Bet Giyorgis

Christmas amid pilgrims

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January 7th 2009
The atmosphere in Lalibela was incredible, with the population of the sleepy village swelled by an estimated 20,000 pilgrims, who were visiting one of the major Christian sites in Ethiopia for Christmas. On the afternoon of Christmas Eve I went for a walk to the market and ended up walking past the major church of Bet Maryam, where people were securing a sleeping space for the night. As darkne ... read more

Africa » Ethiopia » Amhara Region » Lalibela

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Unique among African countries, the ancient Ethiopian monarchy maintained its freedom from colonial rule, with the exception of the 1936-41 Italian occupation during World War II. In 1974 a military junta, the Derg, deposed Emperor Haile SELASSIE (wh... ... read more