Ethiopia is a country I have visited for the first time in early 2023. Jonas and I traveled to three places around the country for one month. It was a dream come true to visit some places and finally eat Ethiopian food in the land it hailed from instead of enjoying it abroad in the UAE and in Istanbul.
Things I’d Like to Do in Ethiopia
- Hitchhike a little bit here and there. I’d love to write hitchhiking signs in the Aramaic alphabet
- Enjoy the capital city Addis Ababa✅ and take the Addis Ababa light rail everywhere. Perhaps visit the Zoma Museum✅, the Mercato or Shola markets, The Africa Unbound Museum, the Tiglachin Monument, the Monument to the Lion of Judah✅, the Red Terror Martyr’s Memorial Museum, the National Palace Museum, and see some above-ground churches and cathedrals (Entoto Maryam Church, Holy Trinity Cathedral) and the Washa Mikael Rock-Hewn Church
- When leaving the capital, I’d like to take the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway. This would also be my preferred way of entering/leaving Djibouti
- You know I’m really looking forward to the food✅ and coffee✅. I’m gonna eat a lot of yetsom beyaynetu. I’ve been using this glossary to find out what’s what
- In Lalibela, see the Age of Empires wonder of the Ethiopians, the Bete Amanuel✅. While in the area, it would also be cool to visit St. George’s Cathedral✅ (also rock-hewn)
- If I’m in Ethiopia at the right time, I’d like to witness local holidays such as Enkutatash and Meskel (both in September in the ’20s), Timkat, and Ashenda in the northern regions
- See or hike up Ras Dashen (4620masl), the highest point in Ethiopia
- Try to do some boat trips✅. Perhaps by kayak, perhaps by something bigger via the only navigable river, the Baro River
- Visit one or more of the many Ethiopian national parks
- See some natural wonders, such as the Danakil Desert, the Dallol Depression, the Erta Ale volcano and lava fields, and the Blue Nile Falls✅
- Visit some lake islands✅ with churches and monasteries, such as Deq Island
Map of Things to do in Ethiopia
Not everything on this map has been researched in depth.
If you know cool places and things to do in Ethiopia, comment below so I can always find your suggestions again once I start making the dream come true! Tips are especially welcome if you are Ethiopian or have lived there for a while
Are you a travel blogger and do you have good posts about Ethiopia? Drop them in a comment below and I’ll read them!
How to Get an Ethiopian SIM Card
We arrived in Ethiopia on the 26th of January, 2023 and immediately bought an Ethiopian SIM card at the airport. Here’s our experience and how you can get mobile data in Addis Ababa and beyond. Ethio Telecom Monopoly Doing the research on what SIM card to buy in Ethiopia was simple; there’s only one company. Ethio Telecom (ኢትዮ ቴሌኮም – pronounced ītiyo tēlēkomi) is a government-owned provider. Though this makes things easier than in Madagascar, there’s also a risk that the government sets the price too high. Luckily, this turns out not to be the case in Ethiopia, as mobileContinue reading
Ethiopian Food and Drink I Scarfed Down as a Vegetarian in 30 Days
As a traveling vegetarian, Ethiopia is quite an easy country to visit. Many national dishes are vegetarian or vegan. These are the Ethiopian food and drinks I wolfed down during my one-month stay in Addis Ababa, Bahir Dar, and Lalibela. How to Find Out Which Ethiopian Foods are Vegetarian? Ever since the start of our journey of learning about Ethiopian food, we’ve used this handy glossary to figure out what’s what. I use ctrl + F or page search to find out which dishes are veg. We basically started with the beyayenetu (በያይነቱ – meaning ‘variety’), which is vegetarian unlessContinue reading
Bete Amanuel, Lalibela: Wonder of the Ethiopians
We visited the wonder on the 7th and the 10th of February, 2023. Bete Amanuel is a spectacular church carved out of a single rock in northern Ethiopia. It makes an appearance in the video game Age of Empires II as the wonder of the Ethiopian civilization. One of the Reasons We’re in Ethiopia Our motivation to travel to Ethiopia after Madagascar came from two things: we love Ethiopian food and I knew there was an Age of Empires II wonder to visit here. The wonder is called Bete Amanuel and it’s a 900-year-old church carved out of a singleContinue reading
Penang Cat Cafés: Get Your Caffeine + Feline Fix in George Town
All Cats Are Beautiful. That’s why I not only take care of cats while their owners are away, but I also occasionally volunteer at cat shelters, do trap-neuter-return (TNR), and show street cats much love. Still, cat cafés are also a nice way to hang out with cats without taking on a burden of responsibility. During another long stay in Malaysia, I visited Penang cat cafés (😻) and cafés that happen to have cats (☕). Here are my recommendations, a map, plus tips to make your stay in Penang impactful the many street cats CATONOMY: Weekly Cat Meetups 😻 OpeningContinue reading
Accommodation in Bahrain: Airbnb in Al Fateh + Manama City Hotels
Congratulations! You are in the minority of travelers considering a visit to Bahrain for more than a day trip. Here’s where we stayed for 10 nights in the capital city Manama, alternative hotels under €100 per night, and what to expect of accommodation in Bahrain as a digital nomad Al Fateh: Airbnb Close to Food Truck Heaven Duration: 11 nights (12 paid) at about €60 per night Our final choice was a spacious Airbnb in the Al-Fateh neighborhood of Manama in Bahrain. Bahrain had far more suitable Airbnb options than Kuwait. So we chose this one based on its goodContinue reading
Why We Started Catsitting + How to Start Housesitting to Travel
It all started with a cat named Monday. At least, that’s what we called her. And after finding a forever home for her, we wanted to have more cats in our lives without the drama and the tears. More happy stories of beloved felines that receive regular veterinary care. Fewer stories of kittens discarded on a hiking trail or born in a colony on a rooftop. Just taking care of cats for a few days or weeks or months and then handing back the responsibility to their pet parents who missed them dearly and are grateful for the help. ThatContinue reading
Walk + Work the Dutch Coastline: the Idea, Long-Distance Hiking Preparations, and Interactive Map
After traveling by hitchhiking for long distances and kayaking a generous portion of the Danube, we felt it was time to return to the basics: feet. As Jonas and I were both born able-bodied, walking was our very first mode of transportation as little shitlings. And now we’d like to experience traveling on foot for a bit. But because our fitness levels for hiking are atrocious, we decided to make the first long-distance hike something easy and flat: the Dutch coastline. Here’s how we planned for this trip. Mind of a Hiker While traveling in parts of Asia, Europe, andContinue reading
Madagascar for Digital Nomads: A New Frontier
This guide to Madagascar also appears under the Digital Nomads Guides brand Why Madagascar? Introduction to the Red Island Madagascar is basically its own continent. Though Madagascar is by no means an easy country to work online from, a visit will absolutely be rewarding in many ways. Madagascar offers digital nomads a wildly different experience from the established destinations. Madagascar is a developing country. By some measures, it’s the fourth-poorest country in the world, having suffered a lot under French colonialism till independence in 1960. But as nearly everywhere on Earth, the essentials of the 21st century to make internationalContinue reading
Bonzur, Mahébourg?! Traveling from Istanbul to Mauritius (Semi-Live Blog)
On the 3rd of December 2021, we’re hopefully flying from Istanbul Airport (IST) in Turkey to Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport (MRU aka Port Louis Airport) in Mauritius. I’m updating this post as we go. If you’re here for the documents checklist to enter Mauritius, click here. Booking Mauritius Before we even arrived in Turkey, I already knew I didn’t want to spend the full 90 days here. It would be too cold by the end of our visa. And Jonas wanted to spend at least one month in Istanbul, which would result in too little time toContinue reading
Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan?! Traveling from DXB to FRU (Semi-Live Blog)
After 88 days of 90 allowed days in the UAE, it’s time to leave. Jonas and I chose Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan as the next place to go during this pandemic with limited choices. Follow this post for the coming days to see how things are going. Also, the latest date is always on top. Use the table of contents to skip to the date you want to read about. This is a semi-live blog that I’ll update throughout the journey. I’ll add photos once I’m back on my laptop. Wednesday, 28th of April: Arrived in Bishkek Too sleepy to writeContinue reading