Monday - the 28th - trip north

Oh man - Ethiopia is one of the most beautiful places on earth.  All the pictures I took - and YES I take many - I like to play like a photographer hobby person - anyhow - I have TONS and will never get them all here- but maybe a few hundred to facebook one day this weekend.  Anyhow - the picture will NEVER do the country justice with the pure beauty!

So we left at about 7 am yesterday - Monday - its not Tuesday.  At about 9 am we stopped for the bathroom and found out we were HALF way there - to the Blue Nile Gorge / Bridge and River!  Even with some over cast and clouds int he city - this place is just heaven on earth - Craig said it is the oldest country in the world - 800 BC - yes BC I got that right!  The gorge and river - amazing.  just pure beauty.
  And yes it took about 4 hours to get there - but well worth it.  The road we took was paved - but pretty new - anyhow - crazy - curves up and down mountains, in and out of small villages and towns.  people and animals ALL over.  it was rare to go a minute or two without seeing a person.  The poverty not only in the country but in the city is horrible.

Before we left the city we saw people living and sleeping on the sidewalks.  And the homes - wow if I ever say I have a small house - smack me - its a mansion here!  I really have a great appreciation for what I have and what we in America do have.  Granted we have poverty - but not like here.

out of the city - people live in metal houses - little shacks of what I would call corrugated sheet metal!  Some have a small store front - but really like an entry way size.  And many live in mud huts with grass roofs.  Little round huts!  I do have pictures of these.  Women will walk up to 30-40 miles a day - A DAY - to go to market, or into a village with wood, teft (its like wheat that is used for injera bread) - and other items.  Spices, etc.  Men - they work int he fields.  We did see lots of kids in uniforms off to school.  Some go in the morning and others in the afternoon.  But people walking all over - not many cars.

So we finally get to the gorge - its amazing.  The water levels are low this time of the year - but pure beauty.  On the way back we stop in a small village to eat traditional meal and yes I have pictures.  So we traveled with Shelly and Michael - and the 4 of us - were probably some of the first white people kids ever saw.  People begging every where (city too) or trying to sell us stuff.  We even had the traditional coffee -ok the guys did. But I tasted it - yummy and i don't like coffee.  Oh - on the way there I had a Makioto?  Not sure I spelled it right - but a sweeter, creamed like coffee - best I can call it.

So after lunch we stopped at the Portuguese Bridge.  This was a little resort - Germany in Ethiopia.  But hits bridge I think was made out of stone and some animal egg shells - was 500 years old.  We walked down to it - down some rock side of the mountain - yep - ME - the girl who just over 2 years ago weighted over 300 pounds - was hiking and climbing in this little mountain!  i did good.  Oh - did I mention Addis is at an elevation of 7000 miles?  So we are short of breath in the city - now add a mountain!  Once down, you walk n and over the bridge  - over a river, then below is a little ponds where the water falls from the river above.  Then we were in the edge of these mountains looking down!  Again these pictures I took will never show all the beauty!  We also saw some monkeys here!

Our next stop was a Monistary - a tour int his old church.  The pictures and museum - wow things are OLD there!  The pictures inside without a flash - not great - but ok.  We even took a picture of Nathaniel - an apostle from the Bible we were told.  Most people in Ethiopia are Orthodox Christians.

Anyhow - the day was just full of beauty and awe.  I will post a few when we get back home and even to facebook - probably mere there.  But i just can't wait to bring Curt back someday to see where he's from - I can't wait to get back.  Its just so beautiful!

Gail