Remember a Day

Wombosi on the barge

Addis Ababa 24.12.2011

I wish you all a merry Christmas.

Believe it or not, I made it to Addis in good time before Christmas. I arrived here already Thursday (22th) at noon, which means that I drove 2500 kilometers in four days. Wombosi has been a very good boy, so I could drive from dawn to well after dark every day.

Desert in Sudan

Jeremy eats breakfast in Wadi-Halfa

The "slum" in Wadi Halfa

Sunset x

The cars were clear of the customs on Sunday at noon, so we still had a half day of driving that Sunday. I went together with Jeremy, and got to ride his Africa-Twin (motorbike) a couple of kilometers. While looking for a place to camp, we got in trouble with the police, so it was late before we settled down that night. Still we lit a campfire, and talked well into the night.

The following morning we split up, and the rest of Sudan was solemnly driving. The border crossing was smoother than expected, even if I had to wait two hours for a cashier who was praying and eating. The Ethiopian side was very swift and free of charge!

Driving in Ethiopia was much slower than in Sudan. Sudan is an empty desert, while Ethiopia is full of Ethiopians, and they have plenty of donkeys and oxen.

Now I’m half the way, and of course it’s good to be with the family and the kids. On the other hand, as my trip will soon be over, I have to start thinking of what to do after Wombosi has come to Madagascar. Should I study, or should I continue the life on the road? To be honest, the latter appeals much more to me than the first.

Today is Christmas-Eve, and as usual, I’m not in a Christmas mood. This year I missed the “foreplay”, with advent and carols, so it’ll come down hard on me this time. The weather in the Ethiopian highland is blue skies and 20 degrees.

What is this?

Harvest

Enjoy your Christmas, wherever you celebrate it. 

Waiting for the Worms

Wadi Halfa 17.12.2011

I’ve been long enough in Africa; one should think- that I know about African time. If someone or something is supposed to arrive at a certain time, you can normally add some hours, and then it will come.

Still, this barge and the Sudanese officials have managed to exceed my expectations of African time. The barge arrived Thursday evening, and yesterday was Friday – no one working. Today is Saturday, so they don’t work today either, so hopefully things will happen tomorrow. When they came with bad news the first days, I got a little bit angry, and tried to push things to happen, but now I just smile. I feel powerless.

The time is not that bad though. Even the ferry trip was better than expected, much thanks to the great people I have around me. We are in total ten people who wait for our vehicles- five bikers, Wombosi and two other Land-Rovers. Jeremy, one of the bikers, is also traveling alone, and we have camped in the desert these days. During the day we sit in town and read our books, or walk the few kilometres to the harbour to see if something happens. If we would have known that nothing would happen before tomorrow, we would have done some trips, but every day they say something might happen, and then nothing does…

I don’t want to give a bad impression on the Sudanese people. They are very friendly, and we feel better here than in Egypt, but it is just that we’d like to see something else than just Wadi Halfa in Sudan.

This time I won’t try to make any prophecy on when I’ll be in Addis, but I’ll let you know.

Run, Rabbit Run

Small donkey, big load

Aswan 11.12.2011

This is the last post from Aswan! Tomorrow I will be on the boat to Sudan, and if everything goes smoothly with ferry and paperwork, I and Wombosi will be out of the port on Wednesday evening, ready for the last couple of kilometers to Addis Ababa.

The man with the silk scarf

My week has been good, in fact, far better than last week. Last Monday I was far down, but towards the evening I decided that I had mourned enough, and started to focus on what I could do to reach Addis in time before Christmas. To get an Ethiopian Visa was the obvious thing to do, and it turned out to be a success.

Tuesday evening I took the night train to Cairo (14 hours). Having a seat, it was a rather comfortable ride. I’d hoped to be able to get the Visa in one day, so I wouldn’t have to sleep in Cairo, but that was not possible. The time in Cairo was good though. I met a man named Said, and had two long and good conversations with him, over several cups of tea.

Public water

Thursday I picked up my passport with a three month visa for Ethiopia in it, so if I get fat and lazy during Christmas, I can stay in Addis until the 6^th of March.

The journey back to Aswan was of the less comfortable kind. I was too late to get a ticket, so I had to buy one on the train, which meant that I would not have a seat. The next 14 hours consisted of 2 hour sleep, one hour in a seat and the rest of the time sitting and standing around between the carriages. The surprising thing is that I didn’t mind. I have been so focused on Addis that whatever I do to get there has made me happy.

Crossing speed-bumps 

Friday I had to get some sleep, and Saturday I, (and the rest of the overlanders) got the good news that all of us would leave on Monday. We even got to buy the tickets, so there’s no turning back this time.

That done, I thought it was time for a last trip with Ahmed. We went to his village 70 kilometers north of Aswan, and stayed at his family there over the night. All the pictures are from there, since the other memory card with the pictures from Cairo mysteriously disappeared.

Fertile soil

The time in the village was good. In the evening we hung out at what we would call the local pub and played domino. In the “pub” here the people drink tea instead of whiskey, there are only men over 20 hanging out and of course everything is under the open sky (and the full moon on this occasion). In the morning we went to the river, meeting lots of donkey-riders on our way.

White man on the riverbank

This culture has its good and its bad sides. It also has its different sides, like the local clothing of the men, consisting of a robe and a silk-scarf (see pictures). The gender division is extreme, temper is high, everyone smokes a lot and honor is very important. The hospitality is great, belief strong and tea good.

I will be leaving Egypt with a mixed experience. I have not entered any culture along my way so deeply as the Egyptian, and think that my picture of it is quite accurate. The people are generally very friendly and good minded, but to some extend the society seems to be stuck quite far behind.

Donkeyriders in robes

As for the political situation, what happens now is far from freedom. The military still has a firm grip on everything, and the money does not reach the people. If the Muslim brotherhood would win the election, and actually get some power, I fear that religious freedom will be even more put aside than now, and the women’s rights shrinking. Egypt has a long way to go, but at least it seems to be walking.

Taxi

I do believe that I have left a positive mark on Ahmed. I have tried to be an example, and have also given my opinion on a number of things. He has decided to try to stop smoking, and even though I think he won’t manage, he has reduced his consume from 60 to 20 cigarettes a day. He is also eager to make a radical change in his lifestyle, get back to education, or get himself a proper work.

Both with Ahmed and with Said, I’ve had good conversations on religion. I think they see how God goes with me, gives me confidence and love. I have given Ahmed a new testament (thanks to Nikolai who gave it to me), and hope he will read in it, and take heart from the message of love and forgiveness. Here the “revenge for honor”-thinking still is so alive.

Ahmed is ready to eat

The village

Now my longing for my family is so big that I won’t linger (by will) before I am in Addis. Besides, my Sudanese Visa expires on the 19^th, so by then I have to be in Ethiopia, so I’ll report back to you from there some time shortly after that. 

Round and Around

Aswan 05.12.2011


I just wanted to let you know that my struggle today was in vain, and that I won't be leaving Egypt before next Monday. To have a chance to be in Addis some days before Christmas-eve, I will go to Cairo tomorrow, and fix my Ethiopian visa. That means that I wont have to wait until Sunday, a working day, in Khartoum to do that, but can go start to the Ethiopian border when I get out of the port in Wade Halfa on Thursday the 15th.

From WH to Addis Ababa it is 2200 kilometers on the most direct route, and 2500 on the Dogola-Khartoum route. Either way I should be able to make that distance in 6 days, if Wombosi plays nicely and the Ethiopian border does the same. That would take me to Addis on the 21th.

To mourn now is useless. Yesterday, when there still was hope, I was extremely down. Now when it's game over, I accept the defeat. I will focus to prepare as best as I can for the time in Sudan, so that things run smoothly, and I've learned a lesson about African/Arabian bureaucracy.

Sorrow

04.12.2011 Aswan

Still Aswan. This week has been a low on this journey, and the ending made it a disaster. There really is not much to tell you today. I have spent the 5 days since the last time mainly indoor, sleeping, reading, wasting time on my laptop and playing the guitar. The reason is that I have been sick. I got a flue on Thursday that kept me in bed most of Friday and parts of Saturday. Today was better. I still have an aching head and a running nose.

Sunset over the nile

What makes me very sad and upset is that my possibilities to be leaving Aswan tomorrow are shrinking small. On Saturday when I called Mr. Sahleh he said that I had got the one spot for a car on the barge. This was confirmed this morning when I went to his office. He explained what paperwork that should be done, and then I should drive to the harbor (15 km. out of town) and load the car onto the barge. When I asked about payment he said no problem, we would do it tomorrow.

After ca. 2 hours the paperwork was done, and we headed for the docks. Still in town, I said to the man with me that I did not bring the money for the ticket, and he said that it would be ok. We would just enter the docks, do some more paperwork, and I’d load the car tomorrow. After waiting half an hour at the gate we got the information that I could not enter the dock without a ticket (for the car), and I was forced to drive back to town to get to an ATM.

When we got back to the Harbor almost an hour later, another car entered the area so that I could still se its rear lights, and took my space. After a rather tense “conversation” with the guards I had to go back to town. There was no one there with authority to do much.

Tomorrow I will go back to the harbor. Mr. Sahleh will be there, and I hope some miracle happens, but I have experienced the Egyptian way, and if they have loaded the barge with the other car (that was behind me in the queue), they won’t likely start unloading again, even if it does not leave before 4 pm.

Oh, and yes. I called Mr.Sahleh when I was in trouble on the docks. This was at 1.30 pm, but he said he was at home and would not do anything, and when I asked him to PLEASE do something, he screamed that he was at home, and hanged up. Oh man, I think I’m angry. Good that I could talk to Andreas as soon as I got home, and he could calm me down.

For me Christmas is at stake if I don’t get a spot this week, and I so want to get “home” to Addis now. Sophie, Mparany and the kids will come there on the 17^th, and Alma has holidays the same day, and I presumably sit in Aswan or Khartoum scratching my beard.

Keep your fingers crossed and I will give you news as soon as possible. 

Lost for Words

Pyramids at night

Aswan 29.11.11

I guess it’s time to give you an update on my whereabouts. I wanted to write on Sunday, but Sunday was a sad day, so it would not have been fair.

Reflection

The week after Cairo was very good. I found a much better side of Egypt, partly because I understood that I just had to try to cooperate with the military instead of fighting it. The first pleasant thing that happened was that I got my Visa for Sudan.

Abu Simbel

From Cairo I wanted to get to Aswan quickly, because I thought that might increase my possibilities to get a place for Wombosi on the barge (car ferry) that left on Monday, so I just took time for the most famous attraction of the Nile valley, starting with the pyramids of Giza. Instead of doing the normal walking around the pyramids, I rode into the desert on horseback, and locked at the pyramids by night from there. My guide was friendly and invited me for dinner with his family, and offered me a place to sleep too, but I preferred Wombosi.

Next morning I went south, and yet again the Egyptian hospitality was fantastic. Bound to stay in towns at night (because of the military) I parked my ride in a quiet spot. Sometime later two men came and invited me for tea, water pipe and fruits, and Wombosi stayed in their courtyard that night.

Movember

The following morning I got some very good falafel as a thank-you from a hitchhiker, before I got to Luxor and visited the kings. They were expensive and disappointing. I arrived in Aswan on Thursday and went straight to the ferry-company, and got the typical and encouraging answer “come back on Saturday”. I figured I needed to find some friends. There are no cheap camping grounds in Aswan, and to pay for so many days was no option, so I prepared for living in the street.

Ahmed

I was very happy when I found a park with public toilets and parking space on the street in front of it, and celebrated with sitting down in the park with my guitar. I hoped to meet some nice people, and guess what; there came two young men, who sat down some meters away from me. A couple of songs later they came closer and asked if they could listen, and some more songs later we started to talk.

With my friends Islam (right) and Mido (left)

When they asked me about what I would do the rest of the day, I said I intended to go to an internet-café. Ahmed said I could come home to him instead, and get free internet there. When we got there, he said I could as well sleep there too. It would be far better than sleeping in the streets, so since then I have stayed with Ahmed and his family. Isn’t that fantastic?

The following day we went to Abu-Simbel together. It’s a long drive, but the temple was nothing short of breathtaking. The last days I have enjoyed experiencing life in an Egyptian town. I have been to the gym, swam in the Nile, drunk a lot of tea, walked the streets and had good discussions on politics and gender.

Desert

Sunday was the day of sorrow. In the morning, I went to the ferry company (they had said “come back tomorrow” on Saturday), and got confirmed what I had suspected for some time. Wombosi did not get a place on this week’s barge to Sudan, and I am forced to stay here in Aswan with him for a week. My friends here were happy to hear that, and that means a lot to me, so if it wouldn’t have been for me missing the appointment with Daddy in Khartoum, I would not have been too unhappy.

The end is the beginning is the end

To cancel Daddys flight to Khartoum made me very sad. I had looked a lot forward to our common days, and I know he had done so too. In addition I feel that I failed him. I take appointments seriously. Now we aim to meet up in Northern Ethiopia, so that we at least get the last 3 or 5 days together.

Later that Sunday the real tragedy happened. Ahmed’s grandfather died. The house war full of sorrow, and I didn’t know what to say. We buried him, and spend big parts of the next two days sitting and grieving. It is interesting to witness a different culture so closely, but it’s not always easy to know how to behave. Due to my complete lack of Arabic, I cannot really say anything, and don’t always know how to behave either, whom I should greet, when I should stand and when I should sit.

To sum it up, it has been a very good time since last time. The waiting here in Aswan, and the death of Ahmed’s grandfather are sad, but the love and kindness shown by the people here are so overwhelming. I feel that I don’t repay them in any way, and that’s not how I wanted it to be, but I receive with gratitude. I look forward to the remaining time here in Aswan, but also to Sudan (even if it will be a rush), and even more to meet my family in Addis. Man, I am blessed. My life consists just of good better and best, 22 degrees and sunshine! See ya.

Dogs

Here’s a post between the posts. It’s not too much about what I’ve been doing the last days, but I figured I needed an own post about the Muslim gender division. I am in Aswan, doing fine. You’ll get more about the last days on Sunday.

When I came to Amman, hungry and tired, and in addition lost my keys, it was a pleasant thing to come to Ragnhild’s Flat, the pizza already served. There I met Carling, a sweet girl from Canada. We left at the same time, so I thought it would be appropriate to follow this little girl home, so the wild Arabs would leave her alone. When we walked down the stairs from the flat we conversated about something more or less important (most likely the latter), but as soon as she came out of the door her normally brown and mild eyes turned red, and smoke came out of here nose, and she snarled: “we can’t be seen together”, and off she went like a rocket.

Sometime later, I understood the significance of what she said. It sums up the Muslim woman-culture to me. It’s about not being seen, not about not being. Girls have to be extremely careful with what signals they give. What they do plays a minor role, but what people think they do plays a big one. Ragnhild says, “how can we be good examples, and reach out to people with our message as Christians, if people don’t respect us?” -and she is right.

The question is, why would Ragnhild not be respected if she showed me downtown Amman (in the middle of the day), and thus would be seen together with me? People must have an extreme imagination.

I talked with a hitchhiker, and we came to talk about having several wives, and he noted that the girls had to be virgins if they hoped to get a proper man. Since virginity (as far as I know) not always is that easy to prove, I guess this is where the rumor becomes really important. If you have had a boy in your flat with no one else at home, then you have “lost your virginity”, and thus can’t find a proper mach, and in further extend have ruined your life. What a gossip society!

Another story; my first night in Syria, I slept at the parking of the Saladin’s castle. The next morning, the castle was to open at 9 am, and as normal, I was up at 6 am, so I had some waiting to do. Twenty past nine the openers came. They parked, and we started to walk up to the gate.  One of the tree men was lagging behind, and with a grin one of the others commented: “he is tired, he has three wives”. I recon I grinned too, but when I think about it, there was nothing much funny with it.

How backwards is the society when a man has three wives he (presumably) can’t even please? A man can do more or less what he wants. His virginity plays no role, and if he can afford it, he can take up to four wives. It is not uncommon that they have girlfriends too, and in Zanzibar they were completely open about it.

The hitchhiker defended the legality of having several wives by saying that since there were fewer men than women among the Arabs, the men did the women a favor by taking several wives, because it is sure worse not to get a husband, than sharing him with someone else. I am not sure if I agree. It seems to me that the Muslim world has a long way to go on gender equality.

My reflections above are made upon random situations and represent the opinions of me and the people I have met. Someone else might have met other people, and come to other conclusions. Ragnhild also noted, that the part of Amman they lived in was the conservative part, and that things were different in North-West-Amman.

Hey You

Wind

Cairo 21.11.11

Yupp, I’m in Cairo. I thought Syria would be the sketchy part, but the situation here in Cairo is much tenser than anything I experienced in Syria.

During my stay in Egypt so far I have had my issues with the military. They don’t want me to drive off the tarmac-roads at all, and I want to very much. They didn’t want me to see the Suez-Channel either, but I did. That resulted with me spending the next six hours with different officers and generals, and of course all my stuff, my camera and laptop and everything in my car was carefully searched.

A lovely camp

Except for the military taking some patience, things have been good here so far. The military is polite and nice; they just take a lot of time, and prohibit me from camping in the wild, and that sort of ruins a lot.

My time in Jordan was terrific. If you think of going to the Middle East, Jordan is the place at the moment, I’d say (without having been to Israel).

The Sinai-Desert

Early morning from mt. Sinai

In Jordan I decided to leave the tourist-stuff, and just do the “next best”. I went to the Dead Sea, but instead of paying 15 euro to enter a beach with facilities, I found my own “beach”, and went for a bath. To bath in the Dead Sea was fantastic. I have never been good at floating on the back without sinking (my theory is that I’m too skinny), but even though I’m skinnier than ever, the salty Dead Sea kept me up brilliantly. I could even do sit-ups in the water without sinking=). The disadvantage with dropping the facilities (and thus the shower), was that my hair got stiff and white because of all of the salt. I found a river some time later, but felt for many days that I was salty.

After the Dead Sea, I found myself a lovely canyon to hike in, instead of paying the horrendous 50 euro for Petra. I even did some climbing.

To complete Jordan, I went on the road to Wadi Rum, but headed into the desert some kilometers from the tourist-place, and found a beautiful spot to camp. I had gathered firewood at the Dead Sea, so I had a campfire, and even met a Jackal.

Not so fun camp - the Egyptians easily beat the
Turks in honking....

The ferry from Aqaba to Nuweba was ok, and I think a blowout on African bureaucracy can wait until I have reached Khartoum and experienced what I think will be the “highlight” of that…

So now I’m in Cairo waiting for a Sudanese visa. It’s hard to imagine that I walked around Tahrir-Square today, got myself some buddies, and had a good time, while Norwegian newspapers report about fighting and injured people. The mood in town is tense though. Opinions seem split, but everyone urges me to take special care. Things happen very quickly.

Anyways. I’m going to try to enjoy my final week here in Egypt, and hope to be on board of the Ferry that leaves Aswan for Sudan on Monday the 28. To get to Aswan should not be an issue, but to get a spot on the barge for Wombosi seems to be the biggest obstacle. Hopefully everything works itself out, as it has this far. God is good.

P.S: I'd like to thank Elisabeth Corneliussen a lot for good advise and two bags full of guide-books. They have been used, and will continue to  be!

Find the Cost of Freedom

Saladin's castle

Amman 13.11.2011

As you probably understand, I am in Jordan, which in turn means that I got through Syria. Actually I got through Syria without any problems at all. Armed men checked my passport at times (once in the middle of the night), but after looking at the passport for some 10 or 15 minutes, they handed it back to me and left me alone.

Before I went to Syria, I gave Roger my promise not to go to any big town. As soon as I was in Syria, I regretted that I did, but I held my word, and stuck to castles, desert and Palmyra. The castles and especially the Crac de Chevaliers impressed me a lot. The Crac is so well preserved. It’s almost like stepping back in time.

Palmyra was “just another ancient roman city”, but it’s setting in the desert is lovely. In addition, the main site is not fenced, and has no opening hours, so you get both sunset and sunrise, and I even got to walk among the ruins to a full moon.

Typical Arabia

The one thing that annoyed me in Palmyra was the sellers. They drove around on small mopeds, so you couldn’t really escape them, and since the community depends heavily on tourists, they were (untypically for Syria), quite intrusive. There were no other tourists than me, except for a polish guy, bicycling from cape to cape, but none of us really entered the roll as rich souvenir-buying tourists with lots of space to carry scarves and necklaces.

Palmyra

Yesterday I arrived in Amman. The border took me four and a half hours, most of them on the Syrian side. I think they suspected me for something, because of my satellite telephone, so I sat for a long time and waited for permission to leave.

I found some friends in Palmyra

Due to the long waiting, I arrived in Amman first after dark, and had to find “second circle” in this two million people- city. I eventually did, and there Ragnhild picked me up with two friends, showed me a place I could sleep, and then invited me for pizza in her flat with three other girls. When I came, I was dead tired, but the food and conversation waked me up again. Big thanks to Ragnhild (and the other girls) to make my stay here very good.

Strange Palmyran skies

In my sleepiness upon arriving, I had managed to lose my car keys, and was not sure whether they were stolen or only lost. After a long search, a very helpful neighbor came with a saw, sawed open a gate, so I could park the car inside. I don’t meet many people I can communicate with, for my English was for little use in Turkey and Syria, but every once in a while I meet someone, and they are so often so nice, like that neighbor. I slept well, knowing Wombosi was safe, and found he key this morning.

Wombosi where he belongs

This is where my philosophy on the Arab women-culture would come, but the thoughts in my head are not quite sorted out for the screen yet. I’ll stick around the Arabs for some time to come, so maybe later.

Amman in the morning

Instead I can share some thoughts on freedom. What is it worth? Many people in the Middle East have found the cost for freedom buried in the ground, and it seems the same thing that happened in Tunisia, Egypt and of course in Libya could occur in Syria as well.

How much would I give for a democracy? Do we have freedom on Norway, or have we become so controlled by rules and restrictions that our freedom is an illusion? Everything we own steals our freedom. When I thought someone had nicked my car-keys yesterday I got worried about Wombosi. Is that freedom?

Crac de Chevalliers

Ultimate freedom is impossible to achieve with other people, because you get attached, and thus enslaved, but “happiness (is) only real when shared”. This quote was written by Christopher McCandless before he died. He had been in the wild and all alone for maybe two or three months when he wrote this. He had tried to find ultimate freedom, but figured that it had its costs.

I have already found that my trip is not pure freedom, and am already planning for a trip where I get rid of much more of the materialistic stuff I have now, and just take what fits into a backpack. The two things I won’t give up are relationships and love. That cost is worth it.

As for the freedom buried in the ground, only God knows what it’s worth. I guess a society never will be entirely free, but that does not mean that one should take everything either.

This is the song the title refers to. It is a tune originally by Crosby, Nash, Young and Still (written by Still), but to have a connection to PF, here’s the (beautiful) version by Gilmour Crosby and Nash: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-Y0SMitMpk&feature=related

Red skies at night

Wiebke making dinner

Adana 06.11.2011

I just left Wiebke at the airport. The last week has been an absolute highlight, even though I have had some minor health issues. I had a terrible night where my stomach sent some food it did not enjoy right back where it came from, and yesterday I managed to burn three of my right-hand finger quite badly on a spoon. Still I feel fit and ready for the next task – Syria.

Mmmmandarines

Most of you don’t know who Wiebke is, so I’ll give you a brief introduction. Wieble is a German school-teacher and globetrotter, who moved to Hamarøy (northern Norway) in 2000 and worked at the same school as my father for over a year. That’s how we got to know her. When it comes to travelling, I am still a newbie, compared to Wiebke. Among her deeds, is a bicycle-trip from Southern-Germany to the North-Cape and back via Island - alone.

A cold morning

After a day at the coast in Antalya we quickly left the group tourist and headed into the mountains. We had some lovely days on our way to Göreme, the heart of Cappadocia. The absolute highlight was sleeping in a cave in the Ihlara-Valley.

In the Ihlara-Valley. Our cave in the right-hand corner

I got to admit that Cappadocia has some impressive landscape. But as so many of the really beautiful things, Cappadocia is crowded. If you want to see Turkey, don’t go to there. If you want to meet friendly Turkish people (who don’t just see you as potential money in their pocket), try driving from, say, Develi, through the Taurus-Mountains on small roads. Then you’ll get the opportunity to pull a Turkish minibus up a hill, try to communicate with old-fashioned Turkish hunters who invite you to drink tea with them or purchase fruits and vegetables from handsome village-girls in baggy pants.

Almost like Africa

Especially the tea-tradition is something really nice here (it might be the same in India, but there I’ve never been). Everyone offers you tea, and usually for free. To decline an invitation to drink tea is almost rude (you need a good reason to say no), and even if buying a carpet, you have to drink tea. First you drink tea, then you deal, after you have sealed the deal, you drink another glass (in Turkey you drink tea out of glasses).

Two other things that are typically Turkey are honking and Ataturk=)

I'm in love with my car

Before Syria, I have to do service on Wombosi, meaning that I have done my first 10000 km. Today is Sunday and feast, so I’ll wait until tomorrow with that, and on Tuesday I’ll be entering the cave of the lion.

When it comes to Syria, I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I have a lot of respect for the current situation; on the other hand, I am anxious to have this fantastic country and people all by myself. How long I stay in Syria depends on the political situation, and the availability of fuel.

Wieble with hunters (the one to the left in baggy pants

Evening in the Taurus-Mountains

In Amman (Jordan), Ragnhilg Soligård, a friend from Framnes awaits me, so I’ll be in good hands, and report back from there, latest in a week. 

The Great Gig in the Sky

(presumably poor) Lady gathering wood on the beach

Antalya 29.10.2011

Tonight I will pick up Wiebke at the airport here in Antalya, and she says that she has the program for the coming week figured out, so I’m looking forward to that. Cappadocia is a part of it, I know, and she will be leaving from Adana on the 6^th November.

This week has been really good. It’s been a little bit slow. I have not done too many kilometers, but have been a lot outside, done some hiking and had some beautiful evenings on remote beaches.

What more do I need?

Ephesus was... I don’t know. The ruins were not impressive enough to make up for the high entrance-fee (compared to other archeological sites in Turkey) and the crowds. I entered as soon as it opened, so the first hour was OK, but after that, the crowds were much bigger than the ruins, and that somehow ruined it.

Autumn on the BabaDag

On Thursday, I hiked properly. I wanted to walk from Ölüdeniz to Kabak, some 20 kilometers down the coast, on the Lucian way. I started off on the Lucian way alright, and followed the red and white markers. At some point, the red and white markers were exchanged by red and green markers. I didn’t think too much about it, and thought that they had gone out of white color. As the road continued to climb, when it after my thought should stop climbing I figured they hadn’t. 5 hours after I started in the morning, I reached the summit of the mighty Babadag (1960moh). The path had started at almost sea-level, so I was quite pleased, took out my bible, and the rest of my bread, and had a good break.

Above the clouds

Later that day I hiked some more (and took the wrong path one more time=), and ended up on a cliff about 25 meters above the sea. There I sat and watched the sun sink into the Mediterranean, before I went to sleep under the open sky. The ground was very stony and hard, so it was not a very comfortable night, but the good thing about waking up 4 or 5 times during the night was that I got to see the nigh-sky a lot. It was new-moon, which makes the stars (look) much brighter.

View from my cliff

On Tuesday I saw a corps (dead body). There had been an accident where a car had hit a pedestrian fatally. There were already lots of people, two police-vehicles and an ambulance there, so I didn’t stop, but it made me think about the fragility of life. One moment you’re walking around Söke(town in Turkey), and in the next, “poff”, you’re gone.

Taurus

I won’t preach the “live every day as if it was your last” preaching, because it isn’t any good to walk around thinking that you’ll die every day. You will die eventually, but to think a little bit into the future is not wrong. Still I believe that it is important to leave some time to dreaming, and some to realize them. I might not seem like a dreamer, but I have a lot of visions. I tend to think that if only one of ten come true, I will have a blessed and interesting life. If I will end up as a potato-farmer in Nepal is doubtful, but here I am in Turkey on a drive from Norway to Madagascar, so you never know.

Some of the best times I had with my friend Roger, was when we planned/dreamed a hitchhiking-trip through Europe with our guitars, financing it by playing on the street. It never came true, but we had a good time dreaming about it. As for those who think that I am crazy driving through Syria, think about it this way. Before I drive (or walk) around Söke (or Bergen) and “poff”, I’d rather live out one of my biggest dreams, even if it includes a little bit higher risk.

There is only one insurance-”company” that gives life. It’s not gjensidige or AOK! If you have Jesus, the end is a beginning, and while gjensidige is very expensive (believe me, I’ve done some research on this), Jesus is free. So make sure that if you should, “poff”, be unlucky, that you have “bought” Jesus first. Buy any insurance you want, but first Jesus, and you’ll be fine. 

"and I am not frightened of dying, any time will do, I don't mind.

Why should I be frightened of dying? There's no reason for it, you got to go some time.

I never said I was frightened of dying"  - Pink Floyd, The Great Gig in the Sky