Lalibela, Axum, and Tigray

This past weekend, we spent four days in Lalibela, Axum, and Eastern Tigray, which are all part of the northern historical circuit and considered the root of Christianity here in Ethiopia. For the most part, Ethiopia is deeply Orthodox Christian. Women and men roam the city with white shawls covering their heads and shoulders heading to and from daily mass. Much of Ethiopian history is rooted within this context, focusing on saints and Christian dynasties. For example, Ethiopian texts state that Queen of Sheba was Ethiopian originally, not from Yemen, and traveled to Jerusalem where she had a child with King Solomon. This male descendent of King Solomon then returned to Ethiopia and ruled the country to uphold Christianity. When he returned to Ethiopia, he brought with him the Ark of the Covenant, now said to reside in Axum. None of this is supported by any western or European historical texts, but the Ethiopians are absolutely convinced that they hold the Ark of the Covenant and are the true center of Christianity. Ethiopians have a tendency to rewrite history to fit their own understanding, even when refuted by direct evidence, which can be quite amusing at times.

            To start our trip, we flew from Addis into Lalibela and headed into town. We stayed at the Asheton Hotel which was a small place recommended by one of our guidebooks. The beds were warm, the sheets were clean, and although a little dusty, the bathrooms actually functioned, so overall for $6/night, not too shabby! The hotel arranged for a guide to take us on a tour of the famous churches so that we could take in the history as well as the scenery. The churches are divided into two areas, the northern and southern groups, and we were fortunate to see pretty much see all of them. The thing that makes these churches so spectacular is that all of them were carved out of the mountains and rocks in Lalibela. Some are still connected to the original rock walls from which they were created and clearly demonstrate what an undertaking building each church was. Tunnels through the rocks connect them, and our guide said that the passageways were created so that the royal family could escape if the churches were ever attacked. We even traveled through a 30m underground stretch of pure darkness poignantly called Hell. Most of the structures were created during the Zagwe dynasty under King Lalibela whose goal was to create a new Jerusalem, or center of Christianity, in northern Ethiopia. All of the churches are named after important Ethiopian saints including St. Mary (as in mother of Christ) and St. George.  Apparently, St. George’s church was constructed after he visited Lalibela and was angry that he didn’t have a church built in his honor, so his masterpiece is a little separate from the original churches. St. George is a huge iconic figure here in Ethiopia (he even has his own beer, which happens to be one of our favorites). The story goes that a giant dragon was guarding the water supply in one village such that every time the villagers wanted water, they had to sacrifice a goat or often a maiden. One day, the dragon requested the princess be sent to him. Luckily St. George sweeped in, slayed the dragon, and rescued the princess. Due to his bravery, the villagers abandoned paganism and adopted Christianity. So a lot of religious paintings in the churches show St. George on his horse, spear through a dragon, upholding the morals of Christianity. Like I said, Ethiopians have an interesting view of history!

            In the afternoon, we were directed by our guide to a khat (pronounced “chaw-t”) house. Khat is a plant that acts as a stimulant when you chew and swallow it’s leaves. It’s the equivalent of having a large cup of strong coffee and gives you a little bit of a buzz if you eat enough. Medical students use it here when its time to study for exams and it’s a common pastime for men (think going and grabbing a drink with your friend but instead you eat leaves). So we sat in this small hut on the floor, watching Teddy Afro music videos, chewing khat and drinking Coca-Cola, while the men around us smoked shisha (flavored tobacco) out of hookahs and talked with us about America. At one point, they wanted to hear some American music and while our selection included Miley Cyrus’ Party in the USA, the theme song to the Fresh Prince of Bel Are, and 99 bottles of beer on the wall, our singing was not well received. As usual, Chris dominated his khat bag and the girls and I just nibbled on a few leaves, feeling very much like farm animals. Somehow, two hours of time passed and after Christian, Karen’s friend from college who is visiting, was propositioned by a “lady of the night” we decided it was time to head out. Overall a very interesting time in Lalibela!

Going down into the tunnels

St. George's church

St. Mary's church

         

Karen and I enjoying the khat

The next morning, we headed back to the airport to fly to Axum. There we were meeting Eddie, a recently graduated infectious disease fellow from Emory who is living with us, to see the sights. Throughout my flying experience, I have noticed that the pacemaker is not well received here. They continue to ask for “medical papers” and stare me down with such skepticism it’s unnerving. Even when I physically show them my pacemaker and scar, they continue to berate me for papers. Eventually they give in and proceed to give me a “pat down.” This pat down is unlike anything I have ever experience in the US. One of the women even put her hands in my bra and then patted me on the back and said that it was important to be safe. Um, excuse me? Seems a little aggressive considering my boarding pass is literally a piece of paper with a number written on it. When you have to go through four security checks to get to your gate, it can get a little tiring but still pretty humorous.

            When we arrived in Axum, we had five hours to tour the city before driving on to Gheralta Lodge in Eastern Tigray. After seeing Axum, five hours was plenty. The main attraction there was giant obelisks erected to represent the power of the surrounding kings. The largest obelisk standing over 300m, the largest building to be erected by manpower alone, was placed here and promptly fell over. It still lies there in ruins on the rubble of the buildings it crushed. We also saw a giant water reservoir, once natural and now preserved with concrete, that they believe was Queen of Sheba’s bath. Now the villagers use it for laundry, although it was once their drinking source. Walking along, we traveled up a mountain to view a tablet containing Sabean, Greek, and Ge’ez writings (similar to the rosetta stone) found in Axum, and some tombs built for the kings who ruled the area. There was also a nice view of the Ethiopian/Eritrea border. Eritrea used to be part of Ethiopia but formerly applied for independence in the 1970’s. It is a source of contention among the population here, resulting in the inability for Ethiopian citizens to cross the border.

            Arguable the best part of Axum was Bruce, my camel. Many of you may not know this, but ever since I left Morocco last year, I have been dying to ride a camel. Much to my delight, right outside of the park with the obelisks, there was a man offering camel rides for 50birr (about $3 US). Yes please! So, after touring around Axum, we returned to Bruce who was foaming and gurgling, slightly mimicking a rabies infection, and we hopped on. Sandy and I had a delightful ride up and down the street, looking absolutely ridiculous, getting stares from all of the locals. We may have looked like the most absurd farenji tourists, but we had a great time. After completing that life goal, we wandered off in search of lunch. It was at this time that I met Philly. Philly was a local Axum boy who decided he really wanted to be my friend. He grabbed my hand and off we went, hand-in-hand, roaming the streets. He told me he was 10years old but I’m fairly sure he was much younger, either that or he had some growth issues due to malnutrition. We went over how to count to ten, the ABC’s, and told each other we loved each other. I thought he would leave after I gave him some birr (most kids here greet you with, “Hello! Give me birr!”), but he persisted, never letting my hand leave his. He followed us all the way to lunch and then waited outside of the restaurant for me. What started off as cute was quickly becoming sad and anxiety producing. It was clear that he wanted me to buy him food, but I knew I couldn’t at the restaurant (the owners repeatedly tried to chase him off). It broke my heart and nearly brought me to tears at the table. When we left, Eddie was kind enough to buy him a donut, Philly skipped away happy, and off to Eastern Tigray we went.

The tallest obelisk in Axum that toppled over as soon as it was erected

Philly and I walking through Axum

Bruce, Sandy and I

 It took us around 3 hours by truck and the scenery was gorgeous. There were mountains and stone formations everywhere reminiscent of Arizona orBruce , and when we pulled up to Gheralta Lodge we could hardly believe our eyes. The lodge was like a nice desert resort you would find in the US with wooden floors, stonewalls, and giant windows looking out over the mountains. There were lounge chairs outside where we sat and gazed at the stars every night, praying we didn’t have to leave. The two biggest draws by far were the showers and the food. The shower was literally the best shower I have had since leaving the US and was a welcome relief after trudging through the dust all day. Additionally every night, we had a four course Italian or Ethiopian meal, which was phenomenal, as well as a full breakfast the next day. For $18/night, it was a little slice of heaven.

            The next morning we had a leisurely morning and headed out to hike the rock churches of Tigray. These churches are similar to those of Lalibela in that they are carved directly from rocks, but in Tigray, this means most are on cliff faces and at the very tops of the mountains. The first church was a good 1.5 hour, mostly up a steep incline, hike. The views were amazing and a little vertigo inducing for those of us (including myself) with height issues. We arrived upon the first church, which had two separate entrances for men and women and required us to take off our shoes to enter (as did the churches in Lalibela). Inside, the rock was painted with stories of Christ, Mary, and St. George, very similar to ones we had seen before. The church was cool and quiet and felt refreshing after our big hike. We then rounded the corner of the mountain, traveling along a narrow ledge to reach another church. This church was literally carved into the mountain face and provided incredible views of how far we had come.

The group getting ready to hike

On the border of Ethiopia and Eritrea

Chris, Sandy, Karen and I enjoying the views

Karen, Sandy and I

Eddie enjoying the view

A priest in one of the rock churches

            After lunch we drove to our final church. This hike was said to be short but technically difficult and we all were curious as to what was in store. What we got was definitely nerve rattling but spectacular. The first portion of the hike was very simple but then the priest of the church met us and instructed us to remove our shoes. From this point on we would hike without them. We started with a completely vertical face of rock that had small hand and foot holes eroded into it by constant hiking and chiseling. We had an Ethiopian guide who was behind us literally pushing us up the wall by our backsides. Of course the priest demonstrated that he could do this part with no hands as we struggled up the rock. From there we continued up vertical stints, which were slightly easier and then came upon a rock that was literally surrounding by drop offs. It was at this point that I began my love affair with the surrounding the rock and hugged them for dear life. I either remained on all fours or face planting the wall as I tried to still my beating heart. The pictures don’t do it justice, but I will say that there is no way that climbing this mountain without any equipment, as we were doing, would be allowed in the US! From the rock surrounded by abyss, we moved on to a ledge that took us to the other side of the rock face to the church entrance. This ledge was literally 1m wide before dropping dramatically into a ravine, and we shuffled along pressing our bodies against the rock wall and grabbing at the holds. Honestly, it was the most terrifying thing I have ever done. The church inside was beautiful and had been repainted in the 17^th centuries so the images were bright and colorful. As I sat in the cool church, looking out at the views, I was overcome by the beauty of it all even as I was constantly dreading the hike back. 

Climbing up the rock face

The priest climbing with no hands

Chris scaling the wall

Holy texts in the church

            On our way back, we decided to sit on the 1m ledge, take some pictures and drink in the scenery. At this point, most people were relaxed but I continued to have my back glued to the rock face, trying to force a smile. It didn’t help that the guide continued to admonish us for moving because if we went over the ledge, we would “destruct” as he liked to call it. Finally we made it down and my heart stopped racing just enough for me to realize that while terrifying, I would do it again in a second. Nothing like the adrenaline rush of pushing one’s self to the limit!

The 1m ledge leading to "destruct"

Heading down

Heading down from the rock with the abyss on either side

Enjoying the view

Eddie and I

Holding onto the tree for dear life

Group shot!

            Overall the weekend was incredible, easily the best in Ethiopia to date. I was so unaware of how beautiful this country is outside of the city and am surprised it isn’t a bigger tourist destination. There are literally no tourists here and every white person we see has been here for some time working on a project of some sort. Most are working with the hospitals or with the government to improve infrastructure. Even we consider ourselves more habesha than farenji although the locals would beg to differ. Hopefully as the country improves and advances, it can draw in more visitors who can also enjoy the wonders here that we have enjoyed so much.