eral months later.
Although with such a task ahead I
truly had no idea of the experiences
that awaited me. Time would tell if
my hopes and dreams would be a re-
ality! It certainly did not seem like a
daunting task at the time, but months
and several challenges later, I came
to experience, on a very personal lev-
el, the wonders and paradoxes of the
continent of Africa and all it had to of-
fer – knowing that I was only scratch-
ing the surface of the people, places,
and unique cultures of this wonder-
ous continent.
The end of the road on the conti-
nent of Europe brought me to Ath-
ens, Greece. Quite fitting indeed as
I left the cradle of western civilization
and embarked on the journey to visit
the birthplace of modern man in the
Great Rift Valley – a place I had only
dreamed about since my adolescent
days in history class, documentaries
highlighting the work of the anthro-
pological work of the Leakey’s over
several generations, and books on this
very topic. Soon, the written word,
and maps in school textbooks, would
take on very real, and personal mean-
ing.
Ethiopia would be my first desti-
nation on the African portion of this
expedition. This country provided me
with a special view of the proud coun-
try that claims many unique attributes.
In my first night in the capital of Addis
Ababa, in a local restaurant, I came
across a sign prominently displayed
on the wall that helps to sum-up the
pride, courage, and uniqueness of this
country. The sign read as follows:
Aren’t You from Ethiopia, That
Poor Country? Um … not poor
but the only African nation nev-
er colonized because we defeated
the Europeans. First Africans to
win gold in the Olympics. The
only African nation with its own
alphabet. The country that prac-
ticed Christianity before the Eu-
ropeans and accepted Islam be-
fore the Middle East! The first
country that started with the flag
colors that everyone rocks with-
out even knowing what it means
(green, yellow, and red). And the
origin of Rastafarianism. One of
the few countries that is men-
tioned in the Bible and the Quran
TRAVERSE 62
over 50 times! The country that
is the origin of the coffee you
drink. The country with so much
spirituality and culture that you
can’t even comprehend! Home
to the earliest human sightings
and human fossils that date over
millions of years old (Lucy, Ardi,
etc.). Yes, Ethiopia, The Birth of
the World and the Cradle of Hu-
manity!
Ethiopia left a permanent mark
in my heart – due to the people, places
and experiences, as well as spending
over one month in this country alone
to take in the extremes of geography
and cultures of the amazing country.
It is here where my fearless travel
partner, Agnes, finally joined up with
me and committed (with only a one-
way ticket to Addis Ababa!) to go as far
as she could. Neither of us truly knew
what we had in store. Of course, I had
read a great deal ahead of time – but
this was not a packaged tour, complete
with tour guide and support vehicles,
with a set itinerary. We had none of
these – we had only one motorcycle,
very limited clothes and supplies, ba-
sic tools, two-up on one bike, and a lot