Lalibela

Lalibela is another former Ethiopian imperial capital in the north of the country. It's current fame relates to the rock hewn churches here. They are all attributed to King Lalibela (now Saint Lalibela). So the churches date to the 12th century.
There are 11 rock hewn churches here, too many to fit in a single post. So this will be spread over 2 posts. This is another place where I've experienced that feeling that the pictures and TV shows don't do justice to what is here. Being here is amazing.
This post begins with the most famous of the churches, St. George. This is the cruciform building carved down into the rock as seen in the 1st 2 pictures. The 3rd picture is in St George's and is a treasure box dating from the time of Lalibela.
Every Ethiopian Orthodox church has a separate building called Bethlehem. It it from Bet Lechem or house of bread. Here the communion elements are prepared, including grinding the wheat and baking the bread. The bread and wine are then carried to the holy of holies for mass. The 4th picture is one of these that is no longer used. In this case, the elements were carried through a tunnel to the church. That's the 5th picture.
The 6th picture looks across at a 3 story church thought to have been the royal residence for Lalibela and his successors. The 7th picture is in that church with the local priest.
The 8th picture shows the front of one of the churches. The curtain to the left blocks the holy of holies and typical art is to the right.
The 9th picture is one of the passages between churches, this one bringing to mind that needle's eye and the camel. The last picture is another one of the churches. This is a cave church. Notice the section to the right that looks like concrete blocks. This section is a restoration. The rest is original.Read more