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| Walk / Tour | 25.00 Miles |
1,000 AEG |
| | Walk / Tour | 25.00 Miles | | | |
| 1,000 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Screen name: Gummo (indoor and outdoor use only)
Destination: Ethiopia (Addis Ababa, Bishoftu, Hawassa Lake & Dubai)
Dates away: Dec 2nd to Dec 14th.
Reason: To do something different and get a change of scenery because I need a break from work, politics, Americans, and American culture.
Mission: To go outside my comfort zone, see the world beyond my borders, eat exotic food, drank real coffee, and avoid getting sick.
Mood: Happy but uneasy
Weather: mid to upper 70s (even in Dubia)
Mode of Transportation: Emirites Airlines, minibus, walking, cabs, and tour bus.
Highlights: 1) Alem - my travel partner, interpreter, and future snake hunting partner for next trip (she doesn't know that yet). 2) The food/coffee (holy wow, it was tasty and CHEAP). 3) The women 4) Watched the 1st Season of Mike Tyson Mysteries on the plane  4) The bird life was incredible. 5) I punched a monkey in the face (more on that later).
Lowlights: 1) I got sick and developed a cough. 2) Wifi was terrible. 3) My phone got messed up and is still not working right. 4) I got harassed by armed guards and people for photographing birds. 5) Firsthand look at habitat loss in the Savannah  6) I was constantly get hit up for money or food and cab drivers were trying to rip me off. 7) Nobody knew where anything was and directions were not always accurate. 8 ) Air pollution
Song: Warhead by U.K. Subs ( [ youtube video ] )
Fun fact about me: I increase my willpower by eating only one Lay's potato chip in the each day.
Things I learned in Ethiopia: 1) They have their own calendar and their day starts at 0hrs at 6am. 2) Many Ethiopians fast (meaning they do not eat dairy or meat, but I'm not sure if that included fish) a month before Xmas, which is Jan. 7th in Ethiopia and not Dec. 25th. 3) All the men dress the same - tight pants and a casual shirt. 4) Soccer is just as boring there as it is here. 5) The higher society's standard of living is, the more they will care about animals. 6) Cars have the right-of-way there over pedestrians.
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So I get a random message from this lovely girl named Alem telling me that she likes my photos and that I should come to Ethiopia. I know this sounds weird and the start of one of those horror films that are half in subtitles, but it's not weird to me. I get a lot of foreigner women who contact me, mostly from Brazil, to the point where it is routine. I don't answer all of them, and some of the girls are not real or who they say they are.
After chatting with her for a few months and bombarding her more snake photos than her eyes wished to see, I got the feeling that she was the real deal, and I can go there with aplomb that she'll be there and that we'd get along. I was right. I got my shots, passport, hotel, and plane ticket ($1125), and I was off. I also was supposed to see two other people, but they had prior commitments and never saw them. I would have seen them on the first day but my connecting flight got canceled.
I first stopped at JFK airport and got a call from People magazine asking me if I wanted to be People's magazine sexist man alive. I told that I was flattered, but I was on my way to Ethiopia and suggested that they give it to The Rock, so they did. Rock, you owe me one. 
I flew into Dubai and discovered that my flight to Addis Ababa was canceled. I asked an employee what I should do. He pointed and told me, in broken English, to go in THAT line. There were 2 lines. One that at least over 300 people, and another line that had 5 people in it with no signs distinguishing what the lines were. I figured he meant the long line, but I took my chances and went to the small line, which I found out was for first-class customers. The lady behind the counter didn't seem to care that I flew economy, and I was able to get a hotel quickly from her and spent a day in Dubai.
Dubai was cool. I stayed in the hotel area to photograph birds that I've never seen before. The internet was not up to first world standards. I saw that my hotel was close to a wildlife refuge, but by the time that I saw this online, it was too late for me to go there. 
I flew into Addis Ababa the next day, saw Alem, and got a big culture shock: poverty (beyond what we have), crowds, reduced personal space, pollution, congested traffic, down-to-earth women, et al. I couldn't tell if some of the building were being built or being torn down. Most people spoke English, and all signs were in English, so that was a relief. They learn English in school there.
Because Alem had to work, I had to stay in Addis Ababa for 6 days. I entertained myself by going out into the city with my camera to photograph whatever. I met some opposition. Addis Ababa has a lot of security. Ethiopia is a police state. You don't have to show your passport to every officer you see, but I got harassed when I was photographing birds there. Apparently, they frowned upon having people take photos because there was a riot there a few months ago protesting over property rights.
In the beginning, the security guards, with their AK47s, let me do my thing as long as I was not photographing people or the surrounding area, but soon changed and I got tired of looking over my shoulder every time I pulled out my camera, so I put it away. I met some Europeans with cameras out, and they said that they did not get the same treatment that I did.
On Friday, Alem and I went to resort town called Bishoftu to escape the congestion and craziness of Addis Ababa, but the people in Bishoftu were rude and told me that I needed to pay to take photos. I refused to pay and didn't like the town too much. They were just being greedy.
Alem suggested that we go to Lake Hawassa. It was 5 hours away, so we took a tour bus there. Hawassa was awesome. The people were very friendly, and it was more laid back than the other areas that I've been. It was there that I was able to photograph animals without being harassed. The bird life was amazing. Unfortunately, I got to see habitat loss and overgrazing in an area and along the bus route that was once rich with wildlife. We seriously have too many cattle in this world. Cattle trampled the grass and everything that can get and saw over collecting of plants and firewood.
Alem and I got to play with the monkeys. I wanted to do more with the monkeys than I did, but Alem is a millennial and doesn't know how to work a real camera. I had to direct her and tried to get her pose with the monkeys in a certain way. I was only able to get 2 good photos out of the photo shoot.
At Lewi Restaurant, where we had dinner, monkeys would come to your table and steal your food. I saw one monkey eyeing our table when we were eating. These monkeys are quick, and I had a sense that one was going to jump up on our table. I saw one in stealth mode and creeping up to our table. Right when it was about to jump on our table, I instinctively punched it while in the air. He fell back on the ground. I punched him in the face but not intentionally. I didn't hurt the monkey (it wasn't a hard punch), but I did get respect from the customers and wait staff because it was getting out of control and that monkeys would threaten the people too. Later, we were done eating and waiting for the check, the same monkey grabbed a sugar packet when my guard was down, and showed me who was the boss. I'm cool with that.
I did hike at Lake Hawassa and explored some of the woodlands. I don't think they had snakes there because there are too many people. Next visit, I like to explore more of the country side.
At the end of the trip, I had to stay at the Dubai airport for 12 hours. I wasn't able to sleep well there, but I found "their" gym and showers and sauna. It was empty and don't think it was open to the public, but there were no signs and the doors were not locked, so I had my own "private" gym workout and bathroom to relax in.
All-and-all, it was the great trip and am looking forward to returning soon. I'm still messed up due to the time change and my cough has subsided. Next time, Alem told me that she'd take me to the Nile Falls.  |
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