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The Federal Democratic Republic of
Ethiopia is a developing country located in the northeastern part of
Africa commonly known as ' The Horn of Africa'. It leis in the
equatorial region between 30 - 180 north and 330 - 480 east, Eritrea
and Djibouti bound in on the northeast, on the east and southeast by
Somalia, on the south by Kenya and on the west by the Sudan. Ethiopia,
as large as France and Spain combined, has an area of 1,104,300 km? It
is the tenth largest country in Africa. It is a democratic national
comprising of 11 semi-autonomous administrative regions organized
loosely along major ethnic lines. It has an agriculturally dominated
economy, which is about 65 per cent of the land is presently
cultivated. Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa
having its own calendar, alphabet and clock.
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Lucy is a 3.5 million years old female
skeleton, which is among the important archaeological discoveries that
make that make Ethiopia to have the prestigious title of 'the cradle
of mankind'. It is a complete direct hominid fossil discovered in the
north - eastern part of Ethiopia at the place called Hadar. Now any
tourists in the National museum in Addis Ababa can visit it. So the
fact that the most crucial discoveries, including the Lucy's, have
taken places in Ethiopia make the country the most probable site for
the cradle of mankind
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Ethiopia is considered to be the'
mosaic of cultural diversity. 'The population of Ethiopia is estimated
to be about 65 million. It is the home of more than 80 ethnic groups.
Based on the language they speak, they can be divided into Semitic,
Hamitic, Nilotic and Omotic stocks. Despite their diversity,
Ethiopians are characterized with peace, hospitality and struggle to
develop. The Ethiopians, often called the 'Habesha' are generally
sociable and friendly, not at all hostile to tourists. Ethiopians are
proud of their culture and civilization, which pre-date those of
Europe. They are known for their unforgettable hospitality and
well-deserved cultures.
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A wide variety of different dishes are
available in Ethiopia and most of them are unique to the country so
you have to familiarize yourself first with the names of different
dishes. You can choose from the spicy and hot Doro Wot, Kitfo, or Key
Wot to less spicy dishes like Alicha Wot you can get these foods
virtually anywhere in the country and portions are generous and very
cheap. There are also home made and fabricated local drinks for you to
choose from Araki- a strong alcoholic beverage made from millet and
maize, Tej - a mead like drink made from honey and Tela - locally
brewed beer from maize, wheat and barely and Guder- the Ethiopian
wine.
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Ethiopia's economy is predominantly
agricultural. The highlands are very fertile, which contain many large
rivers with enormous untapped potential for irrigation projects. About
90 per cent of the population earns their living from the land, mainly
as subsistence farmers. Agriculture is the backbone of the national
economy and the principal exports from this sector are coffee, oil
seeds, pulses, flowers, vegetables, sugar and foodstuffs for animals.
There is also a thriving livestock sector, exporting camel on the hoof
and hides and skins. 25% of the populations grow coffee and it
accounts for 55% of Ethiopia's exports.
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A volcanically formed central plateau,
isolated on three sides by low- lying desert dominates the Ethiopian
landscape. The central plateau, often referred to as the Ethiopian
highlands, has an average altitude of above 2,000m and includes 20
peaks of 4,000m or higher. The Ethiopia highlands are dramatically
mountainous, no more than where hey are bisected by the Rift valley,
which starts at the Red sea, then continues through the Denakil
depression and through southern Ethiopia to Mozambique in Southern
Africa. The part of the Rift valley, south of Addis Ababa, is notable
for its string of eight lakes. The most extensive mountain ranges on
the highlands are the Semien, which lie directly north of Gondar, and
Bale, which lies in the southern highlands to the east of the Rift
Valley. Mount Ras Dashen in the Semien is at 4,620m, the fourth
highest peak in Africa. The highlands also form the source of four
major river systems. The best known of these is the Blue Nile or Abbay,
which starts at Lake Tana in the northwest and supplies nine- tenths
of the Nile's water, which eventually reaches Egypt's Nile valley.
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Ethiopia shows a wide climatic
variation, ranging from the peaks of the Semien and Bale, which
receive periodic snowfall, to regular daytime temperatures of over 50
0C in the Denakil Desert As a rule, the highland has a
temperate climate and average day time temperature of 160C.
Due to their proximity to the Equator, the eastern lowlands and far
south is dry and hot. The western lowlands are moist and hot, making
them one part of the country that feels truly tropical. The southern
rift valley, much of which is at the relatively high altitude of
1.500m, is temperate to hot and seasonally moist. The general
precipitation pattern is that the bulk of the rain in the highlands
and Rift valley falls between mid-June and early October. The rainy
season in the Rift Valley generally starts and ends a few weeks
earlier than in the highlands. The northeastern highlands have a less
reliable rainy season than other highland parts of Ethiopia. In normal
rainy season the highlands receive an average rainfall of 1,000mm.
From a tourist's point of view, rain tends to fall in dramatic storms,
which end as suddenly as they start a situation that is infinitely
easier for travel than are days of protracted drizzle.
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Ethiopia follows the Julian calendar,
which consists of twelve months of thirty days each and a thirteenth
month of five days (six days on leap year). You can see the sun every
day of the year That is why we call our country- a country where the
sun shines thirteen months. You will be seven years younger when you
arrive in Ethiopia because the calendar is seven years and eight
months behind the western calendar.
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Ethiopia has a different time
calculating system and three hours ahead of Green witch Mean time
(GMT). The Ethiopian day is calculated in a manner similar to that in
many equatorial countries, where day and night is always the same
length. Time remains constant through the year counting starts from
western 6 and 6 Western 7 is there fore one o'clock, noon is 6 o'
clock and 6 is 12 o'clock. In Addis Ababa, then sunrise and sunset at
around 6:30 and 18.45 respectively.
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