On Christmas Day (that's UK Christmas!), we set out early from Gonder for the bum-numbing drive up to Debark. The government are in the process of tarmacing this road so next year, instead of 4 hours it'll take just 1. Mind you, as soon as it's tarmaced, every mule, sheep, donkey-cart, small child will set foot on it and it will take six hours instead! From Debark, we headed into the stunning Simien Mountains. Two hours walk from our camp at Sankaber, we tumbled thankfully out of the vehicle and started .... walking. And what a walk! Blue sky, warm sun, endless vistas across northern Ethiopia, wildlife at every turn, and our own personal bodyguard. Beat that! We arrived at camp in time for tea and popcorn. Later that night, the cook treated us to a fantastic Christmas meal, cooked in almost complete darkness by the light of his gas stove. We sat beneath an unbelievably starry sky and listened to the sounds of the African night. Priceless.
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| Gelada baboons were everywhere, the world's friendliest primates. |
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| The more intelligent primate ignores the attentions of the other. |
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| Sam explains to his mother that popcorn is entirely appropriate at Christmas. |
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| Christmas supper by candlelight (and one head torch!) |
