Eastern Ethiopia

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Why Go? Debre Zeyit ...... 174 Most of Eastern Ethiopia is a stark landscape of dust-stained Awash National Park .....176 acacia scrub and forgettable towns. But scattered around Awash to Asaita ...... 178 this cloak of the commonplace are gems of genuine ad- Asaita ...... 180 venture. Undoubtedly, the east’s pièce de résistance is the walled city of Harar. There’s still a patina of myth about this Dire Dawa ...... 181 ancient town, handed down from the days when its markets Around Dire Dawa ...... 184 served as the Horn’s commercial hub and attracted powerful Harar ...... 184 merchants, artisans and Islamic scholars. The colonial-rural Around Harar...... 193 melange that is the modern city of Dire Dawa delights in its Jijiga ...... 194 own odd way, while nature lovers can get their kicks at Ba- bille Elephant Sanctuary and Awash National Park, where the volcanic landscape takes top billing over the wildlife. The truly intrepid can follow the seemingly endless ribbon Best of Culture of asphalt north to the desolate southern Danakil Desert; » Harar’s old walled city the territory remains virtually unexplored since legendary (p 185 ) adventurer Wilfred Thesiger first thrilled the world with » Harar’s cultural guest- tales of the proud Afar. houses (p 190 ) » Koremi (p 193 ) When to Go » Dire Dawa’s markets (p 189 ) Harar °C/°F Te m p Rainfall inches/mm 30/86 6/150 Best of Nature 20/68 » Babille Elephant 4/100 Sanctuary (p 193 ) 10/50 2/50 » Hyena Feeding (p 189 ) 0/32 » Fantale Crater (p 176 ) -10/14 0 » Valley of Marvels (p194 ) J FDAJJMAM OS N

May-Sep Rainy Sep The seem- Nov-Jan Driest and hot season ingly barren months; best to sends lowland Asaita road is see elephants at temperatures up painted yellow by Babille and the to 45°C. the Meskel flower. lakes near Asaita.

173 EASTERN ETHIOPIA ADDIS8 ABABA TO AWASH S O M A L I L A N D N A L I L A M O S

Red Sea CITY Jijiga Valley of Marvels Togo- Loyaada ) (p 176 Tog Wajaale Wuchale DJIBOUTI Ali Sabieh Borama Babille Debre Debre (p 180 ) Assab D J I B O U T I Gelille Asaita E R I T R E A Harar Dikhil Sanctuary Galafi Alemaya ) (p 174 Babille Elephant 00 miles 50 km 100 Take a geological safari at safari a geological Take Decompress at a Decompress Follow in the footsteps of of in the footsteps Follow Koremi Harar Lake formal UN demarcation. Lake Gumare Dire Afambo Awash National Park Awash lakeside resort in resort lakeside Zeyit Wilfred Thesiger around the around Thesiger Wilfred near lakes 6 7 5 The international boundaries Lake Dawa Gara Kulubi Gargori The Ethiopia–Eritrea border awaits Muleta

akil (3405m) Dan on this map serve as indications only.

Serdo Lake Bario Afambo

Depression Lake Abbe (Lac Abbé) ugu

Hirna G

Getting Around Getting Asaita ountains

Arbereketi

National Park

Yangudi-Rassa Asbe Arba

Teferi

Adare Adare Chercher & Chercher Adaitu 8 Decent sealed roads connect all main cities, including remote Asaita. Public transport is available on all routes. TO AWASH ABABA ADDIS The long stretchroad dropping from of little offers down to Awash Addis Ababa to stop. Debre Zeyit,to tempt tourists near the start, has lakeview lodging, Awash and Gewane Semera Gedamawite Eli Wuha Mt Logiya

Mille Didigsala

Andido ve r i ) in Old 190 (p R Mechara Menagaga Asebot

ies ies

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as Hadar Aw Lake Awash Bora Tendaho Bed down in a piece of of in a piece Bed down Get out of the car and the car Get out of Bati Arba Awash Chifra Metehara Harar living history in an living history guesthouse track elephants on foot at on foot elephants track Sanctuary Elephant Babille ) (p 193 4 3 Park (160km) To Adigrat Debre Berhan Lake Hayk Awash Abuye Meda (4000m) National Nazret Hayk yethiopian.com) Woldia ﬂ Maychew Kombolcha Dessie Debre Zeyit old Abune Yosef (4300m) Mt Yerer (3100m) Mojo (www. Debre Libanos Farit Amba (3975m) Mt (p 185 ) (2989m) Zuqualla Sekota Lalibela Gashena Dukem Maqdala (p 189 ) pull it from ) pull it from 189 (p Akaki Fiche ADDIS ABABA Explore the warren of of the warren Explore Bite down on a stick on a stick down Bite Ras Dashen (4543m) Getting There Away &

To Jimma walled city walled alleyways in Harar’s Harar’s in alleyways your mouth in Harar your wrapped with meat as with meat wrapped hyenas Simien Mountains National Park 1 2 Eastern Ethiopia Highlights Eastern Ethiopia Ethiopian Airlines 8 from Addis Ababa to Dire Dawa and Jijiga, and alsobetween Dire Dawa and Djibouti. can You enter eastern Ethiopia overland from Djibouti City by bus and, assuming passenger service resumes as promised, by train to Dire Dawa; by bus-minibus combination from Djibouti City to Logiya; and by connecting minibuses from Hargeisa(Somaliland) to Jijiga. For more infor- . 288mation see p