Ethiopian Historical tour

Transcription

1 Ethiopian Historical tour Your complete guide from EVG Ethiopia 2014 TURN

2 Your classic Ethiopian Historical tour: much more than history 4 world heritage sites and one of the eight wonders in the world: just a tip of the iceberg. So much more to cherish in as few as 13 days in the exciting northern route of Ethiopia. Content Ethiopia Get inspired page 1 Axum Simien Gondar Yeha Wukro Mekele Heritage sites Sleep overs Stop overs Addis Abeba Page 3 Bahirdar Lalibela Bahirdar Page 5 Woldiya Gondar Page 7 Addis Abeba Simien mountains Page 9 Axum Page 11 Yeha Page 13 Tigray Rock hewn churches Page 15 Lalibela Page 17 Hayk &Woldiya Page 19 Stop overs Page 21 Itineraries Page 23 About us Page 25

3 Ethiopia Very few countries in the world can offer the contrast that the customized ethiopian Historical tour has to offer. In a matter of a few days and in just a route covering the northern part of the country, this mainly historical tour promises a wide range of experiences that very few packages in the world can offer... Your wide range of experiences Archeological and historical - The oldest human remain ever dicovered - Archeological sites dating to 600 B.C - 4 UNESCO world heritage sites - 1 of the 8 wonders in the world Nature - The beautiful planes of Gojam - The Simien mountains - The Nile desert - The Nile river and waterfall - 2 rift valley laakes Activities - Trekking to the Nile fall and the Simien park - Boat trips - Camping Unique experiences - Inside the largest open African market - Adventure of climbing to rock hewn church. - Your moment at the source of the Nile. Wildlife - Chiladas: friendly baboons that you don t find elsewhere - Endemic animals like Menelik Bushbacks, Red Fox and Walia Ibex - More than 50 bird species Culture and people - More than 20 distinct cultures; - 12 stops at different ethnic market - A visit of the only community where communism is practiced in its purest form for decades... and more. Enjoy a the variety that the northern part of Ethiopia has to offer

4 Addis Abeba Also known as the capital city of Africa, Addis is a large city with so much to offer. Most of the information on the web might lead you to believe that only museums are on the plate; yet Addis is a city of contrast and your stay in the city can be customized according to your need to make your brief stay in the city one that you will never forget Major touristic sites in the city Also rated activity Consider a refreshed a bath in the natural hotspring water of Filweha Out of the box activities Hike to Entoto: the highest peak in Addis at 3,200 meters where you will get a top view of the whole city. Hyena adventure: a guided drive you to the perfect spot in the hills of Entoto where you will be able to see hyenas from the comfort of your car. Mercato: get inside the biggest and curious market in Africa where everything starting from rusty needles and a single pair of shoes are sold. Enelakes restaurant: visit the small enelakes restaurant around Shiromeda where everyone eats while shedding tears due to the spiciest food in Addis. Monastery life: meet and talk with monks who have not only given up secular life but live in a grave yard - Addis Abeba Museum: - Ethnological Museum - Trinity Cathedral - Entoto museum - Menelik tomb - Medhanialem cathedral

5 A modernized Ethiopian city with a handful of historical sites. Your first stop in your historical tour takes you to Bahirdar, one of the lieveliest cities in Ethiopia. Bahirdar is home to the biggest Ethiopian lake in Lake Tana. Aside from the the beautiful sunsrise and sunset that one enjoys by this serene lake, Tana is home to a large number of islands,most hosting unique and ancient monasteries. A half day boat trip takes you to the nearest monasteries with incredible engeneering, unique paintings and ancient articrafts. A full day will guaranntee an adventure to Tana Kirkos monastery, reputed to be the home of the mysterious arc of the covenant. Bahirdar MUST SEES - At least three of the closest monasteries - Palace of emperor Hailesellassie - The Nile fall - Traditional live music clubs especially Balageru - Intersection of lake Tana and the river nile Out of the Box: Camp the Night by the Nile fallwith advance request for permits and escort, camping the night by the Nile fall

6 Gondar Using eggs instead of ciment, Emperor Fassiledes of Ethiopia built the first African castle in the 16th century. Your guided tour in Gondar takes you to this world heritage site.get an insight of the lavish way the ancient Ethiopian royalities used to live. Aside from its maginficently crafted palace, the city of Gondar is also home to ancient churches and monsateries whose unique paintings are a source of fascination for the art lover. MUST SEES - Fassil Castle - Royal pool - Trinity church - Live traditional dance clubs

7 One of the most toured destinations in Ethiopia, your day(s) in the Simien mountain add a little bit of mix of unmatched nature to your historical tour. A world heritage site since 1966, the Simien national parkis home to arguably the most beautiful mountain chains in the world. A contrast of landscapes, amazing waterfalls, enedemic and friendly wildlife, serene and breathtaking camping sites... makes the Simien national park one of the most popular destinations in the whole of Africa. Simien Mountains Out of the Box The incursion in our classical 13 days historical tour consists of a one day in and out the Simien to provide you with a glimpse of this exceptional park. Guarranteed to be one of your highlights in Ethiopia, a 4 night trekking experience is very much recommended as this will allow you to enjoy all the endemic animals, spend your nights in the best camping sites, venture to the second highest peak and enjoy the best panaromic 360 degrees view in the park. Simien mountains brochure

8 Axum Home to the once powerful Axumite Dynasty, the city of Axum has been registered as a world heritage site for more reasons than one. The stone obelisks stand out. The eye catching and majestic stalea used as grave markers by ancient Axumite kings have a lot of mysteries behind them. No one really yet knows how these gigantic monuments were so flawlessly designed and carved by hand from a single rock; more mysterious is how these obelisks, despite weighing tones, were transported more than 20 kilometers as early as the 1st B.C. and then how they managed to erect them so perfectly with no known mechanisation at the time. There are several archeological sites, religious museums, to look and articrafts to look forward to. Another highlight is the St Mary Tsion church, who is reputed to be the current resting place of the Arc of the convenant. MUST SEES - Archeological museum; - Axum staleas - King Ezana s tomb - St Mary Tsion church - Palace of queen of Sheba Highly rated by previous travelers - St Mary Tsion Museum.

9 What is left from the so called Yeha ruins has attracted archeologists and tourists from across the globe despite weak promotions. The standing walls of the Yeha temple take you back in time to more than 600 b.c, making this exeptional site older than many archeological sites in the globe. Despite the toll of time and poor preservation efforts in the past, all four walls of this ancestrial Judaic temple still remain intact, testament to yet another engineering skill lost in time. Yeha If you have enjoyed tours of what is left from ancient Roman or Greek heritages mainly for their historical values, your few hours visit of the small town of Yeha is one that you will enjoy. The amazing contrast In Yeha you will appreciate the ancient Judaic ancestory; further down you will find the earliest Christian churches; go further and you will get a glimpse of Negashi mosque. Negashi is among the first mosques built in the world, named after the first king in the world to have been converted to islam. The small church museum in Yeha is home to priceless articrafts, with grave markers and incense burners dating as back as 800 B.C.

10 The northern region of Tigray not only promises rich historical and archeological sites but also adventure. Having adopted Christianity as early as the fourth century, most of the ancient churches are located in this area. To avoid persecution and attack from intruders,places of worship were built in the most peculiar spots mainly on top of gigantic mountains and hills Rockhewn churches in Tigray Out of the box There are more than 110 rockhewn/partial rockhewn churches located in the mountains of Tigray. A perfect adventure for an experienced hikker, be the first to take pictures of all the distinct rockhewn churches in a month long adventure Most popular: - Debredamo: an exclusively male monastery where you have to be tied with a rope to and climb the tall cliff to reach the monastery. - Abune Yemata: a 4th century monastery with fascinating wall paintings; a hike with no protection required. Less Daring Wukuro Kirkos: cross shaped rockhewn church Abreha Atsebeha: known for its fascinating paintings. St Mickael: less precarious

11 Lalibela What does it take to flawlessly carve out gigantic structures from a single rock, excavate the inside with unmatched precision with nothing but chiesles and build 11 unique inter tunneled magnificent churches as eary as the 11 century. One of the eight wonders in the world and a world heritage site, no visitor leaves the Lalibela rock hewn churches without being awe stricken. The cross shaped Bete Girogis Church being the most popular, your full day tour of the churches will get you closer to a work of engeneering that modern civilization is yet to understand. A few extra days in this ancient city and you will discover that the area has much more to offer. Yemerehane kirstos, a church buit in a cave while floating on lake is one of the many other sources of wonder that the are has to offer.

12 Woldiya, Hayk & the The old city of Wodiya is mainly a stop over in the last part of your tour. While you will enjoy the nearby market, the vibrant city and catch a glimpse of the culture of the local area ( arguably people in Dessie and Woldiya are called the most beautiful in Ethiopia) But no matter how you design your itinerary, your night inwoldiya will come after an exciting time on Lake Hayk. An Ethiopian experience Upon returning to Addis, a special treat will await you. We have our reasons to organize our fair well treat in a private Ethiopian home instead of just a lunch/dinner in a restaurant. Our traditional buffet in a private house with English speaking hosts will get you closer to Ethiopian culture and gets you to really know what the day to day life in an Ethiopian home is like. End of your tour Hayk is not among the prominent lakes in Ethiopia but certainly is among the beautiful ones. Upon your drive back from Lalibela you will be able to enjoy a relaxed lunch by the shore of this very calm lake. While getting a close look of the traditional fishing of the locals, your boat trip in the afternoong will take you to the island where you will be able to enjoy a visit of one of the ancient monasteries : Hayk Estifanos. It is also your chance to learn and make your own traditional Ethiopian coffee or even Ethiopian dance moves

13 On the road While it is possible to do the historical route by air, it is well recommended to do this popular route overland for someone who appreciates nature and landscape. An overland tour of the historical route requires thirteen days but every day is different and there is so much to look forward to. Awramba Awramab is a community of 400 and growing with unique values and principles. Your stop over at Awramba will take you inside a self sufficient community which has no leader, where everyone is considered equal, where even minor vices like a simple lie are not tolerated, where work ethic is at its highest... Nature From the plateaus of Gojam to the glamourous mountains of Tigray, you can be certain that you would want to make stops every now and then to capture the variety of landscape that the northern route has to offer. Meet the illiterate man, Zumra, who received one award after the other not just for his vision but for realizing his dream of creating the perfect communist society and proved the George Orwells assumptions wrong. Your few hours stop at Awramba will take you closer to a society where, despite having no leader, has managed to survive for several decades in harmony and managed to create a generation free from any form of vices. The small guest houses established by the community offer the opportunity to spend the night with the community to have a closer look of how the Awramba operates in day to day life. Culture There are more than 15 different open markets along the way where you would want to make stops to get to meet the friendly locals with each having unique hairstyles, language and ways of dressing And more... Cross the longest African river at three different point. A stop over at one of the first mosques as you drive back from Axum

14 Historical tour itineraries - A minimum of 13 days to cover all the destinations listed in this brochure. - A wide range of combinations and itineraries are possible. - The three sample itineraries are among the most rated by previous travelers. - The 13 and 17 days itineraries which include the Simien are not recommended for thee months of July August Our philisophy: if two people have different interests and inclination, no two itineraries should be the same. In a setting like the north of Ethiopia where there is such a wide variety of choices, it should be the duty of the tour organizer to get to know his/her customer s interests and design a personalized itinerary to ensure maximum satisfaction. 7 days ( mainly flights Day 1: city tour of Addis Day2: flight to bahirdar Day 3 : drivebahirdar- Nile Fall- Gondar. Day 4 : Gondar tour Day 5 : Flight Gondar - Axum Day 6 Axum- Lalibela Day 7 : Flight Lalibela- Addis. Planning tips 13 days overland Day 1: city tour of Addis Day 2 Addis- Bahirdar Day 3: Bahirdar Day 4 Bahirdar-Awramba Gondar Day 5 Gondar- Simien Day 6 : Simien (camp the night ) Day 7 Simien- Axum Day 8 Axum Day 9: Axum-Yeha- Rockhewn churches- Mekele Day 10: Mekele- Lalibela Day 11:Lalibela Day 12 Lalibela- Hayk- Dessie Day 13 Dessie Addis Other Ethiopian tours Danakil tours Simien mountains Omo cultural tours Heritage sites tour 17 days overland Day 1: city tour of Addis Day 2: Addis- Bahirdar Day 3: Bahirdar Day 4: Bahirdar-Awramba Gondar Day 5: Gondar Day 6 : Gondar Simien ( camp at Sankaber) Day 7 Simien( Sankaber- Gich) Day 8 Simien( Gich- Emet Gogo-Gich) Day 9 Simien( Gich- Chenek) Day 10 Simien- Axum Day 11 Axum Day 12: Axum-Yeha- Rockhewn churches- Mekele Day 13: Mekele- Lalibela Day 14:Lalibela Day 15: Lalibela- Yemrehane- Lalibela Day 16 Lalibela- Hayk- Dessie Day 17 Dessie Addis * Planning your historical tour between the months of October and May is ideal to avoid the rainy season * Since there may not be a second time, consider combining your historical tour with other Ethiopia packages

15 EVG Ethiopia Very few people tour the same destination twice. The fact that we keep in mind that your tour is once in a lifetime experience is our driving force leading us to organize your tour in Ethiopia to perfection and slways work to go an extra edge to add something to our services.. Unique services Unique organization We work with local guides and personel sharing our view and philosophy: Paying attention the minute details going as far as the view you will enjoy while laying down in your tent after a day s trek. Promoting Ethiopia - Exclusive interactive questionnaires helping us to get to know you and develop personalized tours - First aid professionals for tours involving walking and hikking - Fast and multilingual communication - Exclusive dynamic borchures in multiple format - The largest tour information website with hundreds of pages - The first video based itineraries - Free online chat rooms for instant information about Ethiopia. vsit Thank you for your interest Contact us at info@evgethiopia.com