Tara centre for orphaned children - Gonder

Durante i 4 giorni che abbiamo passato a Gonder abbiamo fatto visita al Tara Centre, un centro d’accoglienza gestito da Mrs Kate Faraday Eshete, una signora inglese che tredici anni fa ha deciso di vendere tutto quello che possedeva per dedicarsi interamente ai bambini poveri dell’Etiopia. In questo centro c’e’ una scuola e vengono ospitati i bambini provenienti dalle famiglie povere della periferia di Gonder. I bambini vengono seguiti sia durante l’attivita’ scolastica sia durante quella ricreativa ed ogni giorno possono consumare due pasti nutrienti, fare una doccia e lavare i propri vestiti. Il Tara Centre e’ sostenuto dall’Associazione Muti Onlus ed e’ stato inserito tra i beneficiari del progetto umanitario “Una Scarpa per un Sogno”. Per maggiori informazioni si puo’ visitare il sito internet www.muti.org ed il blog del progetto.

We visited the tara centre for orphaned childnre in Gonder. we made contact with them and we will be sending them shoes from the Muti association. Miss Kate has done an amazing job with these children and you can feel the love and care that vibrates from the school.

Bahir-Dar – Addis Abeba (11.704 km)

A long days ride, we had 550km to cover. I was praying to make it to Addis with my rear tyre. The road was good for most of the way. We were going from varying altitudes, 1400m – 3600m. you could feel the bikes taking strain in the thing air. I had fantastic economy with the gas. Doing over 400 km on a single tank. We had a lot of run ins with kids and teenagers throwing stones at us. It got so bad at one point that we would actually stop the bikes and complain to the elders of the village. Some kids tried to stick a pole through matteos wheel as he was passing by. Not a funny joke ad there could have been serious consequences. From there we went down into a gorge (1400m above sea level) and passed the blue nile with a bridge that was under construction. We stopped to gawk and moved across to meet 6 armed military guys with ak47’s shouting ‘Wheres the camera? what are you doing? Who are you? Where is the camera!!!’ we kept saying that we didn’t have one (you try getting your camera away from a guy holding an ak47) and they continued to get madder. Eventually we steered their attention away with our gps device (it really amazes people over here) and drove off. Phew, it was a scary incident and one I wouldn’t like to repeat. We then drove up to a whopping 3600m on this terrible road with huge rocks and trucks and dust. Really tough riding and I was praying that my rear wheel wouldn’t die on me. Anyhow we arrived later that evening at 8 much to my moaning and muttering. I dont like riding at night. Especially in Africa! I just feel that my risks increase ten fold. Its dangerous enough out here. So we arrive at our hotel Taytu to find, yet again, our biker family awaiting us with good food and cold beer. 3 canadian bikers, and two germans as well! Our two friends that we traveled with from Syria and Jordan. Michael andWerner. What a lovely surprise to see them again! Addis Ababa is a fantastic city. It is very African but has a nice balance of chaos and order and is just a great place in general. People are very friendly and one can even get a decent cappuccino and club sandwich out here! I never thought I would be picking up weight in Ethiopia! Ih ih ih, don’t worry Ani I will be losing it very quickly again on our trip through Lake Turkana. life is getting very cheap now. were paying 3.5USD for a room a night and eating out can cost you about 2-3USD for a big meal. im now spending on average about 20USD a day now. a big change from 50 euros a day in eastern europe.

Mercoledi 09/01/2008 siamo partiti dal Ghion Hotel insieme ad Audrie ed Eke che pero’ si sono dovuti fermare subito a causa di un problema alla moto. Noi abbiamo proseguito verso Addis Abeba. La strada e’ quasi interamente asfaltata ad eccezione di 80 km di sterrato piuttosto impegnativo in corrispondenza del Nilo Azzurro. Le moto hanno patito leggermente l’altitudine perdendo un po’ di potenza oltre i 3.000 mt. Fortunatamente le gomme non ci hanno dato problemi anche se ormai hanno davvero superato il loro limite e dovremo obbligatoriamente sostituirle.
In Etiopia si incontrano sempre molte persone lungo la strada, specialmente bambini. La maggiorparte di loro generalmente ti corre incontro salutandoti festosamente, ma non e’ difficile per i motocilisti stranieri ritrovarsi a fare da bersaglio dello sport preferito da alcune piccole canaglie etiopiche: il lancio delle pietre.
Il piu’ indemoniato di questi bambini ha addirittura lanciato un bastone di circa 1 metro di lunghezza con la precisa intenzione di infilarlo tra i raggi della mia ruota. Fortunatamente la sua mira non e’ stata perfetta ed il bastone e’ passato tra la ruota anteriore e quella posteriore.Verso sera, miracolosamente incolumi, siamo arrivati al Taitu Hotel di Addis Abeba (N 09 01,815’ E 38 45,232’) dove abbiamo ritrovato Tom ed inaspettatamente anche Michael e Werner.
Colonna Sonora: "Sunny Afternoon" The Kinks

Gonder – Bahir-Dar (11.125 km)

Well after being in Gonder for a week we were really well and truly happy to be getting going again. We drove the 150km on a road that could easily be the best one to date. Beautiful scenery… rolling hills, dramatic landscapes – please guys send me some adjectives! It was an easy ride down to the lakes with loads of good quality tarmac below us we flew there. My rear tyre is in very bad nick and the thread is showing now. I have constant punctures and slow leaking puncture that I cant find. We arrived there to this kind of paradise b&b by the lake under the trees. We found all our biker friends, the candians already aprked out front. It is wonderful having a group like this, as you arrive someplace and you feel like your coming home. We have met so many wonderful people on thie journey, from all corners of the world. But I must say that we bikers have a special bond whilst traveling. Its something a lot closer and intimate. The next couple of days we just relaxed and visited some churches on these small islands in the middle of the lakes. Namely Kebran Grabriel (no woman allowed sorry!). which was wonderful. It was founded circa 1320 a.d. took loads of photos for my girlfriend Anita who is an art restorer (the murales were incredible there and in desperate need of some restoration. I sat there for sometime drawing a picture of Jesus with a priest kneeled in front of me watching my every mark. Lovely little moment. Found some kids playing football in the streets and have been taking lots of shots for the Muti project

Domenica 06/01/08 siamo andati a Bahir-Dar. La strada e’ completamente asfaltata e costeggia il lato est del lago Tana salendo e scendendo dale montagne dell’altopiano etiopico ad un’altitudine media di 2.300 mt. Il panorama e’ incredibile, la natura e’ ricchissima e piena di colori con rocce maestose che emergono da colline rivestite d’erba verde/oro e qualche albero d’acacia.Arrivati a Bahir-Dar siamo andati all’Hotel Ghion (N 11 35,843’ E 37 23,161’) dove abbiamo ritrovato Audrie, Eke e Tom con i quali abbiamo discusso su come attraversare il Kenya che attualmente attraversa un terribile stato di crisi. Ad ogni modo sono contento di aver ritrovato i canadesi. Sono persone fantastiche e viaggiare con loro e’ davvero piacevole.

Colonna Sonora: "Somewere over the rainbow/What a wonderful world" Israel Kamakawiwo'ole

Simien mountains

we fell asleep under this tree and awoke to about 30 people, 50 cows, 40 goats all staring at us!

dancing and singing around the bush fire on the simien mountains. what a night!

matteo getting back to his roots

all the hard workd was worth it in the end. what a view from up there

matt getting some quite time

Drove the last 50km to gonder. Which is this touristy town about 150km from the Simien mountains. Spent new years night there which will be remembered as a pretty arb night out. With the bar closing down before 12 and the lights coming on. Matteo got really sick in gonder and was in bed for literally 3 days sweating it out. Must have been that club sandwich! Stayed in a hotel (pretty decent one this time) with a shower!!! Highlight of our week now this whole place is networked like sicily. You cant do anything without forking out the USD. We go to the park board cos we were trying to buy our ticket into the office and came out fuming mad and ready to fly back home. Non-sensical organized chaos ensued and we finally found a way to get 36k into the park without paying the exorbitant 100USD. Started our days hiking into the mountains there. We had a scout with us armed with a stey m.95 rifle. Really nice guy called Addis. Anyway he drilled us over 6 hours to the first camp. Nothing really spectacular with regards to scenery but we still managed to get up to 3600m. slept that night in a tent huddled up to matteo (yes it was cold and no I aint gay). Had a wonderful experience in a hut with all the scouts singing and dancing around the fire. So tribal and such an unexpected event that makes the heart smile. The next day we walked up to 3900 metres and the scenery just dropped away to leave us breathless (from all the hard walking not just the views!). It is an incredible place up there. the mountain range is basically all volcanic rock. And that is why it is so particular. Ive never really seen anything like it before. 20 minutes of joy and our slave driver Addis was cracking the wip for our decent. We bumped into a hundred gelada baboons on the way. Amazing animals. Getting up to just about everything including monkey business! We then hitched a ride in the back a truck to the town Debark. Had some goats pee on my boots (numerous times) and then we made it back to civilization, which was Gonder (yeah right!). our bikes are literally grounded, we have no tread on the rear tyre and it really is touch and go on the road. Were hoping and praying for our spare parts to arrive in Addis , without them we cannot move anywhere.

Giovedi 03/01/2008 siamo andati con un pulmino locale a Debark per scalare le montagne Simien, ma organizzare un escursione li’ e’ davvero un’impresa. Sembra che tutte le persone del posto si siano messe d’accordo per complicare le cose ed estorcere piu’ soldi possibile ai turisti. Il direttore del parco inizialmente si era addirittura rifiutato di venderci il biglietto d’ingresso finche’ non ci fossimo accordati con qualcuno di suo gradimento per un costosissimo passaggio in 4x4. Dopo 19 ore siamo finalmente riusciti ad entrare nel parco. Il primo giorno siamo arrivati fino a ghich a 3.600 mt di altitudine dove abbiamo campeggiato per la notte con una temperatura sottozero. Prima di andare a dormire ci siamo scaldati al fuoco insieme ad alcune guide locali che hanno improvvisato canti e balli tradizionali. E’ stato veramente coinvolgente ed emozionante! Il secondo giorno siamo andati fino alla vetta a 4.000 mt d’altitudine dopo di che siamo tornati a Debark su un camioncino insieme ad lacuni locali e 2 capre.

Colonna sonora: "Miles from nowhere" Cat Stevens

Gedaref – Gonder (10.933 km)

arriving in ethiopia - this is real africa baby

a small village we passed on the road

flat plains and dry dry bush

the road ahead

Venerdi 28/12/2007 mi sono svegliato con una voglia matta di lasciare quel paese ed andare in Etiopia a riassaporare la liberta’ di una birra in compagnia. La strada corre dritta e veloce e dopo aver attraversato alcuni villaggi di pastori si perde nelle infinite distese d’erba color oro tipiche della savanna. Quella che mi si prospetta davanti e’ esattamente l’immagine che avevo visualizzato prima di partire quando cercavo d’immaginare come sarebbe stato attraversare l’Africa in motociletta (mancavano solo le giraffe, le zebre e gli elefanti) ed a rendere l’atmosfera ancora piu’ coinvolgente ci hanno pensato Alpha Blondie e Bob Marley scandendo la colonna Sonora dall’iPod. Dopo la frontiera (che incredibilmente abbiamo superato senza troppi problemi) il paesaggio e’ rimasto pressoche’ immutato ad eccezione della strada asfaltata sostituita da un ammasso di terra, ghiaia e pietroni che hanno messo a dura prova le nostre gomme per altro gia’ consumate. Questo tratto e’ stato terribilmente stressante sia per noi che per le nostre moto. Una trentina di chilometri dopo la frontiera ci siamo dovuti fermare a causa di una foratura (la prima di altre otto!) ed abbiamo montato la tenda in un posto infestato dagli scorpioni. Come se non bastasse prima che mi addormentassi ho sentito il rumore dei cespugli che circondavano la mia tenda rompersi sotto il peso delle zampe di qualche grosso animale. Probabilmente era solo un cane, ma durante quei tre interminabili minuti l’unica cosa che sono riuscito ad immaginare dall’altra parte della tenda e’ stata una grossa criniera e tanti denti acuminati. Quella sera avevo il morale a terra anche a causa delle pietre che alcune persone non troppo accoglienti mi avevano tirato addosso subito dopo la frontiera. Per un attimo ho addirittura pensato di mollare tutto, prendere un aereo e tornare indietro. Poi mi e’ bastato pensare a tutte le cose stupende e tutte le persone fantastiche incontrate fino a quel momento per cambiare idea. D’altronde questa e’ l’Africa e bisogna viverla con lo spirito giusto.Sabato 29/12/2007 abbiamo impiegato tutto il giorno per arrivare ai 2200 mt di altitudine e coprire gli ultimi 100 km che ci separavano da Gonder (N 12 36,666 E 37 28,227). E’ incredibile quanto si riescano ad apprezzare le piccole cose dopo che se n’e’ stati privati per diverso tempo: una piccola nuvola nel cielo, un refolo di aria fresca, un pasto decente (con una birra ghiacciata), e una doccia con acqua calda.

Colonna sonora: "I can see clearly now" Jimmy Cliff

We started quite early from our wonderful hotel, went to get out bikes from the police station (we’d left them there for safe keeping). Fought as always over money. Nothing is ever as quoted for in the beginning. Rode off into the morning along some wonderful flat tarred roads. What a pleasure I tell you. Off road riding is great but it really is tiring. We crossed the border without much hassle. The border post is literally a hut with a guy in a sarong and vest on stamping our documents. The firs thing we noticed is that all the kids swtarted shouting ‘you you you!!!’. Thought it was funny until I find out that just about every kid you see shouts it. Since then if literally been you you’ed to death. Drives you absoluitley dilly I tell you. 30km down the road we found the customs. A derelict building with nobody to be found. Wait 30min, walk out find a bar theres our guy relaxing. Ok so we go in stamp the carnet and were off. Bumped into some hard core bikes on ktms. We talked a bit about lake turkana. Our next big challenge. Then we hit the 150km of gravel to gonder. We’ve been to some crazy places so far, but this road was one of the hardest yet. It just chewed up my tires. I got 8 punctures in those following two days. My back break is completely broken now and so im breaking with my front one only. Which is quite dangerous at the best of times. But im going slowly so its ok. We camped in the middle of nowhere in the bush. Ate some pasta, found two scorpions about a foot away from where we ate dinner and then went to bed at 8pm! Wow we were tired. Matt had a run in with a huge animal, not sure what it was but it was snooping around his tent sniffing him out. To be honest I was quite scared that night. We didn’t know the people yet, and weren’t sure what we would find out there. This is Africa, and were not always at the top of the food chain. You you you you you you you you!

Khartoum – Gedaref (10.577 km)

happiness is a black thing called tarmac

Giovedi 27/12/2007 Lapo ha svegliato tutti alle 6:30 di mattina semplicemente ribaltando le tende mentre ancora stavamo dormendo. Dopo aver mangiato un’ottima colazione preparata da Audrie abbiamo salutato i canadesi e siamo partiti con Lapo verso il confine con l’Etiopia. Dopo 150 km la BMW superpreparata per l’Africa di Lapo si e’ fermata per l’ennesima volta costringendolo a tornare indietro e rinunciare a coronare il sogno di attraversare tutta l’Africa in motocicletta. Mi dispiace tanto perche’ so quanto ci tenesse, ma sono convinto che ci riprovera’ e la prossima volta andra’ sicuramente meglio (magari con una Ducati…). Dopo quattro ore sotto il sole e con un caldo soffocante siamo arrivati a Gedaref (N 14 01,263’ E 35 00,078), un piccolo paese sporco ed invaso dalle cavallette. Qui le mucche vagano per le strade mangiando i rifiuti che trovano per terra e non e’ inconsueto vedere bambini seduti in qualche angolo storditi dai vapori della colla. L’albergo che abbiamo trovato non e’ da meno e quella sera abbiamo dormito insieme a scarafaggi ed altri strani insetti che si infilavano nel letto.

Colonna sonora: "Nuntereggae piu'" Rino Gaetano

Well we started out our day with the infamous Lapo (the man most likely to be shot at a border crossing) riding a gs100 from ’89. about 170km into the ride his bike broke down for the 5^th time… so he decided to return home. We were really sad to say goodbye to him, he added a definitive flavour to our trip and we miss his entertaining antics. Quite ironic that the dukes have been the most reliable bike out of our African entourage! So we arrived at gedaref. Not such a nice place, quite a dump really. Stayed in a dive of a hotel. Slept with about 50 cockroaches and so on… a place id like to forget. Next day we moved out across the border into Ethiopia.