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Ethiopian Xmas II

Spending Ethiopian Christmas with 50000 pilgrims.


There are many reasons why I wanted to visit Ethiopia, but there is only one reason why I wanted to do this in early January. Ethiopian Orthodox Christmas in Lalibela.


This map was made with Wanderlog, a road trip planner app on iOS and Android

Waiting for the first star

Lalibela used to be known for its inaccessibility. Unless you fly you're looking at many hours on a bumpy road. My bus was full of singing thanks to pilgrims I traveled (and had coffee) with.

Entering a temple of St. Mary just before reaching the town requires taking shoes off early and lining in a pretty long queue. The queue was nothing compared to Lalibela itself though.

The temple built in a cave is where the priest blesses pilgrims. All year round water, believed to be holy tears, drips into nine stone vessels in a cave from apparently dry ceiling.

These tiny mud houses nearby are where young priests learn Bible by heart. You just sit there and try to remember thousands of pages of Ge'ez scripts.

Ge'ez is for Ethiopian church what Latin used to be to Catholics in the past - the only official language of holy scripts, being a dead language at the same time.

In Lalibela itself, on my way to a main market being held one day before Christmas one can be blessed by one of many priests lining along the way.

Many things you can get on the market, for example the famous Lalibela honey (Lalibela, the name of Ethiopian king, founder of the town, means "the bees recognise his sovereignty")

This is not your typical Christmas market with Gluhwein.

If you want you can also get yourself a Bible. Format A1. Every single page made of goat skin.

After successful shopping expedition I'm heading towards Asheton Mariam Monastery on a top of nearby hill.

It's a quiet, dark, monolithic church carved directly into the mountain.

There, in the temple on top of the hill, priests are waiting for the big day.

Today's meal in one of the weirdest restaurants I've seen, built in this rural town by a woman who came here from Scotland. After many days on injera having a shepherd's pie was exactly what I needed.


Christmas is here

The busiest of all the Christmas days. Getting to these churches isn't going to be easy

It's all solid rock inside. And pilgrims from all over the country

The most famous one - Bet Gyorgis - the church of Saint George. Hard to imagine it's all carved and not built.

It's much bigger than I imagined!

In front of the church pilgrims start to celebrate. Sing, dance, everyone if excited!

Ok, some are perhaps little bit tired, but I'm sure as excited as everyone

Queues to receive blessing can get quite long.

Once you're blessed you can relax.

Happy lions inside one of eleven churches

The sun is starting to set. The most important celebration, all night vigil anticipating Christ's birth is coming.

And here it is, the climax of the whole celebration. Whole night of singing in one of the churches, dancing priests, chanting pilgrims.

Not everyone can survive whole night without catching some sleep. I'm also leaving the place around midnight - tomorrow morning I have a flight to Tigray.


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Location: Lalibela, Ethiopia

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