Gondar Ethiopia

Gondar

The first thing about the Gondar area that one notices off the bat when arriving is that the area is a lot more lush (almost tropical) when compared to Lalibela or Axum. Gondar is referred to as the 'Camelot of Africa' as it is a royal city that housed Kings from the Solomonic dynasty dating back to 1635.

Driving around one can see the influences of the Solomonic dynasty, the Italian occupation and now Western influences. It is a pretty little town.

We visited three destinations within Gondor, namely Fasil Ghebbi, Fasilides Bath and the Debre Birhan Selassie Church. All of which are a must visit although on a personal note Fasilides Bath was the most amazing for us, photography opportunities around literally every corner and step we took. Please see below for links for photographs and opinions of each.

We spent the night at the "Goha Hotel" which is perched up on a hillside overlooking the entire town, offering a pretty spectacular sight either at night or during the day. The Goha Hotel itself is more than adequate, but the furnishings are on the old side of life, but the staff are friendly, and the rooms are clean. A perfect place to stay for a night or two.

Gondar Ethiopia

  • Fasil Ghebbi

    Positioned right in the heart of the modern city of Gondar ones comes across Fasil Ghebbi (Royal Enclosure), with over 70 000 square metres of castle ruins. Now to say that this is a fascinating place to explore is probably the understatement of the year, a photographers paradise, to be honest.

  • Fasilides Bath

    Now after our amazing visit to the Fasil Ghebbi Royal Enclosure we have driven a short distance away to the famous Fasilides Bath. The bath (swimming pool) is only filled once a year and plays a huge role in the spiritual lives of Ethiopian Orthodox Christians in the celebration of Epiphany on 19th January every year.

  • Debre Birhan Selassie Church

    Located in the heart of Gondar, is one of Ethiopia most beautiful churches, the famed Debre Birhan Selassie. As one enters the compound one first notices the stone wall surrounding the church grounds, again it is a good idea to walk the wall and take in those 12 amazing rock towers.
Ethiopia Travel Topics

  • Palace Of Haile Selassie

    Haile Selassie, King of Kings, Lion of Judah, by the grace of God, Emperor of Ethiopia. Quite a mouthful of a title for a single man or, as the Rastafarians would have it, the son of God. So awe-inspiring are the adjectives that you would have expected him to live in a magnificent palace made of the finest Carrara marble or a granite stone castle in the tradition of Gondar.

  • Visiting The Lalibela Rock Churches

    Your correspondent has been travelling in Africa for over three decades. I feel that I know sub-Saharan Africa; its smells, its peoples, its geography and its wildlife. Ethiopia is different, as different as snow is to sand. So different that you could get a very sharp knife and detach it somewhere in the Red Sea because it is not similar to any of its Arab world neighbours either.

  • Where To Travel In Ethiopia

    New on Uyaphi.com is our Travel in Ethiopia portfolio featuring safaris and tours to this somewhat new African safari destination; we are very excited about Ethiopia and all that she has to offer. Think of Ethiopia as a more cultural safari destination than what one is used to in Africa.