One more day in Addis – for medical reasons

At the end of the trip my stomak caused some troubles. When I was sitting in the plane for back home I felt so bad that the captain decided to load me off and put me in a hospital. 

Well that was a crazy strory. To make a long story short: Driving around Addis for 2.5 hours to find a hospital, paying before getting any treatment, not understanding the doctor allthough he spoke english. 

Well the clinic was very tiny and there was one doctor. He was very friendly and could help me as he knew instantly what to do. But I saw the cockroach more often than him. After the treatment of a couple of hours I left to rebook my flight. Another long story....

Getting around in Ethiopia

nice dash - I love this aircraft

As you know the country is 3 times the size of France I would suggest to make a plan before you go. I would suggest to travel with an escorted tour. Not because of safety reasons. The ethiopians are so friendly. A tour guide and a driver will bring you to the places you have to see and you have enough time to see the landscape during travelling.

what a mess

I did not see any busses. There is a train runnig to Dschibuti. So travel by plane and minibusses with a guide. In the Simien Mountains you need a guide with a gun at least against the animals. 

Ethiopias cuisine

I am not a food porn guy. I would rather eat the food than taking tousands of pictures. But for this time I share:-) 

Gored Gored 

The kitchen is very rich in spices. It is not hot at all. A typical dish is a flatbread covered with veggies, some meat (they do eat meat but not a lot) and different sauces. You break the bread and pick some veggies with it. It is very tasty.

Another typical dish is flatbread with raw meat Gored Gored. This was so good!

I can recomend the ethiopian beer and some people of my group recomend the local vine.  

Gonder – the gate to the wilderness

my scottish impression - palace of Fasilides

This is actually my favorite city so far. With more than half a million inhabitants it is quite huge to me. The landscape is more green. They are building the 52^th University of the country here in Gonder and the airport you are allowed to smoke in the restaurant. 

Our guide took us to the Palace of Fasilides the founder of the city. With the rain and the clouds it reminded me of Scottland.

Dschellada

On a hill nearby the center there is the trinitiy church. I am not a religous person but this church is just beautiful. Paintings cover not only the walls but also the ceiling. The legend tells that when the muslims wanted to take the city they climbed up the hill and wanted to destroy the church. As the church had his own natural gardians the muslims had to ran away very fast. Bees were living there and stung the conquerors. They did not only leave the church but also the city.

what would you see with nice weather?

Gonder's nightlife is very interesting too. The clubs are in garages not much bigger than 50 square meters. The music is very loud and the barkeepers are always smiling.

From Gonder it is only a day excursion to the Simien National Park. This is not only the home of the Dscheladas (monkeys) the ethiopian wolf and the walia (capricorn) it is also very famous for its mountains. Sadly during the rain season there are to many clouds and fog to take this beauty home. So I have to go again to take the pictures and to go for a trekking.

Lalibela – the cultural capital of Ethiopia

The life in this dry region north of Addis is completely different. Rocks and stones every where. You will realise that water is a precious good! So it is not very interesting to travel in this region you might think. But you have to go there I can tell you. 

the famous rock-hewn church - bet giyorgis

The churches of Lalibela are unesco world heritage and were built in 12/13 century. For us tourists the churches and the landscape merge to a beautiful scene but for the most visitors it is a pilgrimage. The entrance fee is very high (I think we paid 50$ including guide for a 4h tour to all churches.) You will never forget this incredible place.  

shoes stay outside

Addis Abbeba – Ethiopias Capital

Ethiopias capital city lies in a valley on round 2000m above sea level. From the hills around you have a nice view on the huge city. To tell you the truth I did not like the city very much. It is noisy, dirty and there are too many people. There are constructions every where. Tramways just have been finished, houses and roads are been built. But still there are lots of ruins.

There are a couple of nice museums such as the ethno museum which is the home of Lucy the first human being kind of. The university has a lush garden and there is as well a the history museum based.

Just around the corner there is Lucy again. But this time it is the name of a delicious restaurant.

The trinity church is a must see of Addis. The ethiopians are very religious so the church will always be full. When we were visiting the people were singing – it was so beautiful to hear.

Most of the tourists enter the country here in Addis international airport. As most of the flights arrive late at night or early in the morning it is very likely that you will stay for a couple of nights in the capital. I suggest two nights to explore the city.