Day 39 May 20th 2018
Picked up early by the guys and hare off down the gravel road headed for the Yemrehana Kristos church.We really didn’t know what to expect but “going with it” had proved to be a good philosophy.Surprises always seem to turn out to be great travel moments.In this case we weren’t sure,it was quite hot,Mel was drained from a bad case of the screaming abdabs and there was a steep hike.We passed a lot of locals going down to the village we had come from.Then we arrived!
What a sight-the ugliest brick wall you have ever seen-a candidate for that famous FB site “Shithouse Brick Walls of Melbourne”.
It was shielding the mouth of a cave and we entered through a small door.
Here was the unexpected -we stopped and admired.Inside was this architectural gem of a church perfectly proportioned within the cave area.The contrast between wall and the cave’s content accented the church’s beauty.Unlike the others we had seen this was constructed from wood rather than carved from the rock.The construction however copied the style of the others.
The priest came and opened the church and we walked through and around it.It was so small that most of the congregation and the choir have to sit on mats surrounding it whilst the mass goes on.
Back out beyond the wall we head down to the village and back to Lalibela.
The afternoon was spent visiting the stone churches we hadn’t seen the day before.The motto here is that “seeing one doesn’t mean you have seen them all”.Each church has it’s own architectural personality and situation.One of my favourites could only be arrived at through a single person at a time hole in the surrounding rock.Another by a bridge across a huge water reservoir.
It brings home the speed we travel at, because on reflection I am sure that more time at each would have been enriching.In fact I think that Lalibela could be a four day destination with some repeats at different times of day to get different lighting effects.
A great couple of days exceeding our expectations.
