Addis Ababa

Founded in 1887 by Emp. Menelik II, Addis Ababa is the capital of Ethiopia and the seat of the African Union (AU). Addis Ababa is the third-highest capital in the world and one of the largest cities in Africa with a population well over 5 million. It is located at 2500 m above sea level at the foot step of the highest peak of Entoto Mountain chain (3200m above sea level), and enjoys an excellent climate all year round; with an average temperature of 160C. Addis Ababa is a pleasant city with wide avenues of Jacarandas, interesting museums, monuments and one of the largest open-air markets in Africa, known as Merkato.

National Museum

It comprises of many archaeological and historical findings including the famous complete hominid fossil remain of ‘Lucy’ locally known as ‘Dinknesh’ meaning wonderful. Visiting this museum is having a good summary for your visit to the historic Ethiopia.

Ethnological Museum

found in the main campus of the Addis Ababa University by the Institute of Ethiopian Studies with the aim to preserve the country’s historical and cultural heritages. It has complete collections that describe almost all the tribal groups in Ethiopia. Here you will have an overview about the history, culture and traditions of the people of Ethiopia. The collections include the nomadic tribal groups that are now living just as man’s ancestor lived thousands of years back.

Pottery:

Is one of the cottage industries and it is a means of producing house hold utensils from clay mud where it is available. Poetry is normally done by women like other African nations.  Here, you can see the whole process of making a poetry, which means, making, drying, and firing to make it strong and durable.

Weaving

This is the making cultural clothes with different designs in a traditional way.  Here you can see while the weavers are weaving and selling the products in the nearby to their weaving place.  The main produces are the traditional Shema Clothes like Gabi, Netela, and so on from cotton, which are completely in different style with other industrially, make nylon clothes.  The national cloth is also made in the same way.  Even if weaving is the activity that can be done in every part of the country, there are people who are specialized for this activity and making cultural clothes with a quality in many different forms. These are Dorze people, one of the Southern nations and Nationalities who are known also by beehive shaped houses that when practically seen looks like more an elephant head.  In Addis Ababa, they are leading in supplying the cultural clothes.

PATRIARCHATE MUSEUM and LIBRARY

This recently modernized museum was established in 1996 EC ‘to preserve and protect the heritage of past religious leaders and preserve religious icons and items’. The museum (the Ethiopian Tewahdo Orthodox Church Patriarchate Museum & Library) is located at the Patriarchate Office and close to the National Museum of Ethiopia.

This purposefully rebuilt museum on the premises of the old Patriarchate residence also includes a well-organized library of religious books and manuscripts for researchers and lay visitors alike. The museum includes various artefacts including manuscripts (Brana) religious icons and materials, wood carved religious icons and paintings, pictures of past religious leaders, as well as robes. The items were acquired through donations by past religious leaders (Patriarchs, Archbishops etc..) , members of the nobility and other individuals. Items are well kept in new showcases, has lifts to its upper chambers; items are numbered and captioned with a central catalogue.

Trinity Cathedral

A beautiful church with a baroque style of European architecture which is unique to both Ethiopia and Africa and is dedicated to the Holly Trinity. Here you will find scripts of the imperial families, statues done by a Greek sculpture, Stained glass window paintings from the Old and New Testament in the Bible and coffins of Emperor Haile Silassie-I; the founder of the church, and his wife.

Merkato

It is the largest open-air market in Africa. Here you will be presented with confusing, but fascinating, glimpse of the vast range of goods and artifacts available from all parts of the country and you will enjoy the Ethiopian trade exchange tradition in the open air, you can purchase any thing you desire here.

St. George Cathedral

The church of St. George is a very traditionally structured building. Menelik II following his victory over the Italians at the Battle of Adwa built the octagonal church in 1896. St. George the dragon killer was the patron saint of soldiers and it is to him that the church is dedicated. In St. George church, the most interesting thing is the artwork of both modern and traditional church painting.

Mount Entoto

It is the highest peak in Addis with an altitude of 3200 meters, which was the site for the first palace of Emperor Menelik-II, the founder of Addis Ababa. Here there is St. Mary church, where Emperor Menelik crowned Emperor in it and you will admire the stupendous views of the city with its surrounding plains and volcanic cones together with its breathtaking air.