Ethiopia

Ethiopia is one of the latest destinations for tourists in Africa, considered as one of the best tourist destinations since the end of the war in 2001. But this ancient country has a history and landscape that can impress any tourist from the very moment they step on the flight to Ethiopia.

The natural scenery is a huge attraction for the tourists. Looking out of the plane window on the flight to Ethiopia you get a great sense of the splendor, vastness and diversity of the culture of the country. Its beautiful landscape and sceneries include the lakes, waterfalls, Simien Mountains, the lunar landscape of the Danakil Depression and huge expanses of desert whose beauty and vastness take the explorers imagination into capture

“Lap of civilizations,”
Ethiopia has the longest history and civilization of any country on Earth. the bones of Lucy i.e. , the oldest human fossil, were found here who are dating back more than three million years. There are to nearly 100 different tribes and, because of lack of a properly developed tourism system, the rich culture of Ethiopia can easily be explored and understood by the visitors.

This is a country who has gradually overthrown its image as a place of poverty and war, on contrary of which the tourists have started exploring all of its offerings. Tours are opening up, from Addis Ababa to the churches of Lalibela. You can Book a flight to Ethiopia before the rest of the world catches on and explore the beauty and simplicity involved in this huge massive and one of the biggest miracles of today’s living world with it’s one of the most ancient civilizations as it grows and expands it’s barriers towards new discoveries...

Ethiopia has four main geographic regions from west to east namely as the Ethiopian Plateau, the Great Rift Valley, the Ogaden Plateau and the Somali Plateau. The Ethiopian Plateau is fringed in the west by the Sudan lowlands , including half of the country. It is generally 1,524 to1,829 m high but reaches much loftier heights, including Ras Dashen (4,620 m) which is the highest point in Ethiopia. The plateau slopes gently from east to west and is being cut by numerous deep valleys. The Blue Nile which in Ethiopia is called the Abbai or Abbay, flows through the center of the plateau from its source, Lake Tana which is Ethiopia's largest lake.

The Great Rift Valley ,which entirety runs from southwest Asia to eastern central Africa traverses the country from northeast to southwest and contains the Danakil Desert in the north and several large lakes in the south of the ountry. The Somali Plateau is generally not as high as the Ethiopian Plateau, but in the Mendebo Mts. it attains heights of more than 4,267 m. The Awash is Ethiopia's only navigable river and it drains the central part of the plateau. The Ogaden Plateau (457 to914 m high) is mostly desert it self but it does includes the Webe Shebele, Genale (Jubba), and Dawa rivers.

Ethiopia's population is mainly rural as most people in highlands above 1,800 m. Almost half of the people are Muslims, while over a third belong to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church; about 12% practice traditional religions. There are a great number of distinct ethnic groups in Ethiopia. The Amhara and Tigreyans, who together make up about a third of the population, live mostly in the central and N Ethiopian Plateau; they are Christian and hold most of the higher positions in the government. The Oromo, who make up about 40% of the country's people, live in S Ethiopia and are predominantly Muslim.The pastoral Somali, who are also Muslim, live in E and SE Ethiopia.

Until the 1980s a small group of Jews, known as Beta Israel or Falashas, lived north of Lake Tana in Gondar. In the midst of famine and political instability, 10,000 Ethiopian Jews were airlifted (1984–85) to Israel, and another 14,000 were airlifted out in 1991. By the end of 1999 virtually all the Falashas who were practicing Jews had been flown to Israel.

Amharic is the country's official language, but a great many other languages are spoken, including Tigrinya, Oromo, Somali, and Arabic. A substantial number of Ethiopians speak English, which is commonly taught in school. The natural beauty of Ethiopia does amaze the visitor at the first glance. The land of rugged mountains, broad savannah, lakes and rivers. The unique Rift Valley is a remarkable region of volcanic lakes along with their famous collections of birdlife, great escarpments and stunning vistas.

Tisisat, the Blue Nile falls, is ranked as one of the greatest natural spectacles in Africa even today. With 14 major wildlife reserves, Ethiopia provides a mini view of the whole Sahara ecosystem. Birdlife abounds, and indigenous animals from the rare Walia Ibex to the shy wild ass, roam free just as nature intends them to. Ethiopia, after the rains, is a land decked with flowers and with many more native plants than most countries in Africa. Among the many natural tourist attractions only the principal ones are briefly given below.