Omo Valley (v)

5:00 am is just a tad early for me but with a long drive and shocking roads ahead we set off on the dot. 

No one was sure where we were going but we drove almost non stop till we had a brief lunch stop before heading to Neche Sar National park. The trip was quite uninspring and tainted by hundreds of kids running alongside the bus calling either “you, you, you” or “money, money, money”. In each case it was the only English word they had learned and by this stage we were beyond sympathising and thought of them as a bit of amusement or conversley a pain in the neck. 

Once at the lake we boarded a rather rickety boat thing and went for a putt putt round the lake taking in some hippos and aligators along the way. Been there done that but the others loved them. 

Our overnight stay was at the Mora Resort. A gorgeous place with views out over the lake. Sadly we werent there early enough to enjoy the place  but had a great dinner, a few wines and many many laughs. Having had an early start today and knowing we had at least one early start to come we all tried to book flights back to Addis so we could spend more time in the lovely place and also take advantage of the amazing view. Sadly not a seat  to be had. 

For dinner I had a delicious tilapia sandwich without the bread which was super fresh, tasty ond oh so delicious. It was washed down with a few glasses of shiraz and lots of laughs. Two servings of fried bananas with a drizzle of chocolate was divine, finished off the meal perfectly and made me feel like a human again. 

Next day another early start drive to Addis, we had breakfast at somewhere round 5:30 and set off at six. Two days of sitting in a bus is just a bit much but oh well. 

We passed a few interesting villages along the way. Some lovely rondavels with mud brick on top of  woven bamboo with thatched rooves or square homes with small windows and similar type construction were a great contrast to the small huts we had seen in the villages in the Omo Valley. Many of the villages were inhabited by Moslems, something we hadn’t seen until now, and apart from the few Mosques along the way and the dress code of the women nothing looked too different. 

As we got closer to Addis things looked more sophisticated than where we had been but it was still pretty basic. 

We stopped for lunch at a delightful place where we sat under a tree and enjoyed a rather yummy meal. My delicious minestrone soup, bread and best espresso with a hint of some spice (had the choice of espresso coffee only or with tea!!!) got a good tick from me. Those who had ethiopian coffee enjoyed some popcorn too. Guess who nabbed what was left?

They also bought us heaps of bread so I managed to wipe clean both the last of the meat sauce that one of the guys had to go on top of his spagetti. Oh yum.  Too good.  

Most of our group, with the exception of two of us, carry on to northern Ethiopia so tonight was the night where they farewell two of us and welcome the two new people. Us leavers are not usually included but because we are so cool (ha ha) we have been invited, as long as we pay our own way. Of course we would. 

It will be sad to say goodbye to the group as they have mainly been great to travel with. There’s always one tho but enough said. I always thought I had travelled quite a bit but am one of the least travelled of this group, so have learned lots from others. Because we have all travelled to some extent we have avoided any issues around cleanliness, food choices, unusual customs etc. Despite that it is great to watch the dynamics of some of the group. 

Our dinner was fun, with lots of laughing, an ok meal and a bit of contrived entertainment. Not my thing but better than us all sitting round looking bored. 

Goodbyes said we all retired for the night. I get a sleep in tomorrow before my flight to Lalibella. The others are not so lucky. They have another early start.