Another adventurous bus ride brought us to Hawassa directly on lake Hawassa. This time not a minibus but a very, very old larger bus, I think it was an old TATA. It appears to be common practice to charge extra for luggage, so we ended up paying 15 Birr per person and another 10 Birr per bag. But at least we sat slightly more comfortable.
At Hawassa we had reserved a hotel in advance. Treating ourselves for Christmas a bit early we had chosen a more expensive hotel. Our hopes were not disappointed with a large room, a comfy and sparkling white bed, an en-suite bath with hot water and a balcony with a view over the lake.
Since we were woken at 5am by the local churches Sunday sermon, which didn’t stop until we left after 9, we decided to head out after a nap. Sufficiently refreshed we walked through town and found that the people of Hawassa know how to live. There are a good dozen bars directly by the lakeside. There we met Lua, a young woman we had already met in the Zion Train Lodge in Shashemene. We spent our afternoon there hanging out, talking to people and tasing the local drinks. You can also have a look at Chris‘ post. Sitting there, watching the sun set, we had an excellent time! We were also lucky to spot a glimpse of a hippo. Hawassa was really a nice surprise for us. The people are easy going and it provides lots of places to spend your time wether you enjoy watching people or birds. I find it fascinating how water, may it be a lake or the sea, has an effect on people.
Here we could arrange for our next flights and hotels, as well as the Bus back to Addis. For this route we booked one of the big coaches hoping for a more comfortable ride.
We will then spend Christmas Eve at Wim’s Holland House before catching the train to Dire Dawa, in Eastern Ethiopia.