Hyena man
The hyena man feeds a hyena with meat from camel outside the city walls of Harar in Ethiopia. This tradition started about 1950s some says it even goes back to the great famine during the 1890s. The famine force the hyenas around Harar to attack livestock and people. The people started to feed the hyenas with porridge to avoid the attacks. Later one started to predict the year a head if the hyena ate half of the porridge it would be a good year, if the hyena refuses to eat famine would struck.
© SWEBackpacker, 2011. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material including pictures without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to SWEBackpacker with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Fidel Castro Casa
I had left Holguin and travelled to Gibara on the north coast of Cuba. This is a tranquil sleepy small fishing village which spreads from a calm sparkling bay into the rugged surrounding hills. A nice area to calm down for a few days. The spot there Christopher Columbus first disembark in Cuba on October 28, 1492 is twenty km to the east of Gibara in Play Don Lino. I strolled around in Gibara then I come across a car rental company Cuba-Car. It was next to impossible to rent a car in Holguin so I didn´t have much hope in renting a car in Gibara. The man responsable for the office Raymond said, this office is for Cubans living abroad coming back home on vacation. If they need a car they can rent one. I said what about tourists can they rent a car?
Pyin U-Lwin to Hsipaw
After a twelve-hour rough bus ride during the night from Inle lake I arrived at six a´clock in the morning in Mandalay. I booked a seat in a shared taxi to Pyin U-Lwin for 6500 Kyats (about 5 US$). At nine o´clock the car filled up .with passengers. We left Mandalay in a white Toyota from the good old 1970s. The driver was a hotheaded man without any patience. He drove in a furious speed on the serpentine roads up into the mountains trying to overtake trucks in sharp bends but he usually failed and had to stop quickly. After a couple of hours driving the engine was exhausted and one could smell smoke in the car.
American car photography
In the late afternoon I arrive in Holguin Cuba’s fourth largest city (195 000) after a long bus ride from Trinidad. There is actually no good reason for a tourist to stay in Holguin this is an industrial city. The old colonial city of Camagüey Cuba’s third largest city (270 0000) west of Holguin is far more interesting and rewarding for tourists. A taxi drove to Casa Particulares Casa de Rosa near the central areas of the town. This casa was spotlessly clean and had hot-water bathroom. In the evening I went out to see what Holguin could offer for entertainment in the middle of the week. I met Ramon Quintana on Plaza Calista Garcia.
They are called plonkers
I arrived in the afternoon after an early morning flight to Dire Dawa (Ethiopia’s second city) from Addis Ababa. Tewodoros Hotel was my choice of budget accommodation in Harar I asked for room 117 or 118 for a view of the hyenas crossing the football pitch at night. The room was clean and tidy with en-suite hot showers for 70 Birr (about 10 US $). There was a water shortage and an enormous smell from the common toilet for the ground floor rooms. The manager said, no problem the water shortage is fixed before the evening! I walked out of the hotel to Harar gate then I was about to go through the gate a lad turned up! I want to be your guide what do say? This was one of the so-called plonkers!
The bicycle Trishaw man
I stayed at the chinese owned hotel Great Wall in Mandalay. I walked towards the city centre it was 20th of July then I first met him the bicycle Trishshaw driver Myint Thein or the Trishaw man as he called himself. He had black hair was surprisingly tall to be a Burmese man in his middle age. Myint asked, do you need my service today, I go anywhere?
Equipment
Hilleberg Namattj 2 Tent
For several years I have used Hilleberg Namattj 2 during my travelling in Europe, Africa and South America. The main reason for choosing the tent was the low weight only 2.4 kg / 5 lbs 3 oz, I usually have problems with too much luggage weight when flying to other continents! The keron 1800 outer fabric is extremely strong an withstand very strong winds in high exposed areas. I have used it at high altitude at 5000 m in South America, in the jungle of Amazonas, in Kalahari in South Africa. It has been used in very cold weather -20 degree Celsius and very warm weather as well 38 degree Celsius without any problem.
Burma
I visited Burma / Myanmar during the monsoon season 2007, started travelling in Yangon the capital of Burma, flew to the northwest coast to Sittwe. Continued by boat in heavy monsoon rain on the river of Kanadan upriver into the Chin state to Mrauk U. I looped back to Yangon again for a flight up to Heho in the Shan state there a taxi waited for a drive to Inle lake.
Birds
Pictures and post about birds. This picture is taken at Awassa lake in Ethiopia. I stayed at Wabe Shabelle hotel #2 an early morning walk down to the lake shore gave a lot of opportunities for bird photography.
© SWEBackpacker, 2011. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material including pictures without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to SWEBackpacker with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
Countries
Under this category you will see pictures and posts about travelling. The picture is taken in Habana Vieja in Cuba in the early morning just before sunrise. I visited Cuba during a very hot summer month due to the heat most pictures were taken during the night.
© SWEBackpacker, 2011. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material including pictures without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to SWEBackpacker with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
