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Ethiopia

October - November 2022
A 26-day adventure by skip's retirement travel Read more
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  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 2

    Addis Ababa

    October 18, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    Addis Ababa is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is a relatively young city in its current location, being found by Emperor Menelik II in the late 19th century. At first sited atop Mt. Entoto for it's defensibility, the city moved downhill, making the many hot springs more accessible. The last picture, albeit it hazy, it taken from Entoto overlooking the modern city. Entoto is now a city park.
    The 1st picture is the statue of the Lion of Judah, one of the names for the Emperor. The Solomonic Dynasty, of which Haile Selassie was the last emperor, traces it's lineage through Menelik, said to be the son of Solomon and the Queen of Sheba.
    The 2nd picture is Meskel Square, the main meeting place for celebrations, protests, and all manner of public activity.
    The 3rd picture is the African Union headquarters. Ethiopia was a founding member of both the League of Nations and the UN. They have been active in multinational work for a long time, and finding the AU headquarters here follows in that tradition.
    The 4th picture is of a small part of the large fabric market where all manner of clothes, from shirts to wedding dresses are made and sold.
    The 5th and 6th pictures are of the Merkato, said to be the largest market in Africa. The market has areas where particular goods are concentrated. Like the industry in the fabric market, you can probably find someone making just about anything. A large part of this industry is recycling, from rehabbing goods to recycling pretty much everything.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 2

    Holy Trinity Cathedral, Addis Ababa

    October 18, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Holy Trinity Cathedral in Addis Ababa, unfortunately in a major renovation at the moment, is the seat of the patriarchs of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. It is here where the patriarchs are anointed and where they serve. It was built to commemorate the driving out of the Italian occupation in 1942 and replaced the former monastery church on site
    The 1st and 2nd pictures are the exterior of the cathedral from the front and then from the back.
    The next 4 pictures look at the inside of the cathedral, especially of the stained glass and artwork. If you enlarge these, you may be able to recognize biblical scenes.
    The 7th picture is the throne where His Majesty Haile Selassie sat when attending worship. There is a similar thing be for his wife. The 8th picture is the sarcophagus of Haile Selassie.
    The last 2 pictures are of other sites on the cathedral complex. 9th is the Church of the Holy Spirit. Most newer Ethiopian Orthodox churches are round or octagonal. This is an example.
    The last picture is a part of the cemetery where only people who are important to the church by and nation are interred. For example, the statue of the man with his arm raised is the winner of the marathon at the Moscow Olympics.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 3

    Debre Libanos Monastery

    October 19, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ⛅ 16 °C

    Debre Libanos is an Ethiopian Orthodox Monastery, whose Abbott is the 2nd most important person in that church. The monastery's history dates to the 13th century and it's founder, Saint Tekle Haymanot, who lived in a cave at the site. None of the original buildings remain.
    The 1st picture is the monastery church that only dates to the 1960s. It is built above the tomb of the founder. All the rest of the pictures (except the last) are of some of the extraordinary stained glass and artwork here, all executed by Ethiopian artists. You can recognize lots of biblical references in the work. Note, especially, the 7th picture. There is a crucifixion scene spread across several panels. This is the front of the church above the altar.
    The last picture looks out from a balcony of the church over the monster y grounds to the mountains beyond.
    There is also a museum of locally relevant artifacts, but no photography is allowed.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 3

    North of Addis Ababa

    October 19, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Here are a few scenic views from the road in the northern part of Ethiopia. The 1st 4 are all looks at portions of the Ethiopian part of the Great Rift Valley of Africa. This country is simply beautiful.Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 4

    Tis Abay

    October 20, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Tis Abay is the falls of the Blue Nile just downstream from Lake Tana (see another post). This is said to be one of the largest waterfalls in Africa, after Victoria Falls (see another post).
    The 1st picture shows the full width of the falls. I'm here just after the rainy season. So the water level is high. The 2nd picture looks along the length of the largest section of the falls.
    The 3rd and 4th pictures are at a tributary of the Blue Nile, just downstream of the falls. The suspension bridge is over a small gorge which can be seen in the 4th picture. This was taken from the bridge which is more stable than it looks. Even the walkway is solid steel bars. And yes, I did walk out and take the picture!    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 5

    On Lake Tana

    October 21, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Lake Tana is the largest lake in Ethiopia and is the source of the Blue Nile. This is said to be a crater lake, formed in an extinct volcano.
    The 1st 2 pictures look at the approach to and the point where the Blue Nile leaves the lake. This is behind an island that is shown in the 3rd and 4th pictures. You can see a traditional papyrus boat and several fisherman using these boats with said island in the background.
    The next 2 pictures are wildlife. The 5th is hippos in the water. There is a calf hidden in there. The 6th is an African Fish Eagle.
    The next picture shows 2 island out in the lake. The one to the left has a convent; while the one on the right has a monastery.
    The 8th picture looks from the lake to Bahir Dar, the largest city in the Amhara region.
    And those are beehives in the last picture!    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 5

    Zeghie peninsula

    October 21, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    The Zeghie peninsula is in Lake Tana. It's most important economic activity is naturally grown coffee. The trees grow wild and are harvested. The 1st picture is of a walkway there that passes through the coffee plants. They almost look to me more like vines. Incidentally, the man's hand is on an ebony tree. In addition to coffee, there is fishing, agriculture (mangos, avocado, lemons, etc.) and tourism.
    The peninsula is perhaps best known for the several monasteries therr, many dating to the 14th century. I visited 3 of them: Bete Maryam, Azusa Maryam and Ura Kidanemihret. The next several pictures are taken at the 3 monastery churches.
    These are round churches with concentric sections. The 2nd picture is one of these from the outside. This one maintains the traditional thatch roof. The 3rd picture is of the outermost ring of one. This is where the chanting, dancing, music, etc. takes place.
    The 2nd ring is highly painted with scenes from the bible and other books sacred to the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition. The 4th picture is the flight of the holy family to Egypt, which the Ethiopian tradition says continued south from Egypt into this region. The 5th picture shows the martyrdom of the apostles, something I don't think I've seen elsewhere. I should note that these paintings are on the innermost part of the church: the holy of holies. This part of the church is reserved for the priests. Note the door in the 6th picture. This is the entrance to the holy of holies and it always carries paintings of the archangels protecting the entrance. The 7th picture is the east side where the Eucharistic elements enter the holy of holies for mass. These 4 walls are painted from floor to roof.
    In order for a building to be an Ethiopian Orthodox church, the holy of holies must contain a replica of the ark of the covenant with the 10 commandments. The originals are said to be at Axum.
    The last 3 pictures are in the museum at Ura. The 8th picture is the original cross atop the Ura church from the 14th century. Historically, when kings ended their reigns before death, they retired to the monastery as monks. The 9th picture is the crowns given to the monastery at their retirement. The last picture is a large set of holy books predating the printing press. These include many held holy in Ethiopia but not in the biblical canon as we know it.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 6

    Near Gondar

    October 22, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    These are a few views along the road heading from Bahir Dar to Gondar (not Gondor: I'm not due in Middle Earth until January 😉).
    The 1st picture is God's Finger, a unique rock outcrop. The 2nd picture is of the ruins of Guzara Palace which dates to the 16th century. The next 2 pictures are some of the scenery here in the Ethiopian highlands. The last 2 pictures are of Saturday markets in 2 towns along the way.Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 6

    Gondar

    October 22, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Gondar, in northern Ethiopia, is a former imperial capital. There is more here than Fasil Ghebbi and Trinity cathedral (see other posts).
    The 1st picture is the view from my hotel. The 2nd and 3rd pictures are in the local market.
    The last 3 pictures are in another part of the city. These were also built by Fasil. The 4th picture is the remains of the royal stables adjacent to the royal bath in the 5th picture. I'm told this is still used during Timkat, the Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of the baptism of Jesus that is held at Epiphany. The last picture is another part of the same site. In the background is the weaving factory. The small building to the left is the tomb for the emperor's horse.    Read more

  • skip's retirement travelEthiopia
    Day 6

    Church of the Trinity, Gondar

    October 22, 2022 in Ethiopia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    The Church of the Trinity here is not the typical round church of Ethiopia. It is rectangular, following the tradition in Axum. I'm told an emperor wanted to move the ark of the covenant from Axum to Gondar. So he used Aksumite architecture. He didn't succeed. The ark hasn't been moved.
    The church dates to the 16th century, and all the artwork is original. So I'm uploading a video that scans around the space to show the extensive art typical of Ethiopian Orthodox churches.    Read more

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