12 OCTOBER 2013
By Masumi Koizumi
Flying to Lalibela from Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa with my friend, I was going to observe that Addis Ababa is not the only representation of Ethiopia in terms of the lifestyle of the indigenous people in particular.Touching down at Lalibela airport, I felt like we were left alone at the runway – no aircraft were in sight waiting to take off. All the artificial dins seemed to be absorbed by a strip of greenery and a beautiful mountain ridge in the region. Near the exit of the airport, young locals were shouting at tourists to draw their attention to the accommodation they provided. Walking down the hill with bundles of straw in light clothes, was a small kid. I wondered if he traveled all the way up from the mountain with no bathroom stops or even occasional breaks in his lengthy and exhausting trip. Waiting for us with a beam in the midst of the bumpy road were two young children who then uttered, “Welcome to Lalibela!’’ in excitement.Lalibela is one of the popular tourist destinations in Ethiopia with local people and foreign travelers weaving the geography of Lalibela together. It was not hard to imagine that numerous people in Lalibela are making a living through the tourism business as our local guide, Abie, told us that prices here are comparably high because of its position as a tourist attraction. In fact, we had no choice but to call off a visit to a UNESCO World Heritage site, the eleven churches, which were hewn from the living monolithic rock during the reign of King Lalibela (13th century) due to the dearth of money on hand. Just in one hour, I noticed two things about the people of Lalibela that struck me as a surprise: fluency in English and hard-working nature. After some ten minutes on foot from Lalibela Hotel, we reached a busy district around our accommodation which was full with souvenir stores and cafeteria. When looking around the grocery stands, two young boys, who appeared to be 10, approached us and walked side by side to have a chat with us in English. The chiseled looking boys spoke astonishingly fluent English for their age, pointed at the sight where men and women of a wide range of ages working under the evening sunlight were constructing what they described as “a priest office’’, using primitive instruments such as a stick with a cylinder-shaped stone at the end in order to level the ground. They were not the only boys who came up to us. Indeed, everyone who walked past us struck up conversation when we replied hello back to them. People, mostly boys rambling on the streets, would start off the talk usually by guessing our nationality (I was shocked that a number of people had succeeded in guessing my nationality, Japanese!) or how we had been up to in Lalibela. They would carry on the conversation on their school life, the eleven churches, and so forth. Even children aged three to five knew how to greet people in English and to attract foreign visitors with their innocent charms. Lalibela, as a holy sightseeing site bringing in a great deal of travelers and pilgrims from overseas, must have enabled locals to communicate well with them. Walking further down the road which overlooked a village full of mud-thatched houses with a pointed woven-hay hat, we found a woman looking to be in her late forties growling in a muted tone. She was carrying piles of sticks of wood on her back which had pinned her down in the spot. We helped her stand up on her own feet by lifting the bundle of sticks, though they were unexpectedly hefty for us. A passer-by ran up to us and pushed up what was on her back; the sticks made a pop and crackle sound as she squeezed out her last voice to get up. I wondered how she had made her way down the hill with the heavy load on her back. The people in Lalibela living in a primitive fashion were astonishingly hard-working regardless of their sex or age. On our way to Asheten Mariam Monastery, a 13th century rock-hewn monastery located at an altitude of 3150 meters, the indigenous people with their hands occupied with the construction materials rushed their way up whilst I was struggling not to slip over the slippery hill. An old man carrying a long, thick piece of wood around his neck struck an exquisite balance and readily descended from the mountain. Our guide, Abie, encouraged us that we would be able to walk as fast as the locals after climbing up and down the same route three times. I landed off with the front of my feet as advised. However, my feet started to feel sore after five steps. I certainly needed more time to learn the knack without hurting myself. There was no motorized transportation but mules that could take us to the destination through a rugged and angular path. I was looking at the people overtaking us and fading in the distance. Although Lalibela is a tranquil countryside monastery which preserves a traditional way of living, it offered us a surprisingly good internet service. I received a phone call from my friend near Asheten Mariam Monastery. There was also a wifi connection at the hotel where we stayed. It further set apart from the lifestyle of the people in Lalibela. It was a beautiful rural town which thrives on tourism business and which still retains the traditional lifestyle in which people spend much time and effort on a daily chore
Source...ethiopianreporter.com
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