Addis Ababa to Nairobi

Leaving Addis we headed for the Shala Park and Lake Abiata. We camped on to of the mountain looking down on the salt lakes. This sunset was THE ONE of the magazines, umbrella Acacia tree, mountains, deep colors in the sky. I had arrived. I was really in Africa. We stayed in a lodge, bunk style. Our group decided to BBQ, inside. It looked like it would work, big pit with a hood and such. However, we had to evacuate as the smoke really did not have a way out. We had a family of wart hogs that came into the camp for some water, many big antelope were also roaming about. Here is where we were invited into tribal camps. I am so glad to be me. Our guide was named Dhasa, he is from the Hamer tribe. When we went to the home of a family, we were served coffee, this is made from the outside shell and boiled, then served in half a huge gourd. I do not know, nor thought to ask what happened to the inside, which is what we brew and drink. The home was a very small hut, no light and cooking on the ground outside. We were shown an outside bed, it was a small depression in the dirt with one small animal skin laid in it. The women never bathed, the male situation was not mentioned. All of us were so quiet, no one asked. In this area starts the scarification and some very interesting rituals. One of which is the Jumping of the Bulls. No ordinary jumping like in Crete, nooo. When a man is ready to marry, he must jump up on the backs of many bulls lined up. He must not fall as he runs across all of them, jump down and repeat it four times. Nude. All duded up with beads, hair do, shiny skin. We did get to witness this passage. If he falls, no marriage. I believe he must wait years to try again. It is a very big ceremony, involving hundreds of people. The hardest part for us was the women. Seems that the more blood they can get to run while beating themselves with a switch shows how much they love this man and please choose me. This part was hard and confusing, lots of women that were not in the running, also were beating themselves. If he misses, he gets the switch. A very exciting day for all, adrenalen was hig for the participants and us viewers.
One village had the 'Singing for the Bulls". this was a very long and deep trench dug in as a ramp to a well. The men went down the well on little ladders to bucket up the water, which was put in a trough for the cattle. When the cattle hear the singing, they know it is time for a drink. The singing is done to keep a rhythem going to haul up the buckets. Very impressive.
Another village used small trees trunks and branches to make the walkways around the village. Through out the village were plazas. In the plaza were commerative stones, shaped like tall, thin tombstones, these marked the 'warrier' that had killed another village warrier. I got a coughing attack and could not hear it anymore. Too much praise for murder and something in there made me cough. Also in this village was the most unusual necklace, made from cockroach shells. I touched it, wished I had not as the back part of the shell was like a needle and I got stabbed with it. I did not buy it.