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Contrary to its international image as
a land of desert and famine Ethiopia boasts extraordinary
Natural, Cultural, and Historical wealth.
» Ethiopia
provides great combinations of attracting destinations a country
with one of the richest histories on the African continent, a land
of contrast and surprises, of remote and wild places, has climate
and scenery as pleasant as that in southern Africa. Has birds and
animals as interesting as any thing in east Africa. Have tribal
groups as fascinating as any in West Africa and, Ethiopia turns out
to be a country far richer than many imagine.
Ethiopia has so much to offer visitors. |
» Historically and culturally Ethiopia
is one of the oldest Christian civilizations in the world and with
the longest archeological record of any country on earth. It is also
credited with being the original home of humanity with the discovery
of fossilized remains of hominid species, Stone Age paintings and
evidence of cereal cultivations at different archeological sights.
Ethiopia is the land of queen of Sheba, the final resting place of
the Ark of the Covenant, cradle of man kind (Lucy was discovered
here). The historic route covering the big four in the northern
circuit includes the ancient town of Axum with its carved monuments,
Christian festivals and relics; Lalibela, with its wonderful rock
hewn churches, Gondar with its palaces and castles; Bahir Dar and
Lake Tana, on the shore of the lake providing an ideal place to
explore the lake, its medieval monasteries and Blue Nile Falls; the
walled Muslim city of Harar and the railway town of Dire Dawa in the
Eastern part of the country.
» Religiously it was one of the
countries adopting Christianity and establishing good relations with
Islam in earlier time. The arrival of Christianity was a turning
point in Ethiopian history. Christianity was to have an enormous
influence on the country’s social and cultural life including its
art and literature. Currently almost half of the Ethiopian
population is orthodox Christian. Followers of Islam avoiding
persecution in Arabian Peninsula arrived in Ethiopia in the 7th C
AD. They were given good protection and hence good relations between
the two major religions continued.
» Ethiopia’s
elevated central plateau covering half of its surface area and
supporting over half of its population is the most extensive fertile
land in east Africa. The highlands have a remarkable biological
endemic species including large mammals such as Red fox, mountain Nyala, Walia Ibex, Gelada Baboons, Menelik Bush Buck. Semen Mountain
ranges is one of Africa’s largest ranges studded with at least a
dozen peaks topping 4000m mark. This includes Ras Dashen (Dejen) the
highest peak in Ethiopia and the fourth highest in Africa. Bale
mountain Ranges are peaked by mount Tullu Demtu the second highest
point in Ethiopia. The main attractions of both mountain ranges are
wild scenery, Endemic species of flora and fauna. The country has
also Deserts stretching from the base of the central plateau to the
Kenyan, Somali and the Red Sea boarder but they are sparsely
populated and have negligible impact on the life of most Ethiopians.
Most of these deserts are unlikely to be visited by tourists but
some such as The Danakil region (off the beaten track destinations)
is emerging as one of popular attraction sights in Ethiopia. The
deserts also do support many species of fauna and flora.
» The Great Rift
Valley Lakes: is home to a wealth of bird and animal and plant life.
The high rugged simien mountains in the north and the Bale Mountains
in the southeast are also home to some unique wild life and rich
flora and are ideal for trekking while some of the country’s fast
flowing rivers are becoming famous for Rafting
National Parks:
the country has nine national parks and four sanctuaries where most
of the 277 species of wild life and more than 850 species of birds
can be seen. The simien mountain national park is registered by
UNESCO as a world heritage site and is home to three of the endemic
mammals. Ras Dashen (Dejen) the highest in Ethiopia and the fourth
highest peak in Africa with an elevation of 4620 is also located
within the national park. Other national parks include Bale
Mountains, Abijatta Shala, Nechi SAR, Mago and Omo, Yangudi Rasa,
Gambella and Awash.
Ethiopia has
a unique place in Africa because
Ethiopia’s isolation- Right up until the second half of the 19th C
the country remained almost unknown to outsiders and it wasn’t until
the second half of the 20th C that visitors began to set foot here.
Ethiopia almost
the only African country to have escaped European colonialism, has
retained much of its cultural identity which has ensured:
» That its culture has remained remarkably intact, unpolluted and
undiluted by outside influence
» That the country retains its own
particular language and script, food and drink
» That it has
its own calendar (Julian calendar is still in use when the rest of
the Christian world adopted Gregorian calendar in 1582).
,clock ,churches and saints.
» Even today the attractions of
Ethiopia remain little known. Ethiopia is still being visited by the
very few. A trip here will afford the traveler a real sense of
discovery.
Ethiopia is
Africa’s best kept-secret. It is the continents Dark side of the
moon. Ethiopia is one of the best recommended and emerging
destinations of Africa
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