Christmas holiday in Ethiopia - part 3

Next up was a short flight to Gonder. The flights were all very nice, with great views of Ethiopian countryside. Gonder was an ancient capital of Ethiopia back in the day, and had some grand palaces which we visited. Some of the buildings were still in good condition on the outside, but were generally empty inside (some items were elsewhere in other museums). It was still impressive seeing the massive stone palaces, bathhouses, stables, dining rooms and other parts of the palace. Since they are still in their original state they seemed quite authentic. A few miles away we visited the Bathhouse which was a small room in the middle of a massive rectangular swimming pool. Surrounding the pool was a wall, that had mostly been taken over by the trees, and it was all very picturesque.

We also saw one of Ethiopia's most beautiful churches, with incredible frescoes on the walls and ceilings. And outside of Gonder is Falasha, a small village that used to be home to a Jewish community. It is possible to visit the old synagogue (really just a hut with a star of david), and some of the homes with stars of david on them. The Ethiopian jews were mostly airlifted or transported to Israel a decade or two ago (and the stories behind how these happened are well worth looking up, or watching in the the relevant films). The jewish community in Ethiopia has roots going back a very long time, but there is only a few remnants left in Addis now.

We also did a day hiking trip to the Simien Mountains, a spectacular mountain range with its own climate and vegetation, along with wonderful views, and the gelada monkeys, who we saw eating, and also fighting amongst themselves. It was a wonderful day, with a picnic, and good exercise. 

After yet another flight we were back in Addis, where we saw the remains of Lucy (and other ancient prehistoric relations) in the various museums, learned about Ethiopian culture and history in the fairly decent Ethnological Museum, walked around much of the city seeing the backlanes as well as the parks, Hotels and African Union Buildings, and also learned about recent Ethiopian History in the Red Terror Martyrs Memorial Museum. Guided by someone who was imprisoned during the time of the Derg (who had overthrown the previous dictatorship, only to be much more brutal), it was much like a holocaust museum. Not particularly enjoyable, particularly the torture instruments exhibits and all the skulls!

After an evening meal at Yod Abyssinia for more Injera alongside some Ethiopian cultural dancing, we left for Nairobi.

Thoughts on Ethiopia?

- Go visit, tourist friendly, great sites to see with a huge range from nature to historical to cultural. We didn't even see the South or East of the country.

- Generally friendly people, obsessed with coffee (it is the home of coffee, and the coffee is strong and cheap) and with Injera

- Intriguing history (how come Christianity came to Ethiopia a thousand years ago but didn't go any further into Sub-Saharan Africa until the colonialists arrived?; how did it end up with its own unusual language? how did it manage to bear the Italians in a small war and not be colonised? How has it built such impressive infrastructure under the previous government, and now reforming so rapidly with the new government?)

It is very different to the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa and well-worth visiting. 

Christmas holiday in Ethiopia - part 2

In Addis, mum and I then flew to Lalibela, which is famous for its rock-hewn churches from several hundred years ago, after Ethiopia became Christian. There are more than a dozen of them in various clusters, and with different designs depending on who was designing them at the time, and what the purpose of that church was.

Some of the churches were connected by caves or tunnels, and most were dug out of the rock, so they are quite hidden. When there was a ceremony on, as there was in St Mary's Church on St Mary's Day when we happened to be there, it was incredible with the ceremonies, changing and praying inside and outside the churches (many of which are very small). When the churches were otherwise empty it was also quite impressive to see the various carvings and designs used.

Lalibela itself is on the top of a cliff, fairly high-up, with some spectacular views of the valleys, and we stayed in a nice hotel there. We went to a bizarre restaurant (Ben Abeba) run by a Scottish Lady which is on the top of the hill and designed to merge into the hill, once the greenery has grown. We also went on a tour to another monastery a couple of hours away, giving us some views of the countryside, which is lacking any form of modern farming techniques. The monastery was built in a cave, and is very interesting, particularly the stories related to all the corpses buried in the back of the cave.

One morning we were there it was market day, and this was, as most markets are in developing countries, a fantastic experience with tens of thousands of people streaming through and also selling things. The market was open-air and had different sections for spices, animals, vegetables, clothes and all sorts. 

One evening we also had a chance to do a cooking class, learning how to make Injera (the kind of bread/pancake that is the Ethiopian staple) along with some of the dishes that are server on top of it (both meat and vegetables). Ethiopians eat this for most meals, most days. It's not too hard to cook, and does taste good (it is also cheap), though after a week or so, a Westerner may get somewhat bored of it and what to try something else. The cooking class was good - we were only the second customer since it was set up a couple of days earlier but a lady and her sister. 

Christmas holiday in Ethiopia - part 1

After a hectic couple of months I've managed to find some time to upload all my photos from my visit to Ethiopia (https://www.flickr.com/photos/adamsphotos/albums/72157705721949224), and share some thoughts on it.

Ethiopia has made a huge investment in its infrastructure in recent years, often built by Chinese companies, and during my time there, I can vouch for how much they have built. After flying into Mekele in Northern Ethiopia and joining a tour of mostly young couples from Europe, we drove for hours on brand new roads past only a few villages to (apparently) the hottest place on earth (measured by average temperature year-round) which is also one of the lowest. The Danakil Depression is really spectacular. Once we arrived in early afternoon we drove onto what is sort of the remains of lake, whilst also still being a lake.

In some parts, all the water has evaporated, leaving only salt, which you can drive on. In other parts, there is still water underneath the salt (think it of it like ice). As you drive up towards it the evaporation over the salt makes your eyes think there is actually water on top of the salt. For hundreds of years locals have dug up the salt and transported it hundreds of miles on camel to sell in markets. Nowadays there are not many people left still doing it, but there are some, and its fascinating seeing them working. Though a few do still go on camel all the way to markets, most get moved onto trucks once the camel gets off the salt plains to the village. We then stopped by a hole in the salt for a dip, which like the Dead Sea is so salty you float. 

Next, a short drive further along the "lake" to the real highlight which is the incredibly colorful eruptions coming out of some small hills. These are bright oranges, yellows, greens and everything in between from chemicals that are coming out of the geological fault lines and seem like paint on the salt floor, whilst also flowing down some small waterfalls in liquid form or erupting in small geysers. Its only a few square kilometers but it is unforgettable (it is also very hot) and really feels like being on Mars. After enjoying the sunset whilst drinking wine on the salt plains, we headed to our hut for dinner and then to the local bar (actually part of the police post), which of course was also the local TV-watching room. Our hut was literally a few wooden poles, and our beds were just like a deckchair, raised a few inches off the ground. We had a thin piece of cloth, but it was more for privacy than anything else as it was still 40 degrees overnight.

The next day was spent mostly in the car driving a massive U to get to a volcano. In a couple of years it will be possible to cut the 7 hour drive to an hour or two once the road is completed making the U a O. But for the moment that is what we did, arriving in the early evening at a camp at the foot of the Volcano; after dusk we commenced the 2 hour or so walk up the volcano to the top, where we had a look in the crater (trying to look past the sulphur smoke coming out) looking for the erupting lava. We slept, outside, on a mat on the floor just on the top of the crater, for a few hours and got up before dawn to go down to look at the crater again. We managed to peak some lava deep in the crater, but not a lot, as there was so much smoke and it was fairly dangerous. We got some spectacular photos of the crater and all the various solidified lava around it from different eruptions over the years, and then climbed back down the volcano. Unfortunately part of the drive to and from the base camp was possibly the bumpiest drive ever, over all the lava rocks, but eventually we left and headed back to the town, via a quick stop at a natural hot springs and a salty lake for a swim (some buoyancy from the salt but not as much as the salt water under the salt plains), and where I flew back to Addis to meet my mum.