An early start for the city of Dece, aka Dessie, Dese, Dessye.. but this time the GPS got me on the right road straight away. It is only 253 kms, but I know now that this means little in Ethiopia because it is slow. Outside Addis the country sideis lovely. Part of an enormous valley. Teff is being grown everywhere.
Initially I thought Teff was wheat but when I had a close look it is more like a grass.
Some local girls working the fields, very friendly.
Initially I made good time.. but the towns and villages were slow going.
Even the towns had incomplete buildings.
The countryside is really pretty and Teff is grown in every possible spot
After about an hour I find the first of many mountain ranges.. these are real mountain passes and the climb is slow.. Trucks are in low gear going up and down.
But I am lucky enough to find these fellas.
Galada Monkeys, also sometimes called bleeding heart monkeys, are only found in Ethiopia.
I am lucky to see them here as they are usually only seen in the Simien mountains.
I move on.. the scenery is nice and the villages high up here - 8500 feet above sea level - and well stocked with the stuff that keeps you warm.
Ethiopia is 63% Christian..mainly Orthodox and 34% Islamic.
I didn' t notice, or hear, a Mosque in Addis but there are a few in the towns and villages.
This is a typical scene ..people sitting or standing on the main road doing nothing.
I stop for lunch at a relatively clean hotel ..Get a coffee and a chicken sandwich.. Nice and simple.. they can't mess up a chicken sandwich. The sandwich is shocking - the bread is good, the chicken is good but they have put a horrible mayo type stuff on it.. I eat half and take the rest with me and I give it to a hungry looking kid in a village.
The coffee is good though.. If you talk to any Ethiopian they will proudly tell you that Ethiopia is the home of coffee.. Exported to Yemen where it was grown and then spread around the Arab world. Most know of Arabica Coffee. Interestingly it was banned by the worlds big religions for a while.. Islam and Catholic!
Legend has it that a shepherd noticed his herd of goats eating the beans and they seemed to act more lively after digesting them.. and so Coffee was born (15th century)
Dessie is still many mountains away and i keep going.. I arrive at 5 pm. Its high in the mountains 8000 feet above sea level. A very impressive mountain pass to get there..I find my hotel.. owned by an Ethiopian who works in Belgium.. (The city has a hotel called Melbourne..guess where the owner works.).
The hotel is near the university and is clean, has hot showers and a restaurant.
Muslim owned..so no grog ..but I had brought some of my own. US$35.00 B&B.
The burger for dinner was not as good as the beer.
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