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We started our last stage in Axum, the old capital from the Aksumite Empire ( 100 - 940 AD). Big obelisk's witness still the former greatness of Ethiopia's kingdom...
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This obelisk has been returned from Italy just a few years ago, as Mussolini's troups have taken it to Rome...
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...probably the most controversal building in Ethiopia: St. Mary of Zion. It is said to house the Ark of the Covenant - figuring most prominently in the Old Testament....
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...we were lucky to see the priest - he rarely makes an appearance as he spends his entire life in retreat guarding the sacred object...
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..after the presentation (which took place in the Tigray language, not in Amharic - the national language) the kids formed a circle at the school grounds...
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...leaving Axum behind, we started our journey southwards - to close the circle all around Ethiopia.
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...and very bad! Over 150km of dirt road under construction - going up and down through the most remote mountain region in Ethiopia. The 150 km took us 10 hours!!!
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...the Simien Mountains, Ethiopia's highest peaks - over 4500m. If it wouldn't have been for the bad roads, this part revealed the most beautiful region of Ethiopia.
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...Bahir Dar: a beautiful sunset on Lake Tana. The lake is the source of the Blue Nile. It provides 80% of the water for the Nile when it unites with the White Nile in Khartoum, Sudan.