Axum and Lalibela

This weekend we were lucky enough to take a trip away to Axum and Lalibela. The delays, cancellations and white knuckle inducing plane journeys did not spoil the beauty of Lalibela. When you’re 2600 metres above sea level amongst beautiful green mountains it is easy to forget that you’re in Ethiopia. We travelled to 1000 year old churches hewn from solid rock and stayed in a traditional ‘tukol’ (a circular, mud brick building with a thatched roof). It was a wonderfully peaceful, spiritual and relaxing time. We met some other ‘faranji’ (travellers), and arranged to have dinner together, but our hotel manager warned us not to go far as it was the feast of St Gabriel and this guaranteed heavy rain. Sure enough, two hours later we were cowering under a shelter during the most spectacular thunderstorm I have ever seen.

On Sunday we flew to Axum, home to early Ethiopian civilization, and Orthodox Christianity. We hired a local guide and after yet another terrifying journey (my hair will be completely white by the time I get home at this rate) we saw the famous Axum obelisks, the Queen of Sheba's palace, various tombs and the Cathedral of St Mary of Zion, home to the Ark of the Covenant. Unfortunately only one monk is allowed to see it.

Axum is quite a prosperous town, with a booming tourist industry and fertile lands. But flying over much of this beautiful country, it is hard to miss the dried up riverbeds and empty fields in many rural areas. Even in Mekele, a reasonably big city with little agriculture, the drought is having an effect. Food prices have risen by as much as 200% and the electricity supply and telephone connections are increasingly unreliable, as much of the country’s power comes from hydro electricity generated in the mountains.

Everyone is praying for a successful rainy season. Yesterday there was a hail storm during our classes. The kids went wild with excitement and asked me if this was what Scotland looked like. Sadly, the mother of one of our students came to the school later that day in tears. Her house had been flooded with water and ice. She was given charcoal to light a fire and her son attended school as usual today. She is just one of thousands here in Mekele, and millions across the globe, affected by the changing weather. It is easy to dismiss these facts when they are mere statistics but when you see it happening to people first hand it is really humbling.