Discovering Ethiopia
The night was very hot; I don’t think this sleeping bag is the right one for Ethiopia. In fact, no sleeping bag is right for Ethiopia. We have a big breakfast, as a long climb awaits us straight out of camp, taking us from the 1,300 metres we’re at up to 2,150 metres. I team up with José María, a great cyclist from Tarragona, and we gain height little by little. The sun is beating down and it’s hard to stay hydrated.
At last we reach the top, where the village of Fetra stands. Its lively streets are waiting for us, although what we really fancy is something cold to drink. Needless to say, our visit turns the village upside down, and everyone wants to see what these Martians who’ve landed in their village are up to.
We pay an interesting visit to the village market. In my opinion, markets are the place that best shows you how people live. What they buy or, rather, what they have to hand.
All the village children (yes, all of them) come with us, while the sharpest ones act as our guides. They’re very proud of their church. In Ethiopia there are Christians and Muslims, who live side by side without any trouble; in the same village you can often find a church and a mosque. Curious, isn’t it?
After the refreshments and the walk round the village we carry on. The combination of altitude and heat is getting the better of me, and my head is pounding (again) as if it’s about to explode. We lose height once more, down to a riverbed, the spot chosen for camp. The river has hardly any water and they warn us there are crocodiles (true enough, it’s the Nile), but we need to cool off and in we go. It’s barely deep enough and the bottom is muddy, but we enjoy that dip as if we were in the best hotel in the world. In fact, I can’t think of a better place to spend the night.