Arba Minch and Surrounding

Considered more as a point of departure for the southern extremities of Ethiopia, including the Omo Valley, the city of Arba Minch’s is full of natural wonder and beauty. The city which nestled on the shores of Abaya Lake got its name from the numerous springs that feed a groundwater forest, and the Kulfo River, which drains into Lake Chamo. The area is rich in many tiny springs that bubble up from the ground. You can see many of them as you hike through Nechisar National Park. Abra Minch sits on the edge of Nech Sar National Park, which houses Lake Chamo and Abaya, the second biggest by surface area in Ethiopia, as well as beautiful mountain landscapes and forests, including God’s Bridge, a mountainous area of dense acacia scrub separating the two lakes.

Dorze people – Dorze people are a small Omotic-speaking ethnic group belonging to the larger Afro-Asiatic language family living in the Gamo Highlands of the southern region of Ethiopia. The Dorze people are one of the must-visit sites and peoples in this part of Ethiopia. They have an estimated population of about 30.000 people living mainly in the villages near the cities of Chencha and Arba Minch, in the Semien Omo Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region. Their residence stretches from the Omo River banks to the highlands over Lake Abaya.

The Dorzes are famed for their amazing weaving mastery. Weaving, producing local liquors, music, and false banana food (kocho) production are some of the unique traits of the Dorze people.  Dorze people live on hills and they are famous for their huge huts, resembling a giant beehive. Although these huts look fragile, they can last up to 60 years. The huts can also be transported to another location, thanks to the structure made of vertical poles. Smaller huts can include guest houses, a workshop, a kitchen, and even a cattle shed. When termites attack the hut, the Dorze can just remove it from its foundation and relocate it. This allows the home to last much longer, but every move shortens the height of the hut. Interestingly opportunities for a pen for animals are made available in the Dorze towering huts. This makes it possible to protect animals from the vagaries of the weather as well as animal rustlers.

Konso – A UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2011, the Konso Cultural Landscape is named after its agriculturist inhabitants, who have molded their 230km2 homeland of semi-arid hills into productive agricultural land. A striking feature of Konso is the ancient hilltop paleta (terrace and walled villages) – strange hobbit-warrens towered over by generation poles felled from a sacred forest, and studded with curvaceous thatched community houses. The Konso are also renowned for their waka grave-markers, anthropomorphic hardwood statues carved to mimic the deceased, and for their communally constructed reservoirs.

The Rift Valley

The Ethiopian Rift Valley, which is part of the famous East African Rift Valley, comprises numerous hot springs, beautiful lakes and a variety of wildlife. The valley is the result of two parallel faults in the earth’s surface, between which in distant geological time, the crust was weakened and the land subsided. Ethiopia is often referred to as the ‘water tower’ of Eastern Africa because of the many rivers that pour off the high tableland. The Great Rift Valley’s passage through Ethiopia is marked by a chain of seven lakes. Each of the seven lakes has its own special life and character and provides ideal habitats for the exuberant variety of flora and fauna that make the region a beautiful and exotic destination for tourists. Most of the lakes are suitable and safe for swimming and other water sports. Lakes Abiata and Shalla are ideal places for bird watchers. Most of the Rift Valley lakes are not fully exploited for tourists except Lake Langano where tourist class hotels are built. The Rift Valley is also a site of numerous natural hot springs and the chemical contents of the hot springs are highly valued for their therapeutic purposes though at present they are not fully utilised. In short, the Rift Valley is endowed with many beautiful lakes, numerous hot springs, warm and pleasant climate and a variety of wildlife. It is considered as one of the most ideal areas for the development of international tourism in Ethiopia.

Lower Omo Valley

If you want a cultural experience that you will never forget, then plan a trip to the Lower Omo Valley. Here you can connect with one of more than a dozen indigenous peoples that live in the region. This is one of the only places in the world where you can still find indigenous people that haven’t been influenced by the outside world. The valley is dependent on the Omo River to live as it feeds the dry savannah that supports the local communities. Each of the villages has their own customs and language and have lived basically the same lifestyle for centuries. The Mursi and Hamar are proud people who adorn themselves in unusual body art and jewelry and cattle are vital to their existence.

Centered on the pretty green town of Jinka, South Omo is Ethiopia’s most culturally and linguistically diverse administrative zone, supporting 16 different ethnic groups who all staunchly keep to their unique traditional costumes, customs and beliefs.

People of South Omo

The Ari The most populous ethnic group in South Omo, the Ari also have the largest territory, centred on the main road to Jinka. They tend to be more westernized than most of their neighbours, though in rural areas Ari women still wear traditional dress made from banana leaves and hang beads and bracelets from their arms.

The Hamer are traditional pastoralists who speak one of the Omotic languages unique to South Omo. The women have a striking appearance, wearing plaited ochred hair and leather skirts embroidered with cowries, and both sexes indulge in intensive body scarification. The most important event in the Hamer calendar is the bull-jumping ceremony, usually held over three days between February and April, during which young men jump between the backs of several bulls lined up in a row.

The Mursi, is the South Omo’s most famous ethnic group, whose territory is centered on the Omo and Mago rivers. Mursi women are renowned for the saucer-sized clay lip-plates they insert into a distended slit between their mouth and lower lip. The size of the plate worn by a woman will determine how many cattle her husband must pay her family when they marry.

The Tsemai and Arbore are two affiliated groups who live in the eastern part of South Omo, having migrated there from Konso two centuries ago, and freely intermarry with their western neighbours, the Hamer. The Arbore in particular play an important role in facilitating local trade. The Tsemai are subsistence farmers who practise flood cultivation and keep cattle.

The Karo , linguistically affiliated to the Hamer, the small Karo group is renowned for its elaborate body painting, which involves spotting the body with white chalk paint and applying a rainbow of traditionally made pastes to the face. They live on the east bank of the Omo River.

The Omo National Park

One of the most beautiful national parks in Ethiopia, its 4068 km of wilderness bordered by the Omo river, is home to an amazing range of wildlife. 306 species of birds have been identified here, while large herds of eland, some buffalo, elephants, giraffe, cheetah, lion, leopard, Burchell’s zebra are not uncommon.

The park is not easily accessible, as the current means of access is via Omorate and the ferry to the north bank of the river. The park HQ is 75 km from Kibish settlement. However, a new airstrip is available close to the HQ and a pleasant campsite on the Mui River – plans are in hand for further major improvements.

The Mago National Park

Covering an area of 2162 km on the banks of the Omo River, the Mago National Park is relatively undeveloped for tourists. The broad grasslands teem with herds of buffalo, giraffe, elephants and kudu, while sometimes it is possible to find lions, leopards and Burchell’s zebra. The abundant bird life here is typical of dry grasslands and river banks.