94 - Finally at Tiss Abay Water Falls - Ethiopian Journey

The lazy lunch was consumed but we were reluctant to move. Sensing the mood, we decided to slow the pace. I posed the question to the group. Which was the best part of the trip so far? As usual Pranav was off the mark, even before the question sank in by quipping “of course throwing stones into the river!!!”

We had come across Abay river, the birth place of the great Nile river the cradle of modern Egyptian civilization. Kuldeep and me agreed too. The river was not very deep and we hopped into the middle of the river. It was slippery but we did it. Padma the ever adventurous got to the center of the river and she was carrying Sahithi in her arms. Aunty, Krishna Kumari and Shilpa watched her in astonishment! They could not believe their eyes.

The locals were petrified. They started waving their hands. We need not know the language, the message was clear!!! “get out as fast as you can”. Safely back on the river bank, I was quite annoyed at being dragged back so soon. “What was the bloody hurry?” I grumbled “What will happen, would an Anaconda swallow us?” I asked sarcastically. The movie anaconda flashed into my mind. But the science student in me reared up his head. Anacondas don’t exist in Ethiopia!

Suresh who was talking to the locals came up. He was definitely worried, “Sir” He exclaimed “hundred times more dangerous. The waters are infested with hippopotamus”. “That missed me, totally!” I told myself. Languid, robust and appearing to be lazy, Hippos are viewed as safe and harmless. But they can be deadly dangerous and  aggressive and many cases of hippos goring people to death have been reported from throughout the world including, Ethiopia.

We recited the incident to others and everyone got cautious. Dare I say, Overcautious. Pranav and Sahithi started looking at any sudden movement with alarm and apprehension. Pranav was on his guard from the hippos. He almost expected hippos to jump out of a bush and gobble him up!

But we all agreed that the best part was the very green surroundings and the hills around which accentuated the effect. It was like walking in the valley of flowers in Himachal Pradesh, India.  It was pleasantly cool and there was a carpet of grass where ever we looked. The show man in me took over “Do you know what this carpet is made of?”. “Oh yes, it’s a carpet of grass”. “Ha, ha” I said, “You are wrong, this is not grass, it is made up of lakhs and lakhs of young marigold plants”.

The entire group bent down and checked. Yes it was tiny marigold saplings all right. They were growing like weed. We all imagined the sight of lakhs and lakhs of marigold plants and crores of marigold flowers when they bloomed.  It would be a spectacular sight. Now a days when we moan the lack of fertility of our land, this incident comes flashing back. How I miss Ethiopia where we dumped marigold saplings by lakhs from our garden. They were a nuisance!

Suitably fortified both mentally and physically we ventured out of our picturesque lunch spot. As we walked to the end of the meadow, we realized that we were not on a meadow, we were on a plateau, a plateau that tapered off into a small slope that led to the base of the water fall. 

As we reached the end of the plateau the noise turned deafening. The entire area was smoking – no wonder Tiss Abay in Amharic meaning great smoke/ smoking waterfall or waterfall that emits smoke or fog. The water from the waterfall was chocolate brown and was tumbling down the 45 metres fall effortlessly. It was like watching a giant chocolate fountain in reverse.

Watching any waterfall is always an awesome sight. Water is the elixir of life and water tumbling down a slope somehow makes us bow our head in reverence to the might of the nature.

We went down the slope and as we went down it was apparent that we were descending into the lap of nature. The waterfall slopes were wet and clinging on was moss of myriad colors. The rocks were glittering with drops of water like the sweat on well-toned muscles of a superbly fit athlete.

There was a rock right in front of the waterfall and we took the customary keepsake snaps. Yes, it was a very satisfying experience. We climbed up and wanted to go back. But there was a twist in the tail. There was a boat that could take us to the other side of the river and that could cut the journey time by half. 

We were delighted at the turn of events. We all crowded the small motor boat. The driver could speak English. He greeted us politely “20 birr, 20 birr” We did a double take. “20 birr for all of us” we asked hopefully. “No” he confirmed “20 birr for each”. We haggled “the distance is short” we argued “we can see the other side”. But he was adamant. “20 or walk” was his dictum.

We showed him our work permits. Told him that we were not tourists and that we were working for his people and that we were residents of Ethiopia. But to no vail.  After lot of front and forth finally we agreed for ten birr for each one of us including Pranav and Sahithi. We had no choice. We grudgingly paid. It was painful to pay 10 birr each.  The locals were paying only a birr. They were grinning ear to ear seeing our discomfort.

That is how the cookie crumbles throughout the world including India. For example, in Hyderabad, for entry into Golconda fort the locals are charged Rs 10/- and the foreigners are charged 25 US Dollars. Same is the case at Taj Mahal. The rates for locals and foreigners differ. But the issue in Ethiopia is quite different. The amount that was charged is not fixed by the government. Tourism is not state controlled and is in the informal sector. I am sure that for white tourists the same guy would have demanded 10 US dollars, equivalent to 85 birr!

The apathy of the government to tourism was apparent. There were no sign boards. Nothing to explain the uniqueness of the site and no souvenir shops. That is how tourism is run in third world countries. Tourists are left to fend for themselves and have to manage on their wits.

As we were exiting, a government official magically appeared out of nowhere. “100 birr” he exclaimed pointing to my video camera. “100 birr!!!” I gasped. “Why didn’t you tell us when we went in?”. It was too much for this government official. He kept repeating “100 birr, 100 birr” in a monotonous charade.

It was quite clear that he meant business. We paid him the 100 birr but there was bitter taste in the mouth. First of all, we did not even know whether he was a government official in charge of tourism. He could be any government official who was stationed at Tiss Abay. He did not give us a receipt.

Worst of all, why did he not tell us about the charge when we were entering? Why not a simple board about the fees and the dos and don’ts. What is permitted and what is not. Tourism is a Russian roulette in Ethiopia.  You never know which one of the six chambers of the revolver has the bullet! It is a guessing game for all, including the government officials themselves!!!