1 – Getting Ready for the Trip

It is Saturday, November 24, 2007 and I woke up by the sound of the alarm on my watch which I had set the night before.   The time displayed 5 30 a.m.  At the far end of the corridor was my parents’ bedroom, and I could also hear my dad getting up and I thought it was the sound of the alarm that had awakened him. 

I got up from my bed, went to the bathroom, washed my face whilst I was looking in the mirror to see my cluttered hair and thinking what I could possibly do to straighten it.   My hair had grown a lot within the past weeks and I definitely needed a haircut but that would be accomplished in another day.  So I decided to pour some water on my hands and run them through my hair a couple of times until my hair curled.  I went back to my bedroom picked up my blue jeans and put it on.  Then I unfolded a blue T-shirt which was originally my elder brother’s which I had traded it for a black Nike jacket that he was always fond of.  The T-shirt had a design of a comic figure which looked awesome.

I was getting ready to leave for Awassa for two days trip.  My best friend had invited me and my family to attend the inaugural ceremony of their new hotel in Awassa.   The opening time for the ceremony was to start at 12 noon so we had to leave early in the morning since the trip would normally take 3 to 4 hours.  I was excited to go to Awassa with my family for the very first time.

It was about 6 20 and we were all dressed up and ready to go.  My dad had already finished putting drinks and snacks in a medium sized bag which he had arranged for the trip.  I could hear the motor of a car pulling in the driveway outside our house.  I figured it would be the sound of the Toyota four wheel drives that my dad had rented for the trip.  As I came down from my room, I saw my aunt, sitting in the kitchen.   I felt sad that she was not going with us to Awassa.  She had to stay home to take care of the house and the two dogs which need to be cared for while we were gone.

My mom and dad exchanged their goodbyes with my aunt and got out of the house.  I was about to go out when I realized I had forgotten to get an adapter which I used to connect my ipod to the car’s stereo.   The few things that I had packed in my bag included a digital camera, an ipod, a tape recorder, two issues of Time magazine and one issue of impression magazine.  I really don’t know why I carried all that stuff.   I guess I figured some of us would do something useful with any of the stuffs, and a great way to spend the time when everybody in the care gets tired and decide to take a nap. 

I came back with the adapter, said my goodbye’s to my aunt and I got into the car.  The motor was running and my dad had already taken the seat in the front while my mom was seated at the back.  I introduced myself to the driver who was a young lad who looked to be in his thirties.  He said he’s name was Lema.  I made myself comfortable as I was observing the interior of the car.  The car could accommodate 7 people including the driver.  However, the space between the first and second row seats was so narrow that it made the whole car look small.  Lema started to drive the car towards our next destination.  We had to go to my aunt’s place around Bole which was about 10 minutes away from our house.  We had to pick my cousin and my aunt who were going and where waiting for us.

We reached my aunt’s place which was situated in a small compound around Bole road with residential buildings, four or five stories high, and her place only one floor up just above a pastry shop. 

Lema parked the car in the compound.  My aunt and cousin came a few minutes after Lema parked.  I got out of the car and greeted them, while complimenting my cousin’s dress.  She was wearing cotton black pants and a red shirt with quirky designs on it.  My aunt was casual in selection of her dress.  However, I admire her talent and creativity as a designer.  

We all took a while to make a decision on our sitting arrangements before we all agreed that me and my cousin should takes the seats at the back.  After we got in and made ourselves comfortable we were ready to start our trip to Awassa!!!

The time is 8:20 a.m.  Lema started the engine, and started to drive out of the compound and back into Bole road.  After driving for about 1 kilometer, Lema took a right exit to another road leading to Debrezeit, which was about 44 kilometers away from Addis Ababa. 

Even though we had suspected that we would be driving against the sun’s direct ray, we were still yet to see the sun since we had started our journey early.  However, we felt the warm humidity and we decided that it was time to clench our thirst.  I turned around and reached for the green striped bag that was kept squeezed between the back door of the car and the back seat which my cousin and I were cajoled to sit on.   I struggled for a minute or two before I could reach the bag’s zipper.  I unzipped the bag and reached inside hoping to find a set of spring waters that were packed as part of the items for our trip.  After taking out a plastic bag full of fully ripped bananas and oranges, I succeeded in finding the sudden fame flourished pack of spring waters.  I took out each bottle of water and handed each to my cousin, my mom, my aunt and two more bottles to Lema and my dad. 

The road we were driving on all smooth except some minor potholes created by constant traffic flow of large trucks that travelled to and from Addis Ababa.  I could see to the left and to the right, vast land area covered with green and slightly brown grass, deciduous trees widely placed apart from each other and a group of huts that were well constructed.  I took out my 4.0 mega pixel Kodak digital camera, switched it on and I was trying my best to act like a professional photographer taking pictures of the beautiful landscape.  I turned my attention towards my cousin who was talking on the phone in Italian which I was mystified and enlightened by.

We decided to make a stop and have our breakfast at a restaurant in Debrezeit.  The restaurant was owned by a famous Ethiopian athlete.  Lema stopped the car.  There was a cool breeze blowing in our faces as we got out of the car and headed towards the entrance.  The restaurant was placed approximately on a 700 meter square area with beautiful garden outside with a number of tables and chairs enough for a group of people to enjoy their meal outside.  After we got inside and sat down, the waiter took our order of one plate of ‘tibs’ and one plate of scrambled eggs.  As we waited for our order, we started conversing about the owner and his restaurant.  

Our order came on a set of two plates which were placed on top of a larger tray.  The waiter then brought five cups of tea which we had ordered with our food.  We were enjoying the breakfast when suddenly my phone rang.  I drew back my hands from the scrumptious plate of eggs and meat to take out my phone from my trouser pocket.  I flipped open my 6085 model black Nokia phone as I got up to go out of the restaurant to take the call.  It was my friend who called to tell me good news.  She said she found a Hotel in Awassa after long tiresome days of looking for Hotels.  Fortunately, she had already found a Hotel in Shashemene for us.  At the same time, my cousin who goes to College in Awassa was helpful in finding a Hotel in Awassa.  I told my friend about it she sounded happy as well a bit disappointed that I did not tell her the news earlier.  I ended the conversation with my friend and I went back into the restaurant to finish what was left of the juicy, delicious ‘tibs’.  After we finished our meal, we paid and got out of the restaurant.  

Lema was the first to go to the car since he was the driver and door had a central locking mechanism.  Therefore we had to wait for Lema to open the doors for us.  I felt like we were a bunch of bodyguards dressed casually and we were waiting for the ambassador to get into the car first.  The annoying task that I had to do every time we had to get in and out of the car was that I had to bend the car seats of where my mom and aunt where sitting on, forward so that my cousin and I have to find a space to hop in and out of our seats.  After we all got in, Lema started the car to continue the trip which I thought from this onwards would be a nonstop journey to Awassa!!!.