Blessed base, Bahirdar! Ethiopian Journey, Blog Post No – 56.

Ethiopians just like any other country’s people are curious  about foreigners.  When we were in Addis Ababa “where are you going to work?” was  the  most  frequent query. When I  said “Bahirdar”, there would be glances of respect and of envy. They would say “You are lucky, enjoy yourselves”. 

I was puzzled, at that time.  But within fifteen days of reaching Bahirdar, I realized that they were bang on, correct. Bahirdar has many things going in its favour as an excellent place to visit and to stay.  Bahirdar is the capital of the Amhara region and Amharas are the traditional rulers of Ethiopia. The official language Amharic comes from the language spoken by the Amharas. 

Bahirdar or “by the side of the sea” is the place where Lake Tana is situated. Lake Tana is the source of the Blue Nile river and is the largest lake in Ethiopia. Located in Amhara region in the north-western Ethiopian highlands, lake Tana is approximately 84 kilometres long and 66 kilometres wide, with a maximum depth of 15 meters, and is at an elevation of 1,788 meters. Lake Tana is fed by the Lesser Abay, Reb and Gumara rivers. Its surface area ranges from 3,000 to 3,500 km², depending on season and rainfall. There are around 37-40 islands in Lake Tana an around 20 of them have island monasteries. 

Bahirdar sits right close to Axum (528 kilometres), Gondar (174 kilometres) the Lalibela, (314 Kilometres), the rock hewn churches of Lalibela are considered to be the 8th wonder of the world) and is very close to the Simien mountains. Bahirdar is right on the holy trail. 

Axum or Aksum is a city in the northern part of Ethiopia. Axum is The original capital of the Kingdom of Aksum and it is one of the oldest continuously inhabited places in Africa. In 1980, UNESCO added Axum's archaeological sites to its list of world Heritage sites due to their historic value. The obelisks of Axum are world famous. 

Axum is also supposed to be the place where the ark of the covenant is presently located. The ark of the covenant is the ark where the original ten commandments have supposed to be housed. The ark of covenant is supposed to be at St. Mary of Zion Church.  The Ark is guarded by a select group of celibate Monks. Axum is located 528 kilometres from Bahirdar. 

Gondar or Gonder is a city Located in the Semien of the Amhara region. Gondar is on the north of Lake Tana on the Lesser Angereb river and southwest of the Simien Mountains. It is at an elevation of 2133 meters above sea level. Gondar served as a strong Christian kingdom for many years.

Gondar had previously served as the capital of the Ethiopian Empire. The city holds the remains of several royal castles, including those in Fasil Ghebbi (the Royal Enclosure), for which Gondar has been called the "Camelot of Africa". Fasil Ghebbi is also a UNESCO world heritage.  

The Simien Mountains in northern part of Ethiopia north east of Gondar in Amhara region, are part of the Ethiopian Highlands. They are a UNESCO world heritage site. The mountains consist of plateaus separated by valleys and rising to pinnacles. The tallest peak is Ras Dejen is at 4,550 metres. Other notable mountains include Mount Biuat at 4,437 metres and Kidis Yared at 4,453 metres.

Because of their geological origins, the mountains are unique. They are admiringly called God’s own chess pieces on earth. The mountains uncannily look like giant chess pieces and as the mountains are always clothed in mysterious mists and clouds, it looks as if the chess pieces are floating and it looks as if the gods are actually indulging in a serious game of chess amongst themselves.  Notable animals in the mountains include the Walia Ibex, Gelada or the weeping baboon and the Caracal, and the Simien fox. 

Lalibela is a town in Amhara region in the northern Ethiopia and is famous for monolithic rock hewn (cut) churches. Lalibela offers an exceptional testimony to the medieval and post-medieval civilization of Ethiopia. Lalibela is one of Ethiopia's holiest cities and a centre of Pilgrimage. Lalibela is at 2,500 meters above sea level. The Rock-Hewn Churches of Lalibela were declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1978.

This is one of the reason why local Ethiopians considered my posting as lucky. Lalibela is the most holy place for the Ethiopian Christians just as Mecca is for the Muslims and Tirupati is for the Hindus. 

Ethiopia was one of the earliest nations to adopt Christianity in the first half of the fourth century. The churches themselves date from the seventh to thirteenth centuries, and are traditionally dated to the reign of the Zagwe dynasty’s king Gebre Mesqel Lalibela.

So 4 out of 9 world heritage sites in Ethiopia are very close to Bahirdar. I made up my mind to visit them all. I wold not get another chance to see so many world heritage centres at one go! 

Right from our childhood we always have heard the word Nile, in great awe. Nile is the longest river in the world. Egypt which boasts of having one of the most ancient civilizations in the world is called the Gift of the Nile. If there is not Nile River there is no Egypt. And we are staying at the starting point of the Nile River! 

The island monasteries are very old and seeped in history. World over antiques and artefacts are kept at centrally guarded museums which are very convenient to visit. But Uniquely in Ethiopia the island monasteries are maintained in the same way as they have been maintained for hundreds of years. 

The monasteries are humble but house remarkable bibles, crosses and many leather parchments and other religious items of immense religious and cultural value. A monk was once asked “You have so many valuable articles in these monasteries, are you not scared of thieves, who is/are the guard/s?” The priest gave a withering look, softened his furrow, smiled gently and said “why should we worry, GOD is our GUARD”.