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Category Archives: Ethiopia

Ethiopia: what to pack and what I learned from backpacking

Overall, I did a pretty decent job of anticipating what I would need in my backpack by relying on my previous travel experience, country research, and consulting fellow travel bloggers’ listicles.

October 16, 2019October 28, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: backpacking, travel tips

The city of squeaky clean shoes

It turns out I was very wrong in assuming that a cozy room would automatically lead to quality sleep. For the third night in a row, I tossed and turned, falling asleep in a few short intervals before having to “wake up” at 4 am to board the bus to Addis half an hour later.

October 1, 2019December 20, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: Addis Ababa

Resting bitch face

Since I was beginning to feel better from the tinidazole, my ambition for another mini-adventure started to resurface.

September 23, 2019July 21, 2020Posted inEthiopiaTags: Bonga, jimma

Lord of the flies

At this point in my journey, I was happy to finally be immersed in nature and to stay in one place for more than two days. Bonga was quickly shaping up to be the highlight of my trip, but there was one small pest that plagued the town and provoked my patience.

June 16, 2019July 21, 2020Posted inEthiopiaTags: amoebic dysentery, Bonga, Kafa Biosphere Reserve

Kafa: the birthplace of buna

I won’t lie: coffee was a large part of my incentive to visit the Kafa region, which is situated in the stunning southwest of Ethiopia.

May 26, 2019July 9, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: biosphere reserves, Bonga, coffee, Ethiopia, Kafa

Bumming it in Jimma

One week into my trip, I felt like I had more or less adapted to traveling in Ethiopia. My previous frustrations in Ambo dissolved into nothing more than a blip in my memory.

May 6, 2019August 22, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: Ethiopia, jimma, Nekemte, Oromia

Escape from Ambo

My stomach started to grumble in that familiar, ominous way after my hike in Wenchi, and a restless sleep (interrupted by quality toilet time) didn’t offer much relief. I was hoping to get away with not getting sick (like I somehow managed to pull off in India), but those hopes were quickly dashed four days […]

April 28, 2019November 6, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: Ambo, Ethiopia, Nekemte, Oromia, Wollega

Mounting moodiness at Mount Wenchi

When it came time to leave Addis early Tuesday morning, Michael, en route to work, dropped me off at Piazza around 5:30 am to catch a minibus for Asco Bus Station on the edge of the city.

April 22, 2019November 5, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: Ambo, extinct volcano, Mount Wenchi

A crashless course in Addis Ababa

As far as first impressions go, Addis Ababa has the coolest-sounding name of any place I’ve ever visited. Pronounced “add-iss ab-uh-buh” in English, it means “New Flower” in Amharigna (Amharic), Ethiopia’s official language. (There are around 70 different languages spoken throughout the country!)

April 14, 2019April 30, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: Addis Ababa, African minibus, Ethiopia, Piazza, Siddist Kilo

Do the Ethiopian time warp

Ethiopia doesn’t exactly scream “fun family vacation” (or fun solo vacation, for that matter) to many Westerners. Instead, mental images of a poverty-stricken nation pop up thanks to those guilt-inducing World Vision commercials. No doubt this is the default mental image people associate with most places in Africa if they have never visited the continent.

March 31, 2019April 30, 2019Posted inEthiopiaTags: Africa time, Ethiopia, solo travel, travel ethics
Bonus mosaic: “School №54” (1967) #mariupol Bonus mosaic: “School №54” (1967)

#mariupol #mariupolgram #ukraine #sovietmosaic #mosaics
A small sample of the street art and Soviet mosaic A small sample of the street art and Soviet mosaics found around Mariupol. The murals shown in photos 2 and 8 by @sasha.korban symbolize a woman escaping gender-based/domestic violence and “Milana,” a 6-year-old girl orphaned during shelling near the city in 2015, respectively.

#mariupol #mariupolgram #streetart #murals #sovietmosaic #mosaics #ukraine
The city of Mariupol in the Donetsk region of sout The city of Mariupol in the Donetsk region of southeastern Ukraine can be described as a “city of contrasts,” to quote Andrew, a local and fellow travel enthusiast who kindly hosted me while I explored his city. He was referring to the industrial landscape (two of Ukraine’s largest iron and steel plants lie on the outskirts of the city) juxtaposed with colourful historical and modern architecture, green parks, sports venues, and war-scarred and abandoned buildings set against the backdrop of the Azov Sea (the most shallow sea in the world). 

Mariupol isn’t one of the main cities tourists visiting Ukraine usually seek out (and those who know of it might be apprehensive to visit given its ~20 km proximity to the frontline), but fighting hasn’t taken place in the city itself since 2015, and I felt perfectly safe. The city is well organized (the bus and tram network is solid), and tourists can find information on sightseeing at the old water tower, an official monument of Mariupol built by German architect Viktor Nielsen in 1910. Nielsen designed other iconic buildings around the city, like the Continental hotel (now a center for contemporary art) and the drama theatre. Tourists can walk along a historical route marked by tiny statues of Nielsen (like the one in my photo) along the way. 

#mariupol #mariupolgram #ukraine #donetsk #solofemaletraveler #solofemaletraveller #solofemaletravel  #digitalnomad

@andrew_wanderer @chudonatalya @mrpl_insta @mariupol_blog
Some selected scenes from wandering around Odessa Some selected scenes from wandering around Odessa 

#odessa #odesa #ukraine #urbanexploration #solofemaletraveler #solofemaletraveller #solofemaletravel #digitalnomad
Just a girl admiring her giant saw in the Ukrainia Just a girl admiring her giant saw in the Ukrainian underground 😅

This saw was once used by miners working in Odessa’s catacombs to cut a type of rock called “coquina” into bricks. The rock is a mixture of limestone and seashells and is quite soft (and pretty). Much of the old city is built from bricks hauled out of these mines in the early 1800s. 

The tunnels are not one continuous system but together amount to around 3000 km, making Odessa’s catacombs the longest in the world. My guide Vanya and I entered through Nerubayskoe, a village just outside the city. 

@odesa_by_locals 

#odessa #odesa #ukraine #catacombs #girlsthatwander #solofemaletraveler #solofemaletraveller #solofemaletravel #digitalnomad

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