Travel information on Security & Safety for visitors in Ethiopia

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Merry Christmas & Happy New (Ferenji) Year

Nativity scene in Ethiopia Iconographic styleWe wish all our friends, customers and our team members across the country a happy Christmas time – Melkam Gena (Happy Christmas know as Gena or Lidet in Ethiopia). As across the Orthodox world it is celebrated a few weeks later than in the west.

But this year (2016 which started on 12 Sept), is different. Last year in the Ethiopian calendar was a leap year, and so until the leap day in the western calendar in February, all dates are knocked back. Because there was an extra day added to the tail-end of last year making the 5 day pagumenical (13th) month into a 6 day version so each Ethiopian date starting with the 1st day of this year – Meskerem 1, falls a day later in the western calendar. So, for example, the big Gabriel holiday (Kulubi Gabriel) which falls on Tahsas 19 this year is on 29 December not the usual 28th as in other years. But Gena is different!

gena in Lalibela

Gena ceremony in Lalibela

Gena is celebrated on Tahsas 29 (the monthly day that celebrates the birth of Christ) which usually falls on 7 January. However as the miraculous conception of Jesus in Mary was in the preceding year Megabit 29 (7 April), most of Ethiopia celebrate Gena on Tahsas 28 this year … which is still on the 7th…. but in Lalibela it will be on the 8th!  Understanding Ethiopia is always that bit more complex!

Many Orthodox Christians are currently fasting for advent, a fast that began on 25 November, and means most a vegan diet for 6 weeks.

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Melkam Addis Amet / Happy New Year

Yadey Abeba -Meskal Daisy - Field in Gurage

Yadey Abeba – Meskal Daisy

We wish all or friends, family, supporters and partners Melkam Addis Amet: Happy New Year. Today – as the thirteenth month (Pagume) ends we say goodbye to 2015 and welcome in 2016 in the Ethiopian Calendar.

In this past year (2015), known as a Lukas year, (there is one for each of the four evangelists) the thirteenth month has an extra 6th day in it  (today) – a leap month pushing the New Year date in the western calendar to tomorrow – 12 September. 

The western and Ethiopian calendars will be ‘out of sync’ until the leap day at the end of February.  So known dates like Timkat usually the 19th January will be on the 20th January in the coming year (a Yohannes Year). But Gena (Ethiopian Christmas) is even more

Tesfa Agenda

complicated. So probably the moment to get your hands on a Tesfa Calendar or Agenda/diary. 

The Tesfa Calendar and Agenda are available with all the Ethiopian dates set into the western calendar so you can see what is coming

Tesfa Agenda pages

up. Weaving the many saints days, annual festivals, fasting periods, Islamic holidays and various curiosities, and even the full moon dates has been a labour of love for 17 years now! Conscious of the environment for the 3rd year, we are printing this on recycled paper.  It is available from Tesfa Tours and in some other locations in town. Contact us on calendars@tesfatours.com to get your copy, or call our office 011 124 5178 / 092 349 0495.

We pray that 2016 will be a peaceful and happy year for Ethiopia!

 

 

 

 

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Calendars, Leap Year and Ancient Egypt

The new and unique Tesfa Calendar is coming out from the printers soon!

Calendar Cover page, Mequat Mariam at dawn

It runs from Sep 2023 – Aug 2024 (ie Ethiopian Year 2016) is now in its 17th year and is ready!  And since the 2014 edition it is printed on recycled paper!!!

The Tesfa Calendar is available again this year, with all the Ethiopian dates set into the western calendar so you can see what is coming up. Weaving the many saints days, annual festivals, fasting periods, Islamic holidays and various curiosities, and even the full moon dates has been a labour of love for 17 years now! Conscious of the environment for the 3rd year, we are printing this on recycled paper.

January page of the hanging calendar

January page of the calendar

The calendar has stunning photos that will make you want to get out of Addis, or fly over from where ever you have the calendar and see this beautiful country. The photos are taken from the Tesfa Community treks across the north of the country (the Agenda has photos from other additional places too).

 

The calendar comes in 2 versions:

  • Traditional hanging calendar, great in your kitchen or office -(29cm across ands 53cm down)- 12 months with 13 photos. 500birr donation
  • The Agenda or Diary format:- (approx 21cm x 15cm) in portrait format, has 1 week to a page and so 53 pages (52.14 weeks a year) – running from Monday to Sunday on one side on easy to write on paper, and with a photo to match on opposite page. 600 birr donation

    A page from the Agenda / diary

    A page from the Agenda / diary

We ask the donation to help support the Tesfa communities who have guesthouses around the country hosting visitors enabling them to walk through their beautiful landscapes.

Leap Years in the Ethiopian Calendar:

The Ethiopian calendar names the years in a 4 year procession, after the Evangelists- so this current year (2015) is a Lukas year and the coming year 2016 is a Yohannes year. At the end of a Lukas year there is an extra day in Pagumay – making it a 6 day ‘month’ which works like the 29th February in the western calendar. The effect for the coming 5 months is to knock the dates in the 2 calendars out of sync. So New Year in the Ethiopian Calendar will fall on 12th September in a Yohannes year (2016), Meskal on the 28th September, Gena (Ethiopian Christmas) – now that is more complicated – In Lalibela it shifts to the 8th January, but elsewhere in Ethiopia it remains on the 7th January (which means its on 28 Tahsas instead of the usual 29 Tahsas) – more on that later in the year! And the big one – Timkat will be on the 20 January. And around then of course all the big saints days such as Tsion Mariam are also going to shift – in this case from 30 November to 1 December. With the leap day on 29 February 2024 all the dates re-sync!  Confused?, then get your copy of this calendar or the Agenda.

The Origins of the Ethiopian Calendar:

As is so much in Ethiopian culture, the origin if the Ethiopian Calendar is shrouded in the mists of time. However it is very much the same as the ancient solar Coptic calendar from Egypt, which is the oldest in history.  It is believed that the famous Imhotep, the supreme official of King Djoser C.2670 B.C. played a part in the development of this calendar.

Nile flood waters at Giza

Nile flood waters at Giza by the Pyramids

Going further back the ancient Egyptians used a civil calendar based on a solar year that consisted of 365 days, without making any adjustment for the additional quarter of a day each year. Each year had 12 months and the heliacal rising of Sirius coincided with the highest point of river Nile flood at Memphis marking the first day of the year. The new year of the ancient Egyptians started on Meskerem 1 which is the date is an Ethiopian new year (which also signals the end of Noah’s flood). I’ve always enjoyed the fact that the Kremt rains in Ethiopia are what causes the Nile to flood, and marks the New year in Egypt – which became the New Year for Ethiopia too.

This ancient Egyptian Coptic solar calendar consisted of 12 x 30-day months with five extra festival days at the end of the year. This is the same concept as the Ethiopian Calendar -13 months, 12 of 30 days each and then Pagumay at the end of the year of 5

Deacons in Lalibela using Sistrum during a festival

or 6 days depending whether the year is a leap year or not. The new year starts on 11 September in the Gregorian Calendar (G.C.) or on the 12th in (Gregorian) Leap Years. The Coptic Leap Year follows the same rules as the Gregorian so that the extra month always has 6 days in a Gregorian Leap Year.

The connection between ancient Egypt and Ethiopia is unclear as the extent of territory connected to geographical names such as Nubia and Kush is debatable. However the calendar and artefacts such as the Sistrum have crossed between ancient Egypt and Ethiopia so it would seem that there was a significant cultural contact.

Get your copy of this Tesfa Calendar or Diary /Agenda and see all the upcoming dates for yourself.

To order your calendar contact Tesfa Tours 011 124 5178 / 092 349 0495, or email calendar@tesfatours.com

Our office is at Kebena, but other places around town will have copies too – contact us for more details.

 

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Boya Guesthouse is repaired

Boya Community Guesthouse

Boya Community Guesthouse

Olivia Chapman visits Boya – one of the Tesfa Community owned Guesthouses near Lalibela (all photos taken by Olivia)

“I had the pleasure of visiting Tesfa Tour’s community owned guesthouse in Boya at the end of February this year and despite the structural destruction there is still a sort of magic about the place. The guesthouse was badly impacted by the conflict, with the Tigrayan army using the guesthouse as a base. Once the army left, they attempted to burn the remaining structures and took many materials with them. The community, managed to put out the fires before it was completely destroyed. Since then the community have been unable to make any money of the guesthouse, with tourism at an all time low and inadequate

Damaged kitchen/dining tukul

Damaged kitchen/dining tukul 

structures to hold the few tourist who visited.

However, the community have since received funding from a small and local NGO; Zegoch le Zegoch (ZlZ) who have focused on a new approach to aid in areas that have been affected by conflict. ZlZ’s irsho approach places communities at the centre of the emergency response, seeing them as capable of drive their own development. In line with this, ZlZ have granted the community in Boya 130,000 ETB (around $2,450USD) for reconstruction. The community have already started to fix the site and prepare for tourists to

Children in Boya home

Children in their home 

come again, estimating to be ready within a month or so. With the news that tourists were returning back to Ethiopia and business was picking up, the community members faces brightened.

The community invited us into their houses and offered us so much even though they have so little. This group is the perfect example of resilience, demonstrated by the continued loving approach despite the devastating impact the war had on them and

Raw honey & ambasha bread

Ethiopian hospitality -Raw honey & ambasha bread

their families. They are excited and ready to meet you with the warmest hospitality, as soon as the site is ready and up and running. Get ready to experience the real Ethiopia.”

We since received a call from the community to tell us that all is fixed and they are eagerly waiting for guests.

 

Farmer shaping wood for the doors and windows

Farmer shaping wood for the doors and windows

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A new dawn for Tigray’s tourism

Visiting Tigray after 3 years

Hospitality in Tigray community guesthouses

I like to get around the country and visit the places we send our clients, especially the community treks. It’s important to talk to our guides and the communities and for them to see me and of course to see the state of repair of the guesthouses and their materials.  However when 3 years ago, the cloud of Covid descended on the planet, all travel ceased. Then with the conflict that embroiled Tigray from Nov 2020, there was no way to visit Tigray, and for much of the time even no way to call.  With the peace accords signed in Pretoria at the start of November 2022 much has changed and it is possible to fly into the region again, so I flew early on Monday morning at the end of February, on an Ethiopian Airlines Bombardier – a small 80 seater twin engined aircraft the airline use for domestic routes, to Tigray’s capital – Mekele. 

I was excited to see good friends, but a bit worried by what I might find after the conflict that took so many lives and saw so much destruction.  A good friend lent me a car  and driver to head north from Mekele to the town of Adigrat, with a full programme that would put my limbs to the test. There were two challenges with flying to Mekele, firstly the airline only sells a one-way flight, so we arranged for a friend to buy my return flight on Wednesday (a day ahead of travel), and secondly Ethiopian airlines do not send passengers luggage with them. So when my flight arrived soon after 9 am we all waited by the conveyor belt to find the luggage that came was from the previous day’s passengers!

Enaf – damaged – in the moonlight

My bag finally arrived at 3pm on the fifth flight of the day. As a result we had to modify our original plan, and by the time we got up to the guesthouse on top of the mountain at Enaf, just south west of Adigrat it was dark. Even in the dark I could see that almost all the roofs had collapsed, because the ENDF troops had taken the plastic sheeting from inside the roof (underneath the packed soil) so some walls have partially or totally collapse but at least some part of the structure remained intact. Nevertheless a lot of work to get this wonderful guesthouse back in operation.

We had a quick meeting with five members of the community who very kindly bought a flask of tea which was gratefully received.  We discussed the costs of clearing up the rubble fixing the walls and putting on a new roof. But for me the most important question was whether the community wanted to host tourists. After everything that the community have been through I wanted to be clear that this was what they wanted to do. It couldn’t of been clearer -a resounding yes (in Tigrinya “Ahwaand not only did people speak in the positive but they were big smiles, it was very clear that the community here would love tourists to come back as soon as possible. 

Coffee being brewed at Seheta

Coffee being brewed at Seheta

From the ruined Enaf guesthouse we walked down the mountain in the dark going down very steep paths. We didn’t reach the next guest house – Seheta until around 9:30 pm. Here we slept in Gebre Hiwot’s house. He is the camp manager at Seheta and we were treated to t’ehlo – barley balls eaten with spicy sauce which is the traditional food for this area. We had amazing kita bread, about the tastiest bread you can imagine and delicious couple of cups of brown home prepared coffee – all washed down with the local beer known as suwa.  I had a great sleep on the bed in one off their rooms – built as per Tesfa Tours technique on a raised slot. I am frequently bowled over by the hospitality in Ethiopia, it is humbling.

Exploring the Valleys

Seheta Guesthouse early morning

I woke up early on Tuesday morning to see the red rock landscape with cliffs around the village. The guesthouse at Seheta is undamaged and meeting with the community they explained that they’ve taken care of the guesthouse and materials (only a few were lost) because they want guests back. In fact we could have slept in the guesthouse but it just needed cleaning. After a great breakfast and copious cups of coffee brewed by Gebre Hiwot’s wife Rahel we set off.  

Our first stop was to check out Gohgot guesthouse. It was a beautiful walk through the Seheta valley with the red rock cliffs and the beautiful red stone ‘hedamo‘ farm houses (as the traditional style is called) tucked in amongst eucalyptus trees. It’s a bit of a climb up to the guesthouse which sits on a high bit of land underneath a cliff. We were pleased to find the guesthouse in very good condition and just needing a bit of a clean out. The community came to meet us and again they expressed the wish to receive tourists as soon as possible telling us that was why did they look after the guesthouse and materials. They had an inventory of materials that were missing and materials that were still in store and they have enough to be going on with. From here we headed eastward into the valley behind to search for a church that is inside the cliffs.

Rock face with possible church inside

A book was discovered at the nearby Teklehaimanot church, that tells of the existence of this church and where to find it. Through a crack in the rock the corner of shaped stones can be seen, but only just. To the left of this was a strange stack of cut rocks filling recess in the cliff. These had the same weathered face but smooth sides and deeper into the recess were also smooth sides so it seemed as if these rocks had been put back in but further out than their original position. It is a mystery how anyone would have cut this rock surface unless they had a saw that goes through rock! We speculated that there has to be a way in from above. It appears that there was a way to climb up to a platform but it’s difficult to see anything from way below. My suggestion was that Berhe (who is a great climber) and a few others come up and climb up the rock face to see if there is any other possible entrance.

Looking out from Shikurto Tunnel near Shimbrety

We then headed westward out of the valley towards Shimbrety, stopping for lunch at the house of one of the cooks from Gohgot. She was also preparing fresh suwa and enjara  to take to church as it was the monthly Mariam day.  Refreshed, we set off on our way again walking fast to reach the guest house before sunset. There were a number of TDF soldiers billeted at random houses, a school and just walking across the country. All were unarmed and very polite, and giving me no sense of a security issue, in fact the reverse, their presence unarmed seems to be evidence that it is quiet and peaceful.  We passed one lovely old man who told Berhe that seeing me here, showed him that the dawn was coming. He was referring to the long night that Tigray had passed through, and to see a guest in the countryside was a sign that times have changed.

The final part of the walk took us up to the Shikurto tunnel that has been carved through the mountain allowing people to come from the market area at Idega Arbi to the lands to the west. We climbed up the escarpment beside the rock church of Mariam Buzuhan, taking the short but steepest way to the top of the escarpment. The views were stunning as the sun had not yet gone down and we had a nice little walk to the guesthouse which shows clearly on the skyline.

Shimbrety Guesthouse at sunset

We were met by a number of the Shimbrety staff at the guesthouse, including Hagos, the manager at the camp and a wonderful smiling person.  I had met him the very first time I walked here and he had immediately understood what we wanted to do and agreed to work with us. He has always been one of the best people in the whole project. I gratefully drank several cups of sweet tea watching the sun go down before heading to Hagos’ house to pay our traditional respects, as his father had died a year and a half before. Of course neither myself nor Berhe, had been able to visit him. Back at the guesthouse we were served a great dinner of rice, shiro, greens, tomato sauce and a lovely spicy sauce. I spent ten minutes watching the moon and the stars – so beautiful, but I was tired I went to bed early sleeping soundly till morning.

Across the mountains

Hagos at Shimbrety

It was hard to pull myself out of out of bed, it was so comfortable and quiet, but after a good breakfast we set off northwards towards Erar guesthouse.  There are two routes: the walk in the valley route or the tougher route up over the mountains. We chose the across the mountains for the rewarding views and Gelada baboons. The path down drops off the plateau at a spring, where there is a crack in the escarpment edge. We filled our water bottles using a filtering pump. While there I scooped water out into a rock trough for a persistent donkey. After a bit the guide scooped more for him. I thought about how we cared for a thirsty donkey and how some people don’t even treat their fellow people properly to ensure they have food, water and shelter. 

The landscape between Shimbrety & Erar

It’s a great path clinging to the mountain side – several meters wide with a sheer drop on your right and a cliff on your left. The views are beyond description with a lot of Gelada baboons. The path took us back down to the church if Mariam Buzuhan and the tunnel through the cliff. But now we climbed the mountain north of the tunnel.  The trail follows the flat mountain top with the great sandstone escarpment on its western flank, perpendicular yet cut with gullies and promontories. The sandstone has iron stone – hematite I think – loose along the surface. 

After several downs and ups where the escarpment drops down we came to Erar guesthouse – sadly this was more damaged than the others we had seen. It seemed shells had hit the structure and the front walls had been taken down when Eritrean army was there. The guesthouse will need a complete rebuild.  We trekked down to the village just east of the site and met with a guard from the guesthouse. We learned that the community was ok and had saved many of the materials and that they wanted to host tourists again. 

Chehat at Sunset – roof gone

We trekked back up to a village called Rahya, which had always been the trail head for this end of the trek. It’s an easy drive back to Adigrat from whence we headed north to Chehat guesthouse. Its a steep but easy climb into the mountains that flank the city, this time accompanied by two other guides – Biniyam and Fitsum, we reached the brow of the hill where Chehat stands commanding views to the north outlook to the famous monastery of Debre Damo and the Adwa mountains. It was just before sunset and the landscape looked stunning. However the guesthouse, having served as a post for Tigrayan forces was pretty badly damaged. There was no roof left but the walls had been built with cement as the local soil was not good for binding, and so they were still standing. One of the committee, a local priest, had accompanied us up there and informed us that the local cooks we are really keen to start working however the camp manager had been badly beaten and was not at all himself.

Wonderful fasting (vegan) meal at Mulat’s restaurant in Adigrat

We met up with another of the guides – Mulat and enjoyed a delicious dinner in his restaurant and a few beers. It was great to get the most of old team back together and they were full of enthusiasm for tourism to restart. Times have been unbelievably tough up here, tragic things have happened but people want to move forward and look to the future. 

Adwa day, 2 March.

This day marks the anniversary of the Battle of Adwa when Ethiopian troops from across the country defeated the Italian invader, beside the mountains that were standing out in the sunset the last few evenings. I had breakfast in my favourite little café in Adigrat – Kaswa. I’ve eaten fouhl and drunk macchiato there each time I come to Adigrat for over a decade now. The owners know me and even know how I want my food. I spent the night at Berhe’s house, and we were up very early to head off to Hawzen, which is a large town on the edge of the Gheralta area made famous for tourists by Gheralta Lodge.

Hotel in Hawzen – refurbished

We checked out some local hotels in Hawzen. One of which was in pretty good condition as the owner has started refurnishing it and renovating it after it was heavily looted. Different armies came through Hawzen numerous times, there was fighting and there were a lot of people killed. A few miles down the road Gheralta Lodge has been heavily looted and vandalised. It’s going to take a lot of effort to get it back on its feet. Even further down the road Korkor Lodge just passed a small town of Megab, has also been vandalised and looted. We were accompanied bye our lovely Guide from the area – Gebre. It was the first time he had seen Korkor Lodge. Some of the owners family arrived and were looking at the damage and hoping to get compensation. It could be a long time before these lodges are up and running. Sadly we didn’t have time to visit the local rock hewn churches which are absolutely exquisite. We had to head back to Mekele for some meetings and my flight back to Addis .

Children near Shimbrety

In Mekele we ate a delicious local meal before we met with the culture and tourism office. As the government has been operating without any budget or salary they have not been able to get out to see the extent of the damage themselves.  So we were able to report that three guest houses were functional and could be used while three others need substantial reconstruction. They have offered us support in getting things up and running. 

I contemplated what I had seen as I flew back to Addis, the resilience of the people, and the hope that tourism gives them for the future. It is very important that people start to come back to Tigray and visit the beautiful land, and greet its wonderful people. The wounds will take along time to heal across the whole country but connections with people from outside are important, and a feeling that some normality will return. See more details about the community treks in Tigray and please plan a trip to visit.

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The Great Lenten Fast in Ethiopia

Fried Fish - Telapia

Fried Fish – Telapia

As many will know the big fasting season in Ethiopia started this week on Monday. Fasting is appears in many religions around the world. But in the west its has lost its rigour for most people. However in the Ethiopian Orthodox church there are many fasting days through the year. In fact a strict observer of all fasts would be vegan for half the year. The longest of the fasts is Hudadi or the Abiy Tsom, as the lenten fast leading up to Easter is variously known, and the majority of followers of the Orthodox church fast these 55 days every year.

Why is it 55 days when in the western church it is 40 days?  There are specific reasons for the addition of 2 weeks to the 40 day fast that many of which people are not aware.

Medieval painting of King Eraclia

The first week of Hudadi is known as the fast of Eraclius, a Byzantine Emperor who lived in 614 A.D. During his reign the Persians invaded Jerusalem and took the Cross of the Lord. Eraclius made an expedition to Persia and having defeated the Persians he took the Cross back to Jerusalem. The Christians in Jerusalem who were very happy because of Eraclius’s victory and the return of the Cross, dedicated the first week before Lent to be the fast of Eraclius and included it in their canons. The last week of Lent is Passion Week which remembers the Apostles who fasted in commemoration of Christ’s Passion.

To the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Hudadi is a period of fasting when the faithful undergo a rigorous schedule of prayers and penitence. This fast is observed with greater rigour than any other fast and it is a test of one’s spiritual strength and resolve. Properly observed it is believed to nullify sins committed during the rest of the year.

The fast if strictly followed, is applicable to all persons older than 13 years of age
involves abstinence from:

  • meat, dairy products and eggs (and many will abstain from fish too);
  • instead, cereals and vegetables will be consumed;
  • only one meal (vegan) a day is eaten, taken in the evening or after 3:00pm (when church services end). Before that no food, drink nor even water is to be consumed;
  • starting on Good Friday to Easter Sunday (i.e. late on Saturday night), there is total abstinence nothing taken maybe eaten nor drunk.
  • on other Saturdays and Sundays during Lent, eating breakfast is allowed;
  • Daily Services are conducted in all churches from morning to 2:45pm;
  • Priests regularly attend night services starting at midnight up to 7am.

(More details can be seen here)

Fasting selection  ‘ye tsom bayenetu’ 

 

For the visitor to Ethiopia a wonderful array of fasting foods is served up on enjara – just ask for: – ‘ye tsom bayenetu’. You may also get a wonderful fried fish (probably Tilapia) ‘asseh‘.  Enjoy!

Tesfa Tours will happily recommend good fasting restaurants in Addis, and take you there as part of a city tour.

This is also a great time to travel around the country if you are vegetarian, as there will always be a veggie option. Out of the big cities vegetables maybe a bit limited, but the staples of shiro (a ground chickpea sauce) and lentil (misser). But immediately following Easter even Wednesday and Friday fasting is put to the side as many people eat meat whenever they can.

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Support for the Tesfa guesthouses in North Wollo / Recovery in Tigray

Community guesthouse at Boya, some damage

Community guesthouse at Boya, some damage

Dear friends

It has been a long time since I wrote last. In the meantime tourism has really begun to get going, and thankfully the peace in Tigray has taken root.

The peace treaty that was signed on 2nd of November in Pretoria, South Africa, has been implemented gradually over the last few months. The result is that military forces from Eritrea and Amhara region have withdrawn to border areas, Federal forces have returned to camp, Tigrayan forces have handed their heavy weapons to Federal forces and a large number seem to have been demobilised. Supplies have been getting through by road to the region, flight services to Mekele and Shire have been expanded, telecom and banking is being gradually restored across the Region.

View Enaf Community Guesthouse - Tigray

View from Enaf Community Guesthouse Tigray – as it was before the conflict

Life has been extremely hard for people living in Tigray but at least with the fighting ended it has improved. There is limited economic opportunity for people living there and it is still hard for people to make any living.  I am planning to go to visit our community guesthouses in Tigray, as soon as I can get a return flight in, to meet with the people there and our guides in the nearby towns, as well as see what remains of the structures and materials. After the trip I will see how much needs doing and start looking to find ways to support the repair work in Tigray.

In the meantime we are trying to repair the guesthouses in the area around Lalibela that got damaged in the fighting. We have started with a guesthouse at Boya -next to a lovely old church called Boya Mikael. The TPLF used this site for a camp for a time during the conflict and they took off the thatched grass from the roofs. Some doors and windows also were taken although the community managed to hide a lot of materials in the local church.  They have now repaired the roofs on their own, but still need help with doors, windows and some other materials for hosting guests.

In discussion with Taga Mariam community

A wonderful local NGO called Citizen to Citizen (Zegoch le Zegoch – ZlZ) has been working in areas where the conflict has caused damage and hardship for local communities providing seed money to help get them back and working. They meet with communities and get them to make a proposal – including what they will contribute in return for the grant. At Boya they have agreed to provide 130,000 birr (around $2,450 USD or £2,050 GBP). Tesfa Tours needs to raise this money for ZlZ in order that they can go on and fund other Tesfa communities that have similar problems with damage to guesthouses and lunch stops.

ZlZ (website under development is here) have really helped local people recover from the conflict (see the case studies on the site). They also have an Ethiopian Bank Account that can receive transfers from abroad – details of which I can share too. For more details please contact me on What’sApp – +251 921602236 or email-  mark@tesfatours.com.

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Ras Dashen – Ethiopia’s highest mountain – is open

Ras Dashen Peak © AWF Abezash Tamerat 2017

While the core area of the Simien Mountain National Park has been open for visitors for the last year now, Ras Dashen and Eastern edge of the park was closed. It is now open again and for those keen to climb Ethiopia’s highest mountain (variously measured at 4,533m and 4,543m and some times known as Ras Dejen) we can now organise treks in the park to include this peak. We can also include several of the other high peaks – including Kidus Yared 4,453 and its ridge that runs to Abba Yared (4,409)  and Silki (4,420).

A Walia Ibex beside Ginat Lobelia, from the slopes of Mnt Buahit looking across Chenek

We will also climb Buahit to the west at 4,430m.

The Simien Mountains is the best place to see Gelada Baboons up close, and the only place to see the Walia Ibex.

Gelada baboons, staring back…

You also have a good chance to see the Ethiopian Wolf and many birds of prey including the Lammergeyer.

So why not ask Tesfa Tours to put a trip together in this remarkable landscape – a world heritage site?

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Smoke in the City

Smoke in Addis - Hedar Mikael

Smoke in Addis – Hedar Mikael

Melkam Mikael – today is a special St. Michaels Day – Hedar Mikael, and today in Addis, looking out to the invisible mountains – shrouded in a smoke from thousands of bonfires you might have thought you were in Lahore or Delhi. Today is the day when householders burn their compound rubbish and with the smoke it is believed that disease and sickness is taken away.

This also marks the harvest time. Across much of the highlands grass is cut in meadows and the harvest of the wheat, barley and teff will be well underway. There are also a number of festivals in different churches: Hanna Mariam was yesterday, and the very important Tsion Mariam comes in just over a weeks

Fasting selection with Ethiopian beer

time.

With harvesting going on in the country this is a wonderful time to visit Ethiopia, and see the countryside. Why not book up a trek staying at the Tesfa community owned guesthouses?

A major fasting season will start this week on Thursday – the Advent fast – Gena Tsom, which will last for 44 days until Ethiopian Christmas on 7 January. Great news for those who love the fasting (vegan food).

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Salam Ethiopia -ሰላም

Yesterday evening (Wed 2 Nov), after two years of conflict and 10 days of peace talks, the Federal Government of Ethiopia and the TPLF agreed on a “permanent cessation of hostilities”, and a raft of measures which include an agreement to demobilise Tigrayan forces and bring food and essential services to the people of Tigray.  There is a lot still to be ironed out, and implementation and monitoring to be agreed, but silencing of the guns was the crucial first step.

We all wish for peace – Selam/ሰላም – for Ethiopia.

 

In other news the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) issued a new COVID directive on Friday which effectively ends almost all Covid 19 measures in the country, just leaving an obligation to test if symptomatic and to wear a mask or isolate. It still encourages people in critical service areas to get vaccinated, but no obligation.

For those flying into Ethiopia there is now no requirement show either vaccination certificate or test result. Ethiopian Airlines website has the details for travelers. [click on ‘Ethiopia Entry Requirement’- top right in the info box]

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