Well sitting on the bus leaving Awassa and heading back to north to Addis seemed a little silly. However I was certain that using Emanuel was the right man to take me to the Omo Valley, even if it meant changing my plans, missing the Bole Mountains and rushing north. Awassa had been interesting and relaxing but hardly seemed like the most interesting part of Ethiopia and I was keen to start seeing the types of places I had read about. Unfortunately nothing seems to be quick here in this country and whilst I was able to get a last ticket on a next day bus back to Addis, the company would not let me book an onward ticket until I arrived in Addis.


When we did arrive, both premium bus company’s told me all buses were booked for three days . Faced with a four day wait, I reluctantly turned to one of the illegal minibuses that run at night. David, Yeshi’s brother was immediately able to fix me up with one the next day when I returned to Yeshi’s guest house.


Randy & Rita were still there, and surprised to see me back so early and quickly invited me out to dinner at Habesha 2000, an Ethiopian restaurant that specialised in Ethiopian cuisine and traditional dancing. It was excellent, despite my weariness after the bus journey. Some of the dancing was energetic head banging style and shoulder jerks by both men and women. I did join in, much to the Chinese tourists amusement. The food was great.


The next day I got ready for this 12 hour overnight minibus journey and also met an interesting man from Ontario who was planning to visit the Hornbill festival in Nagaland. At five o’clock David, arrived and drove me to meet the minibus, which turned out to be a twelve year old Toyota . Having climbed on board, we then drove around Addis for three hours picking up all the other 16 travellers plus two kids for the journey north to Gonder.


When we eventually left this company’s office (shack) at 8.30pm I was already exhausted and packed in so tightly that I could not move. I had complained about the Sumos in India, but this was close to ridiculous. Luckily the man in front of me was not only a mechanic but spoke English and was just about to immigrate to Australia with his family. This kept up my spirits, but I was quick to notice that my fellow travellers were also deeply uncomfortable.


One hour into this unpleasant journey and on the highway outside of Addis we were pulled over by the police. After a heated conversation the driver was ordered out of the minibus and the policeman got in and drove us 5 kms up to the police station, where he ordered all of us out of the vehicle and locked the minibus in the compound . I sat outside not really understanding what was going on. Luckily Habtamu, translated and together with the others started to debate what to do. Suddenly it was obvious we were not going anywhere quickly. It transpired the Police had impounded the minibus until 7.00am the next day and we had to wait outside in the dusty rubbished filled street or find some accommodation. Luckily Habtamu again helped me, firstly with translation and then by ascertaining that there were four guesthouses (strong descriptor) in this dark village. The first wanted 90 USD for a pigsty, the next 20 USD but the third only 5 USD. It was obvious that this accommodation was generally used for other purposes judging by the number of condom wrappers discarded on the floor and the huge cobwebs in the toilet but the bedclothes were surprising clean so we took the last two rooms. The rest of my fellow travellers managed to find an extra large family room and they all stayed in that.


Ethiopia has its own clock (Time system) which is roughly calculated as 6 hours behind ours. If no one explains this to you, misunderstandings can occur. I was up at 4.30am to get to the impounded minibus. When no one else emerged, so I got concerned that they were all going to over sleep and woke them all up, only to find out later they were using a different clock. So we all hung around in the dark at the hotel and the police station . Eventually the police arrived with the driver, who seemed quite relaxed after his unexpected night off and finally we were on the road again.


Three punctures, one breakfast stop and in excruciating pain from the cramped conditions we arrived in the historical capital of Gonder some 750 kms north of Addis, some 29 hours after leaving Yeshi’s guesthouse. This had been unpleasant and I knew I needed a day off to recover, but at least i was ahead of schedule (based on premium bus travel). The journey through the day had been hot and gruelling but the scenery was stunning, from vast valleys to desert scrubland and mountain ranges.


I thanked Habtamu, said goodbye to everyone else and checked into the L-shaped Hotel in Gonder just off the historical plaza (well just a crumbling statue and some ruined shops plus an old Italian era hotel).


I slept well and the next day was up an about early to organise my Simien Mountain trek. I was going to use another guide in the city of Mekele which was recommended by the same photographic blog in which I had found Emanuel. Mikelle, I now found out happened to be a friend of Emanuel and after a short conversation with him he put me in touch with Birhan, a guide in Debark the town which is situated at the gateway to the Simien Mountains.


After a short conversation with him I decided to go straight to Debark the following morning to sort this out and hopefully leave that same day on a four day trek. That left me tired and in Gonder with some time to kill.


Gonder’s evening sun was starting to set and the light offered a perfect opportunity to indulge in Gonder’s treasures. It was made the capital in the 17th Century by one of Ethiopia’s Emperors and now the palace and other buildings are in ruins, but its obvious to imagine their previous stature. In the middle of town rising majestically out of the dusty streets and shambolic shacks and old Italian buildings is the Royal Enclosure. This UNESCO world heritage site, includes several buildings in a better state of preservation than I had dared hoped and in the middle is the impressive Emperor’s Palace. The Royal Enclosure was almost deserted allowing me plenty of private viewing time wondering around the ruins which were bathed in the yellow setting sunlight.


I was so impressed I decided to skittle across town to see the equally famous bath house in this beautiful amber light. I arrived in an auto rickshaw just as they were closing but some well placed Ethiopian Birr ensured a small measure of paid overtime for the staff and some big smiles for me. This site turned out to be even more impressive than the Royal Enclosure. The bath house built for Emperor Fasiladas set in a beautiful (empty on this day) moat and surrounded by a complete wall in which were growing trees in the style of Angkor Wat. It was stunning even though I knew I missed the spectacular late January Coptic festival when the moat is flooded and all the pilgrims arrive dressed in white robes. One for another visit.


Back at the L-Shaped Hotel I avoided the noisy bar and went to bed early, awaiting my early morning bus.