Is this the most fascinating country I’ve ever been to?
If you follow me on social media, you might know that my posts lag behind my real life by a good chunk of time. It’s not unusual for people to think I’m in a country I returned home from many months ago. I like having a very non-chronological online presence.
Out of appreciation for the community that’s formed around my newsletter, I thought you should be the first to hear about my most recent international adventure.
Ethiopia.
I went on another climate storytelling venture and Ethiopia proved to be a storyteller’s paradise. I met some of the most insightful and helpful people who hosted my trip, and we got to explore the country- from its farms and villages to its church forests.
My main mission was to explore Plant With Purpose’s program, talk to its participants, attend a tree-planting campaign, and learn about the ways it partners with the Ethiopian Orthodox Churches.
When I started working for Plant With Purpose seven years ago, its program in Ethiopia was nonexistent. It would launch the following year, making it the first program that really started after my tenure. Getting to visit that team over there was truly impressive- a lot of great work has gotten done in a rather short amount of time.
I spent a day in Addis Ababa before setting out to explore the Amhara region. Ethiopia has always been a country I’ve been deeply curious about. As one of only two African countries to evade colonization, there’s a sharper clarity around its cultural and historical distinctives compared to other parts of the continent.
After several days there, learning about historical perspectives from locals, tasting all kinds of new dishes, and walking across all sorts of terrain, I came to the conclusion that Ethiopia might be the most interesting country I’ve been to.
I say that as a person who has been privileged with getting to see so much of the world.
Ethiopia is like nowhere else.
Here are just a few of the areas of Ethiopia’s depth:
• Religion: The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is the biggest player, and the country can trace its Christianity all the way back to the fourth century, perhaps even earlier. Some of the oldest Christian churches in the world are in Ethiopia. Many Ethiopians are extremely devout, and religion has influence over everything from fasting to a unique calendar used in the country.
• Coffee: The birthplace of coffee, legend has it. Even though coffee is consumed numerous times throughout the day, it’s never done so half-heartedly. From village meetings to hotel lobbies, the proper coffee set up is everywhere. And it’s a whole sensory experience. They don’t even skimp on the smells.
• Cuisine: Ethiopian cuisine is pretty popular around the world, and some U.S. cities have an especially large number of options, like Washington D.C. That said, there are so many items to get to know beyond just injera, I could spend a while there, constantly discovering new things.
• Nature: I spent most of my time in the hills during rainy season. The hottest place on Earth is also in Ethiopia, along with many salt pools and volcanes. You’ll have forests and jungles in other parts of the country, and huge rocky crags that house monasteries. The landscape is incredibly diverse.
My time in Ethiopia was an adventure, and I’m thankful for everything I got to see, smell, taste, and experience while in the country. It’s a deep country. It’s also complicated. The political situation in recent years has been especially messy, and no sooner than a week after I left, the region I visited descended into conflict. Air travel was shut down. I learned a bit about this awful situation from the locals there as well. It was concerning, but also made me admire their spirits all the more.
I look forward to sharing even more about Ethiopia’s amazing culture and landscape over the next few months. In the meantime, here are a few photos:
