Blogs from Gondar, Amhara Region, Ethiopia, Africa
February 27th 2012
After more than 8 weeks in the Islamic world it was time to say goodbye to 5.30 a.m prayer calls followed by 4 more throughout the day. No more waking up to Allah Akhbar. We got up at 6.30 a.m. to get the bus out of Kassala to give ourselves the best chance of getting over the border with Ethiopia that day. We found the bus going to Gedaref, bought tickets and then got some breakfast. At 8.30 a.m. we got on the bus, hoping it would be moving shortly. It was 10.20 before it did move and this was only to the entrance of the bus station. At 10.40 we were on the road. It was about 3 hours to Gedaref on really good road. We then found a minibus going to Gallabat, the border ... read more
ETHIOPIA...Gondar to Find Prester John
Published: October 2nd 2011Africa » Ethiopia » Amhara Region » Gondar
October 2nd 2011
ETHIOPIA...Gondar to Find Prester John. I saw an old woman resting by the roadside on the mountain overlooking Addis Ababa...her massive load of sticks awaiting return to her back. Her face etched with a life of endurance and experience. So I asked her where to find Prester John. "Those days are long gone" she said looking down and spitting to confirm the point. Ping...brain engaged. "Long gone... gone... gon... dar... Gondar... that's it... that's where I must go to find Prester John..!" Gondar...the Camelot of Ethiopia...in the highlands of the North. Prester John...the mythical priest and king of a magnificent Christian kingdom in the East, the home of the Fountain of Youth...a descendant of the Magi (the Three Wise Men from the Gospels)... "who reign supreme, surpass in virtue, riches and power all creatures under heaven"...the ... read more
January 12th 2011
Gonder, the so-called African Camelot, is where I got into my Ethiopian rhythm. I had enjoyed Aksum, but somehow it was Gonder that made me realize just how much I was going to like this fascinating – and occasionally infuriating! - country. This might have had something to do with the fact that I stayed at what turned out to be the most congenial hotel/guesthouse I encountered in all my Ethiopian travels, the Lodge du Chateau. After my scruffy 100 birr-a-night room in Aksum (you get what you pay for!), walking into the Lodge’s little garden and being welcomed with a fresh mango juice was like walking into a little bit of heaven. Seyoum, the manager, immediately made be feel welcome and bid me to rest my feet in the thatch-covered terrace, with its commanding views ... read more
January 7th 2011
The guides picked me up at my pension at 7am and took me to a fancy hotel at the top of the mountain to meet the two Scottish people who joined our half day trip to the Simiens. Melkom works in Addis for the UN, and his father came to travel with him to the North (and again a very cool one, who doesn't care about his age and enjoys LIFE). After 1hour bumpy ride we started our hike. Half day is definitely not enough to Simiens, I knew it, but after hearing my neighbours' experiences coming back from a 4days trip...uff...hopefully next time :) But anyways, at least we saw tinnish of the stunning landscape, some baboons, and Columbus monkeys, people living in the middle of nowhere...amazing. Back to Gondar my guide, Alex showed me ... read more
January 6th 2011
I woke up at 3 to catch the early morning bus -that leaves only once a day- at 5am from Meskel Square to start my trip to the North. I was a bit worried because I haven't been travelling alone for a while, but as nobody had the time, I had to take the risk and the chance. I don't know if they did it on purpose at the ticket office, but an other ferengie was sitting next to me (only two white people in the whole big bus), an adventurous 50ish French lady who travels around the world. Big respect for her. As she told me, she was a very shy youngster, but after being divorced she realized that she enjoys exploring the World, so since her 40s she visited almost every country in Asia, ... read more
December 31st 2010
Another chaotic journey on Ethiopian Airways, it hardly seemed worth the trouble for a 20minute flight time. Check in opened late, 20minutes before boarding time, but not a problem as the plane was late arriving. It was the same plane I had disembarked here, it flies Addis, Bahir Dar, Gonder, Axum, Lalibela. Security was the strictest I've been through yet, perhaps because there are so few people they have the time for it. I have to get out all of my cameras and my laptop and turn them on to prove they are real, then the woman wants to look through my large lens! All pointless as there is no safety actually on the plane, people keep their hand luggage out rather than storing it and one person even smokes! Insane! At Gonder airport, I quickly ... read more
December 24th 2010
It's Christmas Eve (although not for the Orthodox locals who won't celebrate for another two weeks). I spent this morning walking around seventeenth century castles, remnants of anther age, their round turrets and pointed battlements looking like they should belong in Morocco or Spain not sub-Saharan Africa. For lunch, I had a sour brown pancake topped with various spicy stews, washed down with some thick rich coffee, whilst sat in an Italian built Art Deco cafe, while pictures of Selassie stared down at me from the walls. The afternoon was spent in a sixteenth century church, decorated with a rich tapestry of paintings of saints, angels, devils, and the Virgin Mary. A turbaned priest, robed in white, with a large gold cross hanging from his neck, sat in the corner watching the world go by, and ... read more
December 19th 2010
I decided to visit Gondar in the Amhara Region. It is truly a wonderful sight. I had gone back to Bahir Dar and taken a plane to Gondar. I am had had breakfast at the airport since I was so hungry. I wanted to see the Gondar castle first. The Gondar castle is not a castle, but it is the name given to the entire complex of castles. I went to see every single one of the them. My favorite was the Fasilides Castle. Before lunch I decided to go and register and the Taye Hotel. It was a new hotel in the center of the city. After I registered I ate lunch in the lounge. It was wonderful. After lunch I decided to go to the town of Gorgora. In this beautiful town there ... read more
March 19th 2010
This blog entry will probably not be at a caliber I’m really comfortable with, but it has come down to an average blog or no blog at all! I returned from Gondar yesterday evening, grabbed a hot shower, headed out to see an Ethiopian/French fusion jazz band at Alizé just off Ring Road, and then dragged my sluggish self to work early this morning where I was informed that I would be going to the field this Sunday for a week “whether I liked it or not.” That’s one thing about language barriers… sometimes jokes made in a second language don’t really come off as being particularly funny. But I suppose I had it coming having taken 6 days off work to go camping. Actually, if it weren’t for the fact that I had planned to ... read more
March 10th 2010
we left to Gondar and on the road we stopped at Gondara Castle, an old fortress high on the hills from where you see both lake Tana and the plains. Gonder has a beautiful Royal enclosure and some old churches with paintings and murals... read more
