Monthly Archives: March 2007

Ethiopia Reprise: Gonder Palaces

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On March 7, I flew from Axum to Gonder to experience the Gonder palaces and to get ready for onward travel to the Simien Mountains, back to Gonder, then on to the Ethiopian-Sudan border at Metama-Gallabat.

I met a young, recently engaged Ethiopian couple from Addis on the taxi ride from the airport to the town of Gonder, alternatively spelled Gondar. We quickly agreed to spend the day sight-seeing together, so I checked in and dropped my bags off at the Belegez Pension, then rode in the taxi up to the Goha Hotel where they were staying. The Goha Hotel is probably the “best” hotel in town with wonderful panoramic views of Gonder town below.

View From Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia View From Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia View From Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia

View From Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia

After lunch at the hotel, where some delightful singing birds joined us, the fiances hemmed and hawed over whether she was well enough to go sight-seeing. We decided not to pay the taxi driver big bucks the following day, but instead to walk down to town ourselves to see the palaces and whatever else we could see. I liked the paintings at the entrance to what looked like a small cafe.

Bird at Dining Room of Goha Hotel, Gonder, Ethiopia Paintings at Small Cafe, Gonder, Ethiopia

King Fasilidas founded Gonder in 1635 and the town remained Ethiopia’s capital for 250 years. The Fasil Ghebbi, or Royal Enclosure, includes the six palaces of King Fasilidas and his descendents, as well as a Royal Archive Building and the remnants of lion cages.

Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Royal Archive, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Ethiopian Couple in Front of Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Ethiopian Friend in Front of Wooden Palace Door, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

Ethiopian Couple in Front of Egg-Shaped Tower, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia View of Jacaranda From Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Palaces, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

Fallen Roof of Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Climbing Spiral Staircase, Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

Jacaranda Blooming Near Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Palace With Spiral Staircase Tower, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Birds Kissing on Window Ledge of Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

Palace, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Fallen Gate, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia Palaces, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

Will in Front of Palaces, Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure, Gonder, Ethiopia

In our trek across the city, we came across the old outdoor stadium used for socialist-inspired gatherings during the Derg era in Ethiopia. Every Ethiopian town seems to have one or more.

Derg-Era Stadium, Gonder, Ethiopia

We also visited Fasilidas’ Pool, which is dry year-round except for the Timkat (or Epiphany) Festival each January.

Fasilidas Pool, Gonder, Ethiopia Fasilidas Pool, Gonder, Ethiopia Old Tree Roots by Fasilidas Pool, Gonder, Ethiopia

Fasilidas Pool, Gonder, Ethiopia Fasilidas Pool, Gonder, Ethiopia Fasilidas Pool, Gonder, Ethiopia

After our tour of Gonder, I return to my room at Belegez Pension. On the door of my hotel room is an AIDS prevention sticker.

Belegez Pension, Gonder, Ethiopia My Room at Belegez Pension, Gonder, Ethiopia AIDS Prevention Sticker on My Room at Belegez Pension, Gonder, Ethiopia

For one of my lunches, I ate delicious fasting food at the Habesha Restaurant across from the entrance of the Gonder palace complex. A tame goose lives inside the restaurant and eats up food scraps when the proprietor isn’t looking. I went back to the same restaurant later with a Belgian screenwriter named Eric and his son Thomas who I met at Belegez Hotel. They had just returned from a Simien Mountain trek and urged me to go, despite Eric’s knee injury during the hike to Gich.

Goose and Interior of Habesha Restaurant, Gonder, Ethiopia Interior of Habesha Restaurant, Gonder, Ethiopia Habesha Eating at Habesha Restaurant, Gonder, Ethiopia

Eric and Will, Habesha Restaurant, Gonder, Ethiopia Will and Thomas, Habesha Restaurant, Gonder, Ethiopia Habesha Restaurant, Gonder, Ethiopia

Ethiopia Reprise: Axum Museum, Trilingual Tablet, and Adwa

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Following on my March 6 visit to the Axum obelisks, I entered the Axum Museum and made an excursion to the trilingual tablet stored in a shack nearby.

In the museum, they have interesting old crosses, the second of which was found near the Church of St. Mary Zion. There were also some interesting drain gargoyles, probably of a similar period.

Cross, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Cross Found Near Church of St. Mary Zion, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Cross, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Cross, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Gargoyles, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

There are stone inscriptions in a pre-Axumite language called Sabean from the middle of the first millenium BCE.

Sabean Inscription, Middle of First Millenium BCE, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Sabean Inscription, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Interesting human figures, three-legged pots, coins, and miscellaneous other items at the museum.

Terra Cotta Human Figures, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Three-Legged Pot and Miscellaneous Items, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Amphora and Other Items, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Unknown Item, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Coins, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Figurines, Dishes, and Other Items, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Coins, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Three-Legged Pots and Miscellaneous Items, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Foot-Washing Bowl, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Human Figurines, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Unknown Item, Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

This woman was weaving and selling baskets outside the Axum Museum.

Woman Weaving Baskets Outside Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Woman Weaving Baskets Outside Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Woman Weaving Baskets Outside Axum Museum, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

And here is the Trilingual Tablet, in Ge’ez, Greek, and Sabean I think.

Trilingual Tablet, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Trilingual Tablet, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Here’s the “taxe” that brought me there (poor horsie!).

Horse Taxi in Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Horse Taxi in Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

We drove by Queen Sheeba’s bathing pool. And we saw a sign about a military leader apparently killed by the Eritreans.

Queen Sheeba's Bathing Pool, Tigrai, Ethiopia Military Leader Memorial Sign, Tigrai, Ethiopia

And there is a great sycamore fig tree in town.

Sycamore Fig, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Sycamore Fig, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Sycamore Fig, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Many Ethiopians and others visiting Axum stop by also at Adwa. In fact, the country celebrated a holiday related to Adwa on March 1 while I was traveling there. Ethiopia is the only African country to remain free of colonial rule. The Italians tried in the late 19th century and the Ethiopians defeated them at Adwa on March 1, 1896. The Italians did later occupy Ethiopia during World War II for some years, but basically Ethiopia is the only African nation that has been consistently free of colonial occupation.

I also thought about visiting the rock-hewn churches at Lallibela before heading on to Gonder on March 7, but decided that I had to move forward. Many people rank the Lallibela churches as a must-see and I’m sorry I had to miss them this time around.

Ethiopia Reprise: Axum Obelisks

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On March 6, I flew from Addis Ababa to Axum and landed safely at the Axum airport.

Axum Airport, Tirgrai, Ethiopia

A guide from the Africa Hotel was there to pick me up at the airport. After I checked in, he assured me I could wait until 1:30pm to check in at the Ethiopian Airlines office five minutes from the hotel, then go to see the obelisks, the museum, and other sites of Axum. So, I took his advice, reading email and blogging briefly at the local Internet cafe, then eating lunch with an Italian woman, born in Libya, who was designing exhibits for the new Axum museum, not yet completed. Checking in at Ethiopian Airlines for the flight to Gonder the next day, March 7, was no problem. Then, the guide brought me to the obelisks. By the way, I really would recommend seeing Axum without a guide if you can. He didn’t really help out much.

Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

The obelisk the Italians finally returned to the Ethiopians a couple of years ago rests on its side in a few parts awaiting its re-erection probably in time for the Ethiopian millenium celebrations during our September 2007.

Obelisk Portion Awaiting Re-Erection, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Obelisk Portion Awaiting Re-Erection, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

My guide, wearing his Che Guevera T-shirt, showed me an excavation site. One of the largest obelisks has tumbled to the ground. Nearby is an eight-pointed stone compass.

Guide Shows Excavation Site, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Fallen Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Fallen Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Fallen Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Fallen Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Fallen Obelisk With Eight-Pointed Compass, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Subterranean chambers apparently held a tomb of an Axumite leader. Only rarely were the backs of the Axum obelisks carved.

Subterranean Chambers, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Subterranean Chambers, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Subterranean Chambers, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Subterranean Tomb, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Obelisk With Back Carving, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Obelisks, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia
The new Axum Museum, already mostly constructed, will soon be located just behind the obelisk field and archaeologists plan to excavate the old town of Axum once residents are relocated.

New Axum Museum Behind Obelisks, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Detail of Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia Detail of Obelisk, Axum, Tigrai, Ethiopia

Axum is dominated by Ethiopian Orthodox Christian churches, including a church that reputedly has the Arc of the Covenant. The town has refused construction of a mosque for its Islamic residents.

Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Axum, Ethiopia

The next blog entry focuses on the Axum Museum and the Trilingual Tablet at Axum, both of which I also saw on March 6.

Ethiopia Reprise: Last Night in Addis

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March 5 was my last night in Addis… it was a fun night!

Lynda, Gordon, Frederick, and I met Brutawit, one of Richard’s Ethiopian sister-in-law’s, for dinner at this great place called Saba (or Sheeba, like the queen). Besides excellent traditional habesha food and conversation, the place had Wollo dancing with theater mixed in. Gordon was the first to join the dancers.

Habesha is the word Ethiopians use to refer to themselves. It literally means “mixture” as in mixture between white and black.

Gordon Dancing at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Will, Brutawit, Lynda, Gordon at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Brutawit at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Coffee Ceremony Lady at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Frederick and Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Dancers at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Painting of Ethiopian Alphabet at Saba Restaurant in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Painting at Saba Restaurant in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Paintings at Saba Restaurant in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Paintings at Saba Restaurant in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Brutawit, Lynda, Gordon at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Frederick, Lynda, Gordon at Saba Restaurant, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Almost all of us ended up dancing, forcefed in the traditional way by one of the dancers, and generally having a good time. The dinner ended with a coffee ceremony. On the ride home, Frederick gave Brutawit and I both a bar of Belgian chocolate. I arrived at Richard’s place and he and I chatted a bit more before we slept and all too early the next morning Tamir picked me up to take me to the airport for a flight to Axum.

Ethiopia Reprise: Last Day in Addis

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March 5 was my last full day in Addis, which I spent partly shopping with Lynda, Gordon, Frederick, and Tamir. Tamir brought Richard to work and me to the Hilton where I bought an air ticket to Axum and Gonder from Ethiopian Airlines. They charge ferengi a premium, so the ticket was nearly US$300 to the two destinations. After I got the tickets, I contacted Gordon and wandered around the hotel grounds until eating breakfast with Lynda and Gordon at the hotel restaurant. Tamir, being a taxi driver, was waiting in the Hilton parking lot, which was kind of a drag compared to how he traveled with us on the Bilen Lodge trip.

The first shopping was with Lynda, Gordon, and Gordon’s Ethiopian Airlines friend Frederick down from Bruxelles. We went to a leather shop where Lynda and Gordon ordered jackets.

Leather Shop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Then, we dropped Lynda back at the Hilton to start packing up their apartment. The rest of us went on to a church shop for Gordon to buy a drum to bring back to his church in Canada. The shop staff got a bit carried away and had us trying on Orthodox Ethiopion wedding gowns.

Gordon Buying Drum at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Ecclessiastical Apparel at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Tamir Drumming in Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Frederick in Marriage Gown With Umbrella at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Gordon and Employee in Marriage Gowns at Church Shop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Shop Employee and Tamir in Wedding Gowns at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Will and Shop Employee in Marriage Gowns at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Will and Shop Employee in Marriage Gowns at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Shop Employee in Wedding Gown at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Shop Employee With Cross and Guy off Street in Wedding Gowns at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Shop Employee With Cross and Guy off Street in Wedding Gowns at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Street Guy in Wedding Gown at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Street Guy in Wedding Gown at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Street Guy in Street Clothes at Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Will, Tamir, Gordon, and Frederick in Front of Church Shop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

We left the shop and I got one picture of Tamir and his taxi in front of the church shop, plus a picture of an Ethiopian Orthodox church in Addis Ababa.

Tamir and His Taxi, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Ethiopian Orthodox Church, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

My last full evening in Addis Ababa appears in the next blog entry for March 5.