TRAVEL ETHIOPIA
Land of Origins
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Ethiopia. Somehow this remarkable country, rich in culture and dance, is left off the generic tourism list. As people flock eagerly to Kenya, Zimbabwe and Morocco; Ethiopia remains a hidden treasure, unspoiled and enticing. I knew this was going to be a trip I would never forget. Below I have compiled everything you need to know to visit this beautiful country. Enjoy.
Founded in 980D.C, Ethiopia is one of the oldest nations in the world and has one of the earliest forms of Christianity in the world.
It is the only country in Africa that was never formally colonised; however, it was occupied by Italians under the Mussolini regime, and they had to defeat the Italians twice to remain independent. Communism was officially adopted during the late 1970s and continued until 1991.
Nowadays, Ethiopia has one of the world's fastest-growing economies and is attracting the attention of foreign investors, long nervous about putting their money in Africa.
There are many things do to in Ethiopia, more than I ever thought. I am writing regarding my experience of 10 days of travel. Yet, there is more to discover.
Travel Addis Ababa
The 4th highest capital in the world, after La Paz, Quito and Bogota.
The city is known as "the political capital of Africa" and is full of culture, welcoming people and amazing Ethiopian restaurants. If you are vegetarian or have a gluten-free & dairy-free diet, you will be in heaven.
What to do?
Online, you can find many day tours and activities in the city. However, I got put off by the price, since the cheapest tour was $100US, which is equivalent to a local month's salary.
I decided to make my plans and discover the city with friendly locals that are happy to share their culture and knowledge. However, where can we find these lovely people? Couchsurfing. I spent two days with different Couchsurfing friends that showed me the city, shared with me insights about the culture, and we had incredible conversations.
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Taste the best Ethiopian coffee
Tomoca (TO.MO.CA) Coffee is the famous coffee brand, having different branches across the country. Visit the first Tomoca coffee shop in Addis located in Piazza at Wawel St. This small coffee shop is a great place to taste a cup of coffee and buy souvenirs; you can't go wrong when a shop is full of locals.
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A night for entertainment
Enjoy a family-friendly evening at Yod Abyssinia, where enjoyment lasts for hours with its flavorful food, musicians, singers and dance performances, starting at 7:30 pm and going late. Make sure to book in advance and arrive early, as the place gets quite full and you won't want to miss the beautiful performances of the dancers, which teaches us about the different types of expressions across the country.
Where to eat?
One of the many things you'll miss from Ethiopia is their delicious food. It doesn't matter where you go, you'll find incredible dishes at affordable prices. Do yourself a favour and avoid Italian cuisine, dare to try something different and be delighted with traditional Ethiopian food.
Are you vegetarian or gluten intolerant? Then you'll be in heaven. Injera 'bread/crepe' is made with Teff flour, which is gluten free, and they have a vast range of vegetarian toppings to pick from.
All restaurants will have great food, what varies from place to place is the environment, and this is where the prices range. If you are not bothered by this then enter wherever is full and hygienic (e.g. avoid raw meat sold in the street), and if you want to be in a more high-end environment then I highly recommend going to Kategna restaurants, which you'll find across the city.
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Kategna
Located in two sites in Addis Abba, Kategna offers a magnificent modern environment with exceptional culinary that attracts a young public. The portions are quite significant and are meant to share with friends or family.
Travel Lalibela
Take part in a tour through the 12 churches carved in rock, and experience one of the most mesmerising places in the world.
Not much is known from their construction, some suggest they were carved by the Knights Templar during the crusades. But the more religious ones will tell you that they were created overnight by the angels. It doesn't matter which story you believe, you'll be hypnotised by their beauty.
Useful Tips:
It takes only one day to go through the secret underground passages or walk above them if darkness scares you. If you wish to stay longer, it is worth renting a car to go to the distant sites, like the stone carved monasteries. However, the most beautiful churches are inside the town. Here's a list to make the most of Lalibela:
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Wear comfy shoes
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Take an extra pair of socks with you. As you need to walk barefoot inside each church
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Don't wear expensive shoes. Ethiopia is one of the safest places on Earth, but if you are concern about leaving your shoes at the entrance of each church, keep it simple for your peace of mind
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Do not wear hats or tank tops inside the churches; you need to be respectful
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If you have issues walking on uneven surfaces, take a walking stick with you
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A day and a half would be enough time to visit Lalibela, make the most out of your limited time in the country visiting other cities
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Go around the town on a tuk-tuk. If you have a phone, take their phone number for whenever you need a ride, and they will be more than pleased to pick you up
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Many locals, especially children would like to say hello to you and will follow you around trying to get a conversation to practice their English. Some will ask you for pencils or pens for school; if I had known this, I would have taken some with me.
Where to Stay?
Lalibela has a booming economy, despite how small the town is. Therefore, new hotels are continuously being open. I stayed in the beautiful hotel of Sora Lodge Lalibela, where they arranged the transportation for us from/to the Airport and received us with a Traditional Ethiopian Coffee ceremony. It has an astonishing and a restaurant offering delicious meals, including one of the best complimentary breakfast I've had in a long time. I highly recommend the Teff pancakes and the Papaya juice.
Where to Eat?
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Ben Abeba
Ben Abeba is the best place to see the sunset while having traditional Ethiopian food, although it also offers international cuisine all from local farmers and suppliers. The unique shape of this restaurant makes it perfect to enjoy the view, take pictures, have a romantic meal with top customer service, they even give you a blanket if you feel cold during the evening.
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Seven Olives
When visiting the churches inside Lalibella, Seven Olives is an excellent choice to have lunch as it is walking distance from the site. Ask people to point you in the right direction as the town is quite small and everyone knows where it is. It offers delicious Ethiopian food and a sitting place outside surrounded by trees where many different types of birds surround you. If you are into bird-watching, you cannot miss this place.
Travel Gondar & Semien Mountains
Discover the capital of the Ethiopian Empire and the splendour of the Semien Mountains, rich in wildlife and home of the peaceful Gelada monkeys.
Where to stay?
I stayed in the Lodge du Chateau, located in the centre of town in front of the Castle. The location is quite convenient, and it also has a rooftop terrace where you can experience a beautiful sunrise with colourful birds that greet you as you have breakfast.
Where to Eat?
Gonder offers numerous restaurants, they all have top quality food from the small juice bar places to the local restaurants. The higher the ambience, the more expensive it gets.
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The Four Sisters Restaurant
This beautiful restaurant is a great place to relax and enjoy a cup of coffee during the daytime, and in the late evening have a buffet accompanied by a traditional live show with musicians and beautiful dancers.
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Master Chef
With a more simple environment, Master Chef has also delicious Ethiopian food and its less touristic than the previous one.
What to do?
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Gondar tour
In one day you can see all the historical sites of the city. The best thing to do is go to the entrance of the castle and hire a tour guide that will explain you all the interesting facts and history of the place and will take you on a tuk-tuk (or walking) to the Fasiladas Bath Timket and the Debre Berhan Selassie Church.
A curious thing about Ethiopia, which many people around the world don't know, is that the country has its own calendar, which has a 7-8 year difference from the Gregorian calendar (most widely used around the world). So, if you visit Godar in Ethiopian January (which would be around September for the rest of the world), you can witness one of the most spectacular events in the country at the Fasiladas Bath Timket, called the Timket. The site is flooded with the Nile river's water to be blessed by the head of the priest, and thousands of people from all over the country travel to immerse themselves inside to renew their baptismal vows.
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Simien Mountains National Park
Trekking around the Simien Mountains is a must in Ethiopia. At first, I was not very keen on it as I thought that the Mountains could not impress me, as I come from a land of mountains. However, I was gravely wrong. It doesn't matter how many mountains you have experienced, these particular ones are quite special, due to the massive erosion over millions of years that have created jagged mountain peaks above 4000m, and deep valleys with sharp precipices. Additionally, the mountains home many unique animals including the Ethiopian wolf, the endangered species of Walia Ibex, the Caracal (a medium-sized wild cat), Gelada monkeys and abundant birdlife.
To enter the park, you need to reserve a tour guide and pay an entrance fee, without a guide you are not allowed inside the park. You can stay as many days as you wish inside the park, it is recommended to take plenty of fluids and a jacket since up the mountains it gets quite cold. Since we did not have much time, we took a 4-hour trekking tour with the fabulous guide Yalew, who gave us a competitive price to rent a car for us, designed a trekking path according to the time we wanted to stay inside the park, and even brought lunch for us.
In our experience inside the park, we saw a lot of the wildlife, especially the peaceful Gelada monkeys that were chilling by packs on the precipices to stay away from their predators. We got the opportunity to save a tiny beautiful bird that had its wing caught in branches and couldn't fly, and also put down a fire that could have been a big disaster for the park.
General Recommendations when visiting Ethiopia
Before you begin this fantastic adventure, be sure to pack anti-mosquito spray, order your online Visa to save you time at the airport and print all your documents, maps and bookings as the Internet is quite scarce, even in hotels due to the power shutdowns.
Vaccines are not requested to enter the country. If you visit the sites that I have just mentioned, you won't be needed any. However, if you travel to places with high risk of Malaria, then you may want to be more covered up and take a good anti-mosquito spray. It's also advisable to take lots of vitamin B1 two weeks before and during the trip (a natural repellant that the doctor suggested). The Malaria pills that doctors prescribe doesn't make you immune to the virus, it just softens the symptoms of it, and in most cases give you migraines (not fun to have during a holiday). I made the mistake of taking the vaccines that the doctor suggested and got very ill one week before travelling, I wish I knew that these places are free of diseases and that I could enter without them. However, if you are going to take any vaccine, have them at least a month before, you don't want to get ill just before travelling.
Public toilets are generally a squat ground toilet (sometimes a hole in the ground), so I recommend not to wear flip-flops, take toilet paper with you (in most places you won't find any) and anti-bacterial gel. Moreover, if you are a woman considering getting a standing urinate device because it is physically hard to use that toilet when you are not used to it.
Some places are warm, but you won't see any woman wearing shorts or mini skirts, so try to blend in an use long trousers. Take a jacket with you, since it can get quite chilly during the evening.
When you are trekking in the mountains, take a hat with you and wear sunblock, as the sun is stronger at higher altitudes. Similarly, layer up as you can get warm walking but the higher you are, the colder it gets. Moreover, don't forget to hydrate yourself and take it easy, so you don't suffer from high altitude dizziness.
Most importantly, have fun! Ethiopia is one of the safest countries in the world, and you will be surprised by their strict security, so don't be scared and let this astonishing country take your breath away, not only by its beauty but also by their lovely people and cuisine.
If you enjoyed this article, found out more about my different travels here.