Encountering the ancestral peoples of Ethiopia

Addis Ababa was founded at the end of the 19th century, when Queen Taitu, wife of King Menelik, saw a green valley from the original royal residence at the top of Entoto hill; Addis Ababa means “New Flower” in Ethiopia’s official language, Amharic.

On landing, we immediately go to the hotel to refresh ourselves.

We will have lunch in the city and discover part of the megalopolis that is Addis Ababa: National Museum (where Lucy is) and Ethnographic Museum in the former palace of Negus Haile Selassie (now located in the heart of the university).

This morning we will drive to the Entoto Hill viewpoint overlooking Addis, where the King Menelik Museum (formerly his former palace) is located.

In order to quickly reach Northern Ethiopia and save you a full day of driving, we offer a domestic onward flight to the city of Bahir Dar, capital of the Amhara region. (ET 182, 5:30 pm > 6:30 pm) – The language spoken there is Amharigna (Amharic), the only official language of the country.

Bahir Dar has been, for some decades, the capital of the Amhara region, located on the shores of Lake Tana, which is a real inland sea.

It is a city with wide pavements locally called “African Riviera”, where it is particularly pleasant to stroll in the shade of palm trees, and we will go to its colourful daily market in the morning.

In the afternoon, a short drive will take us to the starting point of a short hike in the countryside, culminating in the Blue Nile Falls (always impressive after the end of the rainy season, from September to December inclusive).

This is an opportunity to remember that Ethiopia is the water tower of Africa, and you will have two choices for dinner: either an excellent fish restaurant on the lakeshore, or a traditional restaurant in the city centre (with traditional music and dance if the day lends itself to it).

The port of Bahir Dar is the starting point for a morning cruise on Lake Tana, to discover the very ancient monasteries hidden on the peninsula of Zeghie.

After lunch, we take the road through beautiful scenery to the beautiful imperial city of Gondar.

After centuries of roaming of the royal court between various temporary locations, King Fasilidades set the national capital at Gondar in the 17th century. Inspired by the aesthetic influence of the Portuguese father Pedro Paéz (leader of the expeditionary force that came to support the Christian army of the highlands against the Muslim invasions coming from Harar), Fasilidades built a magnificent castle there, to which his successors each added their own castle or particular building.

We will therefore visit these singular buildings, at the crossroads of Europe and Africa, as well as the Baths of Fasilidades – a major place to attend Timkat (Orthodox Epiphany) on January 19th!

Excellent lunch at the colourful restaurant “The Four Sisters”, masterfully run by these admirable women.

The Debre Birhan Selassie Church is also renowned for the quality and quantity of its wall and ceiling paintings. Between these visits, you will wander through the ancient streets of this peaceful city with its pleasant climate and welcoming people.

The Simiens National Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) offers both breathtaking views and the observation of many endemic animals (unique to Ethiopia), including the famous “bleeding heart” Geladas baboons, or the “Walia” chamois if you are lucky.

The Austrian government (an Alpine country if ever there was one) has made a major contribution to the creation and management of this national park, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, by laying out hiking trails and gathering scientific knowledge specific to the local fauna and flora, which was then passed on to the local Ethiopian guides, who are now the transmitters of knowledge.

It is an ideal breath of fresh air that you will experience on the roof of Africa.

The “civilization” is less than two hours away, at the former royal capital of Gondar, where we will sleep.

It is the “Chinese Road” that we are taking today through the magnificent Lasta countryside, a road that finally connects two major axes of the country that were separated until now, and especially the village of Lalibela with its regional capital, Bahir Dar.

Along the way we will visit the very interesting mixed egalitarian community of Awra Amba, which will make us discover their very original way of life among these peoples of a millennial tradition.

Around the 11th century, many Christians from Abyssinia went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. As this journey from Africa to the Middle East was particularly perilous (passing through the Sudanese and Egyptian deserts), King Lalibela decided to build a “Black Jerusalem”, in parallel with the schism of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church emancipating itself from that of Alexandria (Egypt). Thus was born Lalibela, a group of troglodytic churches, each with its own particular personality.

Lalibela’s complex of main churches is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is considered one of the wonders of the world. President E. Macron stopped there during his State visit in March 2019, and initiated a conservation project in collaboration with French academics. Today we will visit this group of churches, under the attentive guidance of your French-speaking guide who will show you the best details of the rocks and paintings.

This morning we are passing through the power of the Ethiopian network from the North to the South of this great country.

ET 126, 10h > 11h

ET 171, 11:45 a.m. > 12:55 p.m.

In the afternoon we visit the Omo Museum of Civilization which is particularly worth a visit and will be an excellent introduction to this particular region.

The Mursis are the best known tribe of the region, whose symbol is the labial plateau, worn only by women. It is a sign, voluntary, of beauty, and would provoke fertility and loyalty to their husbands. The Mursi men are famous for the saginé, duel in stick fighting. We will visit the Mursi in the heart of Mago National Park.

The Ari tribe is the most numerous in the region, and is among the most peaceful.

Key Afer’s weekly colourful market brings together several tribes from the region.

We will add the visit of 2 ethnic groups around according to the advice of your English speaking guide.

The Dassanetch are nomads, who are beginning to settle thanks to fishing and agriculture, and whose environment resembles the deserts of the Sahara or Kalahari. The Karo are a small tribe of barely 1,500 individuals, relatives of the more numerous Hamer. Like them, scarification (scars on the body) plays an important role in their customs, as well as the very singular female haircuts.

Turmi is a small village at the crossroads of many tribes, and one of the strongholds of the Hamer tribe, from which you may be lucky enough to see a ‘cow jump’, a male initiation ceremony for adulthood and marriage. Their painting masks are among the most elaborate. Dimeka being a Hamer stronghold, you will see many of them at the market. You will also see Banna.

The Konso are a special people, who have managed to make fertile one of the most ungrateful lands in the country. Their villages are particularly aesthetic, and they are a tribe that tends to gather together, unlike their more dispersed and nomadic neighbours. Each village has a number of sub-communities, in a very complex social stratum that your local Konso guide will explain to you perfectly, in addition to your French-speaking guide.

Arba Minch is the gateway to the Omo Valley, a beautiful city on the shores of Lake Chamo. A short cruise is planned, during which you are likely to see some crocodiles and hippos, as well as many species of birds. Lake Chamo is located in the Rift Valley, so it is a beautiful landscape.

It is now time to leave the Omo Valley for the Rift Valley, and to leave Arba Minch, to quickly visit the Dorze village and their very special roofs of houses.

We continue our gradual return to civilization, visiting a colorful market en route. In the afternoon, a small welcome boat ride is planned on the lake of the Hawassa resort, where we will see some hippos.

We have all heard about the famous Sidamo coffee plantations, where what is considered to be some of the best coffees in the world are grown.

It will be a beautiful day to meet the local growers and discover the growth of this exceptional product in a setting of unforgettable splendour.

Today, we are dedicated to the discovery of the Rift Valley lakes: the twin lakes Abijatta-Shalla, which are part of a dedicated National Park.

Short walks and water activities are on the program.

Continuation to the charming end stage of the tour.

We take our time this morning at the accommodation, with additional services according to the wishes of the travellers: massages, spa, sauna/hammam…

After lunch we take the road to the end of the tour.

Souvenir shopping – Courtesy room – Farewell dinner and show to say goodbye to Abyssinia in a very nice way.

Transfer to the airport for your international flight.