Debre Markos / Blue Nile Falls

Still, we were off, and it was good to leave the city for a new adventure. The road to our first stop, Debre Markos, took us through the unbelievable Blue Nile Gorge. This is an extension of the famous Great Rift Valley, and is easily the most impressive geological formation I’ve ever seen. The walls of the valley shoot straight up 4000 meters. The gravel and dirt roads somehow manage to traverse this wild place, although our driver found it very difficult to make more than 30 kilometers an hour.

Scenes from Debre Markos

Debre Markos is a beautiful monastery overlooking the gorge and the Blue Nile below. It was recently rebuilt after being destroyed in the war, but I found it impressive nonetheless. After a brief visit there, we headed to the Blue Nile Falls. Quite a bit smaller than Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, it was still quite impressive. Our "guide", a local boy of about 12 years old, tried to sell me a baby baboon. For 12 bucks, I seriously considered buying it and letting it free. But, it was only a few months old and would never have survived in the wild. I did enjoy having it sit on my shoulder for a few minutes though.

Scenes from the Blue Nile Falls