I've worked in three sub-Saharan countries in Africa; Eritrea, Ghana and Ethiopia. I've got lots of photos from these countries and thought I would let a few loose on here. I'll try to keep them themed, though there might be a bit of jumping around. I'll test the waters at first - no point in doing all this if nobody's interested! First up, Addis Ababa. I didn't spend very long in Addis, as I was based in the north of the country in a town called Mekele, of which more later. I did get the chance to have a decent look around and even get to a football match in Addis. While I had a look at the station, I didn't use any trains - in fact, there are not many. There is a train that runs to Djibouti, which I think takes about 18 hours. Here's a flavour of Addis Ababa.
One of the features of northern Ethiopia is the "rock churches". The Coptic churches are very old and often built into the face of the mountains. There is even one that you only get into by being hauled up on a rope. There are hundreds of them and we managed to see a small handful. Here's a quick taste:
Thanks for the interesting photos Tom, it's an area of the world I know nothing about, it always amazes me how religions create such diverse, beautiful and interesting buildings throughout the world. I am not a religious person but derive so much pleasure and peace in these edifices.
I'm the same...I love to visit churches for the art and architecture. I always like a look at the Orthodox churches in Eastern Europe - they tend to be very big on bling and some of the art is stunning. Of course, the Coptic is closely related to the Orthodox. Sharp-eyed observers will have spotted that the first of my church pictures depicts St George giving a dragon a good shoeing. St George is the patron saint of Ethiopia (as well as England, Georgia, Catalunya and a good few other places as well).
Time for a few shots of Mekele. It's quite a large and attractive town with plenty of shops and restaurants. The sculptures shown here are part of a war memorial, dedicated to the fighters that eventually overthrew the Mengistu dictatorship. The building that looks like a castle on a hill is a hotel - and a very good hotel, too. It has large grounds and I did a lot of birdwatching there, finishing with a pot of tea on the patio, where you could enjoy a great view of the town. The little cafe next to the strange statue was a favourite spot, too. They served a very fine cup of macchiato. East African macchiato is milkier than the Italian original.
My camera isn't powerful enough for taking very good wildlife pictures, but now and then I manage to get a half-decent bird photo. Here are some nature pics from in and around Mekele. We've got a couple of bird visitors to our balcony, a black kite perching in a tree, a smallish eagle (I can't recall the precise species) and some plant life.
Thank you for posting the pics. Surely my husband would relish looking at those photos of yours because he is interested in Africa. The structdures look so different and they indeed tell their own stories. With the picture of the birds, I am reminded of our pigeon we named Twinkle that stayed with us for 5 years. And that last photo, I believe, is the pear cactus which is edible. Obviously those pictures were taken in a tropical country.
Yes, we had a few prickly pears. They are very refreshing, as long as you can avoid getting the spines stuck in your lips and fingers!