I like atypical destinations, off the most popular routes. And it is because more than a tourist I like to feel like a traveler. If you are similar, then the world is full of little crowded and beautiful places, not as far away as they seem and yes with open arms. For example in Africa he's waiting for us Ethiopia.
Let's see today what this african country formerly known as Abyssinia.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia It is located in the so-called Horn of Africa. It has no coastline, it lost it after the independence of Eritrea, ands the third most populous country on the continent behind Nigeria and Egypt. It has borders with Somalia, Sudan and South Sudan, Djibouti and Eritrea.
History tells us that it differs from its neighbors because has never been colonized and it has always been almost always independent, even in periods of distribution between European countries. Quite an achievement. We also know that it is a christian nation for a long time.
Its capital is the city of Addis Ababa and if for some reason you take the flag carrier, Ethiopian Airlines, you will make a stopover there. The country It has a territory similar in size to that of Bolivia and its landscapes are characterized by savannas and some jungle, deserts and grasslands.
Eritrea's economy is based on the farming, especially coffee, which exports and from which a good part of the population lives. Like any exporting country, it has ups and downs and depends a lot on international markets. In addition to an unfriendly relationship with Eritrea.
What are the people like in Ethiopia? The census of four years ago showed a population of just over 90 million inhabitants and various ethnicities. Only 50% of the population is literate and several languages are spoken, including Arabic and English.
Trip to Ethiopia
The country has wonderful landscapes, from mountains flats in the north until multicolored salt flats and volcanic lakes. You have ruins of ancient civilizations like the city of Axum, stone churches of Lalibela or the Nejashi mosque ...
But where can we start a journey through Ethiopia? We can make a historical route that takes us north. Obviously, we must start with the capital, Addis Ababa, headquarters of the African Union. It is 2.335 meters high and has a fantastic climate, between 21 and 24ºC all the blessed year.
Here in the capital is the National Museum and inside you find the famous ancestor of humans, Lucy, with her 3.2 million years. There is also the old Italian-style neighborhood, piassa, remember the brief Italian occupation of five years. In these streets is the Hotel Taitu, old and elegant with a fantastic coffee and 1900 airs.
The route continues to travel to Gondar. It is not close, it is two days of intercity bus, passing through the city of Bahir Dar on Lake Tana. Here are more beautiful lakes and Blue Nile Falls over 40 meters high. Gondar has many treasures, castles dating back to the XNUMXth century, for example, so it is advisable to stay a couple of days.
In addition, the city is the gateway to the Simien Mountains where travelers do a lot of trekking inside the national park. These excursions are arranged in the town next to the park, Debark.
You can even stay to sleep inside the park, there is a fairly cheap camp and if not the Simien Lodge at 3260 meters high, at another price. From Debark you enter the Tigray region, in lands that were once part of the Kingdom of Axum (it extended here and into neighboring Eritrea). The Axum city It has Stelae park and palaces and it is beautiful. Your treasure? The Ark of the covenant that supposedly is kept in the Church of Our Lady of Maria de Zion.
The route turns a little east, passes through Adua and Yeha (here Emperor Menelik fought against Italian troops in the late XNUMXth century), and reaches Debre Damo. It is a flat mountain that is not allowed in by women or people who get easily seasick as it is climbed by a 15-meter long leather rope. Value!
The next destination is Adigrat, a border city that after the peace signing between Ethiopia and Eritrea is calmer. From here one can hire trekking excursions through the Simien, Ankober and Lalibela Mountains.
Heading south appears on the map Mekelle, capital of Tigray, stopping a bit to know the stone churches of the Gheralta massif. In Mekelle you can sleep and organize excursions to the salt flats and the Erta Ale volcano which is in the Danakil Desert. Here you can only get there by tour, not independently, and it usually lasts between two and three days.
Lalibela is ahead, heading south, and if you liked the previous churches, these are magnificent. Lalibela is the heart of Christianity in Ethiopia and the ideal is to stay at least four days exploring. Also, there are mountains nearby that you can climb, like Abuna Yoseph.
Y here in the stony and historical landscapes of Lalibela the historical route through the north ends from Ethiopia, Well, you can take a flight back to Addis Ababa, to avoid a long bus trip. The flight is barely an hour.
You may be wondering if it is easy or safe to travel through Ethiopia since it is a fairly large country. Well yes, write down this information: If you arrive in the country by Ethiopian Airlines, domestic flights with the same company are cheaper by booking at the same time. Otherwise you can use the minivans that go between cities, called here Abu dula, but the safest way to travel is to use the buses of the Skybus or Selam companies that travel long distances for just over 10 euros.
To move inside the cities are the loncin, customized Isuzu brand buses. They leave the bus stations, terra busThey are slow, cheap and tickets are sold locally. In the villages there are tuk-tuks, called Bajaj, and sometimes bicolor minibuses, light blue and white.
When thinking about accommodations there is everything: expensive and cheap hotels, camps and backpacker spots. In the most tourist destinations you will find hotels at reasonable prices with an international menu, but as you venture to other destinations, the offer is scarce. Always carry repellent, bottled water and they even recommend earplugs because people like noise.
To consider: on January 7 Ethiopia celebrates Christmas, Ganna or Genna, and it is an important national holiday. It is very interesting for witness customs and traditions cultural, and if you go twelve days before there is the Timkat Festival, also by popular. It is a feast of Orthodox Christianity that commemorates the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River.
Finally, Ethiopia is not a very expensive destination. Entrance fees to parks are inexpensive, but organized tours raise the budget because guides, guards, and others are paid. Keep that in mind. All that said, don't think you'll find a destination as cheap as Southeast Asia, Ethiopia is still cheap but not that cheap.