Axum? I was there.. by Suzanne Ollson
It
would take a lot of words to tell you "everything" about Axum!
Here's the link to one of my web pages about the trip, but it says very
little ..as that wasn't the purpose of my website:
http://www.jesus-kashmir-tomb.com/MidEastEthiopia.html
My reasons for going to Axum were part of my research into the Bible
and the Ark of the Covenant; I had found a few links to Menelick and
some strange unexplained "coincidences" between him and Axum.
I had read Graham Hancock's book, "The Sign and the Seal"
and contacted him with some questions about his research and mine, but
he never replied...I had discovered things he never mentioned, things
about Sheba and about the 'rod of kingship"...and a strange story
about Menelick appearing in Kashmir and removing a throne-like object,
or a golden chair and taking this back to Axum....or somewhere near
Axum at the time. There is still mystery and research to be solved...It
isn't over yet!
I am presuming you know some of the background about Axum and the legends
of the Ark there, or you wouldn't be interested in this subject....I
met with Abba Michael and with an interpreter, we spoke briefly through
a chain-link fence. After I arrived in Israel, I bought a large wooden
cross made of an olive tree that grew in Jerusalem, and mailed it back
to him. But the mail got "lost" and he never received it...I
also had purchased a dozen or so beautiful Christmas CD's...carols and
traditional songs, and gave these away as gifts when I was there....that
was very popular! The priests asked me for more, but I had no more left
to give them.
“They actually celebrate Christmas on January 7th”
The
Axum Church of Saint Mary's is a Coptic Church. They actually celebrate
Christmas January 7th because they're not on the European calendar,
but there is another town, about 20 miles away, where there is a Christian
Church run by nuns...the ones I met were from India and Holland...so
I also attended Christmas there on December 24th...but there was a traditional
service! I asked why, and they said because they didn't want to offend
St. Mary's or appear to be "competing " with them, so they
kept their tradition very low keyed and celebrated the larger festival
on the Coptic calendar.
Also to be noted is that no mosques are allowed anywhere near that region
surrounding Saint Mary's to be built...apparently Muslim invaders sacked
a good portion of Ethiopia and they've never trusted them since...plus
Eritrea has just become another Muslim "break away" country
from Ethiopia after a prolonged 20 year war and much suffering, and
there is no trust between Muslims and Christians (or Jews) there...What
few Jews are left are a bit further south.
“The beggars are endless”
Axum is a dust bowl...and very very poor...you will be swamped with young boys all wanting to carry your bags, or wipe the dust off your shoes for a few burr (pennies)..The beggars are endless, and even walking the streets to market will hold out their hand and ask for a few burr...one woman was mad at me for not giving her enough and made a scene on the street until I gave her the same amount I had just given another woman a few minutes before!
“The food is awful”
The food is awful, the staple of life is injeera, a grey-flat starchy bread like concoction they put food on, like a pizza; then you tear off a piece and pick out the portions of filling you want, wrap the injeera around it, and eat with your fingers...but one gets used to it. Mostly, it's not about the food, it's about the people and enjoying those eating with you. The bus ride up from Addis Ababa is four days and absolutely terrifying as it follows narrow ledges weaving around the Great Rift Valley thousands of feet above ....one prays for celestial parachutes on every torturous bus ride! You share the buses with tattooed women, their children, and their chickens...I loved every moment of it and survived only because I refused to look out the windows because I kept getting vertigo! Looking down the precipices must be the same sense of heights one gets from skydiving.
“Flights between Addis Ababa and Axum cost $200”
There
are also flights between Addis Ababa and Axum. For locals this cost
about 50 dollars....but if you don’t have an Ethiopian resident
ID, then it cost 200 US dollars....a bit of a rip off....and there is
one luxury hotel in Axum...I didn't stay there but went to affairs once
or twice..
“You can rent a small house for as little as $50 a month”
There
is one long main street that divides at the end...a small market area,
a lot of rip-off tourist shops...and that's about it...You can rent
a small house for as little as fifty US dollars a month. $150 will get
you some pretty good digs..a large house with a walled in yard...
Walking around Ethiopia is not a safe pastime without a guide, or you
must stay on well-travelled paths because of all the landmines still
remaining. Addis Ababa is a mess. Overcrowded...and the poverty will
shock you if you've never left America before...and Addis Ababa is not
safe...if you are white and new there, you'll really stand out as a
"tourist" for a while...but once you learn how to look and
act, you can blend in eventually...but still always have to be alert.
It can get very boring until you adjust (a period of a few months) because
none of the standard American pastimes exist there....
“I would go back in a heartbeat if I could”
In
spite of all the negative I've told you, I would go back in a heartbeat
if I could. The people are deeply spiritual, and the original Ethiopians
are a very handsome people....although there has been such an influx
of others from surrounding African countries that by now there are few
of the unique Ethiopian features left...like King Selassie on my web
page..that is exceedingly rare to see nowadays...in fact on Ethiopian
Airways, every man at our hotel the next morning still had glazed eyes
and a starry look when discussing the beauty of the Ethiopian airline
hostesses! They were the most beautiful women I'd ever seen!
The priests are able to perform some incredible feats of the mind, (telepathy,
et cetera) though it is rare you'll ever get to experience it...but
I can assure you they will know everything about you and your inner
thoughts and intentions. If of good heart and good intentions, you will
always be welcome and accepted. I think they deliberately train and
develop these skills as a prerequisite for protecting the Ark (assuming
it's there).
Well, that's about it. These have been some of .the memories that are
foremost in my mind....I hope this is some help..
Kindest regards,
Sue
