We are just back from a Christmas in Ethiopia and what better way to start the new year than with an Ethiopian blog! I think it was Sam, our 28-year-old son who lives and works in Kenya, who suggested meeting up in Addis Ababa for an Ethiopian adventure. Like most people in the West, we were initially a little sceptical. Ethiopia? What delights could Ethiopia possibly offer? Isn't it a land beset with drought and poverty? A landscape of scorched plains and barren deserts? After just ten days travelling around northern Ethiopia, we can safely say that every one of our preconceptions about this extraordinary country was incinerated. Whether it's history, culture, scenery or hospitality, Ethiopians can justly claim to stand alongside any other country in the world. Here's hoping that our photos inspire a few of you to jump on a plane to Addis and experience the biggest surprise of your life.
There's no better way of seeing Ethiopia than booking a tour with an in-country operator. Every penny (or birr) you spend goes to Ethiopians living in Ethiopia. We booked with Highway Tours run by Eskinder Hailu and I can't recommend him highly enough. Efficient, enthusiastic, attentive to every detail, and a really nice guy with a passion for travel. We just told him what we wanted to see and do and he fixed the lot - meals, accommodation, transport including four very cheap internal flights, guides, entrance fees, rangers - everything. It's a tribute to his company that the only inconvenience that we experienced in ten days of third world travel was a flight delayed by an hour - something completely out of Eskinder's control.
I hope you enjoy our photo-diary - just click on the pages listed to the right. To avoid ploughing through the text, click on the photos for a slide show.
