LALIBELA, ETHIOPIA: Rock Cut Churches and Christmas Celebration, Guest Post by Kathryn Mohrman

 52 Places to Go: Week 52

Pilgrims came to Lalibela from all over Ethiopia--by plane, bus, car, van, donkey, and on foot.

My friend, Kathryn Mohrman, an avid and excellent photographer, recently visited the highlands of Ethiopia on a photo tour with about a dozen other photographers.  She has graciously agreed to share some of her photos and impressions of the trip. Kathryn is a professor at Arizona State University and travels widely for her job as director of several projects with partner universities in China and Vietnam. You can see photos from her trip to Morocco last year at her 2/4/13 post on this blog.  I have known Kathryn since we were students together at Grinnell College in Iowa. This post was first published at The Intrepid Tourist 2/17/14.

This is the approach to the church of St. George (you are looking at the roof of the church).  Notice that the church is free standing--there is an open area all the way around the structure.

Orthodox Christians in Ethiopia celebrate Christmas in early January. In the 12th century, King Lalibela created a group of churches hewn out of rocky cliffs in the northern highlands to form a "new Jerusalem" for believers. Today many devout Ethiopian Christians make a pilgrimage to Lalibela to celebrate the birth of Christ. Lalibela is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The heart of Lalibela is a series of churches hewn out of rocky cliffs.

Lalibela is in the highlands of Ethiopia at about 8000 ft or 2400 m above sea level.  This was winter so it was fairly dry with no crops growing.We saw lots of livestock grazing in the fields--and walking down the roads.  In fact, I was almost run over by a bunch of galloping mules.

A few of the churches had frescoes painted on the ceilings; others had Bible scenes on canvas or wood as wall decorations. Passageways were carved through the rock to connect one church to the next.

Many thousands of pilgrims crowded the little town of Lalibela.  Often they had to wait quite a while to get access to the sacred sites. We saw informal preaching, singing and dancing in the courtyards surrounding some of the churches.  People were having a good time in addition to celebrating Jesus' birth. Turbans signify priests--they are expected to marry and have families.  Monks are celibate.

Priests would shake this instrument to accent the rhythm of their hymns.

We visited a monastery where we saw a number of precious objects.  This beautiful book was created in the 9th century when Europe was in the Dark Ages.
In the past there were hermits in little caves near the churches.  No hermits today, at least not in the main areas in Lalibela. 

People were expected to remove their shoes to go inside the churches.  Most pilgrims took off their shoes in the courtyards as well.

There is a Bible verse that says "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"  Historic Jerusalem had a Needle's Eye gate and this is the Lalibela version.

As Christmas drew near, more and more people crowded into the courtyards.  On the night of Christmas Eve, many people camped out overnight in or near the churches to be ready for dawn on Christmas Day when a huge procession culminated the celebrations. (Read more about the celebration in this Smithsonian article.)

Several hours before dawn on Christmas Day, pilgrims were jockeying for position.  Many of them carried tall tapers although some used LED flashlights or their cell phones for light. Some priests, especially those who were collecting donations, wore beautiful robes and carried decorative umbrellas.

A large group of pilgrims came in several buses, complete with portable kitchen equipment.  After the final ceremony, the group gathered near my hotel for lunch before heading home.

 Noon on Christmas Day. 

This guy was one of my favorites.  I learned a proper greeting in Amharic which I said to him as he passed.  He walked a few steps, then turned around and blew kisses to me.  !!!

ISTANBUL FOOD TOUR: From Pide to Locum, Guest Post by Kathryn Mohrman

 52 Places to Go: Week 44

Pide, a pizza-like bread made in Istanbul

My friend, Kathryn Mohrman, an avid and excellent photographer, visited Turkey in 2014 when she was on her way to Ethiopia.  She has graciously agreed to share some of her photos and impressions of her visit to Turkey. Kathryn, now retired, was a professor at Arizona State University and traveled widely for her job as director of several projects with partner universities in China and Vietnam. You can see photos from her trip to Lalibela, Ethiopia, at her 2/17/14 post on this blog.  I have known Kathryn since we were students together at Grinnell College in Iowa. Here is her report of part of her trip to Istanbul.

Around Christmas and New Year's, 2013, I traveled to Istanbul to see the only city in the world that straddles two continents. What a fascinating place!

Breakfast with Turkish breads and other Turkish foods

One day I took a food tour with a company called Istanbul Eats.  We first had breakfast with breads, cheese and other goodies purchased at local shops by our guide (a Belgian married to a Turkish woman who had lived in Istanbul for decades--the man in the center of the photo).

Hot tea

The traditional way to serve tea and coffee is in glasses.

Baklava

We tried baklava at one of the oldest and best specialty shops in town
And we ate pide, a cross between pizza and calzone.

Pide makers--the oven is much like a pizza oven.
The results--delicious pide!

Then on to a candy shop where we sampled Turkish delight (locum).  It is really yummy when it's fresh.

Turkish Delight--in many flavors!

We also sampled a nearly extinct traditional winter drink, boza.

Boza shop

Boza

Boza is made from fermented grain, and is served with roasted hazelnuts.

Plate full of selections from dishes served at our final feast.

Late in the afternoon we ended the foodie tour with a feast at an outdoor restaurant. Fat and happy, I staggered back to my hotel.  I never would have found all of these traditional foods on my own, many in out-of-the-way places.

Note from The Intrepid Tourist:  For more about eating in Istanbul, check out my post on August 6, 2012, Istanbul: A Food Lover's Delight.

This article was first published 6/23/14

PARIS CLOSE-UPS, Guest Post by Kathryn Mohrman

My friend, Kathryn Mohrman, an avid and excellent photographer, went to Paris recently.  She has graciously agreed to share some of her photos and impressions of her trip. Kathryn is a professor at Arizona State University and travels widely for her job as director of several projects with partner universities in China and Vietnam. You can see photos from her trips to Morocco, Lalibela, Ethiopia, and Turkey elsewhere on this blog.  I have known Kathryn since we were students together at Grinnell College in Iowa. Here is her report: 

My most recent adventure was another photo workshop, New Year’s in Paris. What could be better than that! The focus was on street photography—every picture had to have a person in it. Our instructor, an experienced news photographer with dozens of Newsweek cover photos to his credit, pushed us to use a wide-angle lens and get close to people, get closer to people, get even closer! You can see the results of our class at http://www.peterturnley.com/student-galleries/paris-2015-new-years It was inspiring to be with terrific photographers who challenged me to look differently…and get closer.

Note: I asked Kathryn why she chose to shoot her pictures in black and white.  Here is her answer: "I chose to do B&W (as did most of the eight students in the workshop) because the instructor shoots only in B&W.  It was street photography, every photo had to include humans, so akin to photojournalism. We were told to shoot at 20-35mm, so wide angle--no sneaking pictures with a telephoto!  Shooting in B&W was also a challenge for myself, because B&W photos require more attention to composition and contrast--no color to attract the viewer."

ISTANBUL, TURKEY:, Guest Post by Kathryn Mohrman

Istanbul, Turkey.  Hagia Sofia at Sunset

My friend, Kathryn Mohrman, an avid and excellent photographer, visited Turkey earlier this year when she was on her way to Ethiopia.  She has graciously agreed to share some of her photos and impressions of her visit to Turkey. Kathryn is a professor at Arizona State University and travels widely for her job as director of several projects with partner universities in China and Vietnam. You can see photos from her trip to Lalibela, Ethiopia, at her 2/17/14 post on this blog.  I have known Kathryn since we were students together at Grinnell College in Iowa. Here is her report of part of her trip to Istanbul.

Around Christmas and New Year's, 2013, I traveled to Istanbul to see the only city in the world that straddles two continents.

Olives, tomatoes, and cheese are standard items for a Turkish breakfast

Breakfast in my hotel.  I became especially fond of soft yoghurt with local honey (the small dish on the left).

The most impressive structures in Istanbul are the mosques.  The Hagia Sophia was originally built as a Byzantine Christian cathedral  in the 6th century, converted to a mosque in the 15th century, and is now a museum. It is huge!  The great dome is 184 feet above the floor of Hagia Sophia. The medallions around the nave are the names of important prophets. The small structure near the center of the photo (where the altar would be in a Christian church) is the mihrab, the niche indicating the direction of Mecca, and thus the direction to face for prayer.

Blue Mosque

About four blocks from my hotel, on the opposite side of Sultanahmet Square from the Hagia Sophia, is the Blue Mosque.  It gets its name from the predominantly blue Itzik tiles in the interior.

Tahrir Square

Early on I went to Tahrir Square, site of significant protests not too long ago.  It was peaceful when I was there, but I noticed a significant police presence (lots of police cars and soldiers in the background).  Tahrir Square is rather small--I was expecting something larger given the importance of the place in recent history.

Trams go throughout Istanbul

This is the main street running downhill from Tahrir Square toward the Golden Horn

Inside the Grand Bazaar

Istanbul is known for its covered markets, and the Grand Bazaar is THE grand bazaar.  I found it overwhelming.  After an hour or so, I fled.

Rustum Pasha Mosque

I also walked around open-air markets that were frequented by local people. But I found mosques to be more peaceful, even with lots of tourists. On the day I took a food tour of Istanbul (see my post for 7/3) we stopped at Rustum Pasha mosque, known for its wonderful tile work.  Unlike the situation in larger mosques, we could walk throughout the mosque when there were no services.

Entrance to Topkapi Palace

Topkapi Palace, former residence of the rulers, is a must-see.

Whirling Dervishes

I also attended a whirling dervish religious ceremony.  I'm not a particularly religious person but I found the ceremony to be very spiritual.

EPHESUS, TURKEY: Guest Post by Kathryn Mohrman

Library of Celsus, Ephesus, Turkey. 

My friend, Kathryn Mohrman, an avid and excellent photographer, visited Turkey earlier this year when she was on her way to Ethiopia.  She has graciously agreed to share some of her photos and impressions of her visit to Ephesus, the ancient city in southeastern Turkey known for its Greco-Roman ruins. Kathryn is a professor at Arizona State University and travels widely for her job as director of several projects with partner universities in China and Vietnam. You can see photos from her trip to Lalibela, Ethiopia, at her 2/17/14 post on this blog.  I have known Kathryn since we were students together at Grinnell College in Iowa. 

Ephesus is organized along the Curetes Way, the grand marble-paved main street of the town.

The site of Ephesus has been occupied for at least 6000 years, with Mycenaean, Hittite, Lydean, Greek, Persian, Macedonian, Roman, and Byzantine citizens, up to 250,000 when the city was the capital of Roman Asia Minor. By the 6th century AD the harbor had silted up, however, so Ephesus was no longer a lively trading port. Earthquakes also damaged the city. Gradually people moved away and the site was abandoned.

Amphitheater

Today Ephesus is a national monument displaying artifacts unearthed by Turkish and European archeologists--but 80% of the ancient city remains buried. Like many Roman cities, Ephesus has a huge amphitheater.

Nike, goddess of victory.

While some walls and structures are standing, a more common sight while walking through Ephesus is a jumble of fragments, some of them beautifully carved. Most of the artifacts are simply displayed rather than reconstructed into actual buildings.

Library of Celsus, looking up

The highlight of the city is the Library of Celsus, built in the 2nd century AD. At one time it contained more than 12,000 scrolls!

Ephesus is full of stray cats, many of them existing on handouts from happy tourists (and field mice, too).

 What a fascinating place! I'd love to have the chance to see more of Turkey.

(For more about the amazing ruins of Ephesus, check out the Intrepid Tourist posts for June 10, 2013 and  August 27, 2012. )

LALIBELA, ETHIOPIA: Rock Cut Churches and Christmas Celebration, Guest Post by Kathryn Mohrman

Pilgrims came to Lalibela from all over Ethiopia--by plane, bus, car, van, donkey, and on foot.

My friend, Kathryn Mohrman, an avid and excellent photographer, recently visited the highlands of Ethiopia on a photo tour with about a dozen other photographers.  She has graciously agreed to share some of her photos and impressions of the trip. Kathryn is a professor at Arizona State University and travels widely for her job as director of several projects with partner universities in China and Vietnam. You can see photos from her trip to Morocco last year at her 2/4/13 post on this blog.  I have known Kathryn since we were students together at Grinnell College in Iowa.

This is the approach to the church of St. George (you are looking at the roof of the church).  Notice that the church is free standing--there is an open area all the way around the structure.

Orthodox Christians in Ethiopia celebrate Christmas in early January. In the 12th century, King Lalibela created a group of churches hewn out of rocky cliffs in the northern highlands to form a "new Jerusalem" for believers. Today many devout Ethiopian Christians make a pilgrimage to Lalibela to celebrate the birth of Christ. Lalibela is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The heart of Lalibela is a series of churches hewn out of rocky cliffs.

Lalibela is in the highlands of Ethiopia at about 8000 ft or 2400 m above sea level.  This was winter so it was fairly dry with no crops growing.We saw lots of livestock grazing in the fields--and walking down the roads.  In fact, I was almost run over by a bunch of galloping mules.

A few of the churches had frescoes painted on the ceilings; others had Bible scenes on canvas or wood as wall decorations. Passageways were carved through the rock to connect one church to the next.

Many thousands of pilgrims crowded the little town of Lalibela.  Often they had to wait quite a while to get access to the sacred sites. We saw informal preaching, singing and dancing in the courtyards surrounding some of the churches.  People were having a good time in addition to celebrating Jesus' birth. Turbans signify priests--they are expected to marry and have families.  Monks are celibate.

Priests would shake this instrument to accent the rhythm of their hymns.

We visited a monastery where we saw a number of precious objects.  This beautiful book was created in the 9th century when Europe was in the Dark Ages.
In the past there were hermits in little caves near the churches.  No hermits today, at least not in the main areas in Lalibela. 

People were expected to remove their shoes to go inside the churches.  Most pilgrims took off their shoes in the courtyards as well.

There is a Bible verse that says "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"  Historic Jerusalem had a Needle's Eye gate and this is the Lalibela version.

As Christmas drew near, more and more people crowded into the courtyards.  On the night of Christmas Eve, many people camped out overnight in or near the churches to be ready for dawn on Christmas Day when a huge procession culminated the celebrations. (Read more about the celebration in this Smithsonian article.)

Several hours before dawn on Christmas Day, pilgrims were jockeying for position.  Many of them carried tall tapers although some used LED flashlights or their cell phones for light. Some priests, especially those who were collecting donations, wore beautiful robes and carried decorative umbrellas.

A large group of pilgrims came in several buses, complete with portable kitchen equipment.  After the final ceremony, the group gathered near my hotel for lunch before heading home.

 Noon on Christmas Day. 

This guy was one of my favorites.  I learned a proper greeting in Amharic which I said to him as he passed.  He walked a few steps, then turned around and blew kisses to me.  !!!