Mission4x4Africa
  • The beginning
    • Preparation
  • The (Im)possible Dream
  • Day to Day
  • Gallery
    • Photos >
      • Berlin
      • slovakia snow
      • Istanbul potpouri >
        • Picture Journal
      • Petra
      • Wadi Rum Wadi Willie >
        • Andrej and Hugo
      • Egypto-glyphics
      • Ethiopia >
        • Ethni-opia
        • Moyale to Marsabit
        • Starling bushcamp Konso
        • Strawberry Fields in Konso
        • Arba Minch
        • Lake Langano
        • Gonder, Ethiopia
        • Marsabit
        • Marsabit to Samburu road
      • Kenya >
        • robinson crusoe
        • crossing the equator
        • Samburu National Park, Kenya
        • Samburu Day 2
      • Tanzania >
        • rolling to the ruins
    • Videos >
      • saying goodbye
      • Berlin Beauty
      • Belgrade Goodbyes
      • Turkey >
        • Konya
        • first freezing bushcamp
        • Istanbul, Turkey
      • Dead Sea
      • Petra, Jordan
      • Etosha Pan - Namibia
  • Birds and more...
  • Caren's Conundrum
  • Doorways
    • Doorways of Sudan
    • Doorways of Egypt
    • Doorways of Damascus
  • Red Route

22 April Friday

5/3/2011

0 Comments

 
  22 April, Friday   Debark (Simien Mountains)

I had an interesting time of reflection since yesterday. I will share more of that in my personal blog. I take Sammie for a walk under scrutiny of many eyes and it is almost better to be in the room where we are not watched.

I go for breakfast and have a wonderful view on the street where I can watch life happen. The excitement in the air is mounting, because Sunday is Easter – one of the biggest Holidays in the Orthodox Christian Church. Everybody will go to church and then, after church – 3 am, the celebrations – Fasika will commence with food, drink, music and dancing. They will break their 55 days meat/animal fast. Women are carrying live chickens by their legs; men are pulling and pushing stubborn goats to their home where they will be slaughtered and prepared Saturday night. Taxis in Debark are horse-drawn carriages; the Orthodox Christians, men and women, wear a white linen robe which they drape around them and it is an amazing sight to see throngs of white-robed people purposefully walking and busy with different activities. Little boys run around their goats, trying to keep them together and away from trucks, buses and horse-carriages; donkeys are carrying loads of anything you can think of around; store-owners have their goods displayed in colorful containers on the side of or in the street; children are playing everywhere; women carry plastic buckets on their head; others hang laundry;

More than half of Ethiopia’s population are Orthodox Christians and Ethiopian art, literature, spiritual, intellectual, cultural and social life are shaped by Christianity.

The guys arrive earlier than what I thought – by noon. They had an awesome time, in spite of the weather. The scenery was striking and panoramic and they’ve also seen several birds and animals: the walia ibex, gelada or bleeding heart baboons, lammergeyer and was lucky to spot the Ethiopian wolf.  

We drive another 4 hours, most of it in the rain, and find a mountain bush camp with stunning panoramic views. Dark clouds surround us, but we are fortunate that it does not rain. We sit around the fire, the guys share some of their experiences; we have a few friendly visitors who come by to carefully inspect what we are doing. We have been fortunate this far. It is difficult to be inconspicuous when you bush camp like us with so many people around. You think you’ve done it this time and then voila, we have a visitor! We have this far never felt unsafe or that there was danger. We are obviously as foreign in our looks and ways as a visitor from Mars would have been and added to our UFO is of course Sammie. People have been friendly, polite and hospitable and for that we are thankful for that.

Sammie and I are happy to be back with our family.

20 April 2011    See Gallery

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Caren

    "There is something about safari life that makes you forget all your sorrows and feel as if you had drunk half a bottle of champagne - bubbling over with heartfelt gratitude for being alive. One only feels really free when one can go in whatever direction one pleases over the plains, to get to the river at sundown and pitch one's camp, with the knowledge that one can fall asleep
    beneath other trees, with another view before one, the next night." -
     Karen Blixen - Out of Africa, Kenya
    'Of course as I am reading this, I know that you DO get your visas and the container DOES get released, but oh the internal struggle we face even though we should trust (as Hugo does) that God has His hands on all things and is constantly taking care of us.'


    From a Friend:
    :) Crazy to think that we are ALL made of blood, bone and water yet we speak in so many tongues that getting along together becomes a massive task within itself.

    Archives

    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011

    Categories

    All
    Personal
    Photos
    Travel Update
    Travel Update;
    Travel Update; Photos
    Travel Update; Photos; Video
    Update Travel; Photos

    "Julle sal dit maak! Opwindend, dis 'n geleentheid 1x in 'n leeftyd. Ons wens ons kon deel wees daarvan. Sterkte en ons bid vir 'n veilige reis!"

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.