I left the German Guest House already by 5.30. The guy drivning the tuktuk knew me from the two previous days when he had driven me to the Ethiopian Consulate, so I just jumped in and we were on our way! The plan was that I would collect my passport with the visa, go back to the German Guest House, pack my bike and be on my way. I hoped to leave around 10.00. 

Having handed in my application and paid the fee I was told to come back at 14.00 only, and collect my passport. Eventually, I left Khartoum at 14.30 with less than four hours driving time before dark, and no chance of reaching the Ethiopian border.

Just before leaving the guest house there was a knock on my door. It was John, standing with a Camelbak hydration backpack in his hand. Earlier in the day over lunch I had mentioned to Oddrun that a Camelbak hydration pack was something I ought to have brought along on a trip like this. Oddrun’s nursing heart probably spoke out loud and clear that I needed the one they had in their camper more than they did, and John simply asked if I would like to use it for the rest of the trip. Wow, what a gesture, and I gladly accepted. Every time I have a refreshing drink from the bag while driving, I mumble “thank you John and Oddrun”. I will make sure the bag is returned to you in Norway when my trip is finished.

At the consulate, some tourist guide had told me about some “all-night” restaurants just outside Al Quadarif where one could have some kind of steel stretcher and sleep in the open, at a very nominal fee! It was getting dark, but just after the city I spotted a couple of restaurants with a couple of stretchers, right next to the road. I stopped and asked if it was OK to sleep there and they agreed. They didn’t want anything for the stretcher, but wanted me to order some food. I got some chicken with rice on a huge metal plate, and which tasted delicious. I had a bunch of people around the table, just wanting to find out who this crazy guy was. One of them translated, and we talked for over an hour, with photos taken of everyone. The restaurant closed around 23.00, and all lights were turned off!

I was pretty spent, and around ten I rolled out my sleeping bag and turned in, with the sound of trucks and tuktuks ringing in my ear. I awoke around 02.30 sensing that there was some activity around me, to find that there were several dogs scavenging around the place. They seemed to ignore me, but I certainly did not feel comfortable at all. I thought it best to put on my riding pants and boots again - ready for a quick departure. I slept like that until 5.00, when I hit the road, just before sunrise. About one kilometer from where I had slept, I noticed a number of well lit restaurants with stretchers outside. That was the place the guide had referred to.

I arrived at the Sudan/Ethiopia border crossing of Metema around two. I simply could not believe the condition of the Sudanese customs buildings. Shacks of corrugated metal, dilapidated, rusted and filthy. Fortunately, everything was handled quickly, and 30 minutes later I was at Ethiopian customs. Everything was handled by a very efficient lady. She asked me how many days I wanted to stay in Ethiopia. When I said 5 she said that she would give me 7 days. Time would show that I should have pressed for even more days! I changed my remaining Sudanese Pounds to Ethiopian  Birr with one of the money changers you always find at border crossings.

The temperature at the border was probably around 30 degrees. Heading for Gondar the road started climbing almost immediately. It started raining heavily, and the temperature plummeted. I was riding in my “summer outfit” that I had been using since leaving Denmark, and they definitely could not cope with this climate. I checked the distance to Gondar - 90 km. No way I could manage that. Darkness would fall soon, and to make matters worse, the roads were filled with thousands of animals being guided home by shepherds. Constant stopping and starting. It could easily take 2 hours to drive the 90 km. I stopped to put on the other layers of my driving suit. It helped, but I was already wet through and through. I “tailed” a car and two hours later I arrived in Gondar, where I simply asked a tuktuk driver to take me to any hotel. I drove behind him for about 20 minutes, and we ended at a hotel called The Gondar Landmark - anything but a “landmark” I must add. All I wanted was a piping hot shower to get the feeling back in my body, wanting to avoid any type of sickness. Needless, to say there was no hot water. I would have to wait for 50 minutes, I was told. I crept into bed, and an hour later I had a nice hot shower.

Gondar is a pleasant town in the mountains, I found out the following day, when I was getting ready to leave for the Simien Mountain Park. Welcome to Ethiopia - or as the locals say “Tjopia”.