It is over a week now since we were in Addis Ababa, enjoying a delightful few hours. We were very grateful for Eskinder’s suggestion to leave a bag at the Global whilst we went up to Lalibela.

The comfort of the hotel rather than the austerity of the airport made our final day a lot more pleasant, but this was nothing compared with your generosity in inviting us for both coffee and a meal!

This was a really lovely and unexpected pleasure with which to end a wonderful trip. Thank you Eskinder again for this and all your arrangements on our behalf!

Inevitably our itinerary involved a lot of driving. We expected that, but I hadn’t reckoned with the many bad sections of road. That was where Ayele’s and Alex’s knowledge was so helpful, making sure our timings and distances
for any one day were realistic.

My thought was originally to have at least one site of interest in the day where we could get out and have a break from the driving. In the event each day was packed with interest, even if on some days that meant mostly the scenery and human activity we were driving through, but many days had two centres of interest, which was ideal.

Admittedly we were lucky in that there was a bull-jumping ceremony while we were in Turmi, but we were all pleasantly surprised by how good the Jinka museum was, definitely not to be omitted from any tour of the South.

As we indicated, the only day which ideally should have been broken up a bit more was the drive from Turmi to Yabello. I see now that another tour talks about a visit to an Arbore village during that journey, or perhaps a stop at a Borena village could be incorporated another time.

As for the visits to the tribal villages that we saw, our local guides did not seem to be trained guides, but they all had a rapport with the local people and most were anxious that we should get the best experience from
our visit.

We felt most comfortable in situations where we were able to view the people at their daily activities, as in the Konso and Ari villages.

Although we did see a few women in the Mursi, Karo, Hamer and Dasenech villages at work with basket-weaving or goatskin preparation, it would have been nicer to see more of them going about their normal daily activities rather than so many of them pressing to have themselves photographed.

But on the other hand it’s quite true that we would have been disappointed, had they not been fully painted and decorated in their particular style for photographs! The men were of course largely absent with the cattle.

Even in the markets where there was plenty of human activity it was a bit daunting to speak to individuals, even if our guide was present to interpret. All in all, there was a limited extent to which we could have a meaningful engagement with these people, which in retrospect was a pity, though understandable in this unusual situation.

During the trip Ayele and Alex were very tolerant of our sporadic desire to stop en route for photographs. The Landcruiser was comfortable, and the hotels, restaurants and food were very good indeed.

We all thoroughly enjoyed the Aregash Lodge, and could see why some tours made that their last hotel stop, to end the tour on a high. But all the hotels had their good points.

I suppose Buska Lodge and Paradise Lodge stood out too. Of the towns we stopped at, it might have been nice to have strolled for a few minutes through them, or even to have tried a meal or, in Yerga Chefie, for example, to have drunk coffee at a central place visited by locals in order just to see normal life.

As it was, the places we stopped at to eat tended to be very safe establishments built to “Western” standards, and I can understand that Ayele did not want to take any risks with our health.

I hope tourism to the South will not decline. It is quite possible that with more exposure to modern life, the tribes will not lead such alien lives in future.

But while there is money to be made from tourism, I would imagine that all the different tribes will ensure that there remains something for the tourists to marvel at, even if it is largely “staged” for them in the future.

Eskinder gave us a splendid, adventurous holiday, with wonderful memories enough for a lifetime. Thank you, and good luck with your business, and much joy with your family and house and garden.

Laurence and Belinda

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

Eventually, separately revealed to each of them two fabulous plants the Kat and the coffee. “Chew the leaves of the first one, they heard. “Roast the berry of the second and drink the infusion” they heard again.

The three did so. Their hunger disappeared; they become full of life and could purse their pious hermitage. Each of them prepared his coffee and offered it to his colleagues.

The traditional preparation of coffee, are three times in a row, is thus believed to denote the three men. The first infusion is called abol, from the semetic  ‘awal’ meaning first; the second atona (or tona) from the semetic ‘itnin’ meaning  two; the third baraka stands for blessing, a rite at the end of a coffee session.

Another legend going as far back as 1445 has it that “a young Abyssinian goatherd, named Kaldi  in oriental literature, noticed to his amazement, that, after chewing the bright red berries from a tree, his goats pranced in an unusually frisky manner.  He too tried the berry and enjoyed its stimulating effect.

A monk from neighboring monastery, who found Kaldi in this invigorated state, decided to try the berry with his friars. They all felt alert during their night prayers. Soon, the news spread and all the monks of the realm were chewing the berry before their night prayer”.

It is nature which initiated coffee production in Ethiopia thousands of years ago, in the jungles of Kaffa, Illubabor, wollega, Bale and other regions. Coffee grew under the canopy of forest trees. It was in these forests that coffee arabica originated and then spread to the rest of the world to constitute the ancestor of the present day coffee plantations of the world.

In Ethiopia, coffee production by man started much later than the one by nature. It is believed that man started to grow coffee in the forteen or fifteenth century to supplenment his natural coffee supply.

To the Ethiopian, good quality coffee is that glossy bean, sweating with exotic smelling aromatic oils that penetrates even the most lifeless sensory nerves of the nasal cavity when roasted, then brewed in a clay pot (jebena) and sipped streaming hot unsweetened or with a pinch of salt.

The fact that Ethiopia is believed to be the original home of Arabica coffee and that coffee still grows wild is more than a sufficient proof that the country is naturally endowed with the optimum ecological conditions the plant requires.

It grows wild, means that it has withstood the ravages of numerous pests and bacterial, viral, fungal plagues and diseases through millennia of ages.

These attributes give it the genetic makeup and sturdiness to grow and spread with or without minimum human pampering and interference. This means that there is not much need for pesticides, fertilizers and protection chemicals, making coffee naturally organic.

Ethiopian coffee has interesting natural characteristics and diversity in bean size, shape, cup taste, acidity and aroma, variation depending on the particular locality of growth.

Indeed, the wide range ecological condition that prevails in Ethiopia has created conducive atmosphere for the production of different quality types that one cannot find elsewhere.  The most popularly known ones are Sidamo, Yirga-Cheffe, Limu, Kaffa, Gimbi and Harer, named after their production regions.

Ethiopian coffee has remained an important crop ever since its legendary discovery in the 9th century. The export of coffee is originated in Ethiopia as of its discovery.

It started in the 14th century in Ethiopia, most probably in the eastern part of Ethiopia, from where it crossed the strait of Bab el Mendeb to reach the port of Aden. From here it gradually spread to the rest of the world, reaching USA only towards the end of the 18th century.

Situated in the horn of Africa and maintaining an important position with regard to the red sea, Ethiopia has been providing coffee to the world since the realization of the use and importance of the crop.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

It consists of a mosaic of different ecological zones, each with their own characteristics.

It is inhabited by different peoples who speak Nilotic, Cushitic, Surmic and Omotic languages.

Although the entire course of the Omo river is in which north west Kenya and south Sudan also play a role. The recent history of the region and especially where the Omo people come from and how they evolved is also important.

The Omo Valley
The Omo River is 760km long, originating in the high shewan highlands in Ethiopia and crossing the fertile and hilly regions of Kaffa. The upper riches are characterized by ravines, waterfalls and rapids. The river’s total vertical drop is 2000 meters and the greatest height difference occurs in its upper reaches.

The river becomes wider and calmer to the east of the town of Maji, where it reaches the lowlands. In its south west course the Omo crosses the barren lowlands until it finally flows into Lake Turkana, 375 meters above sea level.

The Omo has many tributaries of which the Mago is one of the most important, branching off the Omo shortly before Lake Turkana. The area to the west of the Omo is dominated by the Kibish Valley. The seasonal Kibish river is dry almost year all round.; water flows only at the peak of the rainy season.

There are mountain ranges to the east of the lower Omo River from which smaller rivers supply the Omo during the rainy season. The Omo is the region’s only year round water course, which makes it the lifeblood of these barren lowlands.

The Omo banks are fertile because the river breaks its banks annually in August and September and floods entire regions. When the water retreats there is enough moisture in the soil to plant and produce a harvest which is guaranteed unless subsequent heavy rains in the highlands make the river burst its banks again and wash away the fields.

In many places the Omo river banks are covered in gallery forests. These are relatively dense strips of woodland that offer good protection to man and animals against scorching heat.

The lower Omo region is relatively small, approximately 26000 km2. It is the homeland of the Hamer, Beshada, Banna, Kara, Kwegu, Nyangatom, Dassanach, Mursi, Suri and Bodi, approximately 110,000 people in total.

The region is characterized by a distinct form of inter-group acculturation in which dominating group have greatly influenced and still influence their neighbors both culturally and sometimes linguistically and where disputes over pasture may cause serious conflicts, sometimes resulting in the loss of annexation of important areas.

The ethno history of Omo valley peoples has not yet been studied in detail. Some anthropologists have published fragments on individual tribes.

But a general coordinated study in which the history of the different tribes is combined is lacking. Some studies of related peoples in Kenya and Uganda indicate that the cultural identity of the entire region’s herding tribes as we now know them is the result of a protracted process of migrations and changing inter-group relations.

Driven out by stronger enemies or searching for more suitable territory , the Nilotic, Cushitic, surmic and Omotic speaking groups moved through the region for decades.  During this process major shifts occurred.

The territory of some groups was occupied by stronger neighboring peoples, resulting in the survivors having to leave their territory or be absorbed into the occupier’s group. In other cases small groups merged and formed a new people.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

Among big mammals Buffalo comprises the highest population as compared to other conservation areas in Ethiopia. The park is bordered by the Mago River and the Mursi hills from the western boundary and by the Mago hot spring and mountains from the northern boundary.

Climate – the rainfall in the park averages about 900mm a year ranging from 1000mm in the north to 500mm at the southern end. The wet season is March to June with a second wet period in September. The main dry season is December to February. The highest temperature are at 36 – 42 Celsius December to February and the lowest temperature are at 19 – 21 Celsius April – June.

Rivers – Mago valley is one of the water richest areas in the country. There are more than four all year flowing rivers in the park namely; Mago, Usuno/Maki, Neri and Omo river. Local boat trip and rafting are possible in these rivers especially in Omo River.

Vegetation – The Mago valley vegetation is predominantly bush land with limited savannah bush; and small patches of savannah grassland. A narrow band of riverine forest occurs along the main water courses and the Mursi hills escarpment supports a law forest in the steep valleys.

Wildlife – Mago valley supports a wide range of savannah species. So far 81 species of mammals are recorded. A variety of antelope inhabit the valley notably lesser kudu, one of the world’s most important populations of these species. There are small numbers of greater kudu in the east and on the hills. Gerenuk and Lelwels hartebeest are common in the southern half of the park.

Along the rivers and streams water buck, bush buck and duiker are common. There are warthog and carnivores including lion, leopard, wild dog, bat-eared fox and many species of smaller mammals in the park. There is also a wide variety of birds with 237 species recorded of which 2 are endemic.

People and culture – Mago valley lies in one of the most culturally diverse areas in the whole of Africa where many elements of ancient nomadic lifestyles are still practiced. Seeing these colorful people is a rare experience for people from urban cultures.

There are 5 different tribes surrounding the park namely Ari, a group of sedentary agriculturalists who are active honey collectors. The Hamers, people that cultivate sorghum and millet around Omo river and also keep large herds of cattle and goats.

On the north east edge of the park are the Bena, closely related to the Hamer with many cultural similarities. At the south end of the Mago valley are a small off shoot of the Hamer and the Karo. They cultivate the Omo river banks and keep flocks of goats and some cattle.

To the west are the Mursi, a small tribe numbering 5000 to 8000. Mursi are people based on the Omo River having a remarkable characteristic of the lip plate tradition.

A young woman’s lower lip and ears are pierced and enlarged by inserting even bigger clay discs that eventually may be more than 12cm in diameter. The bigger the disc, the better a chance of securing a wealthy husband for herself.

Mago national park is situates 815 km south of Addis Ababa which the road is mostly asphalt.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

Much of the country is a giant plateau 2500mts above sea level reaching well above 4000mts in many places. This plateau forms the watershed for some dramatic rivers, including the awesome Blue Nile and the equally exciting Omo River.

Rising in the highlands south-west of the capital of Addis Ababa, the Omo courses south for almost 1000km but never reaches the sea. It’s the sole feeder of Lake Turkana, East Africa’s 4th largest lake which enters just above the Kenya boarder.

As it tumbles off the escarpment, the Omo passes from the alpine environment and the rain forest, and on into savanna country and finally searing desert lands. Through the millennia its flood swollen waters have cut stupendous gorges.

Wild games roam in abundance on both banks; antelopes, zebras, buffalo, gazelles, warthogs, baboons, monkeys, and large and small cats; strange and colorful birds dart in and out of the lush vegetation.

For much of the Omo’s length the river waters sustain prolific numbers of Nile crocodiles and hippos. This is all part of the excitement of river running, however, and the Omo lures increasing numbers of adherents to this adventure sport. Eager to test themselves shooting the river’s countless and often lengthy rapids.

On the final leg of its journey south to Turkana, the Omo forms the boarder between Kaffa and Gamo-Gofa regions. It is here that Ethiopia’s largest nature sanctuary, the Omo national park, one of the richest in spectacle and game and yet the least visited areas in east and central Africa is located.

And another sanctuary Mago national park has also been established on the east bank a land of endless distant horizons. Here there are few landmarks or tracks as the visitor plunges into the rolling grasslands that seem to stretch into infinity. No traveler here can fail to experience that ‘away from it all’ feeling.

Virtually free from any modern human habitation, this stretch of the Omo valley is never-the-less the most probable site for the cradle of mankind that elusive Eden for which man has searched so long.

Scientists have discovered in the Omo valley fossil remains of man kinds earliest ancestors dating back almost four million years. But today in this breathtaking wilderness, nature’s creatures are king – stately herds of elephant, buffalo, giraffe, oryx and zebra browse and graze on the banks while the endemic hartebeest, ever alert, mingles with waterbuck and kudu.

Yet despite the isolation, some people do live here – much, perhaps, as man’s forefathers lived thousands of years ago; rich in bushcraft and the lore of the wild.

Although there are some fixed settlements along the river banks, the people of the Omo – the Karo, Geleb, Bume, Hamer, Bena, Dassenach, Mursi and others pursue a life style that is still nomadic.

They wonder through these lands carrying their few possessions – spear, knives, stool and driving their livestock before them, always forward to fresh pastures.

Clothing is simple – a short wraparound toga, enhanced with iron rings and other craft jewelry. Hair styles however are elaborate in the extreme – shaped and fashioned with rather sharp knives and adorned wit scull cap of red mud.

Many of the men are further decorated with tribal cicatrices scars which denote their standing in the community as young warriors or wise elders. The women walk bare breasted; wearing a simple short skirt of leather, the hems elaborately decorated metal work and distinctive head dress of beaten tin plates.

Some of these proud and colorful people have abandoned their wandering ways and settled their down to till the rich soils deposited on the banks of the Omo, or have turned to hunting. Others fish from long dug out canoes.

But the dominant impression that the visitor will take away of the peoples of the Omo is that of their individualism and resourcefulness amidst a harsh environment. Many of the men carry old carbine rifles toward off predators threatening their cattle or goats.

The image of one of these, tall, motionless guards standing watch as the sun sinks below the horizon while herds of wild game moves slowly across the skyline remains vividly in the memory of a visitor long after he has returned home.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

Most of the tourists who come to visit southern Ethiopia,  quickly pass through the Woito dry area and head straight towards the Omo valley.

They search for what is well known as the most spectacular of Ethiopia’s southern region: people who seem to have been the original inspiration for the descriptions in stories written by those who were the first to encounter “savage black” Africa.

The Omo valley is inhabited by a large number of different groups. They belong to Omotic, Nilotic and Cushitic peoples, and as such, they are components of an extremely rare ethnic mixture within a very small territory.

This diversity is emphasized by a number of names used to describe each group. For example, people who call themselves Tsamako are known by their neighbours as Tsamay, Ongota are called by others Birale, or those, better known as Mursi, call themselves Mun.

Tourists visit villages of peoples who differ in appearance from each other, speak different languages and have different cultural heritage, customs and religions within a three- or four-day stay in this area of Ethiopia.

The feature common for most of those who inhabit the Omo valley, and which outsiders find the easiest to notice, is the diverse cultures of adorning their bodies. Almost everybody has something to offer: they are decorated with diverse paintings, scarifications, tattoos, spectacular hair-styles and jewellery.

The life of people from the Omo valley is based on agriculture and husbandry, therefore small fields and big herds of cattle can be observed by travellers, alongside state-run huge fields of cotton or – on different occasions – the wildlife in Ethiopian National Parks.

Migrations, which have been taking place extensively in southern Ethiopia over the centuries, have resulted in many confrontations and influenced the fame of the peoples inhabiting this part of Africa as skilled and proud warriors.

Together with the difficult travelling conditions, this is one of the reasons why the Omo valley is known as being dangerous and inaccessible. The construction of the society based on age groups is common for many ethnic groups in the area.

This means that those who belong to one age group are expected to fulfil certain duties. And thus, there are warrior groups, groups of leaders and decision-makers, as well as people entering into marriage when they belong to a certain group.

The specific duties and events cannot be fulfilled outside this particular group or at a different time in their lives. The same system is to be found also outside the Omo valley.

For example,  the traditional social system among the Oromo (the biggest ethnic group in Ethiopia) is also based on age groups and as such is presented as being a democratic system.

The group which is the main highlight for many a tourist visiting the area are the Mursi.

They are well known for at least two reasons: the first of these being their fame as proud warriors and an independent people, the second one being their custom of wearing clay plates (up to 12 or even more centimetres in diameter) by women, inserted in a cut in their lower lips.

The Mursi live in one of southern Ethiopia’s national parks, and it is practically impossible to access their territory by any other way than using a jeep and hiring a guide. This fact has turned the whole ethnic group into a tourist attraction.

The Mursi have decided to reap the benefits of such a situation, and they do their best to fulfil the tourists’ expectations. Adorning their bodies with white clay and wearing different ornaments and jewellery has been a Mursi tradition for a long time, but now they have come up with even more sophisticated and exotic ideas on how to make themselves more attractive to the outsiders.

Clay plates in ladies’ lips and brass jewellery are accompanied by plants and fruits worn on their heads, along with animal sculls and any other products of the modern world which can be used as pieces of jewellery.

The increasingly innovative imagination of the Mursi people has become a product for sale allowing the people to have a steady income– each photograph of a woman costs two birr, while it is three birr for a man, three birr for a woman and a child and one birr for a child.

The more shocking the outfit, the bigger the chance that a person will attract a lot of attention from tourists and  thus  earn more money. The consequences of such an approach have had a strong impact on what the Mursi wear and how they look.

While traveling down the roads, one can observe people wearing traditional clothes, meaning very limited amounts of clothing or even naked bodies, adorned with extensive body paintings and jewellery.

There are children who wait at the sides of the roads to be photographed for a certain amount of money and people who pass by with their herds or travel on foot to distant destinations, thus the images encountered here meet travelers’ expectations – they bring to one’s mind pictures from books.

And this is how tradition is being re-created and re-invented for the purpose of attracting tourists. Apart from the obvious impact of tourism, one may also find a rich cultural diversity in the Omo valley and, for those who visit this area, indisputably there is the impression of having been confronted with a long-established way of life.

Dr. Hanna Rubinkowska has traveled extensively throughout Ethiopia and is a regular contributor to this blog.

She has specialized in modern history of Ethiopia and currently lectures at Warsaw University, Department of African Languages and Cultures.

Dr. Hanna Rubinkowska (Ph.D.)

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

The southern part of Ethiopia does not belong among the historical lands of the Ethiopian Empire.

Towards the end of the 19th century, Menelik – the ruler of the Shewa province and the future Emperor of Ethiopia – decided to conquer the lands neighbouring Ethiopia to the south, to the east, and a relatively narrow area located to the west.

The lands conquered at that time constitute more than half of contemporary Ethiopia. They are mostly inhabited by Muslims (in the eastern part) and even today the largest number of followers of traditional African religions inhabits the south and the west of the country.

The religious situation and the different ethnic mixture in this area were among the features which for many decades distinguished them from the rest of the Empire.

For the last ten years, the southern part of Ethiopia (officially known as the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region) has attracted the attention of a growing number of tourists, who regularly come to visit this area.

This part of Ethiopia offers what is advertised as a “cultural tour” in comparison to the “historical tour” in the case of visiting the north of the country. One may say that those who decide to go for a “cultural tour” hope to experience the last remaining fragments of “authentic” Africa; they search for African “wilderness” as well as for something “real”.

It is a search for an Africa which they expect will be different from anything else they can see in other parts of the world, a search for cultures which have not been influenced by the West and for people who live in territories not easily accessible.

The image they encounter corresponds to the colonial imaginary, presenting societies living according to old values, leading lives which are not subject to change or development.

Such a vision of the continent has already been severely ridiculed and criticized on many occasions and the absurdity of such an attitude is obvious for those who are aware of global processes and with even a basic knowledge of world history.

However, it does not stop crowds of tourists travelling to the south of Ethiopia and spending five to ten days taking photographs of the beautiful and almost naked Hamer ladies, the deformed Mursis’ lips and Karo’s painted bodies.

Quite unfortunately, tourists tend to remain unaware of the beauty and cultural richness of this part of Ethiopia during their search for the “authentic old Africa” advertised in tourist agencies’ folders.

The ethnic and cultural diversity in the lands south of Addis Ababa and in the regions close to Kenya’s border is immense. The difference between Ethiopia’s northern territories and its south is reflected by the changing landscape. Addis Ababa, the capital located almost in the centre of the country’s territory, is situated in the south of the Abyssinian plateau, and thus in the southern limits of the land which was governed by the Ethiopian emperors towards the end of the 19th century.

Heading south, we leave behind spectacular mountains divided by huge abysses; however, the landscape continues to amaze. The views are gentler; the green and yellow hills are pleasant to look upon. The biggest ethnic group living in this area is the Gurage.

The symbol of the Gurage culture is inset, also known as the “false banana”. This plant, which is the dominant crop cultivated here, is used as a source of food as well as a building material.

In opposition to the actual banana tree, which it closely resembles, inset does not produce edible fruit. Inset’s leaves, roots and its stem is used for different purposes, including the production of food, clothes, furniture and utensils.

The Gurage build their houses using the same plant as material, while food for animals is also produced from inset. Cultivation of this plant determines the group’s whole life, even specifying social roles. This is the reason why the Gurage’s culture is often described as the “culture of inset”.

Another ethnic group inhabiting this area, until recently perceived as a sub-group of the Gurage and now described as independent, are the Silte. They live in quite a large area west and south-west of Lake Zway  and they are the Gurage’s neighbours, as well as being strict Muslims.

Silte attract traveller’s attention as, contrary to other Muslim Ethiopians, they emphasize their orthodox attitude towards religion. Silte woman wear outfits which cover them completely, often to the extent of covering their faces, which is extremely rare in Ethiopia.

Also men’s outfits and the huge number of mosques in the area leave no doubt as to which faith the Silte follow. This religious manifestation differentiates the Silte from their neighbours, who are a mixture of the followers of Islam and Christianity: both Orthodox and Protestant.

The Gurage and Silte are the most southern located Semitic ethnic groups in Ethiopia. Further south, the ethnic differentiation, as well as the diversity of languages, cultures and the way people look, increases.

The flora and fauna is also very diverse. Leaving the Gurage and Silte behind, one enters territories inhabited by the Hadiya, Gamo, Wolayta and Konso. As in any other place in the world, the culture of each of these individual groups can charm to the extent that it is easy to be tempted to spend some more time in the area and become familiar with the local culture.

This article will continue on next post

Dr. Hanna Rubinkowska has traveled extensively throughout Ethiopia and is a regular contributor to this blog.

She has specialized in modern history of Ethiopia and currently lectures at Warsaw University, Department of African Languages and Cultures.

Dr. Hanna Rubinkowska (Ph.D.)

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

Its capital is Awasa, a city located 273 km south of Addis Ababa. It is a beautiful city situated by the shore a lake and enjoying a moderate climate.

The city is  a good place to stay the first night or for a stopover as you drive to southern Ethiopia and Omo valley.

There are also important attractions in Ethiopia’s south like wildlife parks, lodges, lakes and number of recreation centers.

Another option one could head to is Arbaminch a city located 505km south of Addis Ababa. One can drive directly from Addis or after staying the first night at Awasa.

Arbaminch and Konso

An important stopover before reaching Arbaminch is Dorze village, people much known for their typical colorful woven clothes.

The huts they are living in, are exciting to watch as they are huge and shaped like bee-hives. One can also visit this place on the last day as he/she drives back to Addis.

Arbaminch is an Amharic word meaning ‘forty springs’. Though not proven how many really, it is said that there were forty springs when the town was founded. At Arbaminch, one stay at Tourist or Bekele Mola hotel.

It worth a day or half before you immerse yourself deep into the south. Early morning, before heading to the valley, you can take time for a boat trip on Lake Chamo where huge crocodiles could be seen.

Then for the trip ahead, you might proceed either to Turmi or Jinka. Also Konso, Woito, Arbore and some other villages are on your way and an important Thursday market at Key Afar.

Konso village is found 90km south west of Arbaminch. The district has an abundance of outstanding natural and man made features that attract visitors.

It is recorded on UNESCO world heritage list for its impressive landscape and terraces built of dry stone walls.

Though the terraces aged hundreds of years, they are still recognizable. But I don’t think they are currently in use due to the dryness of the soil.

However, the whole extent of the Konso highlands bears witness to the almost unthinkable toil of many generations to build those terraces.

Another most outwardly distinctive feature of Konso is the aesthetically pleasing towns and villages.

The Konso traditionally live in closely packed centralized settlements, typically situated on the top of a hill and enclosed by stone walls measuring up to 4meters high.

There are about 32 villages with massive walled stones and the walled towns have 1-8 concentric walls, with the central walls being taller than the second, and the third.

These walled hilltop settlements usually have three or four entrance gates. And they can only be reached via their limited number of steep footpaths. I guess this helps  the villages to defend themselves against invaders.

Gesergio, one of the villages of Konso, is 17 km from Karat. The village is of interest primarily for the adjacent formation of sand pinnacles sculpted by occasional water flow in a normal dry gorge.

It is a magnificent and very unusual natural phenomenon. The superficial resemblance to a row of ‘skyscrapers’ led the phenomenon to be named ‘NewYork’. No one can tell when the formation took place as it gradually happened.

One can make Konso a stop over while heading to the lower Omo otherwise you could access it when you return back to Arbaminch.

Villages, tribes and markets

After visiting Konso you will headed to the heart of the valley where many of the people seen almost naked, decorated in a white bark belt, leather straps, and other materials.

They ornament themselves with notches, short skin garments and paint their bodies with artful designs adorned with jewelries made of bone and all sorts of metals.

If the day is Thursday, you can see the live market at Key Afar. There you can meet and greet as well as take pictures of the tribal groups such as Hamers, Tsemay, Bennas.

Hamer women wear headdress with a metal plaque over the forehead and leather side flaps plus feathers for added decoration. The edge of their leather skirt is decorated with bent nails which also make a pleasant sound when they walk.

If it is Monday, is good to head to Turmi, Hamer’s main town. The people are beautiful and stylish. You can either camp or stay at one of the two lodges, Buska or Turmi lodges.

It is very interesting to visit the colorful market of the Hamers and watching their famous traditional party named Evangadi which is held at night.

The Hamer women wear heavy metal bracelets, anklets and things like bead necklaces, iron coils around their arms and skins decorated with shells.

The iron twists around their necks are worn by only married or engaged women whilst young unmarried girls wear a metal plate in their hair.

The women also mix animal fat with ochre and rub their hair to create coppery-colored twists. Many of them form a ridge of plaited hair and clay to hold their feathered headgear in place.

70 km south of Turmi, the road takes you to stylish tribes named Geleb. They shave off their head except for their topknot covered with mud, and they put a colobus hair cap and ostrich feather.

They also wear necklaces made from light-weight aluminum beads. Also close to the Hamers, live Bume tribes. The girls adore themselves with elaborate bead and button decoration on leather with little dots to highlight their eyes and cheekbones.

A south Ethiopian trip could not be complete with out the Mursi people. They are popular and have been subjects of many TV documentaries and photo projects.

One has to reach Jinka, the main town in the lower Omo, and where the tourist office of Mago National Park is located.

The Mursi people live some 70kms south west of Jinka inside the park. What is special about the Mursi people, the women put a clay or wooden plate in their lips and ears.

There are many others, interesting people and villages in the southern Ethiopia. A typical tour could take 8 days from Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.

Places are safe and electricity and mobile networks are available except at Turmi, Hamers main town. But one can find a wireless telephone and electric generators if stay at Turmi lodges.

Roads all the way from Konso are under construction and believed to be completed in the coming two years.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

It was around noon as we left Addis for Awassa for an 8 day trip south to Ethiopia’s cultural sites.

We drove about 270 km to Awassa, the capital of the southern region of Ethiopia crossing various towns like Dukem, Debre- zeite and Modjo.

Debre-zeite is a small town, mostly a weekend resort area and is surrounded by five lakes.

Zewai is the next town at a lake side named Lake Zewai. The lake is a spot where you can find a huge number of water birds congregated.

Birds such as White Pelicans, Fish Eagles, Marabou Storks and African Pygmy Geese are some of the species to be seen.

Lakes Shala, Abyata and the National Park are situated at the west of the main road as one continues driving to Awassa. Nowadays  the environment of the park has suffered as a result of cultivation, grazing and deforestation. But there were over 400 bird species recorded here during the 1970s and 1980s.

One can still find thousands of both lesser and greater Flamingo’s congregate along the shores of Lake Abyata. Also birds like Little Stint, Gull-billed Tern and Pintail, and a variety of ducks are among the species to be seen here.

The last town before we reached Awassa is Sha-sha-mane; a residence for quite a few ‘Rastafarians’ who migrated here from Jamaica decades ago.  Another thing one can notice is the huge greenhouses by the roadside, covering a vast amount of land. Recently, the flower industry is booming and is creating many jobs.

Awassa to Arbaminch

Awassa is one of Ethiopia’s beautiful and growing cities situated at the side of Lake Awassa. The lake is rich in bird life like Pygmy Goose, Brown Snake Eagle, Grey Kestrel, Spotted Creeper, African Marabou Storks, and the endemic Yellow-fronted Parrot. There are also hippos in the lake and Colobus monkeys in the gardens of the lake side hotels.

We stayed our previous night at Chambelala, a hotel nicely built by the side of Lake Awassa. And after having our breakfast we visited the fish market where lots of people were enjoying fresh fish meals.

At about 11am we drove to Wondogenet a resort surrounded by evergreen vegetation and hot springs. The springs are said to have curative properties and the Emperor Haile Selassie had a lodge there, now part of the hotel.

There is also naturally heated open air pool in the hotel. In the gardens of the hotel we saw the Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, White-cheeked Turaco, and Yellow-fronted Parrot. Then we had our picnic lunch under the shade of a tree. 

We also crossed Doze village, an exciting place for its bee hive shaped huts.

We were also able to visit the place on our last day as we drove back to Addis. But today we had to rush to Arbaminch.

It was late night as we arrived at Arbaminch because we spent much time at Awassa and Wondogenet.

Arbaminch is an Amharic word implying ‘forty springs’. Though not proven how many there were, it is said forty springs existed by the time the city was founded.

Turmi and crossing Omo River

At Arbaminch we stayed at Bekele Mola hotel and right after breakfast we drove to Turmi crossing Konso, Woito, Arbore and some other villages.

Along the road it is quite common to see young children trying to catch your attention by performing different kinds of dances.

If they succeed to be photographed, they will ask for a birr or two.

Turmi is Hamer’s main town and the people are beautiful and stylish. We had our dinner at the one and only restaurant and spent our night camping.

We had an interesting time visiting the colorful market of the Hamer people and their famous traditional dancing named Evangadi which is held at night.

Early morning on the fourth day, we had our breakfast and organized ourselves to drive to the Omo River. We crossed the river using a local boat to a village called Omorate, where the Dassenech tribes live.

The weather was very hot and there were no  restaurants so we had our picnic lunch under a shade. We arrived back in Turmi late in the afternoon.

The next morning we said good-bye to Turmi and drove to Jinka via the market towns of Dimeka and Keyafar.

The name ‘Keyafar’ means red soil in Amharic which I guess is in reference to the color of the soil.

Jinka, Mago, and Mursi

Late in the afternoon we arrived at Jinka. To visit the Mursi people one has to cross the Mago National Park. But Jinka comes first.

Jinka is the main and biggest town in the lower Omo Valley. It is said to feel like Paris if one has spent the previous nights in the tribal areas. We spent two nights at the Jinka Resort hotel which is also the best in town.

Mago National Park was on our sixth day and it is a must to cross the park to visit the popular Mursi tribes.

The Mursi people are known for putting a clay or wooden plate in the lips and ears.

As we walked around the head quarters of the park we saw a big river with water that was cool and pure. Our guests were surprised to see such a big river in a dry land and didn’t hesitate to take off their clothes and jump into it and cover their bodies with mud.

I guess they wanted to experience what it feels to be like the locals. But they didn’t try the clay or wooden plates inside their lips. Anyway they were having a lot of fun.

On the seventh day of our trip we drove to Arbaminch via Keyafar, a big and colorful market and where one can meet most of the tribal groups together.

On this day we also visited Konso village and a huge hut built for the youth aged between12 and 18. According to their tradition, they have to spend their nights sleeping together alert and stand by for any threats. It is like national service.

Konso people are known for their wooden totems erected  in honor of dead warriors and intricate agricultural terracing techniques.

Tha last day

On the eighth day, we concluded the trip at Dorze village around Sodo and had a chance to visit their interesting way of living and beehive shaped huts.

There is a nice guy named Mekonen at Dorze village who was very helpful and kind enough to show us his house, their way of life, their cultural dances, traditional clothes and invited us to share their unique cuisine.

We had eight great days and finished our trip at the place where we started from, Addis.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour

I always enjoy going there and usually comeback with mixed feelings.

On the surface anyone visiting parts of the area may be impressed by the different tribes and cultures that still exist there, the beautiful people and their attire, the vast land that they occupy with their live stock, to mention just a few.

One evening we were treated to cultural dances and a traditional barbecue, which consisted of roasted leg of lamb, the likes of which I never tasted before. The sky at night was bright with a magnificent display of countless stars.

South Omo is still regarded as one of the main tourist attractions of Ethiopia. Most of the tribes in south Omo are nomadic cattle herders, although more and more people are settling down around towns and relief distribution points, depending on their live-stock for a living.

The Mursi, usually naked, may deck themselves out in a white bark belt, leather strap ornamented with notches, and short skin garment.

They are numbered about 5,000 and have been a subject of television documentaries also they are best known for being pure Omotic-speakers.

They, like many Omotic speakers, are fond of body-scaring, a practice which along with body painting, is taken to garish extremes by the Karo people of the village of Doose.

Most Omotic villages welcome visitors, though you will be expected to pay to take photographs. Due to the remoteness of the area, the best way to visit the Omo area is on an organized Safari.

Tourists often want to buy a souvenir or two from the particular area they visit and although there is a good variety of souvenirs available in the capital, buying items and utensils locally adds some value to their authenticity.

I was also spending a night in Konso as the people are friendly and have an unusual culture. At Turmi, the main town of the Hamer, the Monday market is a must to visit.

The main square fills with the Hamer market goers, selling vegetables, spices, butter and milk. It’s a great place for picking up the beautiful incises gourds which are used by the local women as shopping baskets and as a sort of hand bag for stashing cash.

The best time to visit the lower Omo Valley is during the dry season, from June to August and November to February because roads can become impassable during the wet season.

Also to be able to withstand the high temperatures, visitors to the area must drink a lot of water and luckily there are now several brands of bottled water for sale in the towns.

Eskinder Hailu
Turning Your Dream Vacation Into a Reality

Visit Choosing a Tour for a short Video or Brochure
Visit Ethiopia Tour Enquiry for a Customized Tour