Varnished Vacation - Part One

The day starts in silence. The unreality of today’s arrivals, casts a

hue on perception. Arriving at the airport at 2am and change, it was

like looking at the set of a TV show that has smitten me. I think

partially, is this my life? I think partially, these things are

familiar and foreign at the same time. The airport is the most modern

building I’ve seen in a year. Why am I fidgeting? Why can’t I

concentrate on Dostoevsky? Is it because he had the lungs of a

champion swimmer and the wind of a hurricane? Well, yes, he is quite

long-winded. But that’s not the whole story.



The day’s arrivals were Miss Libby Sauter and Miss Janelle Armitage

arrived in Addis Abeba to travel around Ethiopia with me. It was

heaven catching up. The beauty of it was that it took no time at all

to fall back into the beautiful nature of friendship. The hardest part

of living in Ethiopia is to be so far away from the amazing friends I

have in the states. Like a mood ring, my hue once again changed.

What’s the color of excitement mixed with a feeling of contentment?



In the morning we headed for Bahir Dar (a lake-side city on the

Western side of the Amhara region). Despite my worries, Libby didn’t

get motion sick. Driving into the Rift Valley was absolutely stunning.

Once we arrived in Bahir Dar we settled down at my friend Kyle’s

house. Another Peace Corps volunteer in town invited us to a charity

dinner for this amazing school. The school provides for their

education, gives them a roof over their heads, and is run by an

Ethiopian. My friends got to experience a smattering of local dishes

and cultural music and dance with the added benefit of supporting a

great cause. The next day we took a boat ride out to a monastery and

saw some hippos. Then we chilled and set up Janelle’s slackline at a

local hotel (of course Libby was there!). The next morning we set off

for Gonder then Debark (with Kyle and couchsurfer Graham in tow) to

meet up with David for the hike to the top of Ras Dashen (the highest

peak in Ethiopia at approximately 15K feet). That night we stocked up

on provisions. [Editor’s Note: Jon Losey has only backpacked once when

he was a kid with a summer camp in Yosemite. When weighing adolescent

Jon Losey, the staff at this camp shook their heads at his weight.

They then proceeded to remove everything in the backpack besides his

swimming suit, sleeping bag, and smalls amounts of hygienic

accoutrements. Therefore his knowledge of what provisions to bring on

such a difficult hike were heavily encumbered by his inexperience. As

a result, goods that need to cooked were a heavy part of the materials

procured for the climb and in effect lunch, a time where heavy amounts

of energy boosting materials should be eaten, was generally paltry.]

Our bags weighed between 40 and 50 lbs each after we had packed all

the provisions. The dinner that night was amazing and the beers cold.

Appropriately, we drank the draft version of Ras Dashen beer called

Royal. The calm before the storm.