Goodboons' Blog: Ethiopia

Showing posts with label Ethiopia. Show all posts

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Border crossing in Omorate (Ethiopia/Kenya)

Having entered Ethiopia through the main border of Moyale, we decided to go back down to Kenya through the Omo valley and Lake Turkana. It was a very worthwhile adventure, but it was not too straightforward…

There is a border post in Omorate on the Ethiopian side, but no customs office as yet. This means you can leave Ethiopia officially, but your car can’t. We had to go to the customs department in Awasa, on our way to Arba Minch, to have our Carnet de Passage stamped there.

From Omorate we had to backtrack a short distance before taking a sandy track south towards Banya Fort and the Kenyan border. There is a police checkpoint on the Ethiopian side to check your passports as you leave. From here, it was sandy, rocky and muddy tracks until Maralal, some 500km south. We were travelling with the Amazing Swiss (Marc and Roman) in Wolfi, their Mitsubishi minibus. We pulled each other out of the mud a few times, bush-camped a few more, and made it to Maralal without having felt threatened or having had any major problems with the cars. We were both carrying 180l of fuel when we left Jinka for Omorate. We found fuel “out of the barrel’ in Loiyangalani and Barsaloi, at exorbitant prices.

There is no border post on the Kenyan side. We had arranged our Kenyan visas in Addis before leaving. We reported to the Loiyangalani Police Station to announce our arrival in Kenya, where we learned that we were illegal immigrants and that you are not supposed to cross the border anywhere other that Moyale. The police officer was nice enough though, and didn’t send us back to Moyale, which would have been a real mission. After phoning his senior in Nairobi, he let us continue to Nairobi where we completed the Immigration and Customs formalities.

The immigration ran smoothly, but the CDP wasn’t as easy. We had to go to the Customs Department is located in the Times tower. We were sent to the 12th floor, then the 9th floor, then the 10th floor, then the 4th floor… Only to find out that the right person to stamp the CDP really was on the 10th floor. The problem was that the new official in charge had never heard of CDP. It took a bit of time to find his predecessor (who now works on the 1st floor) so he could explain to his colleague what was required. Patience prevailed and we eventually got our CDP stamped. After a morning of bureaucratic fun, we were finally legal - one week after crossing the border!

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Makki Village and the Mursi, Mago National Park

The Mursi tribe live in what is now the Mago National Park, some two or three hours drive from Jinka. They are best known for their lip-plates which to women insert into an incision in their lower lips. They are nomadic pastoralists and have a fearsome reputation amongst the other tribes of the South Omo Valley.

Mursi herdsmen

River crossing to Maki Village

We had heard that there was tension between the Government, who charge visitors to enter the Mago National Park, and the Mursi who don’t receive any benefit from the revenue generated for the park. The result is that the Mursi will demand a payment from the visitor over and above the ‘official’ price paid at the park entrance. The Government and Mursi representatives were negotiating a settlement while we were there.

The Amazing Swiss with a Mursi woman and child

Young mothers

Curious but shy

Oli Seraili's first wife in her hut - each wife has her own

Her son..

We spent one night at Makki Village before driving south to the park headquarters. We had intended to continue south through the park to Omorate, but a heavy storm came through and we were advised that the roads would be impassable. We decided instead to backtrack to Jinka and take the less adventurous road south…

Our camp under the trees at Makki Village

Scouting roads under water

Stuck

Made it back to the main road!

To Jinka and the South Omo Valley

The road to Jinka passes through the village of Kai Afer. We heard that the following day was market day. People from Banna and Tsamai tribes would be travelling to the market from thoughout the district: an opportunity to trade and socialise.

The Amazing Swiss, keen for a chicken potjie at Rocky Hill Campsite, Jinka

The following day the road to the Kai Afer was busy with people and livestock on their way to the market.

Scarlet, drawing some attention

One of the young men referred to as a ‘bull jumper’ was at the market to find a bride. We later learned that a ‘bull jumper’ literally jumps over a series of bulls as an initiation rite, before he is allowed to marry. A man may marry any number of wives provide he can afford to buy her - each wife is a fixed price of 38 cows.

A 'bull-jumper', his status indicated by the feathers in his head dress.

The woman wear a calabash on there head, which also doubles as an eating/drinking vessel. Most woman wear goat skin garments studded with cowrie shells. The shells are traded with people to the south, ultimately coming from the Kenyan coast.

High Street Fashion

Shopaholics

Mallrats

South to the Omo Valley

We met up with the Amazing Swiss (Marc and Roman) again at Wim’s Holland House in Addis Abeba. We agreed to travel to Nairobi together via the Omo Valley and Lake Turkana, mainly for the security offered by travelling as two vehicles but also because they seemed like pretty cool guys.

Our farewell coffee ceremony at Wim's Holland House

We stocked up with food for the next two weeks, bought some extra jerry cans and then we hit the road south. We stopped at Lake Langano for one night before reaching Arba Minch.

Our campsite in Arba Minch - a spectacular view when it wasn't raining!

We visited the Dorze tribe high up in the mountains above the town. They are most well known for their “elephant houses” constructed entirely of bamboo and false banana tree leaves. The houses are built very tall, but shrink with time because the bases are continuously eaten by termites. After twenty years the house is replaced. We were shown how they spin cotton into thread and use it to weave the traditional scarves and gabis (capes).

Our first elephant house!

Steve trying to weave - man's work

Caro trying to spin cotton - woman's work

We were also shown how to prepare bread from the stems of the false banana stems - traditional fruit bearing banana trees do not grow at this altitude. First the stems are grated to produce a pulp, which is wrapped in banana leaves and buried. It is allowed to ferment underground for three to six months before it is recovered. The pulp, which now has the consistency of bread dough is then flattened, wrapped in banana leaves and cooked on an open fire. Delicious!

The bread making process

Everything made from false banana and bamboo

Marc duelling with a local - his shield made from hippo hide.

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Gondar and Bahir Dar

Gondar was founded by the Emporer Fasilidas in 1635 and served as the capital for 250 years. We visited the Royal Enclosure with its 17th Century castles and palaces and the Church of Debre Birhan Selassie. The church is special in that it is rectangular (not round like all of the other Ethiopian churches and built to the same dimensions as King Solomon’s Temple in Jerusalem) with beautiful murals on the interior walls. Really worth a visit!

African Castles

Horses in ceremonial dress

Murals in the Church of Debre Birhan Selassie.

Angels looking down from the cieling of the Church of Debre Birhan Selassie.

Angel looking at the ceiling of the Church of Debre Birhan Selassie.

From Gondar we took the main road down to Bahir Dar on the southern end of Lake Tana. That afternoon we visited the Blue Nile Falls, where the waters of Lake Tana start their long journey down to the mouth of the Nile. The next morning we took a pleasant boat trip out to a few of the island monasteries.

The Blue Nile Falls

A priest showing us a Bible, handwritten on goatskin at St Mary's Church on Lake Tana

Little Bee-Eaters

Simien Mountains, Northern Ethiopia

From Axum we drove south through rugged mountainous country to Debark, the starting point for treks into the Simien Mountains. We arranged our guide and scout at the Park Headquaters in Debark before driving the 35km up to the first camp at Sankader.

Simien Landscape

We saw our first spectacular views from the escarpment and our first troops of Gelada Baboons. This primate, endemic to Ethiopia, is unique in that it feeds predominantly on grass. It also has a harem-based social structure which is regarded to be the most complex of any animal other than humans. That evening, we were visited at the camp by a handsome Menelik’s Bushbuck (another species endemic to Ethiopia). It was also there that we met the ‘Amazing Swiss’, Marc and Roman, who we would end up travelling with for a few weeks.

Our first views from the escarpment

Caro and our Scout

We had planned a three day trek: one day from Sankader up to Gich, one from Gich up to Imet Gogo (3,926m) and back to Gitch, and the last day out to Sankader. We had decided not to climb the highest peak - Ras Dashen (4,700m) - as it is a 7 day round trip from Debark and we had been told that we would see most of the sights on the three day trip anyways. We were well acclimatized by now and found the trekking not very strenuous, walking for 5-6 hours each day.

Beakfast at Gitch Camp

View from Imet Gogo

Returning to Gitch camp before the storm

The Simien scenery is truly spectacular. We saw many Lammergeier’s soaring back and forth along the escarpment, dropping bones onto rocky patches to break them open before swooping down to eat the shards and marrow. The Gelada Baboons are very used to humans and it was interesting to sit close to them watching their antic and listening to their odd language of chirps and grunts. We had to look hard, but eventually we also found a lone male Walia Ibex on one of the steep escarpment edges. These Ibex are the rarest of Ethiopia’s endemic animals.

A troop of Gelada Baboons

Simien Circus - A cartwheel with a stick in your mouth

Axum, Northern Ethiopia

We were surprised to discover that Axum is a fairly small town by Ethiopian standards. It was the capital of the ancient Axumite Empire, which peaked in the 3rd century AD and which was considered one of the four great civilisations of its time, along with the Romans, Persians and Egyptians. We visited the stelae erected by the ancient emperors, and some of their tombs. Not much else remains of this ancient civilisation which, is thought to have declined as a result of climate change and hostility from it neighbours.

The largest of the stelae - a single piece of granite

One of Axum’s churches, the St Mary of Zion, is believed by Ethiopians to house the Ark of the Covenant. This is also the subject of “The Sign and the Seal” by Graham Hancock, in which he adds credibility to the myth and, in our opinion, more interest and intrigue to anyone’s visit to Ethiopia.

An intersting read for anyone visiting Ethiopia

Petrol availability is limited between Axum and Gondar, so it is best to fill up at either end. We had a breakdown on route to the Simien Mountains thanks to some dirty fuel purchased “from the drum” in Lalibela. Fortunately it was just a simple case of cleaning out the fuel filter and we were back on the road…

A Typical Tigre Landscape

Lalibela: Rock hewn churches

After our trek in the Bale Mountains, we spent a few days to relaxing at Wim’s Holland House in Addis Ababa. We took full advantage of the wonderful cafés selling fresh fruit juices, pastries and Ethiopian coffee before setting off on a circuit of northern Ethiopia. First stop: the famous rock-hewn churches of Lalibela.

Coffee Shop in Addis

The road to Lalibela via Weldiya is under construction and passes through picturesque highland farms before it drops dramatically down the escarpment. The first 200km north of Addis are particularly dusty and potholed with many heavy slow moving vehicles. It took us two full days from Addis with a stop over in Karakore. Petrol (benzeen) becomes more scarce (expensive and poor quality) once you leave the main road north, so it is worth filling up in Weldiya before tackling the long steep climb up to Gashena. Diesel is more widely available en route and in Lalibela.

Highland landscape

The day before we left Addis, we had the opportunity to attend a lecture on the history of the Lalibela churches by some French archaeologists (at the Alliance Française). We learned that the churches had been built by the 11th century AD. The details on who built the churches and when, their purpose and the construction method are not known for sure and will be the subject of a EU funded research programme due to start later this year. Indeed, there is a lot of legend and speculation surrounding these monuments. We had also started reading “The Sign and the Seal” by Graham Hancock, who adds to the intrigue by suggesting that the Knights Templar may have been involved in their construction and linking it the search for the lost Ark of the Covenant ….

Whatever the true history might be, we really enjoyed exploring the hidden passages and chambers on our own, imagining different histories for these amazing living monuments.