To say I woke up in the morning is pretty inaccurate as I never really slept for more than 3 hours at a time. My Ethiopian advent calendar window will reveal a bucket of water for the 7th December as this signifies what I used multiple times to flush the toilet because it's lacking a cistern. At least I didn't have to squat over a hole every time though!
I have pills from the last bout I had in Sudan so got straight into them but they take a while to kick in. I laid in bed for the majority of the day listening to my belly make noises that sounded like it was summoning troops in preparation for commencing war on Middle Earth. My head was fuzzy, I had cold shivers and there was no way I could eat anything, drink anything or fart without making things worse.
It was Saturday and I was supposed to meet Jonas as the kids had a half day today. That was a no go and I slept on and off until around 3pm when I decided I had had enough and I hadn't let Africa win before so I wasn't going to let them win today.
I went to check my emails as yesterday I spoke to a friend Erin from home who put me in contact with her English friend who lives in Addis. Her friend Peter-Sam was a saints fan and asked if I wanted to go around his house to watch them play Man City. My health conditions were obviously not ideal for meeting someone for the first time but there was no way I could stay in my little room all day so I took him up on his offer. I met him an hour later outside his work which was only a short walk from where I was.
It was a short drive to his house on the outskirts of Addis and it was so refreshing to be in a place that felt a little like home. There was a sofa and a table and they even had advent calendars. For so long now I've sat at cafes or restaurants with plastic chairs and had to go to toilet in a variation of holes, pits, broken toilets or bushes. Peter-Sam and his wife Theresa actually had a bathroom with a toilet that had a seat and a flush, it was just like I remember from home! It's only been 4 months but when you've been to the loo in those 4 months the same amount of times as an average person does in 4 years you do forget how comforting a good old Armitage shanks feels against your skin.
On the plus side, I have designed the perfect toilet in my head which combines the comfort of a westernised sit down flushing design with the practicality and paper-saving method of the squat. Keep your eyes on dragons den for when I get back, I think I'm onto a winner.
So anyway, I was not around Peter Sam's for long but I enjoyed the change of scenery, the English company and it was topped off with a great performance from Saints. It was nice of him to invite me into his home and he was a top host who kindly payed for my taxi back to the office. Another top bloke that I've met on my way to Lesotho and we've already sorted a few drinks for when we are both back in England.
I got back and didn't really want to risk eating or drinking anything so just tried to get my stomach to shut up by laying very still and not rolling over. Today wasn't a day that will go down as one of the best of my trip for obvious reasons but I'm pleased I made it out in the end.
Let's hope tomorrow I'm feeling better.
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