The Fasil Ghebbi compound in Gondar

The Egg Building in the Fasil Ghebbi compound Gondar

We are on a Christian pilgrimage to Ethiopia with McCabe Pilgrimages. To quote from their website, "as pilgrims, we travel to discover more about our world, the peoples who inhabit it and the faith which shapes our understanding of life."

the fireplace separating male and female rooms and note
the holes for horns to hang meat

In Ethiopia, we are discovering more about the largest Oriental Orthodox church in the world today… and as with all McCabe pilgrimages, we try to engage with the local Christian community and return home with fresh insights into our own faith, enriched by all that we have experienced as we journey together.

one of the lions' cages

We are nearing the end of our visit to this fabulous country, and have already enjoyed many extraordinary experiences. But we still look forward to much more. Today, after visiting Debre Birhan Selassie (or Mountain of the Enlightened Trinity) we visit the Royal Enclosure or Fasil Ghebbi compound in Gondar, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1979, enclosing six castles and related buildings over an area of 70,000 square metres in the heart of the city. This is a great fortress-city, residence of its founder the Ethiopian emperor Fasilides and his successors.

The Emperor was tired of the pattern of migration that had characterised the lifestyle of so many of his forefathers, so he moved his capital here in 1636 AD. It is a photographer and tourist paradise, with great historical significance, as well as a place where locals also like to come to stroll and relax in a green haven of peace away from the city bustle and noise just the other side of its high stone walls.

The locals call the first castle we come to the Egg Building, because of the domed tops of its watchtowers. Inside the main hall is split into two, segregating the men and the women, sharing only a fireplace built into the wall between the two rooms. We are shown holes in the wall where meat was hung on horns because metal hooks would spoil the flavour. These horns are also seen in the Turkish Baths on the site, in this case used to hang clothes.

horn hooks for clothes in the Turkish Baths

Three of the castles are interconnected by trenches. We see the so called Window of Love, where the Emperor and his wife would apparently like to sit enjoying the pleasant view to the bridge and the people going about their business outside the castle.

A beehive high up in a tree is wrapped in savannah grass to protect it from the rain. Honey is introduced to attract bees and there can be as many as four harvests in one year if conditions are favourable.

the Mentewab Castle

We also see the old lion cages - where the poor beasts were kept until as recently as the 1960s - some guidebooks say the 1990s - to entertain the residents of the castles and their guests. There are stables and a stable yard to accommodate the horses of guests as well, and a banquet hall.

The sixth and last castle we visit was the only one commissioned by a female, Empress Mentewab, acting as regent for her young son, Iyasu II. It is the most impressive and well preserved of them all, decorated on the outside with Gondarine crosses. We can only view from outside the gates - we are not allowed near. 

entrance to the King's Baths

the channel to fill the King's Baths

We drive back through the town towards the King's Baths, also attributed to the same Emperor, and the site we are told of one of the best Epiphany festivals of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Here 10,000 or more pilgrims will gather annually and the huge reservoir is filled up from the local river for this occasion. It takes a month to fill. The Ark of the Covenant is brought from the local church in procession and the water is blessed. Everyone will try to be sprinkled with this Holy water, and many will swim in the water as well. There is song, dance, and a great mixture of religious and secular activity. Having experienced the recent festival in Lalibela we can well imagine what an incredible sight this must be. Scaffolding is erected at the far end of the bath for tourists - everyone else has to join the milling crowds, no doubt many climbing any available trees for better views of the activities. Johannes tells us that this festival of Epiphany is also a traditional time for dating. Boys would buy lemons and throw them at the girl of their fancy. If she picks it up he knows he is in with a chance. Nowadays, he says, they expect Apple iPods!!

the King's Baths

It's been a full day 
and tiring. 
But we somehow find the energy at the Four Sisters restaurant to join in the dancing around the tables with the curious shoulder, neck and arm movements - even somehow employing bosoms and hips - which seem quite unique to Ethiopia. The dancers display incredible energy and flexibility which we cannot hope to achieve so soon in our stay - although some of us have a reasonable attempt in a day or so in a night club in Bahir Dar! Dancing and entertainment is good enough reason to come to this restaurant if you are in Gondar, but the food is also fabulous - many different traditional Ethiopian dishes, alongside some more westernised offerings, all very well labelled and very veggie friendly - and as much as you can eat - come and come again style. It was a very good evening out, a great way to unwind and relax after what have been some very full days.

The sun sets over Mayleko Lodge. Tomorrow is Sunday and we will return to the church we saw today to experience a service Ethiopian Orthodox style…

Feast Day in Lalibela at Na'akuto La'ab

all the white clad pilgrims on the road on way to church

This was the most unusual day of the whole trip - something none of us had ever experienced before. And what an experience it was. Friday 13th November 2015 - (3 Hadar 2008 in the Ethiopian calendar) the third Ethiopian day of the third Ethiopian month and an important feast day for the Orthodox Christian community in Lalibela, so 

we change our itinerary in order that we can absorb for ourselves this extraordinary spiritual event.

the church inside the cave we are making our way to

I wrote in my diary for the day:

Overwhelming, spiritually, physically and mentally.

Frightening - the crush of people - tiny children in among it all - the policeman who looked after our shoes for us - the guns, batons and high security around the church entrance.

the crush on the path down to the
church

Ululating, the long high pitched and wavering sound, almost trilling, that comes out of the mouths of the priests and people. We heard it here in the church, from the priests, as they swayed in unison in a curious spiritual dance, and we would wake up later in the trip in the very early hours of the morning to hear the same sound as people made their way in the early dawn to a local church above our hotel in Gondar. Somehow or other the tongue and uvula together can create this sound. I wonder how long it takes to learn the technique? It is very much a feature of worship in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church.

resting on way to church - in background

Then there was the rhythmic music of the drums and the sistrum, shaken vigorously by the cantors as they danced, and the tall prayer sticks often used to keep that rhythm.

In fact all the emotions felt thoroughly assaulted by the end of our experience….

So much so that many of us felt very much in need of a strong coffee and a quiet place!   

pilgrims climb back from church in right
background

But I'm getting ahead of myself. As we drive from our hotel to the little cave church of Na'akuto La'ab about 6km south of Lalibela towards the airport, we are at once struck by the columns of people, nearly all dressed in their white gabbi or shama, the white cloths worn toga like by men and women respectively (Netela are similar but have brightly embroidered borders). All these men, women and children are streaming along the road as far as the eye can see, coming from every direction, all making their way towards the church, giving the appearance of a long white slow moving snake hugging the curves of the road into the distance. It is a 90 minute walk for them from Lalibela along the tarmac road. Many take short cuts across the countryside along what appear to be well worn pathways. Along the way we stop to buy candles from one of the many vendors plying their wares. We buy ours from a boy who is visually impaired, chosen by our guide, and it is good to support him in this small way.

taking time out by the side of the path

The little church we are making our way towards was built by Na'akuto La'ab, the nephew of King Lalibela and his successor, although as with many sites in Ethiopia there seem to be several conflicting traditions around his reign and the foundation of the church which bears his name. 

inside the cave, outside the church

The coach turns off the main road and we bump along for a short while on a rough track before disembarking to walk the rest of the way to the church. As we make our way down the rough track along the cliff edge we are jostled from all directions, and this is the only time on the whole trip when we are warned to keep valuables close to us. People all around us are going in our direction, but there are just as many coming back up the path, and there is no lane discipline! The services here carry on for a long time and people come and go as they please, it seems. Some simply go to receive a blessing. We are given dust - it may be charcoal - to mark a cross on our foreheads, reminiscent of our own Ash Wednesday service - "dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return" - this tradition originated in Old Testament times and ashes then as now symbolise mourning, mortality and penance. 

note man in orange - priest - holding
prayer staff

Somehow we all arrive through the crowds at the mouth of the cave and manage to fight our way inside! It's a struggle and somewhat frightening but we stay inside long enough to experience the ululating, the dance and the music. But very soon we are glad to force our way back out side away from the crush which was actually alarming for some of us who are not so tall. As I left, carefully sidestepping around a lady sitting on the floor, totally hidden from most of us in the heaving mass of the crowd, I was astonished to see she had a very small child hugging close in to the folds of her garment. I feel very sure that there must be some injuries in such a crush but we survived intact!

villagers gather at top of path to church

And we marvelled at the shoes strewn everywhere along the path to be found again after coming out of the church. We have to assume that as long as the men, women and children all find a pair that fit and perhaps are the right colour they are broadly happy. The shoes are mostly plastic flip flops or plastic sandals, mostly brightly coloured. There is no way they could hope to find the exact pair they started the day off with!!

A few links to further information:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/africaandindianocean/ethiopia/11512559/Ethiopia-holy-days-and-highland-rock-churches.html

http://www.lalibela-eco-trekking.com/festival-event/index.html

http://onegreenstone.com/ethiopian-festivals/

Axum - home of the Ark of the Covenant

South Stelae Field Axum

off to church - Axum

Axum - or Aksum - is at the very heart of Ethiopian history. Home to the Aksumite empire with a ruling dynasty allegedly descended from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba - spiritual home of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and home, it is said, of the Ark of the Covenant  - kept closely guarded in the Chapel of the Tablet in the compound of Maryam Tsion (St Mary of Zion church - the Old Cathedral - site of Ethiopia's first church - built on site of a former pagan shrine- and access denied to women - see also below).
Axum is therefore a very old and a very holy city, not immediately apparent as we approached last night in the dark wanting only our hotel, a meal, a drink and a rest.

Street scene Axum

In the mausoleum South Stelae Field

Detail of Remhae's Obelisk

For a start it has the tallest stelae or obelisks dating back to the third and fourth centuries, made of sandstone out of single blocks and curiously carved. What were they for? Probably they marked royal graves. Unique multi storey tower constructions with realistic carved doors and windows could represent their royal palaces or their "symbolic stairway to heaven."? How on earth were they erected into position? Probably by elephants, it is usually thought nowadays. In the South Stelae Park we saw:

Remhai's obelisk - the largest at 33 metres - shattered into five blocks across the ground - some say as it was erected. In total it weighs 520 tonnes. Who knows what skeletons may lie beneath?! Note the carved windows and door at the base.

Tomb of the False Door

Ezana's Stele is 23 metres tall with nine storeys of windows with a door at the base.

Inside the new cathedral Axum

The Roman Stele was taken in bits to Rome in the Italian occupation and was returned back to Axum in 2005. It has to be supported by a very ugly contraption.

Then there was the Tomb of the False Door - where we see blocks held together with metal clamps - and can appreciate the advanced skills of the original engineers.

And the ten funerary chambers off each side of a dark corridor in the underground Mausoleum

Chapel of the Tablet

First we had been to the Mai Shum reservoir - Bath of the Queen of Sheba - a water storage cistern of unknown age - but probably dating back at least to the seventeenth century - used still as a main water supply for the city -

Women going down to collect water at the Bath of
the Queen of Sheba

Funerary chamber within the Mausoleum

and a free swimming pool for all the local children - but of especial significance at the celebration of the Ethiopian Orthodox Epiphany or Timquat - when the replica Arks of the Covenant from all the local churches are taken in procession to Abuna Aregawi church south of the reservoir. The day after, at the Baptism of Christ, the spring water nearby is sprinkled over the people. Some of these nearby springs are said to have healing properties and have been visited for this purpose by Christians and Muslims alike for a very long time.

Then there is the Ark of the Covenant itself said to be in the Chapel of the Tablet in the cathedral compound across the road from the stelae field. In the same compound are two cathedrals - women are not allowed in the first so we all visit the second more modern one, built in the 1960s by the emperor Haile Selassie who opened it jointly with HM Queen Elizabeth.

We also went in the small Museum in the church compound near the Chapel of the Tablet - we have to leave all belongings in lockers outside the door and really didn't have enough time to examine all the artefacts, including ancient crowns, crosses and other church relics. I could have stayed a little longer than the allocated half hour. But don't confuse this with the Axum Museum near the South Stelae Park which it would seem is a must visit to really fully explain the stelae, but sadly we had no time for it. I did however buy a superb book on Axum - published by Arada Books -A Comprehensive Guide to Aksum and Yeha which I would suggest is a must for anyone who wishes to really make the most of their visit to this incredibly important historical city.

Panoramic view inside the New Cathedral Axum

Scene of Axum from south stelae Field towards 

There are many more sites to visit in Aksum but time presses on and we have to catch our flight to Lalibela - the first turbo-prop I have flown in for many years. Every day brings new and even more amazing experiences - the rock hewn churches of Lalibela we are soon to see are incredible…

Ethiopia - Abraha we Atsbeha rock hewn church

locals gathered after worship in traditional
white robes as we approached Abraha we Atsbeha

You have to remember with these rock hewn churches that they are quite literally carved out of the sandstone rock in the cliff faces where they nestle - and it is difficult to imagine the extraordinary skills required of the craftsmen. Why did they do it? Where did they start? How did they choose the sites? What happened to all the rock literally chiselled and hacked out from the inside of the rocks, leaving just the arches and columns and cupolas and sometimes beautifully detailed crosses and other carvings on walls and ceilings?

Abraha we Atsbeha entrance to the courtyard

 And these are not dead and boring artefacts of a bygone age. They are living spiritual homes for hundreds and hundreds of devout worshippers who walk, often many miles, to attend services, as their forefathers have done since the churches were built, most at least by the 16th century, many much earlier even than that. And that is just for an ordinary day - for special feast and other holy days the crowds will be huge - as we experience a little later into our pilgrimage.

the last few steps up to Abraha we Atsbeha
courtyard entrance

once within the courtyard - the more recent white
Italian portico over the original church
porch - note the original church is part of the rock face itself

Adam and Eve

one example of beautiful church murals

the devil in chains - wall mural
note the angels looking in all directions - God looks
at us all wherever we are

 We leave Wukro Chirkos and after a coffee break in Wakru (amazing - the locals seem to quite willingly give up all their seats on the street side patio outside the restaurant to accommodate our group!) we make our way in the coach for 45km along what the guide book describes as a well-maintained and scenic dirt road. Scenic it certainly is - the views are stunning all the way along - but it is very twisty and bumpy and almost more than some of our group can stomach. But wow the destination is worth it.

Mary suckling the baby Jesus

This church is regarded by many to be the finest in Tigrai, simply for its wonderfully exotic and colourful wall and ceiling murals, depicting the complete history of the Ethiopian Christian Church. The church itself is much older than its murals, tradition saying that it was excavated in AD335-40 by the 4th century twin emperors Abraha and Atsbeha to whom the church is dedicated. Their mummified bodies are said to be in a box in the Holy of Holies within the church. Who knows? A priest tried to check the contents of the box and was so severely burnt on his hands that no-one has dared to further investigate!

more wall murals within church

One could study these murals for a very long time but sadly we do not have this luxury - we have to find lunch back in Wakru before a very long drive ahead of us - albeit a fabulously scenic and fascinating one - to reach Axum and our hotel for the night ... to explore Ethiopia's most historically and archaeologically important town - site of its earliest church and spiritual home of its unique Christian tradition.

outside the church a priest studies in the shade
with fabulous view beyond

Ethiopia pilgrimage - in search of the Ark of the Covenant

mountains and patchwork of fields

The legend of the Ark of the Covenant plays a hugely significant role in Ethiopian Christianity. 

So what is the Ark of theCovenant and why are we searching for it in Ethiopia?

It is the wooden chest which was built by the Children of Israel according to God's very precise instructions, to hold the two stone tablets brought down by Moses from Mount Sinai, inscribed with the Ten Commandments. When the Jews settled in Jerusalem, it was placed in the Temple from where it disappeared when the Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BC. Where did it go? And is it in Ethiopia? The Ethiopian Orthodox Church claim so, that it was brought to Ethiopia by Menelik I with divine assistance and that it is kept in Axum, under tight guard in a treasury near the Church of our Lady of Zion. (Menelik I, the first Solomonic Emperor of Ethiopia, (around 950BC) is traditionally believed to be the son of King Solomon of ancient Israel and Makeda, ancient Queen of Sheba).

arriving in Mekele

After our day exploring Addis Ababa we are in bed early - some of us by 8pm - ready for the 4.30am wake up call and a full day ahead tomorrow - our flight to Mekele and the eagerly anticipated rock hewn churches of North East Tigrai.

along the road to Wukro Chirkos

stunning scenery

I set my smart phone and the hotel alarm clock - not content to rely solely on the hotel's own telephone call. I wake up with a jolt convinced I have enjoyed a good night's sleep - only to see it is only 11pm - and I sleep fitfully for the rest of the night. Others in the group describe a similar experience - body clock adjusting? Malaria tablets having weird side effects? Who knows? But somehow or other we are all in the coach by 5.20 am as required and on our way to the airport. Even at this early hour there are scores of people on the streets - walking - always walking - sometimes we wonder where they are all walking to?

I have found Addis Ababa troubling. It is a pulsing throbbing sea of humanity in all its rich tapestry, suffering and comfort in close juxtaposition, medium rise office and hotel blocks jostling for space with far simpler mud homes and shanty town slums, neon lit bars and cafes and hotels, dust roads and modern highways and a brand new metro - a city of huge contrasts - and throughout all of this a kind of tacit acceptance of each other, of each others' place in the scheme of things. There are a few stray dogs and we pass the City Refuge Church on the corner of a roundabout under a flyover - seemingly a garden shelter and sanctuary in the wider hustle and bustle.

I am so happy to be heading out of the city to the tranquility and beauty of the Ethiopian countryside and all that it has to offer.

Typical pastoral scene along the road from Mekele

There is a faint pall of pollution hanging over the high rise part of the city as the plane takes off, incongruous below the cloudless pale blue sky still faintly pink tinged at 7.15am. A mist covers the outskirts of the town, the fields beyond quite green after the recently finished rainy season. As we gain height the mountainous terrain casts deep shadows across the alleys far below. A dry river bed cuts deep between curious flat-topped hills, with multi coloured patchworks of fields on their plateaus. We are soon above 37,000 feet and for a short while a thick fluffy white cloud cover obscures the earth from view.

As we approach Mekele the terrain changes, the rocks below seem pinker, with signs of terracing and two large dams.

Wukro Chirkos sandstone rock hewn church

Soon we are landed, reunited with our luggage and setting off in our coach for the fairly long journey to our first destination of the day, Wukro Chirkos, just one of the 150 odd amazing churches literally hewn out of the sandstone rocks in this Tigrai area of Ethiopia. This one is probably one of the most accessible to the tourist - others can be quite challenging to reach. Amazingly these churches were only brought to the attention of the outside world in the early 1900s, and who knows how many are still to be discovered? They are distinctly less touristy than those we will visit later in the week in Lalibela, and it is probably for this reason that they still hold an aura of spirituality and mood that can be lost when the crowds arrive. 

inside the church

drum used in the religious ceremony

Oh how we can destroy those treasures simply by wanting to go and see them for ourselves! I am thankful that our McCabe group is small and we do not dominate our surroundings.