ethiopia tour operators list - Zagwe Ethiopia tours and travel Tour in Ethiopia

This beautiful country found in the horn of Africa is marked by rugged mountains, wide spread Savannah grasslands and endlessly flowing lakes and rivers. Ethiopia's placement in the Rift valley that shows cases volcanic lakes and great escarpments. With traditions and a captivating culture that has existed well beyond 3000 years, Ethiopia is a tourist hot spot. The country has a well preserved history that interests a number of people the world over. The Afar region of the country is attributed to the earliest known cradle of mankind; the Australopithecus skeletal structure having been found in the region. Ethiopia's natural attractions include Africa's longest cave Sof Omar. At 15.1 kilometers, the Sof Omar cave is the second longest cave in the world. Ethiopia's Northern area, Dallol, experiences hot weather throughout the year. Dallol is also notably isolated with no roads and camels are the only mode of transportation. Dallol makes up one of Earth's hottest places that is inhabited. Tis Isat, the Blue Nile, as it is known provides a breath taking water fall view and is easily one of the country's best tourist attractions. The Omo valley though uninhabited, holds more than 4 million years of historical background with hominid remains found in it. The Ethiopian culture comprises of 70 ethnic groups each speaking an independent language. The Ethiopian Orthodox church is an important part of the Ethiopian culture and it comprises of its own leader and customs. The most ancient city in Ethiopia, Axum, has a long historical background dating back to 3000 years ago. The biblical Ark of the covenant is said to have been laid on the 16th century St. Mary of Zion Cathedral's sanctuary. Icons and historical crowns of past emperors adorn most of the monasteries and churches of Axum. The ancient holy city Harar has the historical background of being a trading center. The city hosts 99 mosques and is the fourth holiest city in the Islamic religion. The city produces intricate handicrafts including woven textiles, silverware and bound books. Religion plays an important part of life in Ethiopia. The Orthodox Tewahedo Church ceremonies are unique and impressive; especially Timket (Epiphany) and Ledet (Christmas) festivals which provide colourful ceremonies and celebrations. People dress in traditional costume and celebrate festivals across the country with colourful unique ceremonies. Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Festivals in Ethiopia The major captivating Christian festivals and events in this category include Timket (Epiphany) in January, Ledet (Christmas) December and Hidar Tsion in November. Timket is Ethiopian language for Epiphany. The holiday commemorating Christ's baptism in the River Jordan is of special significance in Ethiopia. It is the most important and colorful event of the year. Timket is celebrated in Ethiopia on January 19 beginning on the Eve of Timket with colourful processions and ceremonies ending on the January 20. Although the festival is largely religious, it has no lack of secular elements such as partying and match-making.  In Timket, Tella and Tej are brewed, special bread is baked, and sheep are slaughtered to mark the three-day celebration. Best place to witness this festival: Gonder, Lalibela and Addis AbabaFirst of all, and the question that many people ask me when I tell them about a trip I made back in '05: Why the hell did you go to North Korea?! The answer is simple: I like to do things a little differently. Most people think a great holiday is sitting on a beach in Thailand for a week, burning themselves and getting hammered every night, waking up around midday etc. I would much prefer to see places and do things so that when I come back from my holiday I've got a feeling of accomplishment. I wasn't really looking at holiday destinations when I was browsing the BBC news website and a story about DPRK's nuclear ambitions when I saw a link entitled, Holidays in North Korea. In that article I read about a company called Koryo Tours and from then my interest rose hugely. This company, run out of a Beijing office by 2 British guys, arranged visas and did regular tours to DPRK throughout the year, during which you had the chance of visiting and seeing things most of the world will never see. This was right up my street, and I exchanged a bunch of emails with one of the guys, getting more information on the trips and what was possible (unfortunately no diving was allowed, by I did ask and they did enquire!). In the end, I settled for a 6-day May Day Stadium tour of the country, flying into Pyongyang and coming back by train to Beijing. Not only would this tour include seeing some spectacular and rare sights, but there was also the prospect of going to see the World Cup Qualifying match between DPRK and Japan, to be played at the country's May Day Stadium. This is the biggest stadium in the world, seating over 150,000 people. To put it into perspective a little, it is over twice the size of the Olympic Stadium in Seoul, South Korea.
http://www.zagweethiopiatour.com/