Lunchtime Lockdown
Feb 12th
107km from Italian Bridge Camp to Addis. The cycle into rest days is often tedious/a bizarre affair, for me anyway.
Today we would have a convoy for the last 14km, into the city. We do this when the traffic is particularly heavy, or this is some other anticipated risk. The Landcruiser drives slowly at the front, behind that is one the crew on a bike and one of the slower riders on the tour, we all fall in behind in pairs, with another crew member cycling as sweep. We have done three convoys so far. I think they are a stressful affair for most involved, they are an accident hot spot as you have to concentrate so as not to cycle into the person in front, and always remember to call out the pot holes,gravel, if you’re slowing down etc etc.
As we were going to convoy at the end, the faster riders were advised to pace themselves, and the slower riders advised to reduce the number of coffee/coke stops. We were down in a valley this morning, a good thing as the sudden hill warmed us up. We started near the back of the group, leaving David to take his tent down. David is a quick rider, this compensates for his being a bit slower in the mornings. Today he had a valid excuse - he is buying Bob’s tent and so was being shown how to take that down in the time that he would normally be doing his own.
I hadn’t seen the route profile, but the white board had said there was about 1000m of climbing over the day. Two coke stops before lunch. Lunch at 65km. Coke stop at about 75km. Climb at 84km. Convoy from 93km. That was the plan for the day - get on bike and get to convoy point. It’s a pretty easy life - if you like cycling, and don’t mind camping and roughing it a bit. Your only responsibility, if you choose it to be, is to look after yourself. The hardest thing is keeping on going sometimes. The trip is a bit of a bandwagon/rolling circus. stop and you get left behind. This feels particularly poignant in the mornings, sometimes you would like a bit longer in bed, but the show will go on without you. I imagine when you are sick it is the same feeling. Maurice reckons about 80% of our riders have been sick (gastro upset), since arriving in Ethiopia. For some this lasts about 24 hours, for others the symptoms and fatigue have persisted for 5 days or more. Sickness is another interesting concept, potentially just because of my medical background. Some people definitely seem to get sick more often than others, and have a longer duration of symptoms. I would love to know what the causative and contributing factors are for this - does it depend if you have visited the country before? if you have travelled widely? country of origin? mentality? diet?
A nice start to the day, we stopped at a lookout over the gorge,
and then road along a plateau which gave us a view back over where we cycled yesterday…well the last 20km or so from the highest point. Once again we were cycling through cropped fields, with tall wooden houses and tin/thatched roofs. Joost rode with us for a bit too, it has been really nice riding with him for the Section. He leaves us in Addis. We overtook quite a few people, not pushing it but ‘cruising with purpose’ as Alistair would say. The coke stops came quite quickly, and neither Alistair nor Jenna and I were ready for a stop. Then the wind hit. We haven’t had proper wind since Sudan. We were working. We pulled into formation - three across, taking turns at the front, shielding the two riders to the right and slightly back. It makes a huge difference when you drop into the lee. I was struggling to hold 20km/h. Another mental game. I could slow down and drop back, but for some reason feel the need to push and stay within the group.
The wind dropped again after about 10km. The road was undulating all morning. There were some really good downhill sections, we all ‘assumed the position’ and blasted down, before the slow grind back up the other side. It thought if it as Teletubbies scenery - ‘over the hills and far away, Teletubbies come to play’.
The pace slowed over the morning as we became more tired, and the temperature increased.
There are many road traffic accidents here. Mostly they are articulated trucks which have been going to fast and overshot a corner, or lost traction and the trailer has tipped. Some of them are collisions. We passed at least three trucks on the ride to lunch. One was a fresh one, it must have come to fast down then hill, lost traction on the rough surface of the bridge and then tipped half way up the hill. The bags were all over the road, and cars were driving round on the gravel. No one was injured. The driver and two boys were protecting the load.
We hit a small town at 62km. We had been planning on coffee stopping here, killing some time then proceeding 3km to lunch. The town was busy. There were people in the streets. Predominantly men. They were walking towards us at the sides of the roads. It was about 11am by this point. All the shutters were down. The shops were closed. Not one house or service was open. It was bizarre. We commented on it. I concluded that there must be a big funeral that they were all attending. No coffee stop. Luckily lunch was at the bottom of the hill just out the town. It is probably the longest cycle we have done in a few weeks without a refreshment stop - we must be getting soft!
‘Did you see anything weird?’ Tallis was at lunch. We told him about the town but that was it. ‘Ok, good.’
Harriet - ‘Do not leave lunch without us telling you, the opposition party are protesting in the next town and they are not letting anyone through. We have to wait here until we have decided what to do.’
Oh!
Dylan was the only other person at lunch. Along with the local kids, some cows and some donkeys. We made ourselves some sandwiches and settled in for the long haul. There was very little information. We had no idea that anything had been brewing. As I have mentioned previously we, the government has ceased internet connectivity outside the major cities - in an attempt to prevent events like this- but it also means we have no connection with the world outside our TDA Bubble in terms of news and affairs.
Riders trickled in, huddling under the gazebo for shade. It was not a very female friendly lunchstop - the closest form of privacy for a toilet break was 400m walk away, down a ditch, by a path.
Nevertheless, I wasn’t complaining, at least there was something! The dinner truck, and local support vehicle were holed up 10km down the road, at the road block. Don (our oldest cyclist) had started cycling from the lunch truck, and had been let through the town because he arrived early, and was on a bike! Poor Don, waiting at the convoy spot by himself.
There was a ute driving up and down the main road, filled with military personnel. Bob’s travel agent rang him and filled us in a bit. From what I can understand (please be aware this may not be correct!) The opposition party are launching a three day strike in the rural areas around Addis. It is a continuation of the previous political protests - predomintanly by the Amhara and Oromo people. The protests started just under 3 years ago, apparently triggered by a plan to expand Addis into the Oromia region. The Ethiopian governing party has been in power for about 25 years, there are no members of the opposition party in power, and those not represented feel they ar ebbing politically and economically marginalised.
After an hour and a half there was a sudden instruction that we could move on. In convoy. We had to go now. A very hasty pack up and we were on the road within minutes. There was little to no traffic on the roads. Not even many people. The army personnel truck drove up and down telling us to go faster. There really is only so fast you can go in convoy, safely! When we reached the town it was eerie, tumbleweed quite. There were groups of military/policemen with guns and protective leg and arm pads on. The shops and establishments were locked up. There was no active protest. The masses had been disbanded.
Once through the town the instruction came we would convoy all the way to Addis - some 44km. A collective sigh. The majority of people don’t enjoy the convoy situation. I was pretty happy to convoy. I had been feeling tired and headachy at lunch, so an enforced gentle cycle was welcome. I actually really enjoyed it. Cycling with a few different people, an easy pace, and most importantly it was safe when the towns we were proceeding through were in a volatile state.
We arrived at Addis Ababa Golf Club, on the South West of the city. The 10km through the city was another tumble weed situation. The capital of Ethiopia and there was no traffic on the ring road. The least traffic in the whole of the country so far. With a mass arrival of bodies there was a stampede to reception by those who wanted a hotel room. I did feel a little petty, especially as I could take it or leave it. David and I cycled across the grass and were second and third in line! Both secured comfortable rooms, with power outlets and a shower :)
Stevie, the driver of the dinner truck, filled us in on what it had been like on the frontline, at the roadblock. The girls in the back had been hiding under their jackets, and Mark in the front had covered himself up too. Stevie is from Tanzania so he was less conspicuous. People were angry, there were masses in the streets. A stretch of road about 700m long was packed - he felt with hundreds of thousands of people. His approach was to shake their hands out the windows, smile, pretend to be Ethiopian and call them friend. It worked. He also said the streets were cleared with gas. I have found no news articles about the protests, so am unsure of facts. I have no idea where such a mass of people disappeared to in such a short interim - between them being there and us passing thoruhg.
Desperately in need of sustenance I enjoyed my shower, did half my washing and then ventured to the restaurant. The nicest cappuccino I think I have ever had. Revived! I hadn’t thought I had the energy to go out for food, and was just going to eat at the hotel, but caffeine and sugar cure alot. Steph suggested going to a ‘Boutique pizza restaurant called Efroy’. I had been talking about pizza in the convoy with David. It is a bit of a tradition now for David and I to discuss our rest day plans as we cycle towards our rest day. I had been planning shower, washing, pizza, a juice, supermarket (wet wipe, toothpaste and chocolate restock). We only had one rest day here so you have to be efficient to get it all done.
Taxi rides in the city of Addis are entertaining to say the least. I have learnt to be slightly weary when Steph suggests a plan. Given past experience with coffee ceremonies, and others! Not in a bad way, but you can never guarantee they are what they say on the tin! Turns out the taxi driver, having assured us he knew where he was going, actually had no idea. He stopped at a large intersection between two two lane roads to ask us again, then he phoned his friend, then he asked the police man who politely told him he couldn’t stop in outside land of the intersection. Eventually Steph gav whim the phone number of the pizza place and he phoned them for directions. A 10minute interlude and we were back on the road. Turned the corner and the bus in front drove into thecae in front of it! No pulling over out of the way, they stopped in the middle of the road and took note. The policeman from the intersection even had time to walk over and give his 2cents. Pizza seemed so far away!
No fear, it was worth the wait. The pizza restaurant was great, good pizza and beer, and proper bathroom with toilet paper provided. You would have no idea about the protests when you are in the city.
