On Wednesday afternoon we headed to our next destination. We would be performing lab assessments in Awassa on Thursday and Friday, and then Joy and Adrian would be staying there for the rest of the week to perform another 4 days of training.
The road to Awassa was busy, but not as bad as the one to Awash National Park. The scenery was very different as well, with much more farm land and several lakes to be seen.
Frequently, along the side of the roads, there would be groups of locals selling produce. Piles of red onions, bushels of tomatoes and even a few strawberry stands. We stopped at one stand and picked up 2 boxes of bright red strawberries. It was so difficult to wait to eat them until we could wash them properly!
We decided to make a stop at the Abijatta-Shala Lakes National Park to do a little more sight seeing.
Immediately, we were greeted by 2 Grants gazelle and a small herd of Ostrich.
The grasslands were beautiful, especially against the blue sky.
According to the guide, it was Ostrich mating season. There were several males who were trying very hard to impress the ladies, all the while trying to chase off their competitiors. It was pretty entertaining and I'm not sure anyone has ever told the Ostriches how silly they look.
We kept driving to the edge of the lake in hopes of seeing a huge flock of Flamingo. Unfortunately, it wasn't the right time of year and only a few birds greeted us as we made it to the shore.
We piled back into the van to make the journey back to the road, but the weight of all the passengers was not a good combination with the soft sand and we got stuck.
Fortunately, we were able put a little elbow grease into the mix and we were soon free.
In order to keep from getting stuck a second time, we thought it would be better for us to walk until we got to more solid ground. Besides...it was a gorgeous day out!
We headed to one more viewpoint while we were in the park. A spot on the top of a plateau which gave us beautiful views of both of the lakes.
There was also a young boy there selling limestone carvings for 55 Birr each. Who knows if they will survive the trip home, but each of us ended up getting 1 or 2.
On our way out of the park, we spotted a few more animals. This Giant Hornbill teased us by staying just out of 'good photo' distance.
Next, a family of wart hogs came out of the brush...along with a small flock of grouse. They actually seemed to be travelling together, but paused long enough for us to get some good photos.
Right before we left the park, another group of female Ostrich came out to say 'farewell'.
A gorgeous sunset was the perfect ending to a fabulous day.
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