31 May 2013: It was whilst I was looking for
assistance at the OR Tambo airport that I became aware of the splendid job ACSA
is doing about job creation. At every
available help point there were at least 3 employees, happily chatting to one
another and completely oblivious to anyone else. I just assumed it was management’s strategy to
empower passengers, by letting them figure things out for themselves and I made
it just in time to board my flight.
With my scout for guidance and supplies
sorted, it was time to taste some honey wine. I met a local tour guide who
advised me that I should take an English speaking guide to ensure better
communication. Later that evening back in
my flea free room, I discovered that my backpack was soaked in kerosene.
2 June 2013: Sankaber camp: I woke up with a kerosene induced hangover and discovered that there would be no hot shower, simply because there was no water. While carefully packing my backpack, taking care to keep my food and clean clothes away from the kerosene soaked areas, a lady came into my room and sat down. She couldn’t speak a word of English and at first I thought she was looking for a tip, but it turned out that she was just being friendly and was waiting for me to leave so she could clean the room.
I was informed at the last moment that Mula,
my mule needed a plastic cover and that I had to buy bananas and bread. Just
before I got irritated, Abebe made a hand sign and the two of us started
walking. I knew I was going to spend twelve days on the Simien Mountain. I also
knew that my scout and the muler couldn’t speak a word of English and that there
was no sign of Shegaw, my last minute appointed guide.
After 15 kilometres, I realised that the hike
was not going to be a stroll in the park and that the only thing in my first
aid kit were 12 headache tablets. No blister kit, no anti-inflammatory tablets etc.,
but I did have the sexy underwear! (See part 1) I called upon all the angels
and asked them for protection and a sense of humour.
Abebe signalled to me that it was time for a lunch break and offered me half of his sandwich. When I was kissed by a goat looking for food, Abebe jumped up and chased the goat away, leaving me in peace to finish my lunch. He then tried to teach me how to say “thank you”, in Ahmaric, but after hiking for another hour, he amused himself with my inability to say this one word! He would say: ‘thank you’, I would say something similar to ‘amanagowk’ and he would pack up laughing. I really enjoyed his big smile and the goodwill he radiated.
After 21km, we arrived at the Simien lodge – at
3260m the highest lodge in Africa. A kilometre further, I realised that the
lodge might be the only place I might find something resembling plaster.
When the receptionist handed me the only roll of plaster they had in their first aid kit, I took it as a sign that I will be covered for any emergency. I had plaster, 12 headache tablets and my dog’s electronic flea repellent device.
I still found it difficult to pronounce everyone’s names, never mind some words and the same applied to them. A mutual decision was made, Shegaw became ‘Shaggy’ and Abebe became ‘Abe’, Edwardo was never a problem and I became ‘Heaven’. When I asked why, I was told that it was an easy name to remember.
Reflecting back on the day, I felt at peace. This
was a place with friendly people who were not starving as I had imagined.
Between Abe, Shaggy and Edwardo, I never felt unsafe for a second.
After taking Fluff, my mascot to watch the sunset, Dizzy, the Canadian’s guide insisted that I join them in the cookhouse. He entertained us with stories about some of his clients – like the Chinese lady who started shooting at the rats because she wanted to eat them and the Spanish cyclist who got lost going down the mountain.
During the evening, I heard Edwardo almost crying from pain. It turned out that he had a toothache and I parted with two of my headache tablets. It didn’t seem to work though.
Note to myself: In future, make sure your sleeping bag is not upside down and sleep with your head towards the opening.
3rd of June 2013: Geech Camp: I asked
Shaggy to send Edwardo back – but everyone else was convinced that his
toothache will get better once we got higher.
I, however, failed to see the reasoning behind this. The hike was not flat, but luckily there was a
cool breeze every now and again to ward off the heat. I told Shaggy about the litter I encountered
on other mountains and unfortunately, I got the opportunity to show him the
white flowers visible whenever there was a “tourist” stop. He couldn’t wait to show me the waterfall, it
involved crossing a very narrow path, with sheer cliffs on both sides. I accepted his help across but I can honestly
say I did not appreciate the view.
Whilst my three protectors pitched my tent in
the howling wind, I went for a nice cold shower. It had now been confirmed that we had left
the stove behind. Whilst Shaggy tried in
vain to get a signal so he could make arrangements for our stove to be brought
to us, I was entertained by three of the village children. They took turns
taking pictures and we all laughed looking at them. It was around this time
that I realised that in my haste to pack, I had forgotten to bring a fleece
jacket, warm sleeping bag and gloves.
4th of June 2013: Geech Camp: I put all my clothes on during the night and I survived but I felt ashamed comparing the amount of clothes I was taking up with the rest of my team. For some weird reason, Edgardo’s tooth did not get better with the altitude and I gave him 6 of the 10 headache tablets I had left. In the morning I was given scrambled eggs and coffee in my tent and couldn’t believe my luck. This was five star galore. And here I was worried about the starving Ethiopians and getting food that I would eat.
We took a leisurely
stroll up Imet Gogo and stopped for “lunch” around 11h00 – where I shared my
provitas and ‘laughing cow’ cheese with my team. From their facial expressions, my “hiking
food” was not going to be a big hit and I felt ashamed for just assuming from
the start that everyone would expect me to provide them with food. I did not
have a huge appetite, but by now, I realised that unless I developed one, my
sexy undies might not fit me on summit day.
Back at the camp, I had a nice cold shower
before the wind started to blow. It was impossible to keep my tent dust free. Four Americans arrived but I kept to myself,
sulking because I had to share the mountain. I also suspected that I got too
much sun.
After a while, I went to fetch water, and after finding a boy lying on top of the water tank singing, I had a feeling of peace come over me again.
The big litter clean-up started. I did my best not to take things personally, but the swear words poured out of me. Three bags were filled with plastics and white flowers. Tourists!
Later, we all walked over to where we could see the Gelada baboons and enjoy the mountain sunset.
5th of June 2013: Chennek: After sleeping too long, my body was aching, but I walked up a hill to see the sunrise and although it was a bit hazy, it put me back into a peaceful mood.
The hike to Chennek camp was pleasant and
whenever I lost focus and took the wrong path, Abe would tap me on my shoulder,
smile and point to the correct path. There was no shower at this camp, but a
cold wash did the trick. As soon as my tent
was pitched – it started to rain.
My hands got badly sunburned and I decided to stop taking the malaria tablets – especially after I was told that there were no mosquitoes at this altitude. All of a sudden, I was called by Shaggy, who showed me the Ethiopian wolf that came to visit the camp. According to him, the wolf was after the chicken the American’s cook brought with.
The
next moment, we saw some Wallaby ibex before taking a walk to a view point where
we came across a heard of ibex no more than 10 meters away. Unfortunately,
spotting litter next to them put a damper on the magical moment.
I made it back to the tent just in time before it rained again. It was the rainy season which is why we had the mountain basically to ourselves and we were lucky that the rain only began to fall once we were settled in.
My positive visualizing of three empty seats
next to one another where I could sleep, paid off and I only woke up to eat. I am
a fussy eater and after travelling in Africa for more than 30 000 km, I
make sure that I eat when there is food I would eat, hungry or not.
For practical reasons, I chose to fly Air
Kenya, and stopped over at Nairobi – where I spent 2 hours trying to fix my broken
reading glasses, especially since I have decided for some unknown reason to
take 5 books with on this 2 week trip into Africa.
After giving up, I glanced at my watch, then at my ticket, and started running for the boarding gate, where, I discovered with relief that Kenya’s time zone is one hour behind South Africa.
 |
| A Picture of the children along the road |
After giving up, I glanced at my watch, then at my ticket, and started running for the boarding gate, where, I discovered with relief that Kenya’s time zone is one hour behind South Africa.
1 June 2013: After landing in Addis at 03h00,
I had four hours to kill before boarding my next flight to Gondar. The airport was deserted. After a hectic 3 days before my trip, my plan
of action was to finalize the rest of my
trip in Ethiopia when I was on the aeroplane , but since I broke my reading glasses , this was not going to happen. This
trip was definitely going to be different and I cursed myself once again for
not putting my reading glasses in a protective case. I knew I had to get to Debark and that the
journey would take around 5 hours. Although at somewhat of a disadvantage
without my reading glasses, coupled with the fact that I couldn’t find anyone
else going to Debark, I knew that some of the Ethiopians speak English and it
was the one reason I didn’t go into panic mode.
In Gondar a taxi driver approached me asking if I needed transport. I immediately told him that I am a fellow African and needed transport to Debark and I will take a share taxi. He mentioned R500 and just then, I was approached by two Canadians who asked me if I wanted to share their chartered vehicle for R500. I was expecting to pay R100 for local transport, but considering that I was travelling on my own, my fear of being stuck on local transport with a full bladder and the fact that the one Canadian was pretty cute, I decided to pay the R500 and travel with them. An hour later, we stopped at the Simien Hotel – a place that was described in Lonely Planet as “flea ridden”. 24 Hours earlier, I had no clue what to expect when I arrived in Ethiopia. I felt compelled to stay at the hotel, thinking that I would be able to write an article about the efficiency of my dog’s electronic flea repellent gadget – one of the few things I did remember to bring.
Instead of finding starving people trying to
take advantage of tourists, providing a lack of food and flea infested
accommodation, I found friendly, helpful people and a charming room with no
fleas.
It was now 11h00 and I was already sitting in Debark eating an omelette and drinking coffee, while being given advice on trekking in the Siemen Mountain. My only requirement was to spend as much time in the mountain as possible.
At the Park office, I was informed that there were no guides available but a scout, a mule and a muler were assigned to me. I instantly took a liking to my scout Abebe with his friendly face and felt confident that we would be able to communicate well, irrespective of the fact that he didn’t speak a word of English. I also rented a stove and purchased a 5L container filled with kerosene, which was immediately placed in my backpack.
In Gondar a taxi driver approached me asking if I needed transport. I immediately told him that I am a fellow African and needed transport to Debark and I will take a share taxi. He mentioned R500 and just then, I was approached by two Canadians who asked me if I wanted to share their chartered vehicle for R500. I was expecting to pay R100 for local transport, but considering that I was travelling on my own, my fear of being stuck on local transport with a full bladder and the fact that the one Canadian was pretty cute, I decided to pay the R500 and travel with them. An hour later, we stopped at the Simien Hotel – a place that was described in Lonely Planet as “flea ridden”. 24 Hours earlier, I had no clue what to expect when I arrived in Ethiopia. I felt compelled to stay at the hotel, thinking that I would be able to write an article about the efficiency of my dog’s electronic flea repellent gadget – one of the few things I did remember to bring.
 |
| My first taste of honey wine |
It was now 11h00 and I was already sitting in Debark eating an omelette and drinking coffee, while being given advice on trekking in the Siemen Mountain. My only requirement was to spend as much time in the mountain as possible.
At the Park office, I was informed that there were no guides available but a scout, a mule and a muler were assigned to me. I instantly took a liking to my scout Abebe with his friendly face and felt confident that we would be able to communicate well, irrespective of the fact that he didn’t speak a word of English. I also rented a stove and purchased a 5L container filled with kerosene, which was immediately placed in my backpack.
 |
| The start of my hike |
2 June 2013: Sankaber camp: I woke up with a kerosene induced hangover and discovered that there would be no hot shower, simply because there was no water. While carefully packing my backpack, taking care to keep my food and clean clothes away from the kerosene soaked areas, a lady came into my room and sat down. She couldn’t speak a word of English and at first I thought she was looking for a tip, but it turned out that she was just being friendly and was waiting for me to leave so she could clean the room.
 |
| Hiking through Debark |
After the first km, I realised I should have
made a bigger effort to get my right knee sorted out by a Physiotherapist
before I left Pretoria. I decided to
visualise it healthy. After the second
km the pain in my right knee had shifted to my left knee. After 5 km, I had a stiff
arm and jaw from smiling and waving at the villagers, especially the children.
 |
| The highest lodge in Africa at 3260 m |
Abebe signalled to me that it was time for a lunch break and offered me half of his sandwich. When I was kissed by a goat looking for food, Abebe jumped up and chased the goat away, leaving me in peace to finish my lunch. He then tried to teach me how to say “thank you”, in Ahmaric, but after hiking for another hour, he amused himself with my inability to say this one word! He would say: ‘thank you’, I would say something similar to ‘amanagowk’ and he would pack up laughing. I really enjoyed his big smile and the goodwill he radiated.
 |
| Children playing on music instruments they made |
When the receptionist handed me the only roll of plaster they had in their first aid kit, I took it as a sign that I will be covered for any emergency. I had plaster, 12 headache tablets and my dog’s electronic flea repellent device.
After hiking for 38km, we arrived at the Sankaber
camp. I thanked the angels for Amanda’s heavy workload. She would have
strangled me. My Enneagram message for the day was to accept the fact that I
have limitations and maybe I should have taken a vehicle like everyone else to this
camp.
Edwardo, the muler and Abebe helped me to
pitch the tent. After four tries, Shegaw arrived and informed me that I was
directly in the waterway. He moved my
botched attempt and pitched it in the guide’s quarters. The tourist season had ended
and other than the two Canadians who arrived a bit later, I had the mountain to
myself. I thanked the angels once again for sending Shegaw. He took me to have
a refreshing cold shower and brought me boiled water afterwards. It was just about at this stage that we
realised the stove and kerosene were left behind.
I still found it difficult to pronounce everyone’s names, never mind some words and the same applied to them. A mutual decision was made, Shegaw became ‘Shaggy’ and Abebe became ‘Abe’, Edwardo was never a problem and I became ‘Heaven’. When I asked why, I was told that it was an easy name to remember.
 |
| With Abe, my scout |
After taking Fluff, my mascot to watch the sunset, Dizzy, the Canadian’s guide insisted that I join them in the cookhouse. He entertained us with stories about some of his clients – like the Chinese lady who started shooting at the rats because she wanted to eat them and the Spanish cyclist who got lost going down the mountain.
During the evening, I heard Edwardo almost crying from pain. It turned out that he had a toothache and I parted with two of my headache tablets. It didn’t seem to work though.
Note to myself: In future, make sure your sleeping bag is not upside down and sleep with your head towards the opening.
 |
| Having coffee in the village |
I should have learned by now to empty my bladder whenever possible. I ended up walking with a full bladder for at least three hours, looking for a place where I wouldn’t bump into villagers and children looking after their goats, mules or cattle. Shaggy and Abe had a siesta in the sun while I tried desperately to stay out of the sun, having opted for the cheaper malaria tablets which made me super sensitive to sun. I had no appetite at lunch but forced myself to eat some energy bars.
After lunch we hiked through patches resembling a desert and once at the Geech village, we stopped and I had my first experience of the coffee ritual. I loved it.
I should have learned by now to empty my bladder whenever possible. I ended up walking with a full bladder for at least three hours, looking for a place where I wouldn’t bump into villagers and children looking after their goats, mules or cattle. Shaggy and Abe had a siesta in the sun while I tried desperately to stay out of the sun, having opted for the cheaper malaria tablets which made me super sensitive to sun. I had no appetite at lunch but forced myself to eat some energy bars.
After lunch we hiked through patches resembling a desert and once at the Geech village, we stopped and I had my first experience of the coffee ritual. I loved it.
 |
| The shop next to the Sankaber Lodge |
4th of June 2013: Geech Camp: I put all my clothes on during the night and I survived but I felt ashamed comparing the amount of clothes I was taking up with the rest of my team. For some weird reason, Edgardo’s tooth did not get better with the altitude and I gave him 6 of the 10 headache tablets I had left. In the morning I was given scrambled eggs and coffee in my tent and couldn’t believe my luck. This was five star galore. And here I was worried about the starving Ethiopians and getting food that I would eat.
 |
| Another spectacular view |
 |
| Amusing my team by doing a headstand |
After a while, I went to fetch water, and after finding a boy lying on top of the water tank singing, I had a feeling of peace come over me again.
The big litter clean-up started. I did my best not to take things personally, but the swear words poured out of me. Three bags were filled with plastics and white flowers. Tourists!
Later, we all walked over to where we could see the Gelada baboons and enjoy the mountain sunset.
5th of June 2013: Chennek: After sleeping too long, my body was aching, but I walked up a hill to see the sunrise and although it was a bit hazy, it put me back into a peaceful mood.
 |
| The 'white flowers' left by inconsiderate tourists |
My hands got badly sunburned and I decided to stop taking the malaria tablets – especially after I was told that there were no mosquitoes at this altitude. All of a sudden, I was called by Shaggy, who showed me the Ethiopian wolf that came to visit the camp. According to him, the wolf was after the chicken the American’s cook brought with.
 |
| The village where I bought my blanket |
I made it back to the tent just in time before it rained again. It was the rainy season which is why we had the mountain basically to ourselves and we were lucky that the rain only began to fall once we were settled in.
I was invited for supper by the Israel cook
and after I made sure the chicken the wolf was after was not on the menu, I
joined the Americans.
6th of June 2013: Ambiko: It was cold
during the night and since I hadn’t mastered the art of tent pitching yet, I
kept on sliding down. Abe and I left at
08h00, Mula and Edwardo followed later and Shaggy went back to Debark to fetch
the stove. From now on, we would be on
our own.
At the summit they sang a song
for me and then it was my turn. After
being kicked out of the choir 30 years ago, I faced my fear and sang happy
birthday to myself. Abebe was in stiches
and after laughing our arses off, we rushed down to the camp site. I was starving and when Shaggy shared his
bread and vegetable stew with me, I accepted it with gratitude. My body was
starting to rebel against the strenuous exercise and required a little protein.
I was knackered when I got back to the tent, but it was too hot and I battled to fall asleep. I then amused myself watching the videos that were taken during the day. I also realised that wearing sexy underwear and a colourful scarf whilst huffing/puffing and sweating uphill did not make me feel sexy at all.
Later, I showed the videos I took on top of
Ras Dashen to my team and they cracked up laughing.
Abe had his colourful blanket draped around
him throughout the entire hike and he realised early on that I wanted colour in
the pictures I took. So, whenever I took
out my camera, he would jump in front of me with his back turned to the camera and
I would take a picture. When I asked when the rainy season was, I was told that
it would come in June. After mentioning
that it was already the 7th of June, I was informed that they have a different
calendar. I considered myself very
lucky.
8th of June 2013: Sona: Throughout the
evening, I could hear Mula chewing. I suffer from misophonia (The sounds of other
people eating — chewing, chomping, slurping and gurgling drives me nuts) but I
tried to stay calm and was surprised to discover that mules don’t need a lot of
sleep. It
was at about this time that my guide realised that we were going to be on the
mountain for 12 days, and not the 8 days he expected.
had a headache but he told her to drink more water.
After hiking for 6 hours, we arrived at Sona,
which turned out to be a school with no water close by and I realised that I had
lost my sense of humour. I was
dehydrated, hadn’t had a proper wash for two days, had a backpack and contents
still soaked in kerosene and aware that we were now going down the mountain. Shaggy
fetched some water, pitched my tent, helped me find hanging space for all my
kerosene soaked clothes and even washed my mattress. I drank 2 litres of water and after finding another
150ml to wash myself, my sense of humour returned. While I entertained the
children, Shaggy made us scrambled eggs.
9th of June 2013: Makarebya: My whole body was now covered in bruises. I got scrambled eggs, cheese and provitas for breakfast before having pictures taken with some of the children holding the Ethiopian and South African flags.
The hike to Makarebya was slow. It was
extremely steep with lots of scree and finding water turned out to be quite a
challenge. Poor Mula was not used to so
many days on the mountain and Edwardo did his best to motivate him. I made a mental note to find him something
nice to eat. My feet took a hammering
and I couldn’t remember being so grateful to have my hiking sticks with.
Me: ‘I think it was Jan Van Riebeeck but I am not sure’
Shaggy: ‘But I am sure’
As soon as we arrived, my tent was pitched (on a flat spot) and the worst soaked Kerosene clothes were hung up. I was then taken to a spring and spoiled by receiving a whole pot of water thrown over my head for a proper hair wash before I had a wash inside my tent. When I made enquiries about Mula’s absence, I was told that he has had enough and ran away. The next moment I heard Edwardo shout and off he ran, presumably to go and look for Mula.
It was not long before I was surrounded by children entertaining me. As soon as Abe thought they were harassing me, he would jump up and they would run away, just to return a bit later.
A very reluctant Mula was tied to the shed. Shaggy convinced me that Mula would love a ‘massage’ but he was obviously fed up with everyone and before I could touch him, he tried to kick me.
Uphills, downhills and a lot of scree followed
and after what seemed like a very long time, we reached a village where I
bought a blanket and batteries that turned out to be useless. During the hour we spent in the village, I
had to shake everyone’s hand and was surrounded by children throughout our
stay. It was market day and we ended up
walking amongst a mule train where Abe cracked up laughing again at my
inability to say ‘Thank You’ in Amharic.
The two of us really had fun when we were
alone and with only basic sign language, we understood each other about 5% of
the time. The rest did not matter.
It was whilst in the mule train that I
noticed his gun pointing directly towards me and for the first time I wondered
if it was loaded. It would have been really tragic if I ended up killed by my
own scout whilst amongst a mule train going to the top of the Simien Mountain. The first group of mules turned off, and I
ended up huffing and puffing behind the elderly people that would have walked with
crutches, if there were any around. I
was swearing like crazy and could just picture myself enjoying a luxurious bath,
shave and being able to wash my hair once in Ambiko and reprimanded myself for
forgetting to bring some bath oil. We
were then in the village when Abe announced “Ambiko”. There were no mosquitoes or fleas but there
were a lot of flies. Another 200m followed before he announced “camp”. It was a cow shed filled with cow dung and I
thanked the angels once again for preventing Amanda from coming with me to
Ethiopia.
Shaggy arrived and pitched my tent in a
better spot before it started to rain.
Afterwards, I was taken to a small river where I could wash my hair and
I spent a lot of time pampering myself. It
was only after a manicure, pedicure and a shave, that I noticed that I had
quite a lot of bruises on my body. At one
stage, I considered leaving my tent behind in South Africa, but I was very
grateful that I did bring it - otherwise I would have ended up wet and sleeping
amongst cow dung.
I was surprised by popcorn before I was invited by my team for a vegetarian supper. I have never met more generous and polite people. The villagers kept on bringing us food and I felt terrible when my team did not want to use my groundsheet to sleep on. That evening I was as snug as a bug in my luxurious inner sheet.
 |
| Pampering myself before the 'big' day |
I was surprised by popcorn before I was invited by my team for a vegetarian supper. I have never met more generous and polite people. The villagers kept on bringing us food and I felt terrible when my team did not want to use my groundsheet to sleep on. That evening I was as snug as a bug in my luxurious inner sheet.
7th of June 2013: Ambiko: Big
excitement reigned. It was my birthday
and I was going to Ras Dashen wearing my sexy undies. I made another note to
myself: focus the next time your tent is pitched because once again, it was
pitched at an uncomfortable angle.
We started off in the dark and pretty soon I was
huffing and puffing and we ended up amongst a mule train. The cold increased
exponentially with the height and we had several dust storms along the way. My
legs felt like jelly several times but all of a sudden, Shaggy asked me which
one of the three peaks in front of us was the highest. I have read about hikers going to all three
to make sure it is the highest, but I was tired and Shaggy took pity on me. It turned out to be a scramble to the top and Shaggy helped me up several rocks to the top where the wind was howling.  |
| The start of our hike to Ras Dashen |
 |
| Abebe and Shegaw on Ras Dashen |
I was knackered when I got back to the tent, but it was too hot and I battled to fall asleep. I then amused myself watching the videos that were taken during the day. I also realised that wearing sexy underwear and a colourful scarf whilst huffing/puffing and sweating uphill did not make me feel sexy at all.
 |
| Colourful scarf, sexy undies, the works |
 |
| Coffee after along day in the mountain |
 |
| Holding both the South African and Ethiopian flag in Sona |
The hike turned out to be extremely
pleasant. I finally managed to remember
the Amharic word for ‘Thank You’ and told Shaggy I must have tried at least a
hundred times. He looked at me and replied:
‘No, it was definitely at least 150 times!’
A lady we passed pointed at her head and I
mistakenly though she wanted my hat.
Shaggy informed me that she |
| Injera, injera, injera |
had a headache but he told her to drink more water.
Ten minutes later, Abe announced that he was
going to visit a friend and we packed up laughing when a dog started chasing
him.
We stopped in a village for coffee and Shaggy
asked the lady if we would be able to buy batteries for my camera in the
village. She replied that the batteries that were for sale was made in China and
useless.  |
| Mula and Edwardo |
9th of June 2013: Makarebya: My whole body was now covered in bruises. I got scrambled eggs, cheese and provitas for breakfast before having pictures taken with some of the children holding the Ethiopian and South African flags.
 |
| Everyone talking and laughing. It was magic |
We met a lot of villagers along the way and
stopped to chat with them and although the hike was tough, we laughed a lot.
Shaggy: ‘I think the Asians were first in South
Africa’Me: ‘I think it was Jan Van Riebeeck but I am not sure’
Shaggy: ‘But I am sure’
As soon as we arrived, my tent was pitched (on a flat spot) and the worst soaked Kerosene clothes were hung up. I was then taken to a spring and spoiled by receiving a whole pot of water thrown over my head for a proper hair wash before I had a wash inside my tent. When I made enquiries about Mula’s absence, I was told that he has had enough and ran away. The next moment I heard Edwardo shout and off he ran, presumably to go and look for Mula.
 |
| Abe in Xerima village |
It was not long before I was surrounded by children entertaining me. As soon as Abe thought they were harassing me, he would jump up and they would run away, just to return a bit later.
A very reluctant Mula was tied to the shed. Shaggy convinced me that Mula would love a ‘massage’ but he was obviously fed up with everyone and before I could touch him, he tried to kick me.
I mentioned that I thought it would rain more
and Shaggy said I was lucky. But when I mentioned
that I won’t mind the rain, he replied: ‘Well,
in that case, I’ll ask the Big man for some holy water because Ethiopia needs
it’. An hour later, the wind came up and it started raining.
10th of June 2013: Xerima: We woke up early – just to be entertained by the children. Mula didn’t want to eat and I thought he was acting up to make me feel bad about the long hike. Shaggy predicted a long 8 hour hike and it turned into another challenging day. I had to ration my water intake and didn’t do well in the “desert” and heat. We spent a long time hiking down a dry river, boulder hopping before reaching steep uphill’s where I was told that I looked like a tomato. I was also told to start taking my malaria tablets again – but unfortunately, that’s not the way you take them, so I just rolled my eyes and hoped for the best.
10th of June 2013: Xerima: We woke up early – just to be entertained by the children. Mula didn’t want to eat and I thought he was acting up to make me feel bad about the long hike. Shaggy predicted a long 8 hour hike and it turned into another challenging day. I had to ration my water intake and didn’t do well in the “desert” and heat. We spent a long time hiking down a dry river, boulder hopping before reaching steep uphill’s where I was told that I looked like a tomato. I was also told to start taking my malaria tablets again – but unfortunately, that’s not the way you take them, so I just rolled my eyes and hoped for the best.
By now it was clear that Mula was really
suffering and I offered to carry my own backpack. According to the rest of the team, it wouldn’t
solve the problem. Mentally and
physically, Mula has had enough of the Simien Mountain.
We hit the lowland and everyone seemed relieved when I said we must push on past Mulit and Adi Arkay. It took us another 3 hours to get to Mulit. I had had enough of dust, boulders, heat and lowlands though and could also do with a shower. According to Shaggy, we might have to sleep over because there we no transport to Debark so late in the afternoon. Once in Adi Arkay, I gave an ecstatic Edwardo my luxurious inner. After being together in the mountain for 9 days, I was very sad to say goodbye to him and Mula.
We hit the lowland and everyone seemed relieved when I said we must push on past Mulit and Adi Arkay. It took us another 3 hours to get to Mulit. I had had enough of dust, boulders, heat and lowlands though and could also do with a shower. According to Shaggy, we might have to sleep over because there we no transport to Debark so late in the afternoon. Once in Adi Arkay, I gave an ecstatic Edwardo my luxurious inner. After being together in the mountain for 9 days, I was very sad to say goodbye to him and Mula.
We were having some coffee and injera when a
beer truck stopped in front of us. Shaggy grabbed my backpack, pushed me into
the cockpit of the truck and jumped in the back. No matter how hard I protested about sitting
inside instead of in the back with them, no one understood me and off we
sped. When the lady sitting next to me
covered her nose, I realised that I didn’t smell so fresh. After 30 minutes, the truck stopped and more
people got on the back. I used the
opportunity to jump out and on the back, much to Shaggy’s surprise. It was not long after I joined the group
squashed on top of the beer truck that a policeman pulled us over. Shaggy pulled my leg by saying it is because
I was on top of the truck, but it turned out that no one was allowed on the
back of a truck. Expecting that a bribe would
be paid, I was pleasantly surprised to see that a fine was given instead. Some “illegal passengers” got off and in my
eyes, chaos reigned because I had no clue what was happening, especially after
we turned back towards Adi Arkai before stopping at an official looking building
before resuming our journey back to
I was finally told that the driver paid a
fine and that they work on a demerit system.
So, except for the driver, all the ‘illegal passengers’ were pretty
happy. The next moment we stopped and a fascinating lady and other people got
on and were met by loud cheers. There was a lot of good natured banter amongst
the passengers. All of a sudden, the lady
took my hand, looked me in the eye, said something – and someone translated: ‘We
are now one’. The next moment, the
elderly lady that was sitting with her back to me took my hand in hers. And that’s the way we travelled onwards - surrounded
by mountains, holding hands and laughing.
I’ve never felt so at peace with myself.
My room was very small and stuffy, but I was
too scared to open the windows in case of wandering mosquitoes. I went for a much needed shower before
joining Abe and Shaggy for a beer. Relief
washed over Abe’s face when I told him he can go and sleep. Instead of hiking for 12 days, we have done
it in 9 days, and we all felt it. Throughout the night, I heard people snoring and
pipes creaking and when my alarm went off at 04h30, I battled to get out of
bed.
11th of June 2013: We left at 05h30. According to Shaggy, the driver thought I was beautiful – actually, a lot of Ethiopians told me that I have a beautiful smile – and it must have been because I was so happy and laughed so much.
After a much needed nap, Shaggy knocked on my
door and handed me a paper bag which contained an Ethiopian music cd, a scarf
and a map of the Simien Mountain, this unseen gesture made me burst out in
tears. An evening of dancing, eating injera,
drinking coffee and laughter followed.
12th of June 2013: We had omelettes and mugs of coffee for breakfast before Dizzy, the guide who takes Canadian Tourists to the Simien Mountain, entertained us with his stories and said for 50 cents he will fall for me with his bicycle. We all followed him but instead of seeing him fall, we once again laughed too much. More coffee followed while someone named Mr Fantastic kept us entertained with humorous stories.
After taking me to a cornfield to do some
bird watching, I realised that I might know more about birding than my guide. We visited some of his friends and more
laughter followed. The guy that arranged
my trip to the Simien Mountain offered to take me to Debark to show me all the
museums, but after 10 days of laughter in the mountains, I decided to ask
Shaggy instead. When I told him that I
didn’t come to Africa to go to museums he burst out laughing before replying: ‘But
you are from Africa!’
I spent my last evening in Debark drinking honey wine, dancing and enjoying the company of the great friends I had made.
13h of June 2013: Gondar. It was whilst on the taxi to Gondar that I realised how lucky I
was that I invited Shaggy with. It became obvious that not all the Ethiopians speak English and it seemed as if everyone knew everyone else in Ethiopia. We kept bumping into some of his friends and when he told me they all studied in Addis Ababa and that he has lots of friends that work there, I asked him to accompany me to Addis Ababa.
That evening, we went out dancing again and pretty soon we were surrounded by more of his friends.
hesitating, Shaggy pulled out a big note and held
out his hand for some change. The
transaction seemed quite normal.
After coffee at the airport it was time to say goodbye and I couldn’t help the tears. My trip to Ethiopia was a spur of the moment thing. Two days after booking my flight, I was on the aeroplane without a clue about what to expect. My fears of finding starving, hostile people and flea ridden accommodation, I found the Ethiopian people to be friendly and warm people that never made me once feel unsafe.
 |
| The lovely lady on the back of the beer truck |
We arrived in Zerima at 19h00 and the driver
announced that we would all be staying over since it was still a far way to
travel to Debark. I was then informed that the fascinating lady had invited me for
supper which was a huge compliment. But as it had been a long day and her house
was an hour’s walk away, I politely declined her kind offer.
 |
| Two fellow passengers |
11th of June 2013: We left at 05h30. According to Shaggy, the driver thought I was beautiful – actually, a lot of Ethiopians told me that I have a beautiful smile – and it must have been because I was so happy and laughed so much.
Once in Debark, we took a Tuk-Tuk to the
Simien hotel where coffee and breakfast awaited before it was time to say
goodbye to Abe.
I had a much needed hot shower and then I tried
to get some of my clothes clean. It was
not long before I gave up and paid a lady to wash them whilst I went with Shaggy
and one of his friends for a beer and injera. The Ethiopians I met were very
religious, happy and care free, there were no gender, religion or race issues.
The men finished studying when they were around 30 years before getting married
and they all seemed so wise.  |
| Dancing in Debark |
12th of June 2013: We had omelettes and mugs of coffee for breakfast before Dizzy, the guide who takes Canadian Tourists to the Simien Mountain, entertained us with his stories and said for 50 cents he will fall for me with his bicycle. We all followed him but instead of seeing him fall, we once again laughed too much. More coffee followed while someone named Mr Fantastic kept us entertained with humorous stories.
 |
| I must have had at least 5 cups of coffee in this coffee house |
I spent my last evening in Debark drinking honey wine, dancing and enjoying the company of the great friends I had made.
13h of June 2013: Gondar. It was whilst on the taxi to Gondar that I realised how lucky I
 |
| Our taxi to Gondar |
was that I invited Shaggy with. It became obvious that not all the Ethiopians speak English and it seemed as if everyone knew everyone else in Ethiopia. We kept bumping into some of his friends and when he told me they all studied in Addis Ababa and that he has lots of friends that work there, I asked him to accompany me to Addis Ababa.
That evening, we went out dancing again and pretty soon we were surrounded by more of his friends.
14th of June 2013: The bus only left at 05h30 but Shaggy woke me
up at 03h00. I thought he took his
responsibility as my guide maybe a bit too far, but I was more than happy to
sit around for two hours chatting with two guys from Sudan before the bus
arrived. I was very impressed with the bus that arrived, we had to wear safety
belts and it even had a toilet inside. When they started handing out lunch, I
realised that the toilet was used as a storeroom. After 3 hours, the bus stopped for a toilet
break and no, there were no men’s room that side, woman’s room this side. Once
again, I thanked Amanda’s angels for preventing her from coming with.
Once in Addis, Shaggy phoned a friend and
pretty soon I was settled in a nice hotel.
By now, I was used to him having
friends all over Ethiopia so when we went out for supper and two guys joined us,
I was not surprised at all.
On our way back to the hotel, he stopped to
chat to a guy staying in a shack and it just dawned on me that I was not going
anywhere with my material possessions and no compassion.
15th of June 2013: I had come to love injera and Ethiopian coffee and while sitting outside a restaurant, we were approached by a beggar who asked Shaggy for money. Without
15th of June 2013: I had come to love injera and Ethiopian coffee and while sitting outside a restaurant, we were approached by a beggar who asked Shaggy for money. Without
 |
| Shaggy waiting for change from the beggar |
Then it was off to meet more of his friends,
eat more injera and drink more Ethiopian coffee. That evening, we joined some of his friends
who were having a farewell party for a guy that was getting married and moving
to Israel. Lots of beer,
dancing and laughter followed before we all decided at 02h00 that it was time to get some sleep.
16th of June 2013: It was the world cup soccer and South Africa was playing against Ethiopia. Big excitement reigned and after a visit to the museum where Lucy is kept, we walked to the stadium, stopping every now and again to eat injera and drink coffee. In the end, we got lost but laughed a lot. Ethiopia won the soccer and that evening, everyone was celebrating.
17th of June 2013: We walked pas a book store on the way to the
taxi rank and I couldn’t help but notice a book about rat infestation. Whilst in the taxi to the airport, I thought
about the story Dizzy told me about the girl that he took to the mountain and
how surprised he was when she killed a rat and wanted him to cook it. When I explained to Shaggy that the rat problem
could be solved by getting people to consider rats a delicatessen in Addis, he
looked strangely at me and said: ‘You think too much”. |
| Having my shoes cleaned |
dancing and laughter followed before we all decided at 02h00 that it was time to get some sleep.
16th of June 2013: It was the world cup soccer and South Africa was playing against Ethiopia. Big excitement reigned and after a visit to the museum where Lucy is kept, we walked to the stadium, stopping every now and again to eat injera and drink coffee. In the end, we got lost but laughed a lot. Ethiopia won the soccer and that evening, everyone was celebrating.
After coffee at the airport it was time to say goodbye and I couldn’t help the tears. My trip to Ethiopia was a spur of the moment thing. Two days after booking my flight, I was on the aeroplane without a clue about what to expect. My fears of finding starving, hostile people and flea ridden accommodation, I found the Ethiopian people to be friendly and warm people that never made me once feel unsafe.
 |
| On my way back to sunny South Africa |
