We arrived in Addis Ababa and were fortunate to have been invited by a South African wine maker Abraham to stay at his flat. He was introduced to us indirectly by a mutual friend. We had actually never met him before and he was due to be in South Africa for the whole duration of our visit so we didn’t get to meet him at all. 

Just a note to Abraham to say thank you so much again. 

Another South African, Neil, together with his Taiwanese friend Shosho, tracked us down and arranged to meet us in Addis to share some experiences and discuss some future route options. They began their journey in Taiwan and heard rumours of us whilst we were riding up ahead.

They were staying with a family from the South African Embassy. It was a silly question when we got a call from Neil – “Would you like to join us for a braai?”. 

Carl and Wanda hosted us for a full on South African braai, with lamb chops, boerewors, pap, shiba and RUGBY. What an absolute treat.



We had some visitors from abroad. Anja and Helen come visit us in Addis, so we left our bikes at Abraham’s flat and did an amazing ten day historical trip around the North of Ethiopia. This time using a less pimping method of motorised transport.



  

A visit to Lalibella – 11 churches carved into the mountains 500 BC



  

The Afar Region



A visit to the Awash National Park which included visiting a hyhena den – we also met up with Arne again…



It was good to have a break from the bicycle and spend some time as a tourist. Ethiopia has a varied and deep rooted culture and is the only African country that wasn’t colonised (apart from a brief, unsuccessful attempt by the Italians). The diverse natural beauty and landscapes are on par with any of the planet’s top destinations and they boast many UNESCO World Heritage sites. What a great place to visit!