I always feel that I stay in capital cities too long, but overall I think our three nights in Addis, given that I was so tired and simply needed to acclimatize was just right. So on New Year's Day, 1st January, I packed up all our bags and we headed to the airport for the 10.30am flight to Bahir Dar. The taxi was booked via the Ride app and cost only 200 Birr (£4) and the flight for both of us was 2,422 Birr (£45).
We only needed to be at the airport one hour before departure, but it seemed a bit hairy checking in our luggage and going through two security checks where even Tiger's shoes had to come off! The flight, on a propeller plane, was busy but quick and easy. This was really the first time I think Tiger had an appreciation that she might be up in the sky as she was looking out the window on take off and appeared to get the concept of us landing!
Arriving was also super painless as we were picked up by the hotel for free and were soon in a spotless, if slightly warm, hotel room and off for naptime! We had booked the Winn Hotel for 2 nights for £18 per night on booking.com but I soon realised that I really needed 3 nights so the manager told me to cancel the booking reservation completely and said he would charge me local price of 700 Birr (£12) per night instead! I am not sure if the deal I did for our touring was quite as good a deal ($325 for 3 days including the drive to Gondar) but time will tell.
Our room, anyway, was spacious, very clean and really the only complaint was a few mosquitoes (I slept under a net but got a few bites, and Tiger was in the bathroom and also got a few bites) and the morning prayers from the local mosque at 4am - I am sleeping with earplugs next!
We went out for a wander down to Lake Tana, and to buy a kilo of bananas (I am starting to feel like I have a monkey, the amount of bananas Tiger eats!) and we found our first supermarket where we bought UHT milk and wine. My first impressions are that Bahir Dar is very laid back, and has a resort type feel. You also do not feel covid here at all, and there's very little mask wearing. All in all, the eagle has landed and all is well!