Sherpa leaves

One nice thing about the guys at the Baro Hotel picking up local women of varied morals is that those women know their way around the city at night.
Monday was Sherpa's last night in Addis before heading south to Kenya. He wanted to eat a traditional meal and see some traditional dancing. One of the women negotiated a minibus for all 10 of us for 100 birr (about 60 cents a piece) to the Habesha near the Burkina Fasso embassy.
We ordered enough food to share and a couple bottles of honey wine.
If you haven't tried Ethiopian food before - try it. I know there's a good place in Austin and in Denver.
They lay down a sheet of Injera -a spongy, slightly sour bread and on top of the bread, they lay piles of food. No silverware; just peel a piece of injera (with your right hand only) and scoop up some food - goat, beef, lentils, cabbage, local cheese that's the texture of feta without the bite, green beans, carrots, potatoes and one hard-boiled egg. Everyone eats from the same plate.
Since this was a touristy place, they gave us napkins and washed our hands first with a pitcher of water and a bowl. Usually - no napkin and you get in line at a sink at the end of your meal to wash your right hand.
Then there was the dancing.
The highlight for me was watching two little Ethiopian girls who were at the restaurant with their families - probably 7 years old. They knew the dances perfectly, move for move - legs and torso perfectly still, just the shoulders shaking and jerking with a few head movements.
At the end of the night, when the dancers were gone and it was just the band, I danced with the prostitutes (sorry, mom) and the two little girls.
*****

On Tuesday, we said goodbye to Sherpa. He drank some bad water while cycling in Sudan and hasn't been feeling well - so we took him to the bus station (really just a field full of minibuses) to catch a ride south to a doctor in Nairobi. They strapped his bike to the top of the minivan and he was off.
In four short days with Sherpa, I learned so much. I've never met such a kind, compassionate person.
He has a video from his ride through northern Ethiopia where he was being mobbed by children. Twenty or 30 children were chasing him on his bicycle. He strapped a camera to his back so you could see them reaching for him and yelling, "you, you" or "money, money". He said it was like that the whole ride for days.
Instead of getting angry or frustrated, he said he reminded himself that he was once one of those kids on the streets of Kathmandu chasing tourists and the memory filled him with compassion for them.
And as we walked down the streets of Addis - people yelled at us: "you, you", "hey, lady", "miss, miss" and to Sherpa "hey, amigo" (because they thought he was Mexican) and "money, money". He said instead of getting angry, just slow down, take a deep breath and smile. And that's what he did - and laughed and shouted back. And it made the people laugh and the atmosphere completely changed everywhere he went.
*****

I bought a bus ticket leaving at 5:30 a.m. tomorrow for Bahir Dar. Haven't found a travel companion yet. Most of the guys at the Baro are staying there - talking about going somewhere, but not going.
In Nairobi, we called it "being porched." You find a comfy spot on a porch where you sip coffee all day and talk about life with other travelers from around the world. And it's hard to get up from that comfy spot and step back out into the unknown.
*****

Note to mom and dad: I checked in at the American embassy. The taxi driver said, "America? We call it Obamaland."
There were 16 windows in the embassy and at each one was an Ethiopian trying to get a visa. I heard one man just guessing at jobs he could do in the states.
"Do you need translators? I could be a translator."
"No. We already have translators."
And so on.
I walked past them all; I flashed my passport and the guards held the doors open for me.
*****

Luggage never arrived.
Here's what I have in my daypack:
* Eight weeks worth of Chloroquine (malaria prevention meds I bought at a nearby pharmacy)
* A warm jacket Sherpa gave me (I have to return it to some friends of his at the Yellow Bike Project in Austin when I get back.)
* Two handkerchiefs
* A yellowed copy of "The Brothers K" by David James Duncan that I found at the hotel. The cover is ripped off and it's missing all the pages after 642, but I'll enjoy it until then.
* Cheap Nokia cell phone with local number - 923798996.
* Toiletries (toothpaste and toothbrush, shampoo, small canister of Nivea moisturizer, hairbrush)
* Pocket Amharic phrasebook
* Two shirts, pants, hiking boots, scarf
* Watch and wedding ring.