16-17 DECEMBER: Bahir Dar

16/17 December 2011

BAHIR DAR: LAKE TANA AND BLUE NILE SOURCE

Posted June 2015

 

Great landscapes on the flight up, with great views of Lake Tana.
Trying for a room at the Bahir Dar Hotel went something like this: I appear in the hotel courtyard with luggage and ask if they have a room. “Yes.” Asking how much for a room, I get quotes for ‘with facilities and without facilities’ so I ask to see one. “No, not possible, we are full.” I query why they would quote me a room price when they do not have a room to rent? “We thought you might be interested.” HUH? A couple of young blokes then direct me to another nearby place but the room is cheap and really awful so I head back to the lake and take a room at the Ghion Hotel, with lovely grounds, gardens and lakeside views.

The rooms are very ordinary for the prices they are charging but hey, I’m a rich faranji and in reality it is less than $20 for a supposed three star room. Checking in I get asked if I want to book for the lake trip tomorrow morning and Nile Source trip in the afternoon – why not, nice and easy and with the supposed hassles of trying to go it alone, well worth it.

The town itself is very relaxed after Ethiopia’s capital; the lake is busy with fisherman atop their tankwa (papyrus) canoes, couples and families on holiday strolling and souvenir hunting for the many animal hide products available here – cushions, pouffes and peculiar containers, known as agelgil. These are definitely something different, with a peaked lid and leather straps that look somewhat like streamers, keeping the whole thing sealed. Funnily enough I don’t have goatskin lunchboxes or pouffes on my Ethiopian souvenir list so I easily pass on these. I try getting a beer at the Ghion’s restaurant but after waiting for quite I while I give up and go to leave whereby a flurry of activity starts and three waiters discuss what they will do. I assure them not to worry and head over to the Bahir Dar hotel where they reassure me that they can have a room for me tomorrow.

Reed boats

Thanking them, I tell them I have a room now (I always feel such a heel admitting to going more upmarket) but I get a great meal, cold beers and good service anyway. The next morning we are four on the boat trip – a couple of men from Addis and a german girl - and we chug our way out to visit the lakes’ mythical monasteries and churches, many which were established during the 15^th century although some shrines are thought to predate Christianity. The lake is certainly lovely, but of the churches, the most reputed, Kebran Gabriel monastery is still a working monastery and only for men to visit so I had to sit that one out.

Blokes only here

Debre Maryam, Beta Giorgis, Beta Maryam, Azuwa Maryam and Daga Estafanos were not so interesting but Ura Kedane Meret was vividly painted and decorated making my introduction to colourful religious murals.

Spots now showing on my photos :-(

Mind you, all churches had their hands out for 100 birr for each visitor but they all handed out dinky little receipts in exchange. As the afternoon wore on, our boat driver admitted that he had forgotten to check the petrol before leaving, meaning he was borrowing petrol from other boats at the last three islands to get us back! All up we were out on the lake for nearly five hours with a choppy ride back in the early afternoon. Next outing was to the Blue Nile source and falls – Tis Isat and after most of us assemble at the Ghion, we head over to another hotel to await a few americans to finish their lunch, as you do. Then once we have them onto the minibus we head to their hotel where there is one more of their group to collect!! Finally we’re on our way for the 30km trip - and judging by the aggressiveness at the ticket office, I was very happy to have taken the tour. On my own, I would have been up in arms at their attitude. Why can’t folk get together, be friendly, charge a fair price and then sit back and watch the tourists come flocking? This way they only get a reputation for being avoided and then they watch the tourists arrive and depart by 4wd with no money flowing back to the community. I take the lazy walk with the rest of our tour group and the 50m falls are very pleasant but the constant barrage and hassle from the kids is never ending, with blatant demands for anything they have learnt the English name for; money, pen etc and I am finding this a little hard to deal with (is getting sick to death of it, too strong?) so I try a number of ways to combat it, eventually returning their demands with ‘Give me something” to which they smile once they understand what I am asking them.  Walking back ahead of the group, who have gone down to gawk at the foot of the falls, I chat with a French couple who are very pleasant and they offer me a lift back to Bahir Dar in their lovely 4wd, complete with driver, making them even more pleasant. I accept, track down my tour mini bus back in the village, tell him to cross me off his list and I get chauffeured back to town, along with more good conversation and a few shopping tips for when I return to Addis – she told me about a lovely chair from the Hilton, that she plans to serve tea on and that sounds so much nicer than a goatskin cushion.

FACT: Ethiopians like to think of Bahir Dar as their Riviera – with palm tree lined streets and Ethiopia’s largest lake at 3500 sq km, with more than thirty islands and offering lovely views and relaxing breezes. We’re up at 1800m here and the lake looked really quite healthy. This region is home to the Amhara, the highland folk whose language became the national language of Ethiopia.  One common verbal trait I’ve noticed here is a sharp intake of breath for emphasis during conversation – a sound that we might use in response to something quite shocking. A bit peculiar but there you go!