Day 50: Fri 21st March: Bush Camp #3 to Bush Camp #4 on the way to Awassa:

About 70km into Ethiopia we dutifully report to an office marked 'Customs' in the first village we come to - Omarate - and our Ethiopian Visa's (the only Country that required us to get a Visa in advance) are checked and stamped. The carnet for the vehicle is also checked by Customs and Excise and we are officially in Ethiopia. Just as well we dotted all the I's and crossed all the T's as required as we later go through two road-blocks where they check all our documentation. We try to buy some beer in the village - from the Solar Kiosk - but they are crazy expensive so we settle for Coke and Marinda. Our guide has to buy diesel on the black market from one of the local businessmen (who also runs a 'hotel') and is thoroughly ripped off which is to be expected. We learn very quickly that Ethiopian's will rip the ring out if you give them half a chance.

We set off intending to get to the city of Awassa or Hawassa (different people use different spellings) but the road is horrendous and it takes hours to get anywhere. We eventually find a quiet spot with no-one around and bundu-bash off the road and into the bush for Bush Camp #4. Man, this is going to cost Simon dearly!

The bush camp is near Lake Stephanie which we have been skirting for some time.

Once again the state of the roads gets the better of us and we cannot make the journey of about 400km before the sun goes down. The roads are being re-built in many places (mainly by the Chinese) but that means that the state of the detours are absolutely horrendous and makes for slow going. These rough roads are slowly but surely shaking our vehicles to pieces. The electronics on my window is no longer working properly and Simon's window makes an awful grinding noise so it is only a matter of time. We stop in a reasonably sized town, Yabello, to re-fuel and find a real Total station for a change. We take a chance and stop at the hotel for lunch and have a local platter which has all kinds of dishes but we are not sure exactly what they are. Some great lentils and other dips which varied in 'hotness'.

The scenery is spectacular but the roads are not! Ethiopia has far more trees and green vegetation than I was expecting. There are people everywhere but everyone seems very industrious and even the children work hard. You often see young children fetching water or packs of wood and struggling along trying to carry the weight. We even saw a young boy trying to carry a sheep and he could barely walk. The women particularly look terribly tired and worn out and our guide reckons that women and donkeys are literally worked to death in Ethiopia.

Our progress is slow and eventually even I have to admit that it looks like we will have to bush camp again. We miraculously find a section of (dirt) road which is not lined with people coming and going and find a spot where we can pull off and head into the bush. We find a place to park that cannot be seen from the road and that is not near any dwellings or people. This is indeed extremely rare and we are lucky to have found it. We set up tents and have dinner and then have a peaceful but extremely hot night. The wind has dropped and it was sweltering, but the flies and mosquitos keep you in your tent.

Day 51: Sat 22nd March: Bush Camp #4 - Awassa - Oasis Hotel:

On the road again and unfortunately still bad road conditions. We wind up into the mountains again and at time we are as high as 2400m so the vehicles are working hard. The drivers are also really working hard as there is endless traffic and it seems that every man, woman, child, dog, donkey, camel, horse, cow, sheep and goat is going somewhere! The people and animals here are not nearly as aware of vehicles as they were in Rwanda so you have to watch them carefully. The roads are also very narrow and busy with trucks and buses and everyone is trying to avoid the endless potholes. In Ethiopia they also drive on the right side of the road so that adds to our stress. Our guide gets the 'Kak Move of the Day' award for trying to turn onto a diversion on the left of the road (would have been straight into the oncoming traffic) and gets a good roasting over the radios. He buys the beers that night.

I am horrified by what we see from the car. There are many, many people and I understand that they are extremely poor for the most part and that their focus is on food and survival. BUT the way they treat their animals is horrific and I feel sick. I see them literally working their donkeys till they collapse in front of the dreadful cart they are pulling. I see horses with their heads shackled to their hind legs so they can't run away. The rope is not too tight, but the horse can barely walk and the rope cuts into the leg and make the most horrendous sores. Same for the cattle and goats and sheep - all very harshly treated as they are just a commodity. Goats with their front legs tied together so that they can't go too far. Strangely on the other hand the dogs we see (and there are not that many) look happy and well fed.

The town of Awassa is the capital of Southern Ethiopia and the country's second largest "city" nestled on the edge of Lake Awassa. I take a cycle for 2 hours around the town and we walk the "dyke" constructed along the lakeshore edge as protection which has small eating houses and bars along it. The locals are drinking beer at 9am! Disconcerting for the ladies in our group is the number of naked men at the edge of the lake - clearly it is bathing day.

The Oasis Hotel was quite new, electricity sporadic and we decide to stay another day in Awassa and find the Lewi Hotel - more of a resort, and Lyn even gets a massage here.

Day 52: Sunday 23rd March: Awassa, Lewi Hotel.

This is a very pleasant resort on the lakeside with lots of birds (fish eagles calling constantly) and we have chill day.

Day 53: Monday 24th March: Awassa to Bale Mountain National Park Campsite (Bush camp #5 in reality as the campsite has no facilities). Odo 13360km to date.

The road between Awassa and Bale is good tar all the way with some hectic mountain pass driving, the highest point en route being 3564m - the Doddle is puffing a bit at this altitude as are we!

On the way we detour off the main road within the park and see plenty mountain nyala, bush pig, reedbuck and peregrine falcon - mainly hoping to see the Simien Wolf which we don't.

Back on the main road we pass through a couple of big villages including Shashemene, bustling as usual and full of tuk-tuks making progress slow.

The people in this area are different, less bantu looking and more Arabic, especially the mountain people who seem to be semi nomadic with the amount of kit they are travelling along with mainly on donkeys (the men often riding on horseback, with woman and children walking).

On arrival at the park gate we pay and set off for Sinetti Plateau where we are told there is the best chance of seeing the Simien Wolf. The wolf was long though to actually be a fox (and there are still tour companies and lodges etc called The Red Fox), However, DNA testing proved this animal is actually a wolf (and only about 5 years ago or so) and the only wolf found in Africa. Getting to Sinetti involves a huge climb and the 85km to travel takes 2 hours, mainly due to the climb. We reach and altitude of 4107m and eventually see a pair of wolfs cross the road, the 3 separate single sightings which I think is quite rare - pumped now for seeing these!

Bush Camp #5 has a good view and Dave makes a great pot of soup for supper, but otherwise it's cold and uneventful.

Day 54: Tuesday 25th March: Bale to Wabe Shebelle Hotel, Addis Ababa - Odo 13700km.

The road is good, but as we turn onto the main Djibouti Addis road the trucks are flowing heavily in both directions and progress is painfully slow. The total trip today is 390km but we set off at 7:30am and arrive in the hotel in Addis at 6pm - a long stressful day behind the wheel, although the road is all tar (well mainly if you take the potholes into consideration). Tonight we stay at the Wabe Shebelle hotel near the city centre. It's a bit run down, but the food is ok although a local bottle of wine (yes, they farm wine in Ethiopia) was US$28 - it wasn't nearly that good! I slept like a baby after that long drive but our fellow travellers had a hard night with a steam vent outside their window.

Day 55 & 56: Wednesday 26th and Thursday 27th March: Addis Ababa.

Due to the poor hotel fiasco we decide to move and an internet search reveals the Ag Palace Hotel on the other side of the city. Last night I emailed a tour company to arrange a city tour and had a response this morning along with an sms confirmation. So Lyn and I take the city tour and leave the Doddle at the Wabe Shebelle Hotel intending to collect it later and drive across to the Ag Palace.

I thought Kampala driving was nightmarish but Addis definitely take the cake - it is chaos. Added to the general chaos is the fact that the Chinese are building a light rail system through the city, it's hard to describe how you cross an intersection with no traffic lights and everyone is pushing. Having said that there is little aggression and not too much horn honking - as usual I fall in quite nicely and push my way around (much to Lyn's consternation), but we manage just fine.

The city tour (GETTs are highly recommended) was fabulous, very entertaining guide and driver. We visited (extract follows from tour itinerary): In the morning visit National Museum that exhibits numerous antiquates, historical relics, archaeological & pale-ontological objects including the 3.5 million year old skeleton of Lucy; St. George Cathedral where you see several interesting modern paintings, mosaics and collection of ecclesiastical paraphernalia and Mercato - the biggest open market of its kind in Africa that presents a fascinating medley of people & culture

Lunch at Lucy Gazebo Restaurant

PM continue with the sightseeing's and visit Trinity Cathedral - the biggest & imposing Orthodox Church in the country decorated by modern and medieval Ethiopian style ecclesiastical paintings as well episodes of Ethiopia's history; Ethnological Museum housed on the former palace of late Emperor Haile Selassie which gives a good overview of Ethiopian crafts, culture & art and the day tour ends with the visit of the commanding view point Mount Entoto which offers the stupendous view of the city.

The service we witnessed at Trinity was quite ancient / medieval in feeling, with chanting and candles, incense and people constantly kissing the floor and kneeling - extremely interesting.

Addis is billed as a truly African capital city, with little western influence i.e. just a big village, and parts of it are just like this, however the modern influence is coming to the fore strongly. There is a Sheraton and Hilton and both are inordinately expensive. The Ag Palace room and breakfast for 2 is just US$70 - quite reasonable but it is a "local" hotel and surrounded by "the village".

One of the biggest developments in Addis is of course the headquarters of the African Union. It is huge and impressive and there is a very flash hotel being built next door for all the AU visitors. Our guide points out the Hotel Ethiopia where the first heads of state stayed for the very first AU meeting. Simon adds that Mbeki was also there and the guide responds that Mbeki of course stayed at the Sheraton Hotel!! Good chuckle for us.

We also learn about 'Chat' which is a herb that Ethiopians chew and is supposedly a 'stimulant' which enhances concentration and enables you to work harder although with some people it apparently gets rather out of hand. On our travels around the city we see several 'Chat Monsters' who look like they have seriously lost the plot and walk around chewing this stuff and talking to the sky. They don't look aggressive at least, but they add to the poverty you see around the city. There are many street children and lots of people with disabilities begging at the (not-working) traffic lights. Many people are living rough on the pavement and our guide tells us that many women are sent into the city from the farms to beg. We also see really desperate women who walk up the incredibly steep hill in the centre of the city to collect wood from the Eucalyptus plantations. They bundle that up and then literally stagger down the hill and into the town to sell the wood. It looks like an incredibly tough life and the guide tells us that they are the wives of the local weavers who are busy weaving cloth. There are also many tailors around with little stalls at the side of the road and of course in the market.

Our guide takes us into the marked (the biggest market in East Africa) and it is a real rabbit-warren of little stalls selling absolutely anything. Much to Simon's interest we find a row of stalls that buy old tools and equipment and old paraffin stoves and re-furbishes them for re-sale.

We ask about the popularity of Rastafarianism in Ethiopia and our guide explains that when Haile Selassi became so popular internationally, the South American people decided he was a prophet and he became their hero. So much so that they asked his permission to move to Ethiopia and he gave them some land. Haile Selassi's actual name was Ras Tafare and that was where they adopted the name Rastafarian. Apparently Bob Marley's family still own land here in Ethiopia and still spend 6 months a year here. After Haile Selassi was executed he was buried in a non-descript spot but when there was another Coup d'état then Selassi was re-buried next to his wife in the Trinity Cathedral. Apparently the Rastafarians were invited to the service but they declined as they believe that he was a prophet and would never die.

Day 57: Friday 28th March: Debre Markos

We leave Addis in the late morning and the traffic out is hectic. We eventually get on the open road and fortunately it is a decent tarred road for a change. We are obviously now heading for the tourist area of Ethiopia. The road is however still rather busy so it takes a while to travel the 300 odd km. The only reason we plan to stay over in Debre Markos is because we will run out of daylight if we head straight to Bahir Dar and you don't want to be travelling in Ethiopia in the dark.

I have done some homework and have a few suggested hotels from Tripadvisor but nothing in Ethiopia has an actual street address so it is hit and miss trying to find them. We stop at a couple of hotels which are dreadful and then find one of the recommended hotels and decide to check in. Let's just say that if I had had time to have a look at the sheets before we checked in we would not have! At R150 per room per night, it is just marginally better than the hotels that rent rooms by the hour and I fully intend to say that on Tripadvisor when I review this pit.

Anyway, we survive the night and head off after breakfast (ugh!!) the next morning.

Day 58: Saturday 29th March: Bahir Dar

We tend to forget that Saturday is market day so every man, woman, cow, sheep, goat, donkey and horse is headed towards each village - often carrying unbelievable loads. We often see women staggering along under unreal loads while the men walk along merrily next to them carrying nothing but a stick! Needless to say, the donkeys and horses are also staggering along under their loads and everyone is off to market to sell or trade whatever they can. Considering that there are also huge trucks making their way along the roads you can just imagine the chaos. It is slow going, but we eventually get close to Bahir Dar and we head for yet another crater lake called Zengena. We have to pay an entrance fee and hire a 'guide' of course, but it is a spectacular spot and we also manage to see more Colubus Monkeys and a couple of Fish Eagle. There is of course a little church up there as well. There are an amazing number of Orthodox Christian churches around - you see them everywhere, but not as many Mosques up North.

We get into Bahir Dar and manage to find a Hotel and a Resort that had been recommended. The hotel is disgusting so we manage to get into the Resort which is quite expensive (Simon talks them down $152 per double room including breakfast and complementary massage)! It is lovely and actually has a good bed with clean sheets and a clean shower that really works. Pure luxury! We quickly arrange a tour to the Blue Nile Falls which involves a back-breaking mini-bus ride on one of the worse roads we have seen and then of course a short boat trip. The Falls are a bit of a disappointment as we are visiting near the end of the dry season so they are at their smallest. Still, it is worth the trip and even the rough road does not spoil the trip for us. Apparently the rains will fall in June turning the falls into a 400m wide river dropping over instead of the 50m we see. Well, at least it's not raining!

The resort lives up to expectations and we have a great dinner and a couple of glasses of wine. They serve Drostdy Hof wine here and it's the best we've seen around here although at R50 per glass it is not cheap.

The next morning we book a boat trip to the monasteries on Lake Tana, which leaves from the hotel "jetty". There are 21 monasteries on 7 islands and the peninsula and the first one we see is Debra Maryam - built in the 12th century (spelling varies greatly). The history of the church is explained along with the beliefs in the Old and New Testaments and the deacon explains the wall paintings. There are 3 "areas" - an outer area, middle area and inner sanctum. Only priests and monks are allowed in the inner sanctum and we are not even allowed to see it. The paintings line the outside of the inner sanctum walls and the inscriptions are in Ge'ez language which only the priests and monks understand. We are shown a special "Don't touch me" bush which folds its leaves when touched - quite weird. In the flatter areas of the island the hippos still come on land at night and eat the grass, sadly no crocodiles left.

After paying the entry fees and guide, the boat then takes us to the end of the Zeghe Peninsula to Zeghe Monastery. This is a 14th century monastery and apparently the original source of coffee. Coffe, lemons and hops are (and always have been) grown here. The guide is very informative and explains that the three "areas" of the monastery represent The Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost and also explains all the painting "stories" of the Old and New Testaments including those painting based on an Ethiopian Book of Ge'ez. As this monastery purports to be the original source of coffee (and we get the shepherd, goat, monk story) we decide to take our coffee ceremony here and sit on the little stools while a local girl roasts the beans and makes coffee, It's not bitter (in fact quite mild) and I (Simon) manage 2 cups per custom (one cup can be considered rude we heard somewhere).