Nov 28, 2018 - Addis Ababa

10 Addis Ababa The flight was non-eventful and we arrive at Addis on schedule, almost. Once again the parking lot is all messed up. We are stopped at the exit of the arrivals terminal while a motorcade pulls up into an interior parking area. They are leaders from the Organization of African Union Summit that is just winding up. We have told Elias that we want to see more of Addis, so we head into town and then up one of the many mountains surrounding the city, past an area which has many shops selling traditional clothing. The government...

Nov 26, 2018 - Bale Mountain Lodge

09 Bale Mountain We left Axum by plane for Addis. In Addis, we were picked up by the same driver who met us originally. This car is excellent--a newish Toyota Land Cruiser, very comfortable. Good thing, as we have a couple of very long drives. We stopped for lunch in Addis, in a restaurant that was also a gallery; some really nice paintings, but on canvas, and large. We did manage to find a small one that we liked. We are headed to Bale Mountains (ball eh) and it is a long way, so we are going to stop overnight in Haro Langano Lodge, on the...

Nov 25, 2018 - Axum

Axum PHOTOS HAVE BEEN ADDED FOR EARLIER ENTRIES THAT WERE ORIGINALLY POSTED WITHOUT PHOTOS BECAUSE OF SLOW INTERNER Although Axum in the oldest town in Ethiopia, the holiest city in the country and former capital of one of the world greatest empires, it is now pretty small. It is scattered with antiquities, not only the Church of Maryam Tsion, but mysterious catacombs, ruined palaces, multi lingual tablets, and stelae. You get the impression that you could probably find some ancient structure anywhere you dug. And apparently there were also...

Nov 22, 2018 - Lalibela

07 Lalibela We are back in Vancouver. You can tell by the number of photos--we now have a decent internet connection. Lally bella - Translated as "the bees recognize his sovereignty" or, "bee eater" Our plane was only about half an hour late. Better than we had expected, given the fuss that was being made about the Presidents of Ethiopia, Somalia and Eritrea. We were glad we had left for the airport early; the roads were still open when we went through, although there was a really large military presence all along the roads leading to the...

Nov 11, 2018 - Simien National Park

06 Simien Mountains We left Gondar about 8:30 after a fairly pedestrian breakfast, but with a splendid view of the surrounding countryside and the swimming pool which was entirely empty as it appears to be under construction. The drive is about 2 hours, but we made a number of stops to take pictures. We checked into our lodge, almost in the Simien Mountains National Park. It is a small, 12 cabins, lodge, built by a British women, Julia and her Ethiopian husband. It is quite beautiful in a very stark way; all rammed earth construction with...

Nov 10, 2018 - Gondar

05 Gondar Again, no pictures because of slow internet The drive from Bahir Dar to Gondor took us east of Lake Tana, through agricultural areas and many small villages. Some of the villages look quite quiet – it is not their market day. Others are bustling. Many people are walking on the road to get to the nearest market, and we saw one group of men carrying a litter with an ill person in it. The nearest hospital is about 5 kilometres away and there are no ambulances in the rural area. There are many crops in this area – rice, wheat, niger...

Nov 5, 2018 - Bahir Dar

04 Bahir Dar We arrived in Addis Ababa about 2:45. Our bags were waiting for us – not surprisingly as we had sat in the plane on the ground for more than 30 minutes, waiting for a bus. We zipped through customs and immigration in no time – we had our visas in order before we left home. Our driver was waiting and we confirmed our departure time for our flight to Bahir Dar tomorrow morning. A little confusion, and Robin asked him to talk to the guide again. The Ethiopian clock is different from ours. Our 5 is their 11. It takes a bit to...

Jan 21, 2018 - Addis Ababa

Vincent and I met at breakfast and as he had time to kill before his afternoon flight to Hong Kong, he came with me on a fairly long walk to another pharmacy. Mission accomplished, we then walked another 2kms, all uphill, to a famous coffee shop. I was able to buy the coffee I wanted which can go straight to th14 January Visiting ancient stelae, bat and palace of the Queen of Sheba@56e bottom of my bag. We caught a taxi back as I was already coughing up all dust I had inhaled. Still coughing an hour later and now lying in bed, I don't need...

Jan 20, 2018 - :City Tour of capital and end of group tour

Day 14 - Return to Addis Ababa A morning flight will brings you back to Addis. On your last day in Addis you will visit the Entoto Mountains, with a fantastic view over the city, the National Museum or Ethnological museum, Trinity Cathedral and the Merkato, reputedly the biggest open air market in Africa. Addis Ababa was founded in 1887 by Emperor Menelik II, and its name means ‘new flower’ in Amharic. A large city, it is the third highest capital in the world sitting at an altitude of 2400m. It hosts East Africa’s largest market, the...

Jan 17, 2018 - Lalibela 17, 18 and 19 January

After an early breakfast start the journey to the town of Lalibela, through Amhara villages with a chance of meeting Tigray and Amhar people(440km-approx 9 hours). The small dusty town of Lalibela in the north of Ethiopia is home to some of Ethiopia’s most amazing sights, a collection of rock cut churches dating back hundreds of years. Often known as ‘Africa’s Petra’, Lalibela is a great centre of pilgrimage among Ethiopians, flocking here to worship, and during religious festivals is packed with priests and monks. Lalibela and the...

Jan 16, 2018 - Mekelle

Itinerary Description We will continue our exploration of the marvellous churches that dot this remote and inspiring landscape while driving to Mekelle. Today we visit those of Medhane Alem Adikusho, Wukro Cherkos and Abraha Atsbeha. My Description

Jan 15, 2018 - Adigrat and Tigray

Itinerary Description Day 9 – Adigrat and Tigray Churches Today we drive to Adigrat (140km - approx. 6 hours) through some spectacular countryside. En route we visit the 5th century temple of Yeha, displaying incredible skills in stonework and the oldest building still standing in Ethiopia. Overnight at Agoro Lodge or similar. (BD) Tigray’s rock-cut churches The rock-hewn churches of the Tigray region are one of Ethiopia’s most enchanting and fascinating sites. Many of them are carved into sheer cliff faces and take effort to reach, perhaps...