- 2 liter bottles some snack cookies and rode out of town. I found the turn to Hosaina made my left turn and ran straight into a rock strewn dirt road, this is not what my map shows it says it's paved, and by some accounts it is if you consider embedded rock a form of pavement. I am jarred all over the place the water I strapped to my bike quickly makes it way loose and I have stop and re-tie it. I ask a kid who stops to stare at me if the road is like this all the way he says it is and gets bad after Endibir, bad can it get worse, oh yes it can
Immediately after the first downhill I am climbing a long hill that leads to a false flat and another hill the gradient is easily in the 9-10% and the riding is tough I stop many times to rest and contemplate turning around but every time I tell myself I am tougher than this road and I cycle on. It is not only the dirt hills that make this road super hard it is the constant and I mean every 2-3 minutes sometimes more of Bus and truck traffic. Kicking up clouds of dust so thick you can't see in front of your bike, every time one passes I have to stop and cover my mouth and nose breathing through a cloth so I don't choke, this is pure hell riding, I can only hope the traffic lessons as the day goes on, it is morning and so I feel a bit busier. Hill after hill comes and the road goes from bad to worse and back to bad. I pass many small huts with plantations of bananas the temps are cooler at this altitude so I am not drinking as much as I did in the lowlands. After what seems like an eternity I stop for a small break thinking I have gone at least 10mi I mean I have ridden for over 1 and a half hours, I am stunned to see I have done 6mi. at this rate it is going to take me 2.5 days to reach Hosaina only 60mi from Welkite, this is not good.
The people don't seem as friendly and a lot of my hellos to the adults are not returned the kids are still everywhere and asking the same questions as they did on the previous days. I stop in a area where there are huts on both side but few people milling around and so far no kids have come out. I sit up against a fence eating a cookie in the shade and trying to recoup some energy. While I am sitting a couple of teenage boys come over and stand a little ways away, at first nothing happens then one says ferenji and the other starts to laugh, then they say something else and they both laugh one kid pointing in my direction brings the other to a hysterical laugh this goes on for a few minutes until I finally have enough. I stand up they both shut up, I Look at them and start to laugh all the while saying Ethiopian's and pointing doing the exact thing they were doing to me, I stop after a minute and they do not look happy. I walk my bike back to the road and start to walk away, one calls something and when I look back there are now 4 kids, I continue to push my bike and the next time I see 12 kids and they're following me down the road, I make the first downhill and hop on the bike, as I look back the group has swelled to over 20 and they are coming my way I descend way to fast and hit the next hill, I get off and push up the hill leaving the mob behind. When I round a corner I leap on the bike pedal like mad. I never see them again.
I make it to a small town with no name and fill up with 2 more bottles of water and a couple of snacks , as I leave a kid on a bike catches me he rides next to me for a while he tells me that the road gets bad after Endibir, great something to look forward to
I stop in Endibir for cold coke and some food, to my dismay it's fasting day and little food is available, I am offered Injera but say no thanks and just sit and sip my coke watching the group of young kids come over to look at me and my bike. A couple of the kids are a little on the sketch side so I let them know I am watching them very closely. Coke done I sit for a while it is 4 pm and I have done less than 22mi I have ridden for 4 hours, I am tired but the look of the town makes me get up and move on. The road as the kid said does get worse; it is so bad I have to ride off road in the grass foot path so I can keep my ass from pulsing in pain form all the beating of the last few hours. A few miles on I see a church and decide to see if the gate is open. As soon as I stop kids come from all over I try to tell them I am going to go to sleep and to leave me alone but that doesn't work. A lady I passed earlier in the day shows up puts her pack down and sits in the shade next to the gate I am now behind. Soon she come over and offers me apiece of sugar cane, in look her in the eyes as she hands it to me she is lovely with soft features and smooth looking skin, I thank her and she smiles a beautiful smile blinks very slowly and turns away , looking back at me and my gift once before she sits down the lady next to her giggles and they both laugh. I raise the cane towards them mouth thanks and begin to eat it, it is very good but not as sweet as I would of thought.
Soon the women rise to their feet sling their obviously heavy packs on their backs and start to walk away, before she leaves she comes over tells me she is leaving with a jester of her hands, I motion I am sleeping here and she looks at me long then says goodbye, I shake her smooth hand and she walks away, I turn and move my bike to the back of the church away from the kids view. It isn't long before the kids have opened the gate and are annoying me so I decide to head on further maybe I can find a good place eon the road.
I push the bike up the hill slipping on the rock surface in certain steep parts. I make the summit and find the road is the same damn I was hoping for a change but no luck. It is 5pm and I need to find a camp spot soon. I pass group of huts and suddenly the lady I met before comes out and is smiling from ear to ear, she says hello and I back, I motion that I am needing a camp spot she points up the road, so I say good bye and ride on. I am faced with another hill so I get off and walk the hll is short but leads to another a little ways further, I look to my left as the trees clear and what I see stops me in my tracks, there in the middle of nowhere is a Burger king!!!
OK I lied about the Burger King what I saw was the perfect camp spot set on the side of a hill in a grassy field looking out over the valley and the huts and plantations far in the distance. I stop and survey the place, No fences, no farming I think I will camp here. I roll the bike down and set my sore tired but on the ground, I just stare at the beauty before me. Soon a group of kids shows up and stare at me one of the braver boys comes over and in pretty good English says hello, this is the start of a 30min conversation that touches on equal rights, him being a killer , us being equal in this place and the danger of me camping in this place due to at first Hyenas then to the people of the area. To get him to leave I pick up my bike and say I am moving camp he then tells me it is ok but says he needs money I tell him I have none and he say OK take care and runs up the hill to catch a bus.
I walk back to the road and look at my perfect camp spot , head down with regret I head up the hill. About half way up a guy holding a very large knife comes out of the woods he says hello asks where I am from all in very good English, the knife he says is for cutting trees and he tells me he lives in the house across the way. I ask about camping in the spot I was at and he says it is Fine and safe to do so, he offers his house but I tell him I want to camp out. He says OK and tells me to stop by in the morning I say I will and head back down the hill confident I have made the right decision, man was I wrong!!
I set up camp with a few kids perched on the side of the road about a 100 yd away watching my every move. After I get the tent pitched I change clothes and when I emerge from the tent more people have gathered and are now closer, boys girls and old ladies, all watching what I am doing. I set up my stove and prepare dinner, just as it is about to be done cooking a group of 4 men and 3 teenagers arrive which brings all the other onlooker closer as well. The men seem friendly though they ask for money, when I tell them I have none they seem content with this answer, all but one guy. I tell them I am going to eat now and the older guy ushers them away to let me eat I say thanks, the one guy and 2 teenagers are the last to leave the guy asking several times for food and the kid asking to ride my bike , I say no to both requests and they eventually follow the others up the hill.
I see the 3 men walk away towards the hill I came up but I notice the man and the teenagers are not leaving. I take my knife out of the bag and put it in my pocket, just as I do so I notice them all returning to my camp, the man asks repeatedly about food and the kid won't leave me alone about the bike. I explain the best I can that I have only little food and need it myself (my policy it to NEVER give anything) the guy keeps asking and telling the boy to do something because he keeps looking at the man then at the bike then asking me to ride it, a couple times he went for the handle bars and I had to say NO very sternly. I am trying not to lose my cool but I can see what is going on. The man wants the boy to take the bike so I will have to chase after him while I am doing this he will take my stuff, I know without a doubt this is what the plan is. I stand up they take a step back, in a sharp voice tell them to leave now!! I put my hand in my pocket to pull the knife if I have to. Seeing that I am now getting angry the man moves towards the road a bit but still not far enough, I tell him again to go several times, he moves a bit further, the teenage boys are there next to him the one who asked about the bike with a smug look on his face.
I am in danger if I stay here the light is fading fast and I make the decision to move camp.I pack my stuff and put it wherever it will fit, the last thing I pack is the noodles I have just cooked. I pull out my bear spray and have it ready, as I am walking the bike up the hill the kid keeps saying bye bye over and over, I am so mad I want to spray him or hurt him, they have ruined what could have been a great time in Ethiopia, and a fantastic camp spot. I walk the bike up the hill the man and teenager following slowly behind. I hurry my pace as the light fades out I make the top of the hill and hop on the bike pedal hard filled with adrenaline and anger, when I know I am far away I find a trail into the woods and take it. I stand in the dark a long time listening for anyone coming but no ones does. As the moon rises and sheds light on me I sit down and reflect on what just happened and how lucky I was to leave with all my stuff and my food as well, I eat a nervous dinner set up my tent and have a hard time falling asleep.
The
next morning I decide to return to Welkite, I luck out and catch a ride
with a missionary back to town, I tell him my story and he says he has
been in this area for 6 years and it is a hard place for a foreigner he
was not surprised it happened that way. The next day I return to Addis
beaten and down not sure what to do next .Stay tuned !!!
ill never know for sure if it was indeed the 'perfect one'
A loaded bus about ready to Dust me, this is a constant thing in the AM
This is no place to ride a bike!!!.....But I'll have to if I want to get out of here!!
Friday February 11, 2011
Hi Aaron
Stephen and I just rode from Cape Town to Addis. We were trying to ride the whole way to Cairo on our way to Sweden, but as you well know Egypt turned to crap. We've now flown home to Australia (from Addis) for a few weeks before we fly to Turkey to finish off the trip.
Riding from Moyale to Addis was probably the most horrible experience of our lives. We had similar experiences to you the whole way, usually the people were relentless constantly all day long. Only the first ~200km north of Moyale, in the desert, was ok-the people were generally nice there (except in the town of Mega), but there was stuff all food available-we spent most of our time eating glucose biscuits as it was all we could get. We could barely even get Injera. Bottled water not too hard to find, but hard to find other sources of water; normally in Africa we'd get water from local's wells and pumps and treat it ourselves with Iodine.
We are both convinced we never want to cycle in Ethiopia again. Its not that its hard or unpleasent...its fucking dangerous. We had lots of encounters like you've had where we got out by the skin of our teeth. So many times we could have been seriously injured or killed, especially with people trying to stop us or tackle or kick us on our trikes; we'd swerve past them, but struggle not to loose control; on an upright touring bike no doubt we would have crashed, probably broken bones or worse. I had to pepper spray several people that were just about to slash or stab at us as we rode along.
If you are worried, don't do it, its not worth it. Take a bus to Moyale.
We didn't ride Northern Kenya from Isiolo to Moyale, because the road is incredibly rough, and we didn't want to damage our trikes. If you have a good tough bike you can do it, just really hard work, and remote, you'll need to carry lots of food and water. If you stay the night in Moyale, stay on the Ethiopian side, the Kenya side is pretty dodgy. Nairobi is a bit of a dodgy place (famous for crime and robbery), but if you stay somewhere like Jungle Junction (apparently great place to meet overlanders and get information, we stayed with Scouts in Nairobi though) and take the normal precautions you will be safe. Apart from that, the rest of the way down Africa is awesome mate, don't let Egypt and Ethiopia put you off! Trust me you will love it, just keep your head together and get through this bit safely. Try not to get too down. You will meet lots of lovely, wonderful people the rest of the way through Africa, more than you can count. The rest of Africa isn't like that; we w! ere very dissapointed with Ethiopia. Our journal is here:
http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/worldtrike
Best of luck mate, if you have any questions at all feel free to contact me.
Adam
Read their journal entries for Ethiopia there is even more terror!!!
The couple I am staying with said that almost every cyclist they have at the house has taken a bus through Ethiopia and vowed to not return to this country to ride.....I have to agree, as a backpacker it is probably great and i can tell you it is the cheapest place i have ever been for 1.50US i can get a really good meal and a drink. So my advice is come here without a bike because to ride here is to risk death or serious injury, hopefully it gets better but not likely.
I have waited in Addis for a week and the waiting has paid off. Two American cyclist are here and have agreed to let me ride with them so we will leave in another couple of days, south on the less traveled road to Konso then west to the Ethio/Sudan border. So my ride in Africa continues and i am feeling a bit better about it all, according to Stephen and Adam the south part of Africa below Ethio is great, and according to the others who have come from Cairo Sudan is the best Northern country, I will return one day soon to Finish my Tip To tale and Ride Cairo to Addis.
Addis to Hotel......Singing to sooth the savage Cyclist
Monday February 21, 2011, 45 miles (72 km) - Total so far: 5,319 miles (8,560 km)
Sunday morning we were treated to a full on feast for breakfast a proper English/German meal it was divine. Sunday night Tony and Gina had a dinner party 12 people in the house it was a great time. Tony and Gina are so far the nicest Warm Showers Hosts i have stayed with , they sent us off in style.Monday and it's time to try this Ethiopia riding thing again, this time with John And Sadie 2 Americans headed my way or am I headed there way?? well anyway we are on the road at 8:30 and weaving our way through town, once again taking years off my life cycling in the terrible pollution of Addis.
We finally find our way to the road leading to Welkite the same road i had trouble on before, my heart sinks at the thought of riding out on this road again, though i knew we would divert to another better paved option in a few KM the sinking feeling stayed with me until we made the turn. The road to Butajira is a great road with nice pavement and fantastic views it meanders up and down with rolling savanna all around. I am used to taking a break after 2 hours and i was tired when the others decided it was time to take a break after 3.5 hours. We found a small restaurant and sat back and took an well deserved break. The kids as usual are more than annoying and all along the route today the calls of Ferenji can be heard long before you can see the kids, they are less aggressive but still it becomes tiring.
After lunch we continue our assault on the miles, climbing up and flying down hill after hill. The weather is considerably hotter than in Addis and i am starting to feel the effects of a not so proper Breakfast (donuts) and the less then Stellar lunch (injera) it is about this time i see John and Sadie under a tree taking a break, sounds good to me.
We sit and discuss the miles ahead and decide that we wont make Butajira today so we should look for a hotel in the near future, decisions made we set off. It isn't long before they are out of site and i am alone. Climbing up a small hill a few kids come out and start asking for money , i say no and they continue on, as i ride past one kid takes aim and fires off a rock it strikes my rear pannier , the kids go crazy with excitement and then take off running as i turn the bike around, i chase them but only to make them go away, i am filled with a bit of dread at the thought of this kind of shit happening all the way to the Kenya border.
Soon after the
rocks i enter a town with several men walking on the side of the road a
group of about 15, when they see me and ask the typical "were are you
go" and i reply Kenya they then do something unexpected and start
singing!!! soon they are all chanting and encouraging me on as i climb
up a hill, they move in step and are marching beside me as i ride
lifting me up with the music and smiling faces, maybe Ethiopia is not so
bad? I see a hotel and spot Sadie so i pull over and leave my singers
behind. The hotel is cheap and clean so we take it. My first day back on the Roads of Ethiopia and it isn't as bad when in a group
The Great Ethiopia Sing Along Video
Double Click to enlarge
John Rolling along the smooth tarmac
Sadie and John
Hotel to Sodo .....via Truck and mini bus
Tuesday February 22, 2011, 150 miles (241 km) - Total so far: 5,469 miles (8,802 km)
In the morning John and Sadie informed me that they have decided to take a vehicle to Sodo to make up 2 days, they want to try and catch there friends from England, I had no problem with this the faster i get out of Ethiopia the better I will feel!! The truck wasn't a problem for 200bir we got a ride all the way to Hosaina. The crowd that gathered around the truck was obnoxious to say the least, they were all trying to grab bags and help without asking or being wanted and they all wanted some bir, it was getting tense when i suggested we just leave so we rolled our bike away and the crowd continued to argue as to who should be getting the 10bir we gave to the only guy we asked for help.After lunch we went to the bus depot to see about a bus to Sodo, as soon as we got into the yard we had several people trying to give us private vehicles to Sodo for 1000bir or more and most telling us there is NO bus to Sodo now , which we knew was bullshit, in fact the bus to Sodo was still there but the crowd kept us occupied until it left, just as it was leaving a gaurd came over and told us to catch the bus leaving it is the bus to Sodo, we couldn't stop it.
We had to now find a mini bus to take us and found a guy on the street that was going to Sodo and looking for a free ride getting us in the mini bus gave him a free ride , we negotiated the price and agreed on 300 for the 3 of us , we found out later as the passengers saw us paying that the price is 35bir, several complained to the driver and his associate that they had over charged us so much it was the first time Ethiopians had stood up for us instead of trying to take advantage.
The road to Sodo is nice
good pavement and not a lot of traffic one major climb and an amazing
decent await any cyclist that decides to ride the route, I am sad i
missed the climb and the down hill but not d\sad to have made so many
miles south towards Kenya by vehicles.
John And Sadie
Chat or Quat a Mild stimulant , used to re-leave the senses
Sodo to 70km.... house close to lake Abaya
Wednesday February 23, 2011, 43 miles (69 km) - Total so far: 5,512 miles (8,871 km)
Sodo is a shit hole all the bars are hotels and all the hotels are Brothels so take your pick of which place you would like to spend the night, you probably wont sleep much so it is really a matter of cleanliness.The road out of Sodo was great a nice downhill followed by miles of flat smooth pavement, well until the road turned to dirt. The dirt isn't so bad and it is generally around the towns for some reason. There are not a lot of places to get water or food on this road most towns we passed though had little to offer except warm coke and bananas. There is a large town about half way that is a bit of an oddity I found them not as nice as we entered but very hospitable when we stopped for lunch, they kept the kids away and we ate in relative piece.
Lunch of Injera and shiro tucked away we head south, the road is paved and rolls away quite fast this last for a while then we come to a very unfriendly town kids toss things at us as we pass this is until we cross the bridge then as we are leaving town groups of school girls surround us and are so friendly they run along side and shriek with joy if you give them attention, one is about 16 years old and keeps telling me she loves me so I look at her point and say "I love you" the girls go wild and start jumping around, maybe I just married her not sure of the customs?
Soon our road turns to dirt and we are slowly climbing up into the low lying hills the road is under construction and the dust is terrible. We ride on the newly rolled dirt to the dismay of the foreman who is yelling at us to ride on the crappier dirt road off to the side, we just cycle on. The hour is getting late and we need a place to camp so we start looking for a suitable site for the 2 tents but all the hills are covered with thorn bushes and are slanted to steeply, so we press on until we come to a group of huts.
John goes to ask about sleeping next to a hut and soon the whole village is out and gawking at us it is so annoying. Soon a young man comes over and says he lives in the house we ask about camping he goes inside ask the actual owners and it is agreed we can camp, we set up out tents with everyone looking at every move you have no privacy in Ethiopia none at all people just stare and point and laugh you want to smack 'em sometimes and say 'what is wrong with you , is it polite to just stare at people in your culture and point and laugh' but then you realize that you being in there village is a privilege even if it is annoying to be there , they may not have had this close of contact with a Non Ethiopian so you are on display to be examined and wondered about, you do your best to smile and act like it is all just normal which for here it is. I also notice most of the women are pregnant a high number for such a small village, well I would think high for being at the same time , and they all look to be about the same time along in the pregnancy .odd!!!
The tents go up in the nick
of time as a terrible wind blows through and the rain starts to fall it
last only minutes just long enough to raise the humidity initiating the
sweating process. The night is long and I toss and turn a lot, my
thoughts are of getting to Arba Minch finding a quite place to relax and
enjoying a day off in this lake town .you don't always get what you ask
for!!
so they can try and sell you something
House to Arba Minch
Thursday February 24, 2011, 40 miles (64 km) - Total so far: 5,552 miles (8,935 km)
The Crowd gathers early as we pack up and get ready to leave, breakfast is a spectacle as everyone wants to see what we eat, and how we cook our food, the women are especially interested in the stoves and move close to see them in action. As is the typical thing for them to do money is asked for from the guy who said we could camp there, nothing in this country is done for free, kindness is just a mask and avenue to get into your pocket if they can we refuse the guy his request which upsets him well tough I say as we leave, god I cant wait to get out of this country.The road is dirt as it was before but we are informed that in 10k it will turn to pave then it will be paved all the way to Arba Mich, sure enough it does turn to pave but it is so bad it is better to ride dirt. The arid are we rode through yesterday gives way to lush tropical trees and plantations of bananas mangoes and avocados it reminds me of home. The road eventually becomes good pavement and the cycling becomes very pleasant indeed.
Lake Abaya is on our left. we get good views across it several times, at one stop to admire this coffee with cream colored lake a man comes along and asks us about our destination we talk for a few minutes about the lakes and the area, he tells us that you can swim in the lake but it does have a large population of Crocodiles so in and out is best, we pass on this idea and continue on. The road climbs up and down for the last few km to Arba Minch and we make it by lunch time. The only hotel I have heard about is called Hotel Roze so we ask around and are told it is in the tourist area about 5km away up a steep hill. We start the climb about half way up a truck going slow enough comes buy and John and I grab on a take a pull to the top. Sadie joins us about 10min later. We find the hotel but decide to skip it because it is next to a Mosque oh what fun that would be.
We return to the main road and find another but they have
no electricity and no water so the guy takes John over to another hotel,
he returns and says it looks ok so we head over. They want 80bir a lot
of money for such a dive but we really want to be done looking so we
take it, the lady we give the money to says we can have a free beer for
the 80bir, this turns out to be untrue and a argument between me her a
middleman and the owner solves nothing but does enlighten me to the fact
that the price should be 60bir 2 people chimed this in , the owner said
no 80 but the middleman argued that it has been 60 for a on time and
now is suddenly 80, well t should have been 20 the electricity goes out
the water stops and the people are rude, oh and once again it is a
brothel, bar and hotel all rolled into one like all of the previous ones
I have stayed, the music blares until 2am I do not sleep well .soon I
will be out of here I keep thinking.
we see are covered with small leaves and lots of thorns
Arba Minch...day off and a ride to catch up
Friday February 25, 2011
The next morning John and Sadie tell me that they have decide to not take a day off in Arba , instead they want to try and catch up with the English so they are going to leave after breakfast, I am staying a day to do laundry and interweb. We say goodbye and I tell them I will probably take a ride to Waito and catch up in a day or so if I don't I went to Moyale via the regular road past Konso. They leave and I set about packing for a move to a new hotel. I ride back down town to the tourist hotel but hey have no rooms so I back track to a pension I noticed when we first came into town, it is clean and nice with a cool breeze at only 150bir it is a good deal for a private shower electricity and a comfortable bed, plus there is no bar or restaurant so no noise, I take it. I head down to the Tourist hotel for breakfast and have a great Spanish omelet, while the food is good the service is shit, this is not just in this place it is all over Ethiopia they have no idea about customer service being directly related to a tip or no tip, so far I have tipped very little in this country they just don't seem to care, I am told they are paid so little that there is no incentive to care. Through much trouble I am able to find a ride, advice to those who might do the same everyone in the tourist industry here knows everyone else so if they quote you a price they will tell everyone the same price, everyone is looking for a piece of the pie and the crazy amounts of money they want goes around to several people. I had the help of a Tourist guide to get me a ride with a truck going to Omo valley in the end it was a back door deal to place me in a private vehicle taking one Chinese guy to Omo, the guy had no idea I was paying so it had to all be done on the DL, I dint mind because it cost me 600bir instead of 2450bir 36$instead of 150$. It was agreed on for the following day. I stayed one more night and was having a great nights sleep until 3am when the fucking Orthodox Church decided to blast the scriptures through a LOUD Speaker for all to here, what is wrong with theses people!!! It was still Blasting when I left at 930am. The road is paved for about 30 km to Konso and about 30km outside of Konso towards Waito, I am glad I took the truck the hill out of Konso is a bitch and the dirt hills are probably not ride-able combined with the 40c temp it is hard going on a bike to be sure, in fact all the riders I talked to after the Konso road took a truck at some point. I made it to Waito and found John and Sadie there.
looking back from the top of the hill in Konso
up close of the stones all placed one by one to form hundreds of km of walls
The terraced hills around konso, almost all the hills look like this it must
of taken generations to do , an amazing site
Ethiopian bull very nice horns a perfect specimen
Waito to desert camp
Saturday February 26, 2011
The guy I rode with was keen to take me to Turmi for another 300bir but I decided to take a ride on the truck john had gotten to take them it was only 125bir not as comfy but at least we would be together.Waito is expensive so be aware. We strapped the bikes on top of this truck hauling grain to Omo valley and set off at the blinding speed of 15km an hour, this is going to take forever. The road out of Waito looks like a great road to cycle flat and gravel, but the English who did it said it was terrible to ride a lot of corrugation and the like. The scenery is not too great, though there are a few cool villages you can see from the road. John and Sadie got bored with sitting in the truck and decided to sit with the bikes too hot for me so I stayed in the truck. After 40km we came to a police check point we had to stop and get out the officers were not happy that this guy was giving us a lift on the truck, we even tried to tell him my bike was broken but he didn't care after an hour of arguing about it between all of us the driver of the truck made us take the bike off, we even got help form a tour guide that spoke English he tried to persuade the police guy to let us pass but he wasn't having it. The one police who spoke some English kept asking us how much we paid the driver we told him nothing we had no money left, he said we would have to take our bikes over to the police station and have talk about what to do , we said no and as soon as the bikes were down we set off into the desert on the road to Turmi, low on water and a bit pissed off at the police for doing what they did, it was according to the English speaking guide just a way to try and get money out of us.
The road is nice and the gravel not to hard to ride was didn't pass anything for a long time but as we were deciding to find camping we came across a person then another and soon herds of goats. It was getting close to sun down and the people just were not disappearing as soon as you left one on the road there would be 2 more on the horizon eventually we came to what I would cal the half way point of the village men and women on the side of the road gutting, drying and smoking fish it was a strange site to see but also very impressive there were hundreds of fish and about 40 people working towards a common goal.
Another ten km and we finally found a place to camp were no one saw us go , tired and hot we set up camp made dinner and fell asleep , the night was full of strange sounds with the howling of creatures big and small , the rustling of spiders on the tents and the sound of cow bells as herdsman moved cows all night long down the road, all in all I slept ok but man 5am come too early.
Tribal people smoking and drying hundreds of fish, there are guts all over
the white cloth and lots of people and fish out of the frame of view ,
it was really cool to see, cost me 2 bir for the pic, nothing is for free in this country!!
Sunrise in the Desert, 70km from Waito towards Turmi
Sadie and John hanging out on top of the grain truck we hitched a ride on
Long road to Turmi, it is flat and hot and rocky....actually a great
road surface it only gets worse later on
Desert camp to turmi
Sunday February 27, 2011, 25 miles (40 km) - Total so far: 5,577 miles (8,975 km)
Like I said 5am comes too early, but we wanted to get a good amount of miles in before the sun got to hot. Packed and ready we leave our desert camp and hit the dirt road again this time it is climbing up until we come to a wide dry river bed, the road makes a right and follows the river upstream for a while leaving the river bed the road climbs up and down for a long time some of it steep but with the constant 20-30km hour tail wind it is actually nice riding even if it is tough. Climb after climb we rise higher into the mtns, in the end we climb over 2000ft with all the up and down. About mid day we finally make the top and are rewarded with a sweet 4km descent this is followed by short climbs and lots of downhill the wind pushing us along nicely. Just as we are starting to run out of water we come across a land rover with 3 Chinese guys in it they jump out with there interpreter and cameras one is a large shoulder mount type and start filming us the interpreter who is the prettiest Ethiopian I have seen so far explains that they have met The English couple and show Us a picture Sure enough John confirm it to be them , they say ti is 10-15km further give us water take a few more pics and send us on our way. We make it to Turmi and the Evangodi lodge at 12:30. Turmi is a one cow town and offers very little so stock up well here for there is noting between Turmi and Omorate. Turmi is also expensive and you will feellike your being taken advantage of and you are!!
Local Hamer girl with traditional beads and clothing the red color of their hair is a sign of good health, it is a mixture of clay and animal fat that they work into the hair making the rows very neat up close. none of the people were tops except the men and they were t-shirts so no one takes there pic. i was not comfortable taking pics of these girls, but i was assured by multiple tribal people that it is totally OK and an accepted thing to do it was them or really old ladies with no tops. I did not look for pics to take, they come up to you, because of the drought it is the only income they receive. A pic cost about 2bir not much but get a market full of tourist taking pics and it adds up
hamer kids in makeup , not traditional for them done for the tourists
Roasted Goat is the meal for tonight.....this is what you get when you slam into one at 30mph on your bike....well maybe we paid for this one. ****No bikes were harmed in the killing and eating of this Goat****
Hamer Dressed to impress looking for a potential mate at the market
Hamer girls made up to look good, Market day is about showing of not just selling goods these girls are looking for a mate and will marry at 13-14 years old
almost the end of Ethiopia i am so relieved to be so close to out of here
wash before Turmi , lots of water comes this way during the rains,
but it has been about 4 years since this place got a rain that would allow crops.
Traditional hut , made of sticks and rocks
'
Road to Turmi is a great road with a fantastic tail wind
The last of the flat road , after this sand wash is a series of ups and downs
that will take you over 2000ft total gain in about 20mi
Turmi to Omorate
Monday February 28, 2011, 44 miles (71 km) - Total so far: 5,621 miles (9,046 km)
We left Turmi after a day off and a good rest fueled up and ready. The road out of Turmi is flat and will stay this way the entire time to Omorate, be ware that the wind close to omorate can be fierce it was clocking at least 50kmh gusts and sustained at 20-30km. Not much to say about the road except it is good for a while then gets corrugated for long terrible sections no pushing is required but maybe 2 pairs of shorts, I was starting to get a saddle sore something I have never had not even after 2700mi on the Great Divide Mtn bike ride which is almost all dirt. The last 15km to Omorate are bad use the road off the road it looks like sand but is not very sandy and easier to ride or at least I thought so, no corrugations on it either, high wind and rough road make it a hard days cycle.Omorate is actually cheaper than Turmi , prices returned to more normal levels, strange for being out in the middle on nothing at the very END of the Road. I had one of my Arkel pannier nuts vibrate loose and the pannier was hanging on to the bike by one hook, if this has been an inferior brand like Ortlieb the Plastic would of broken and the bag fallen off, or just plain ejected like they often do on rough roads, glad I have the best made panniers in the world, a broken clip would of spelled disaster, I got a spare nut out and fixed it no worries, thanks Arkel for such great stuff.
We stayed at the national hotel, dirt floors , food is only Shiro and Injera eat it up it is the last you will see of it yippppppppy!!!!
When we got to town we headed over to the immigration office and all gladly got stamped out of Ethiopia to bad we hadn't left it all together.
Desert of southern Ethiopia
the haze in the distants is not smog it is a dust storm that rages all day everyday for 2 months, it happenes right before the rains, if you are headed south during Feb-march it is a struggle in sand and wind every day until Kaliko, Kenya about 400km away
I am not riding with my cap up the wind is so strong it wont
stay down
notice the ear flaps are straight back!! and my goatee is bent sideways!!!
Yes that is the face of true discomfort!!
long road to Omorate this road is shit. corrugated and rough the whole
way and it only gets worse the closer you get to Omorate
Termite mound and Serenity
Omorate to police camp in No mans land
Tuesday March 1, 2011, 25 miles (40 km) - Total so far: 5,646 miles (9,086 km)
There are 2 ways to get across the Omo river one is a dug out canoe and the other is a boat with a motor, now at the time of this writing a person with out a bikes is charged 30 bir for a round trip on the motor boat, dugout I am not sure. We paid a small fortune at 300bir for 5 of us in the real world that less than $20US but man it was not easy to get the price down to that. A guide assigned himself to us and though it could have been annoying he was really helpful in my opinion, so when it came to getting the boat he arranged for us to meet the captain and talk price. The captain came and asked for 800bir at which we all laughed well mostly to ourselves but I chuckled out loud. When we would not agree he went down to 600 then we said no that was way too high he got up and tried to walk away, the guide grabbed him and he sat back down we talked some more the price went to 500 then 400 , we offered 250 and he walked away and didn't come back he wanted 400 we were sticking to 250 I was willing to give 300 and see what he would do, then John did a really stupid thing and asked the guide what his cut was the guide said he was not asking anything just trying to help, a lie most likely but not for us to say, then John pressed the issue and the guy got pissed and walked away said he would not help us anymore, he was offended and rightfully so. I tried to talk to him and tell him that john didn't speak for all of us and I was sorry he did it but he would not speak to me.
Kids chasing us , we stopped at an Americans compound about 25km from Omorate , if you go this
way you cant miss it, on thr left headed south after a sand dune crossing it has several windmills
and a lot of shade trees.
Desert Trek to find road to Kenya border
Strong head winds, sand and 115F temps make for a hard ride
Local tribe of girls, love the dead tree in the background, it must mean something to the locals or it
would have been cut down for fire wood a long time ago.
OMO river in the morning light
Boat that took us all across the Omo River, worth every penny we paid, about $6 US each
Police camp to Mission
Wednesday March 2, 2011
Dawn broke early at the isolated police camp, we were given water by one of the police, he was deaf but seemed well suited to his handicap, maybe a little bit of a blessing in a place that howls with wind all the time. He took us to one of the huts a igloo shaped thing made of whatever they could find, corrugated tin, boards, reeds, paper . plastic all held together by a lot of rope crossed into a net like fashion , the door is small and one has to stoop on all fours to get in, pity i dint bring the camera , it is provably the only time i will be in one in my life.water acquired we left the camp with the explicit instructions from our deaf friend, "do not stop for anyone, do not talk to anyone, do not leave the road and whatever you do do not camp in the desert" he explained to us the 25km we are crossing are the worst in all of Ethiopia and Kenya the border area is not patrolled and the tribes are known to rob and harm people, i took this seriously because if they live in the area then they know the area 100% more than i do, my comrades were a bit skeptical and said he is just trying to scare us...not sure why they always assume bad news is to be taken lightly and good news is to be taken seriously, they have all done this time after time like the locals don't know shit!! it is a bit unnerving to me that they can be so cavalier about it all.
The track was good at first then it split and we followed yet another bad road to a dead end. Luckily the right track was not far away and we were back on track in short order, the road is sandy and a lot of pushing was being done by all of us, i am not liking this road, it is not a road but a track and it is a bit confusing at times and un-ride-able most of the time. If the track is not ride able we ride in the desert next to it through the low bushes , it is the same for the entire length all the way to Kalikoa, Kenya.
I look back and the cyclists are trying to part the men and ride on it takes a few minutes but they make it clear and are soon pedaling pushing there way towards me. We continue on the hell track for another 20km of ride push , curse, fall. pickup bike curse, push , ride, walk and fight heat and exhaustion. Buildings come up on the horizon and we make our slow push towards them the sand getting so bad i am forced to walk the last km or so, when i arrive i find we have crossed out of Ethiopia and in to Kenya we made it to the police check point.
The Kenyan police are really nice and smile big when we arrive, they even exchange a few Bir so we can have some shillings to buy food, there are no banks until Lodwar many days away.
Cleaning out Talapia fish we bought for dinner, it turned out excellent!!
Sunset over the mission
Army biscuits not very tastey but high in calories
The Kenyan Military was kind enough to give us a box of food , in the box were such delights as , Corned beef, canned pineapple, peas, beans ,
rice, and army biscuits
This was perhaps the best sandwich you could make in the desert...it went down a treat!!!
tribesman walking across the nothingness
Cattle not as fat as they could be, little rain means little to graze on.
More of our bad road to The mission
Police check in Kenya. I was so happy to be out of Ethiopia i could of danced ......maybe i did!!
Rider , well walkers pushing through sand at least Max in the front is
Sunrise over the Ethiopian Desert, last time for me to see this , it is a beautiful site
Police station on the No mans land border
Vast expanse of the no mans land between Ethio and Kenya
Mission to Lodwar via Vehicles...say goodbye to all the bad road...Go to the mission for your own Safety!!!
Thursday March 3, 2011
The group left and i waited for the truck Lazareth said would come at 8am, at 8 he said it was broken so there would be a tractor to almost Lorange the town closets to where i was about 20km away, it was supposed to be at 9am, well at 10am it still wasn't ready so i waved down an army vehicle and they gladly took me to Lorang, were i found the other waiting out the heat in a restaurant.
Here we learn that in northern Kenyan the food is prepared when you order so our food took about 40min, but it was worth the wait. I also asked the guy about a ride to Lodwar and he set about looking for someone, most of the trucks had left early and the options were few.
The other left to continue there self induced torture on the lake Turkana road, i stayed to get a vehicle to take me to Lodwar. after about an hour 2 men showed up and said they had a private vehicle that would take me to Lodwar for 15,000 Kenyan schillings or about 200$US. I had little choice but the men wanted the whole amount up front, i said no Half and then hald\f when i reach Lodwar they could not agree and said they would have to talk to the owner of the vehicle, after a half hour they came back and said now the owner wants more because of exchange rates being not so good, i said no it is 15,000 and NO more they were persistent that i pay more to onset the exchange rate. i said NO and they left to go talk to the owner of the truck after half hour they did not return. I went out side and meta teacher who spoke good English he said he would help me find a ride, as we were talking a truck from the Mission showed up so I asked him to ask the driver, the driver looked at my bags anbd said yeah i can take you. as we were discussing the details the guys showed up with the other truck and when they saw me talking to the Mission fella they got angry and started yelling, soon a group of pro bad dude truck supporters were yelling at me, the mission guy as well as the Teacher that was helping me.
Ir got to the point that they were trying to open the mission guys door to take him out of the truck, i stepped in and started yelling at them that i would not take a ride with them now because of the way they were acting even if it was the last truck to Lodwar for a week, I would rather ride my bike, the teacher translated and the guys got even madder. Soon a group of about 30 people had gathered some for and some against me, the teacher grabbed me and told me to follow him , i leaned over and told the mission driver i would meet him at the mission. I followed the teacher back inside and we crept out the back door and grabbed my bike, he said he would take me a back way to the mission, we lifted the bike over a fence and made our hasty retreat via back roads and through yards to the Mission just after we arrived the mob showed up and started pulling on my bikes and bags to keep me from loading them on the truck.
Just when i thought violence was about to erupt the gate to the mission opened and a young girl yelled at me to hurry inside , so i tossed my bags in the gate and pushbike the bike through was now safe and the Mob had turned to yelling at the driver and the teacher. Soon the father came out and I told him to tell the mob that because they were trying to force me to take a ride with them i felt threatened and would never do so. He went out to the Mob and after about 30-40min he returned the mob was starting to disperse , when i asked him what he said he told me that he explanied to them that , to force a person to do something was against gods will and that the greed they have had turned to anger and was a shameful thing, he said that they didn't want to help me because i was in need but only because i was seen as an ATM that they could get money out of and that God was watching and was not happy.
An hour later the crowd was gone and I loaded my stuff up in the truck. crammed in with 10 other people in a space designed for 7 were screamed down the track towards Lodwar, doing at least 50mph on a bad road was a bit worrisome , but i figured it was a vehicle of the mission and God was watching :)
we had driven about 15km when we came across the other cyclist they had left a couple hour earlier but had made it only that far due to 5 punctures, it was going to be a slow puncture filled ride i am sure! 3 hours later we made it to Lodwar , i explained to the driver that i had no Schillings and would like to go to the mission and camp, he said it was run by Irish and they were not nice , he would take me somewhere better. After dropping of the passengers we made our way to the center of town, the truck stopped in front of the Miami Neighbors bar and a man walked out , the driver had a talk with him he smiled shook my hand and said his name was Peter and he would help me find a place to stay, that his hotel was full but there were others in walking distance. We walked over to the Lodwar Lodge it had rooms though pricey the room was big and i needed to clean and do wash so i said i would like to stay there, he the said he would give me 1000 K shilling that i could pay back tomorrow after a visit to the bank, that settled he invited me back to the bar put an ice cold Guinness extra stout in my hand and said "Welcome to Kenya"!!!
I would stay a week in Lodwar waiting on my friends to arrive and in that time get to know the town a bit, while not great it has all you need, including live broadcasts of my new favorite game Real Football ar as it is called "the Beautiful game"
The group arrived 4 days later and looked worn out. We stil had to get out visa stamp at lokichogio in the north 230km away, they thought that the road would be good because it is a main route , i said it would be crap like the paved road from kalikoa, we would all find out tomorrow.
At dinner that night we met a guy that said he had a vehicle that would take us up and wait for us them return us to Lodwar for 1600KSH total about 20$US i was immediately for this idea the other for some-reason had to discuss it, even though they had already read from other cyclist that this is the price, and were told by someone they knew that 1600 was a fair deal and price to pay. i asked what the heck there was to discuss, they thought they could get a better deal by splitting the ride into 2 parts first to the Refugee camp half way then looking for a ride from there and doing the same on the way back and grand total savings of US $1.50 yes a dollar and a half i mean come on people get real!!! i was just stunned and said that we should take the ride all the way in one vehicle, in the end that's what we did even though Max had to talk the guy down by 500KSH why i don't know the who ride for him cost less that 15US since he is British and the exchange is much higher than the dollar.
I will spare you all the details but i will say this the road is shit for 79km then is OK until Lokichogio, start early like 5am because you wont return until after 4pm unlike the up and back the group thought would happen by Noon, because the road was supposed to be good. The visa is no hassle and was done in less than 20min. the ride back was more painful than the ride up, they squished 10 people in a van that holds eight so i payed for an extra seat so the others would have there own, i didst even get a thanks for that!!
Time for a break: Mad cyclist scares child
Thursday March 10, 2011
After a really hard time in Ethiopia were the people will drive you fucking nuts , i arrived in Kenya with friendly faces and calls of welcome instead of Money Money Money.
I was feeling a bit frazzled by the whole experience and until this morning didn't realize exactly how bad i am.
I was being called Mezungoo by a group of small kids, they are harmless here unlike Ethio were they throw stuff at you, when one of them came up and grabbed my arm, i lost it! i yelled at the kids a few obscenity's and told them to go to hell , one started to cry , i just walked away.
When i got back to my hotel room i broke down , this is not me and not how i want to feel.
I am suspending all Africa riding for at least a month maybe longer, i am headed to Thailand to set up a Mtn bike trail system for my brother and will take that time to undue all the Fucking up Ethiopia did to me.
I will be back on the bike this is not the end , i have more country to cross and time to do it
I had a lot of things happen to me prior to my Ethiopia burn out and as I look back at it now I see that it wasn't just Ethiopia that made me fizzle and explode!!! it was the lying partner I had for Mexico the death of my father the 5 days in Cairo during the uprising and he shear and unnecessary poverty of the 3rd world. I thought I was stronger than all if it but!! my big mistake was not taking enough time to work through my issues before continuing on, I figured riding everyday was like therapy but in reality it wasn't and I paid a price for that
I am currently in Thailand and will be here for 6 months as I work and get back on track for my return to Africa. I am taking time to heal an use the past to not make the same mistakes in he future.
some people deal with Ethiopia as if it is no big deal , i was not one of those people after having been welcomed and treated so nice in other countries i was shocked and dismayed at the attitude of the people of Ethiopia it is a sad little country with a sad little people who will belittle you and treat you as less than human at Every chance they get, you have 0 alone time unless you lock yourself in a room and don't come out, i began to feel like Charlton Heston in Planet of the Apes, being on display all the time....it was maddening.
i am afraid if i continue like i am i will not live up to what i have been trying to do and that is travel with an open mind and kindness, right now my mind is messed up and the kindness is in short supply.
Continued in Australia
