Cristmas pictures - Lalibella / Bahir Dar / Gondar
Friday, March 11, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Bahir Dar, the not Nice effect
During our Christmas frenzy, the Herrmann +1 went to Bahir Dar. Bahir Dar is the capital of the Amhara region (where guess what, they speak Amharic) and is located at the source of the Blue Nile, on the biggest lake in Ethiopia believed to cover 3000 km2. Because of the lake, Bahir Dar is very much a beach resort with big avenues surrounded by palm trees, a bit like Nice in France (as it certainly was 50 years ago).
We were coming from Lalibella, the city of an old visionary king who decided to reproduce Jerusalem, the Abyssinian style, with its fantastic churches, its amazing culture, its magnificent hotel, the Tukul village and its lack of touristic vision, so it was a bit of a cultural choc. Bahir Dar is pretty but nothing really unique. The lake is impressive and apparently (we unfortunately missed that) hosts hundreds of small islands, each shelter to a monastery. Unfortunately, you need three hours of boat to get to the interesting ones and we had a busy schedule.
After an extremely quick stop at the Bahir Dar market, (might be a good attraction on Saturdays but weekdays, it is not worth mentioning), we headed to the Blue Nile Source, situated 5 minutes from the town center. After a small ride in a tuktuk, we arrived on a bridge where, our driver swore, the Blue Nile starts… well well… Great birds and an enormous hippos made the trip worthwhile, but for the rest! You can't stop on the bridge (policemen actually chased us up and down to make sure we were not taking any pictures, that was without counting on my cunning father and his under-the-arm technique!), you can not take pictures on/of/around the bridge, the water isn’t that pretty anyway and I did not see one crocodile!
That also make me think about revealing a secret to you. Hippos? Overrated. Yes they are very very very big animals, and birds do like to seat on their back, but they don’t do nothing! They don’t move, they don’t swim, they don’t eat, ours didn’t even bother making a noise! They are amazing at imitating rocks, but that is pretty much it. Oh, sorry, and they move their ears… great!
We then went on to see the Blue Nile Falls. They used to compete with the Victoria falls, apparently once the pride of Ethiopia, but an hydro-electric station has now been built and takes most of the water away from the falls. Once a month, they open the tap, and the falls regain their reputation as the Tis Abay (smoking water), or during rainy season it might be a bit more impressive. The walk to the falls is beautiful, a bit of real Ethiopian countryside life, and another Portuguese bridge made of ostrich eggs. However, it is clearly THE attraction and it is full of tourists and tourist spotters (birr, food, tee-shirt, shoes, football, children will ask you for anything they can think of!). But it was a nice afternoon, with a small boat trip to cross a branch of Lake Tana, which was most appreciated after the walk. The falls are pretty, not that impressive for big travellers, but still smoking!
We then went back to the hotel, the (in)famous Ghion hotel, apparently one of the older hotel in Ethiopia. Well, I say apparently, but surely the oldest hotel and they clearly haven’t done any thing to renovate it. We had the terrible rooms at the back, disgusting, horrible and stinking. Marion made us laugh by sleeping in her “meat bag”, protecting her from any contact with the room and Ben bravely thought for 2 seconds about taking a shower but gave up when he saw the grey/wet towels!
So here is my recommendation for you future abyssinian travelers, don’t loose too much time in Bahir Dar and definitely don’t go to the Ghion! You might want to stop by to see the monasteries on the lake, but a day is enough.
We were coming from Lalibella, the city of an old visionary king who decided to reproduce Jerusalem, the Abyssinian style, with its fantastic churches, its amazing culture, its magnificent hotel, the Tukul village and its lack of touristic vision, so it was a bit of a cultural choc. Bahir Dar is pretty but nothing really unique. The lake is impressive and apparently (we unfortunately missed that) hosts hundreds of small islands, each shelter to a monastery. Unfortunately, you need three hours of boat to get to the interesting ones and we had a busy schedule.
After an extremely quick stop at the Bahir Dar market, (might be a good attraction on Saturdays but weekdays, it is not worth mentioning), we headed to the Blue Nile Source, situated 5 minutes from the town center. After a small ride in a tuktuk, we arrived on a bridge where, our driver swore, the Blue Nile starts… well well… Great birds and an enormous hippos made the trip worthwhile, but for the rest! You can't stop on the bridge (policemen actually chased us up and down to make sure we were not taking any pictures, that was without counting on my cunning father and his under-the-arm technique!), you can not take pictures on/of/around the bridge, the water isn’t that pretty anyway and I did not see one crocodile!
That also make me think about revealing a secret to you. Hippos? Overrated. Yes they are very very very big animals, and birds do like to seat on their back, but they don’t do nothing! They don’t move, they don’t swim, they don’t eat, ours didn’t even bother making a noise! They are amazing at imitating rocks, but that is pretty much it. Oh, sorry, and they move their ears… great!
We then went on to see the Blue Nile Falls. They used to compete with the Victoria falls, apparently once the pride of Ethiopia, but an hydro-electric station has now been built and takes most of the water away from the falls. Once a month, they open the tap, and the falls regain their reputation as the Tis Abay (smoking water), or during rainy season it might be a bit more impressive. The walk to the falls is beautiful, a bit of real Ethiopian countryside life, and another Portuguese bridge made of ostrich eggs. However, it is clearly THE attraction and it is full of tourists and tourist spotters (birr, food, tee-shirt, shoes, football, children will ask you for anything they can think of!). But it was a nice afternoon, with a small boat trip to cross a branch of Lake Tana, which was most appreciated after the walk. The falls are pretty, not that impressive for big travellers, but still smoking!
We then went back to the hotel, the (in)famous Ghion hotel, apparently one of the older hotel in Ethiopia. Well, I say apparently, but surely the oldest hotel and they clearly haven’t done any thing to renovate it. We had the terrible rooms at the back, disgusting, horrible and stinking. Marion made us laugh by sleeping in her “meat bag”, protecting her from any contact with the room and Ben bravely thought for 2 seconds about taking a shower but gave up when he saw the grey/wet towels!
So here is my recommendation for you future abyssinian travelers, don’t loose too much time in Bahir Dar and definitely don’t go to the Ghion! You might want to stop by to see the monasteries on the lake, but a day is enough.
Lesson learnt the hard way...
You know how sometimes, you take things for granted, especially in the 21st century and regarding technology. Example, broadband. A fast internet may appear to be a basic human right but, in some countries such as Ethiopia, dial up is still the main source for internet, giving you a slow, very slow, way to slow access to the web.
Well, I had a similar experience with a lift. Lifts, to be operating, need electricity. So when you live in a country which suffers frequently of power cut, and you work in building without a generator, use your legs and walk the stairs or be stranded in the elevator for an indefinite amount of time!
Well, I had a similar experience with a lift. Lifts, to be operating, need electricity. So when you live in a country which suffers frequently of power cut, and you work in building without a generator, use your legs and walk the stairs or be stranded in the elevator for an indefinite amount of time!
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Harar, the wild things…
My parents, Abel and I went to Harar just after New Year for our last trip together. It took us 9 hours ½ by car to reach our destination. And let me tell you, 9 hours ½ of beautiful scenery, going from t’eff fields to coffee plantations, from flat plains to the ridge of a mountain, is still 9 hours ½ in a very small space, and even worse for me, a small space in motion.
We had been driving in the dark for 45 minutes when we reached our destination. You know when Borringer says, a town at night is beautiful, well, he surely is not talking about Ethiopian’s city. Because, a town by night, in Ethiopia is… pitch black when there is a power cut. So, the arrival was certainly adventurous, we could not see a thing, and finding our hotel was a crusade. We did finally get there to discover that hotel in Ethiopia are all the same, whatever standards they claim to have: ugly and dirty.
In the morning, we met with our “French speaking” guide (still not sure what language she was speaking) and started our adventure in Harar. The old city is a little jewel. Built as a Medina in the 8th – 9th century, Harar is home to 110 mosques and around 150 shrines. It is a maze of small streets, all paved, with white traditional Harar houses and green mosques. Most streets are completely empty, except for the ones which host a market. These are full of people wearing very bright colors buying hundreds of spices, pots, cloths etc… There really is a buzz to this town and it is beautiful.
Harar is famous for its coffee (I will let my dad comment on that) and ch’at production. Ch’at is a leave that people chew to get high. It is legal in Ethiopia, Somalia and the region, but also in the UK. Someone would need to chew it for 6 hours before to see the “benefit” of this drug. It is apparently energizing and keeps you awake. From what we saw, it is more mind-numbing than anything else. Most people have green lips and teeth and can’t focus any more. They are lying on the ground, chewing and smiling. When I asked Abel if he would ever try Ch’at he answered me with disgust that he was no sheep, so no, he was not going to chew on leaves for hours. I think he did not have much respect for the chewer, as he tried to take his picture with the most ridiculous ones. When Ethiopia wonders why its economy is not growing faster, I think one of the reasons laid in front of our eyes during this trip: ch’at kills entrepreneurs, kills businesses, kills employees and definitely kills brain cells.
Harar is also famous for being home to Arthur Rimbaud. We visited his museum to learn his incapability as a business man. Ah, realizing you are a genius to young is definitely bad for your health (look how he finished), I am glad I haven’t found yet what I am really good at (contract law does not count).
Finally, Harar is unique for its hyenas feeding spots. The tradition started not that long ago, but it is very popular. You have to understand that hyenas in Ethiopia are dreaded animals. They kill children in every city and decimate life stock. Two men feed hyenas on a daily basis in Harar. They come 15 kilometers for a bit of fresh meet, you can hear their laugh from miles. So, we went to feed the hyenas. The parents weren’t that impressed, but I am sure they were playing cool. Abel and I were subjugated. We had to brace ourselves to get in the queue to feed the wilds. You feed them from a stick around 15 centimeters that you can hold in your hand, or for the bravest, in your mouth. I did the hand, and then, the show man fed them next to my ear!!! I very courageously closed my eyes and just focused on the noise and the smell… enough adventure for the month!
We had been driving in the dark for 45 minutes when we reached our destination. You know when Borringer says, a town at night is beautiful, well, he surely is not talking about Ethiopian’s city. Because, a town by night, in Ethiopia is… pitch black when there is a power cut. So, the arrival was certainly adventurous, we could not see a thing, and finding our hotel was a crusade. We did finally get there to discover that hotel in Ethiopia are all the same, whatever standards they claim to have: ugly and dirty.
In the morning, we met with our “French speaking” guide (still not sure what language she was speaking) and started our adventure in Harar. The old city is a little jewel. Built as a Medina in the 8th – 9th century, Harar is home to 110 mosques and around 150 shrines. It is a maze of small streets, all paved, with white traditional Harar houses and green mosques. Most streets are completely empty, except for the ones which host a market. These are full of people wearing very bright colors buying hundreds of spices, pots, cloths etc… There really is a buzz to this town and it is beautiful.
Harar is famous for its coffee (I will let my dad comment on that) and ch’at production. Ch’at is a leave that people chew to get high. It is legal in Ethiopia, Somalia and the region, but also in the UK. Someone would need to chew it for 6 hours before to see the “benefit” of this drug. It is apparently energizing and keeps you awake. From what we saw, it is more mind-numbing than anything else. Most people have green lips and teeth and can’t focus any more. They are lying on the ground, chewing and smiling. When I asked Abel if he would ever try Ch’at he answered me with disgust that he was no sheep, so no, he was not going to chew on leaves for hours. I think he did not have much respect for the chewer, as he tried to take his picture with the most ridiculous ones. When Ethiopia wonders why its economy is not growing faster, I think one of the reasons laid in front of our eyes during this trip: ch’at kills entrepreneurs, kills businesses, kills employees and definitely kills brain cells.
Harar is also famous for being home to Arthur Rimbaud. We visited his museum to learn his incapability as a business man. Ah, realizing you are a genius to young is definitely bad for your health (look how he finished), I am glad I haven’t found yet what I am really good at (contract law does not count).
Finally, Harar is unique for its hyenas feeding spots. The tradition started not that long ago, but it is very popular. You have to understand that hyenas in Ethiopia are dreaded animals. They kill children in every city and decimate life stock. Two men feed hyenas on a daily basis in Harar. They come 15 kilometers for a bit of fresh meet, you can hear their laugh from miles. So, we went to feed the hyenas. The parents weren’t that impressed, but I am sure they were playing cool. Abel and I were subjugated. We had to brace ourselves to get in the queue to feed the wilds. You feed them from a stick around 15 centimeters that you can hold in your hand, or for the bravest, in your mouth. I did the hand, and then, the show man fed them next to my ear!!! I very courageously closed my eyes and just focused on the noise and the smell… enough adventure for the month!
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