ETHIOPIA & TANZANIA A KALEIDOSCOPE OF LANDSCAPES, CULTURES & SAFARI OCTOBER 31 TO NOVEMBER 18, 2021 T: 718-280-5000; 800-627-1244 F: 718-204-4726 Expand your horizons with this adventure into the heart of East Africa on a journey of enlightenment E: [email protected] W: www.classicescapes.com and safari. Begin in Ethiopia where you explore historic sites revealing one of the oldest civilizations

Nature & Cultural Journeys in the world – from Africa’s economic capital at Addis Ababa, to remote villages, and ancient for the Discerning Traveler structures of earliest Christian worship. Then travel to Tanzania to visit Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater, where lion, elephant, giraffe, and semi-nomadic tribes roam free. Embrace a unique opportunity to discover the culture, religious monuments, wildlife and wilderness in these incredible nations on this exclusive journey.

Days 1/2/3/4 society. Arrive Gondar, set in a landscape of incomparable HOUSTON/ADDIS ABABA beauty and visit Debre Berhan Selassie, one of Ethiopia’s Arrive on your overnight flight to Addis Ababa, where most beautiful churches. Next day, visit Fasilides’ Castle, you are welcomed and escorted to your hotel. In the next known as “The African Camelot”. In the afternoon, meet two days, explore Addis Ababa, starting with the National with the local youth association leader to brief you about Museum, where a plaster cast of “Lucy,” the 3.2 million- the opportunities and challenges that the youth is facing year-old Hominid, is displayed. Visit the Ethnological and how they’re reacting to it. GONDAR HILLS RESORT. Museum, one of the finest museums in Africa, showing (B,L,D Daily) the full sweep of Ethiopia’s cultural and social history. Days 9/10 Finish the day with a visit to a woman’s weaving GONDAR/LALIBELA cooperative to gain insight to their role in society through Fly to Lalibela, home to 11 monolithic churches carved their personal experiences. Enjoy a welcome dinner and from the sparkling pink granite rock. Classified as one get your first taste of Ethiopian cuisine. Next day, visit of the wonders of the world, each church has a unique the magnificent Trinity Cathedral, the official seat of the architectural style; all are superbly carved. You’ll spend two Orthodox Archdiocese of Addis Ababa. Ride to the top days exploring these architectural marvels. You will also Entoto Mountain for a panoramic view and visit the Unity meet with the clergy and have a brief discussion about the Park, located at the Grand Palace. SHERATON HOTEL. history of the churches. MEZENA LODGE. (B,L,D) (Meals Aloft, B,D; B,D) Days 11/12 Days 5/6 LALIBELA/ADDIS ABABA/ARUSHA, BAHIR DAR/BLUE NILE FALLS/LAKE TANZANIA TANA Return by air to Addis Ababa where the balance of your Your flight takes you to Bahir Dar on the shores of Lake day is at leisure – allowing you to rest up for the next part Tana, the largest lake in Ethiopia. There are 37 islands on of your journey. Overnight at the SHERATON HOTEL. Lake Tana and 30 of them have churches and monasteries Next day, fly to Arusha, Tanzania where of considerable historical and cultural interest. Drive you’ll be transferred to your directly to the Blue Nile Falls: 328 feet wide, the water hotel and have the plunges 148 feet, giving rise to steam clouds and rainbows. balance of the Then, meet with local women to learn more about day-to- day at leisure. day life. Learn to churn butter and take part in a traditional ARUSHA coffee ceremony. Next morning, cross Lake Tana by boat SERENA to visit the monasteries of Ura Kidane Miheret and Azwa HOTEL. Mariam, located on the Zegue Peninsula. The churches (B,L,D) here are a cultural delight with unique décor and striking artwork and iconography. In the afternoon, explore the city, which was awarded UNESCO Cities for Peace Prize for managing to address the challenges of rapid urbanization. KURIFTU RESORT & SPA. (B,L,D Daily) Days 7/8 BAHIR DAR/GONDAR Drive to Gondar, the capital of the Ethiopian empire under the 17th century reign of Emperor Fasilides. En route, stop at the Awra Amba Village, an “intentional community” founded in 1980, with the goal of helping one another in an environment of egalitarianism — in marked contrast to the traditional norms of Amhara

cheetah, hyena, jackal, elephant, warthog, buffalo, impala, POST-EXTENSION TO ZANZIBAR buffalo, hartebeest, eland and many other antelopes. Spend four days on the exotic island of Zanzibar beginning NGORONGORO SERENA SAFARI LODGE. (B,L,D Daily) in Stone Town’s winding alleys and bustling bazaars. Days 15/16/17 Dazzle your senses at a spice plantation and watch rare, OLDUPAI GORGE/SERENGETI NATIONAL red colobus monkeys frolic overhead in Jozani Forest. PARK Then, travel to MATEMWE LODGE for a refreshing stay in Spend your morning at a Maasai village before departing spacious villas set on a small cliff overlooking the Indian to Oldupai Gorge, the ‘Cradle of Mankind,’ where Louis ocean, and next to a beach with powder fine sand. Enjoy and Mary Leaky uncovered the early origins of man. Tour some of the best snorkeling and diving on the continent in the museum to learn about their archaeological methods the turquoise waters. and remarkable finds. Resume your drive to the Serengeti – the crown jewel of Tanzania’s protected areas and host to YOUR JOURNEY INCLUDES: the annual migration of more than one million wildebeest • Roundtrip flight beween Arusha and Serengeti. and hundreds of thousands of zebra. Watch as cheetah, • Fights between Addis Ababa/Jinka and Arba leopard, lion, and hyena keep a keen eye on the herds. Minch/Addis Ababa on the pre-extension. Elephant herds find shade in palm thickets and sausage • Flight between Arusha/Zanzibar on the post trees, and hippo pools are inhabited with scores of water extension. birds. Prehistoric rock outcroppings host hyrax and dwarf • Superior accommodations throughout at mongoose. Soar through the skies on a balloon safari for accommodations as listed in the itinerary, or exhilarating views (at additional cost). Visit the Serengeti similar. Wildlife Research Centre to learn more about the Park’s • Breakfasts daily, all meals while on safari and other Days 13/14 diverse ecosystems. SERENGETI SERENA SAFARI LODGE. meals as indicated in itinerary. ARUSHA/LAKE MANYARA NATIONAL (B,L,D, Daily) PARK/NGORONGORO CONSERVATION • All wildlife viewing by 4WD, minibus or coaster bus Days 18/19 in Ethiopia and land cruizers in Tanzania. AREA SERENGETI/ARUSHA/HOUSTON • Services of English-speaking naturalist with 10 Drive to Lake Manyara National Park, an ornithological Last chance to photograph that awesome sunrise before travelers. Different guide in each country. paradise with over 350 species, magnificent baobab, giant flying back to Arusha, where you connect to your flight to fig and mahogany trees, blue and vervet monkey, baboon, • A host from Rice University will accompany the Addis Ababa and onward international flight home (B,L; group with a minimum of 15 travelers on the main elephant, giraffe, zebra, and the elusive tree-climbing lion. Meals Aloft) and 10 travelers on either extension. Continue to the Ngorongoro Conservation Area and your • All applicable hotel/lodge gratuities and taxes. home for the next two nights. On your second day, board PRE-EXTENSION TO THE SOUTHERN your land rover and descend to the crater floor, a World TRIBES OF THE OMO VALLEY • All park and attractions entry fees. Heritage site and a microcosm of East African scenery Begin your journey exploring the vanishing tribes of Ethiopia • Complimentary baggage tags and passport wallet. with abundant wildlife including more than 25,000 larger as you travel to the south. Visit the agricultural Ari, the • Complimentary medical evacuation insurance. animals, mostly zebra and wildebeest. This is also the dominant group in the Omo region, and the Mursi, known best place in Tanzania to see magnificent black-maned for their decorative lip plates. Admire the ornamental lions and an outstanding opportunity to see black rhinos, body art of the Karo, the colorful dress of the Hamer, the FOR MORE INFO, CONTACT: as they are protected around the clock. The soda lake scarification of the Dassanech – the southernmost people Lori Ellefsen at Classic Escapes attracts colorful flamingo and a variety of other water in the country, whose name means ‘People of the Delta,” 800.627.1244 birds including ostrich, Crowned Cranes, and Kori Bustard. and buy some of the weavings of the Dorze. [email protected] Patience may also reward you with glimpses of leopard,

Costs: Based on Double Occupancy Main Program Pre-Extension Post-Extension Land Package Only $8,795 per person $3,295 per person, $2,195 per person, including including internal flights air Arusha/Zanzibar

Single Room Supplement $1,995 per person, $595 per person, $595 per person, additional additional additional International Air from Houston, Economy $2,390 per person, N/A $2,490 per person if taking & Intra-Africa Air including estimated additional this extension departure taxes. (Currently, subject to change) Intra-Ethiopia Air and flight between Addis $1,120 per person, Included N/A Ababa/Kilimanjaro, if not purchasing additional international flights from Classic Escapes Download a full itinerary and reservation form at https://www.classicescapes.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/2021RiceUniversityEthiopiaTanzania.pdf

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