The lodge overlooks the Awash river and you always see crocs down in the water. Very cool!
Some of these croc pics were taken from as little as seven feet away.
We went on a Safari, AKA, bumpy, hot, long, slow ride... We were disappointed that we didn’t see lions. We did however see some really cool birds and animals that live in Ethiopia.
Caleb started puking on the trip and we weren’t sure that it wasn’t car sickness because it was so rough. That evening we were asked if we wanted to go an see the hyenas. Gary urged me to go along with our friends and Wesley and Chloe and he would stay home with Caleb (who did have the flu) and Sitota. So we headed out to pick up our guides for the trip, one of which was packing a rifle. As we were driving out of the park the sun was beginning to go down. We were informed this is when the Hyenas come out of their caves to hunt. Before we even were out of the park we saw one! It was huge! I thought hyenas were much smaller. This thing looked like a powerhouse! I couldn’t get my camera out in time to catch a shot before he ran away. The sun continued to drop as we traveled to the “viewing place”. Now we were off the road driving toward the mountains. Then we stopped. “We go on foot now”. Ha-ha! I laughed! I thought the guide was joking... he wasn’t. So, Wesley, Chloe and I along with our friends got out and began our trek to the “viewing place”. Then I had an Indiana Jones moment! Seriously, I did. We had to jump over a cavern that you COULD NOT SEE THE BOTTEM OF!!! I was in shock. Before I knew it the kids were whisked across to the other side. “No problem. No problem, the guides were saying”. One thing I have learned here is that when “no problem” is said you should take precaution. Once across we walked a short distance and we were instructed to sit and be quite. The guide then told us that we were sitting right above the hyena's den. We could hear them fighting and the sounds were very creepy, demonic sounding really. The hyenas began to run out of the cave and away from us. There were so many. I was scared to death but very thankful there were now two guides with guns. I asked the guide what would happen if the hyena ran out and up toward us instead of out and away. No sooner did I get the words out of my mouth when one did exactly that. He ran up toward us and stood still. “He is smelling us. That is good” said the guide. Good? Really? But sure enough he turned an ran away. I couldn’t wait to leave although it was now completely dark and we had to cross the cavern again. The guides basically carried the kids across and I was so thankful to God for making it back to the van. My friend later told me she could hardly see anything through her tears as she was so frightened. I WOULD NEVER HAVE GONE IF HAD HAD KNOWN. NEVER!
Once we returned to our hut we discovered we had two little mice living with us. I was thankful for the mosquito nets not only for the bug protection but the added protection from one crawling on my bed.
The next morning was great. Breakfast overlooking the river and croc watching. I went back to our room to pack up with Wesley. Then I seen him. The culprit. He was big and scary and I knew he was just in my room. A huge baboon had ripped through the mesh of our room and entered. When he heard me coming he jumped out. Wesley went running for Gary. “Gary!!!” One thing that Gary knows is that when one of his kids calls loudly for him using his first name, he had better come ASAP.
So Gary came to our rescue although the huge baboon was ready for a challenge. He didn’t back down. He really liked what he found in our room; baby cereal, bread, and some medicine. He stepped up to challenge Gary. The previous times we had encountered baboons they were more nervous of us. Gary had to resort to throwing rocks at him to keep him back while I quickly packed our stuff so we could leave. Yikes!
So all in all, it was a very eventful couple of days in Ethiopia!
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