Gondar and the End

Before leaving Bahir Dar we head to the market. Here we were able to grab a takeaway pizza lunch. Great excitement. More presents bought!

We then board our last bus journey. The journey is a pleasant 3 hours to Gondar which is green and wet.

We had saved enough money in our budget to have a nice hotel. The rooms are comfortable, clean and complete with a fridge!

For dinner we feast on roast beef and head to bed. The bed is comfortable, this promises to be a good night sleep. At 3.30 however something extraordinary happens. Loud, warbling chanting followed by vitriolic ranting erupts from the very loudspeaker from the church behind us. This cacophony lasts until 10am! Apparently they don't believe in sleep in Gondar.

This makes everyone a little tired during our trip to the Royal enclosure. This is an extraordinary collection of castles of the the Abyssinian Emperors. It's like a little bit of Europe in Africa. Our guide was particularly excellent as well. I was happy for the mini-history school trip within this trip.

The streets of Gondar are busy due to graduation and we squeeze though crowds as we head to the market. The market is frenetic and chaotic and final gifts for home are bought. Fun but tiring, especially to our interrupted sleep. 

After a rest however we are ready for dinner. We had been recommended a restaurant called the Four Sisters. It was a short distance from the hotel so we thought it would be fun to arrange for the journey by tuk-tuk. A fun time was had zipping through the streets.

The restaurant was extremely pleasant and the buffet dinner was excellent. The real highlight was the music and dancing. The four sisters who own the restaurant put on a traditional display for us. Things quickly escalated and before we knew it, we were all on the dance floor.

With spirits high we went back to the hotel. The ranting and chanting priests were kinder and woke us up at 4.40 this time. Luckily we had to be up for 5 to grab out flight back to Addis. Jokes on them!

Gondar airport was very small and disorganised with only 1 gate but 2 flights leaving at the same time. Luckily we got on the correct Addis bound flight although the plane was very dirty. 

Upon arrival in Addis we had lunch (more pizza!) and then headed to the National Museum. Our intention was to see 'Lucy' - the first humanoid, our earliest known ancestor. She lies resplendent in her case. The rest of the museum has a few exhibits. It is interesting to see where the human race started and reflect on how Ethiopia is cradle of humankind.

We are now preparing for our flight home. People are looking forward to going home but have really enjoyed their experience. All of the challengers have matured, developed new skills and grown experiences. They are now well-versed in organising tours, cooking, shopping in markets, booking restaurants and communicating. They have all taken every opportunity and hopefully will remember the skills they have learnt.

It's been a privilege being a part of this group and the expedition. The students of Therfield have been funny, hard-working, considerate and respectful. There have been no arguments or cross-words and everyone has put all their effort in.

We return home triumph and happy and planning where our next trips might take us.