Ethiopia 2021 Part I - Afar and Dallol — Livia Ludhova Travel and Photography

Ethiopia - Afar and Omo Valley (23/10/2021 - 15/11/2021)

After my first travel exactly two years ago in the northern part of Egypt, I decided to explore the southern Egyptian treasures. Enchanted again.

Itinerary in short (More details below and under the photos ordered by the days):

Day 1 (Oct 23): Addis Ababa

PART I: Afar region and Dallol

Day 2 (Oct 24): drive Addis Ababa to Doho Lodge near Awash NP

Day 3 (Oct 25) : Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve and drive to Semera

Day 4 (Oct 26): day trip to Asaita and Afambo Lake from Semera

Day 5 (Oct 27): drive from Semera to Dallol (sunset at Assale lake, Hamedela village)

Day 6 (Oct 28): Dallol and drive to Afrera Lake

Day 7 (Oct 29): drive from Afrera Lake to Semera, visit of Allalobad hot spring

Day 8 (Oct 30): Drive from Semera to Doho Lodge close to Awash NP

Day 9 (Oct 31): Awash NP and drive to Addis Ababa

Day 10 (Nov 1): Addis Ababa

PART II: Omo River Tribes

My guide Solayke
As many Ethiopian boys, he spent his childhood as a shepard. But the following life events were pretty exceptional, thanks to his strong will and dedication. Today Solayke is a civil engineer who travelled the whole Ethiopia, father of three children, who believes in his country, humanity, education, and peace. The best present you can give him is a book that impressed you. Actually, the best present you can give him is to come to discover his land and let him to guide you. The thing that I can strongly reccommend based on my personal experience.
Anwar “Solayke” Abdella Mohammed
`WhatsApp: +251975263597`
`Email: originlandconnection@gmail.com`
`Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/solayke.anwar`
`Instagram 1: @omo_valley_tribes_gate`
`Instagram 2:@visitdanakildepression`

Day 1: Addis Ababa

Oct 23: Arrival to Addis early morning, visit of the city: Merkato, National Museum, Trinity Cathedral and cultutal restaurant Yod Abbysinia.

Happy face at Tomoka coffee next to our Eliana hotel. We landed at 6 AM, quick shower and nothing stops me to start the adventure!

Detail of the macchiato coffee in the famous coffee shop Tamoka.

Meat breakfast in the Kertina restaurant. Raw beef meat is a local delicacy. The fatty part is is not a simple fat meat - it is praised cut from the hump of local bulls. And all meat comes with a hot chilli sauce - I am in a right place!

Another course with cooked beef and injera, Ethopian staple food made of teff "grass". We all share, eating with hands is a default.

At the end, all is crowend by this crunchy treat from goat meat.

Merkato - the biggest market in Africa, takes its name from Italians, that tried to colonize this land twice, but always failed.

Coffe, coffee, coffee. Ethiopians love it, buy it raw and normally roast it also at homes right before drinking.

You can choose from many sorts and qualities of local coffee.

Korarima, Ethiopian Cardamom or False Cardamom, is an essential ingredient of local cuisine.

Fermented fiber of the false banana tree used to make "kocho", another staple food in Ethiopia.

Herbs and medicines are sold by local women.

Donkeys are a standard mean of transport.

Donkeys are not the only mean of transport. Strong men use their shoulders too to carry unbelievable loads.

Beatiful Ethiopian dress from local cotton, all hand made.

Section of recycled metals. Nothing is thrown away in Africa.

Choosing the right incense to bring home.

In the section of fresh vegetables with local "cabbage".

Coffe in local Zema coffee shop. These coffee cups are used in the whole Ethiopia!

Locals love the smell of freshly roasted coffee that is put on the table to please the guests.

Reconstruction of Lucy, female of Australopithecus afarensis. In local language she is called "Dinkinesh", you are beautiful.

Lucy's exceptionally complete skeleton from 3.2 Ma ago was found in the Afar region in 1974. The preserved parts are shown in dark in this reconstruction.

Lucy's skeleton is the most famous piece of the National Museum. Today only the cast is shown. She was around 1,1 m tall, was able to walk on 2 legs, while loosing the ability on trees.

Detail of the cast of Lucy's skull, that is more akin to non-hominid apes than to humans.

"Ardi" - the most complete hominid skeleton belonging to Ardipithecus ramidus from 4.4 Ma ago. This female was thus about 200,000 older than Lucy. She was more used to move on the trees, while already able to walk on two feets. Ardi was found in 1994.

"Selam" - peace in local language - is a well preserved scheleton of 3 years old female from 3.3 Ma ago.

Selam was often referred to as "Lucy's child', but techincally she is about 150,000 years older.

Selams' fossilized skull and jaw with well preserved teeth.

Another skull of Australopithecus Afarensis.

Skull of Australopithecus boisei from Konso (1.4 Ma). This species was co-existing with Homo erectus.

Bodo cranium from Awash river area is 600,000 years old. Homo Bodoensis (0.6-0.2 Ma) was walking on two feets and is used now to refer to African Homo Rhodensiensis and European Homo Heidelbergensis.

One of the oldest Homo Sapiens of about 160,000 years.

Tewodros II was Emperor of Ethiopia from 1855 until his death in 1868. His rule is often placed as the beginning of modern Ethiopia that brought an end to the decentralized Zemene Mesafint

Painting of Tewodros II in the National Museum.

Menelik II, emperor in years 1886 - 1913, maintained country's independence and expanded its territory. After he defeated Italians at the Battle of Adwa in 1896, Ethiopia's independence was recognized by Italy and other countries.

Taytu Betul was Empress and the wife of Menelik II. She founded Addis Ababa, New Flower.

Hailé Selassié, tha last emperor of Ethipia in yeats 1930 to 1974.

The throne of Hailé Selassié in the National Museum.

Painting African Heritage (1967) by Afewerk Tekle, one of the most famous Ethiopian artists, in the National Museum.

Museum's 2nd floor is occupied by ethnographic exhibition.

Restaurant Lucy next to the museum is pleasant place to relax.

Super booster "Lucy" is papaya and avocado based.

Trinity Cathedral was built to commemorate the Ethiopian victory over Italian occupation and is the second most important place of orthodox worship in Ethiopia.

Priest at the door of the Trinity Cathedral.

Seats in the Trinity Cathedral are decorated with Orthodox crosses.

Another view in the interior of the Trinity Catehdral.

Emperor Haile Selassie and Empress Menen Asfaw are burried in the Trinity Cathedral.

The grounds around the cathderal are used as graveyards for those who fought against Italians.

Ending the day at the cultural restaurant Yod Abbysinia.

Interior of the Yod Abbysinia restaurant is decorated with African and Ethipian elements.

Another tomb of a famous Ethiopian on the cathedral grounds.

The most tasty and various injera we had.

Lion of Judah is a symbol of Solomonic dynasty of Ethiopia, that was started by Menelik I. He was the son of Queen of Sheba, conceived during her visit to King Solomon in Jerusalem.

Tej - honey wine - accompanies our dinner.

The dancers perform with joy in Ethiopian rhythms.

Afar dance: note Jile, type of dagger used by Afar men.

Spacious room in the Eliana hotel next to Tomoka coffee shop before the departure.

Day 2: Doho Lodge

Nov 24: drive from Addis Ababa to Doho Lodge near Awash NP

Along the eastward drive from Addis you witness how the scenery changes. Vegetation becomes sparser, climate warmer, features of younger volcanism more frequent - including spectacular cindar cones. You can observe life in small villages and towns, that will differ a lot from the first Ethiopian experinece in Addis. We sleep in the Doho lodge set on the outskirts of the Awash NP, on a hot spring lake and has marvelous pools, best enjoyed at night or early morning, when outside temperatures are cooler. Do not make our mistake, leave early from Addis and visit the Awash NP along the way ( the entrance gate before Awash town, a good hour before the lodge). We visited Awash NP on the way back (Day 9). Walk around the lodge was nice but the NP is itself is much nicer. Doho lodge is certainly not to be missed.

Ethiopian funeral: a large gathering around a self-made church.

"Tena adam"/Health for Adam herb is widely used to aromatise coffee. Commonly known as rue, Ruta graveolens has an intense smell.

"Jebena" - ethiopian coffee pots and a charcoal pot are key ingredients in many local coffee shops.

Publicity for raw-meet delicacy from the african bull and its hump.

Local butcher where you can try fresh beef.

Khat/qat plant is widely and legaly chewed in Ethiopia. It contains the alkaloid cathinone, a stimulant causing euphoria and loss of appetite.

Ethiopians are religious. There is no church around? You can build it yourself!

Many local woman carry their babies with them in this way.

You are as rich, as much cattle you can have. Cattle is a fundamental property in Ethiopia.

Taking care of the cattle is a typical job for young boys. And sometimes even girls.

Cattle scenes offer great playground for photographers.

This boy observes the intruders with cameras.

Detail of the Ethiopian bull that really differs from European cattle species.

The area east from Addis towards the Awash NP is full of cindar cones created in smaller scaler blasts of gas rich lavas.

Pumice querry in the area of the K'one volcano.

Another self-made church satisfying needs of locak people.

The level of Besaka lake increased due to not very clear reasons.

Oranges from Metehara twon are famous in whole Ethiopia.

Passing by houses with such traditional roofs.

Acacia (girar in Amharic) tree along the road.

Charcoal made of wood is sold along the roads.

The road passes above the spectacular george of the Awash river.

Sharp edges of the mountains of the rift margin formed by trap basalts.

Goats provide the basic elemnt of local food.

Entrance to the Doho lodge set on the hot spring lake.

The wooden cabins inside the Doho lodge.

Interior of the cabin is in style, some maintenance is needed to take out maximum of this exceptional location.

Hot spring pool above the natural hot-spring lake has a breathtaking setting.

Detail of vegetation around the hot spring lake.

Water is inviting, but to me too hot to be enjoyed during a hot day!

Small pool with a water jet to massage your back.

This is another set of pools on the other side of the property.

We go for a walk around the lodge, accompanied by a local elder with a machete.

African Orange-bellied Parrot (Poicephalus rufiventris), colourfull birds fly around us and are hard to photograph.

Spur-winged lapwing (Vanellus spinosus) is instead more prompt to pose.

Our guide is searching for birds and other wildlife.

Locals taking the hot spring water that they let cool and drink.

Inflorescence (group of flowers) of Caralluma acutangula. Do not try to smell it as I did, brrrr....

Round fruits of the doum palm (Hyphaene thebaica) are edible, but not in season now.

At the sunset we reached a small hill, good to pose with our local guide.

Day 3: Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Now 25: Drive from Doho Lodge to Semera

We leave from the Doho lodge before sunrise at 5:30 to visit the Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve. Potentially there are quite some animals including zebras and oryx. We have seen these, but from far away. Still, it was a nice experience and we have met from much closer other interesting animals, as you can see on photos below. We spent a very interesting time in a coffee shop in Hangito town, where we encountered first men with guns and huge Jile knifes. Without feeling in a danger. Fact that becomes nornal in the next days. After a simple but tasty lunch in Gewane, we reach the town of Semera crossing spectractular large lava fields.

People and animals live close with each other and can of course travel together!

Firts small bird of which I do not know the name, but it was quitely welcome us in the reserve.

Arabian bustard (Ardeotis arabs), a bird I did now until now, lives in this part of Africa and part of Arabia. It is quite easy to find it here.

The small carmine-blue l bird is a southern carmine bee-eater, that likes to catch insects in flight and enjoys sitting on the Arabian bustard.

We are lucky to meet from close by this couple of Egyptian golden wolf.

Soemmerring's gazelle (Nanger soemmerringii) is an elegant specie relatively easy to spot. Vast spaces, acacia tree and gazelle are a super photogenic setting.

A large volture gives this pieceful scenery another character.

Our ranger and guide from Doho lodge are trying to spot zebras .

Somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes) is abundant, but hard to see from a short distance.

Our guide Mohammed fianlly spotted zebras.

We walk in silence and we do suceed to get a glimpse of Grevy’s zebras, the largest of all zebra species.

The East African oryx (Oryx beisa) is a specie of large antelope from East Africa with straight horns.

The flat panorama with termite hills and running Somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes).

Exiting the reserve we meet the group of camels that are very important home animals of Afar people.

Coffee break in the small town of Hangito right at the exit from the reserve. Tena adam herb is a must.

Small goats re protected inside the house of the coffee owner.

This small girl can't decide if to play or to be shy.

The men in the coffee house pose for my photo. Guns do sleep.

We ask to show us a real Jile, dagger of Afar men.

Curious local girls, Pity they were in shade and I managed to make this shot only with my iPhone. Their expressions are unique.

In Hangito guns are more frequent than in other towns due to the local conflict with another nearby town.

Friendship with kalachnikov and shopping bag.

Afar region is dramatically poor. Local houses are small and round. Traditionally from natuural materials, today often covered in plastic, that probably serves as protection against wind and dust - wind whirls are very easy to develop in this region.

Observing countryside from the front seat is much of fun.

Lunch break in Gewane town. Injera, goat meat and broth, chilly paste will be our staple food here.

Large restaurant has quite a choice of local beer.

Before descending to Logiya twon the landscape changes and becomes dramatically volcanic.

Lava fields dominate the landscape all around us.

Lava field surrounds Tendaho water reservoir on the Awash river.

The road cuts through more and more dramatic landscape.

Large TIR as a small scale next to large lava blocks.

Traditional Afar house with cattle around.

Day 4: Asaita and Afambo Lake

Nov 26: day trip to Asaita and Afambo Lake from Semera

Exceptional day. We left from Semera for a day trip. Already along the way to Asaita town the views were extraordinary. Fatamorgana and scattered camels, Afa nomads, areas flooded by the Awash river alternated by extremly dry ones. Then we reach Asaita town, a historical capital of the Afar region (until 2007). Local marke, where you can buy also camels and hustle and bustle of the people that are not used to tourist. A calm afternoon on a shore of the Afambo lake at the border with Djibouti, filled by the Awash river. Among local fishermen, plentiful birds and event crocodiles.